Mary’s Organic Non-GMO chickens
We are excited and pleased to now be able to offer you Mary’s Chicken for our Herb Roasted Chicken and other dishes. Mary’s is an elite producer meeting ultra high standards as set by both the Non-GMO Project and by a new group called the Global Animal Partnership.
Mary’s Free-Range California Bronze Air Chilled Chickens are raised on pasture, have places to perch and areas to dust bathe. They are treated with great respect and compassion. They are a slower growing breed and are living a lifestyle that is closest to their natural state.
These chickens are processed and cooled individually using cold air, rather than the commonly used communal chlorinated water bath. This airchilled method prevents the absorption of water, greatly reducing any potential of bacterial contamination.
With respect to the welfare of the chickens the Global Animal Partnership establishes a 5-step process to guide its member farmers and ranchers. In essence, Step 1 prohibits cages and crates. Step 2 requires environmental enrichment for indoor production systems. Step 3, outdoor access. Step 4, pasture-based production. Step 5, an animal-centered approach with all physical alterations prohibited. And, finally, Step 5+, the entire life of the animal spent on an integrated farm.
Happy well-cared-for animals ultimately result in superior nutritive value. It couldn’t be otherwise. Read more here: http://www.globalanimalpartnership.org
St. Elizabeth’s Shelter Hungry Mouth Festival is becoming one of the most anticipated events of the year. Providing food and shelter for Santa Fe’s homeless for 27 years, St Elizabeth’s is now planning an evening of delicious food cooked by prominent Santa Feans and overseen by local chefs. Roland of Joe’s is proud to be one of the four volunteer chefs. If you’ve wondered how to truly help the homeless in a meaningful way, your trust is well placed in the time-honored St. Elizabeth’s Shelter. See the flyer near the glass brick window for details about this Sept. 14th event.
My concern continues for the loss of a perfectly good language, English. With the advent of texting and the nebulous concept of “political correctness”, I suspect all languages are at similar risk. I am reminded (by a very precise friend) that a phrase we use frequently now, “health care,” must not be confused with the phrase, “health insurance”. Think about it the next time you are conversationally engaged in that polemic topic.
Guests and especially regulars are getting restless, asking when they can have our Margherita Pizza and Caprese Salad again. Well if you are new to Joe’s you may not know the story. Roland has been offering these two dishes since 1996 when he bought his first local heirloom tomatoes from Dave & Loretta Fresques of Monte Vista Organics. That was for our first restaurant, Pizza Etc. A tradition was started. We offer these dishes only in season and made with none other than local luscious sun-ripened organic heirloom tomatoes and our own house-made fresh mozzarella. The dishes are truly memorable. From time to time, guests will comment that they have not had a better Margherita Pizza even in Italy! So hold yer horses. The tomatoes usually ripen in August. And I guarantee you it’s worth the wait!
Just back from our travels to Saskatchewan for a family reunion. It was far better than one would expect those things to be! Won’t bore you with family details, but because we decided to motor it, we had long stretches of prairie that afforded us time to read to each other. No, the driver was not the reader, silly! One book that intrigued us was Jim Rogers’ Street Smarts, Adventures on the Road. A savvy investor, world traveler (by motor cycle) and devoted latecomer to fatherhood, he has a convincing grasp of global events that are impacting our lives now. And in the very last chapter he offers his succinct and surprisingly uncomplicated suggestions for getting us back on track as a proud, free and productive country. Worth the read.
GMO alert – top ten worst foods.
1. Corn – One of the most prominent GMO foods, avoiding corn is a no-brainer. If you’ve watched any food documentary, you know corn is highly modified. As many as half of all U.S. farms growing corn for Monsanto are using genetically modified corn, much of it intended for human consumption. Monsanto’s GMO corn has been tied to numerous health issues, including weight gain and organ disruption.
2. Soy – Found in tofu, vegetarian products, soybean oil, soy flour, and numerous other products, soy is also modified to resist herbicides. Biotech giant Monsanto still has a tight grasp on the soybean market, with approximately 90 percent of soy being genetically engineered to resist Monsanto’s herbicide Roundup. In one single year, 2006, there was 96.7 million pounds of glyphosate sprayed on soybeans alone.
3. Beet Sugar – According to NaturalNews, genetically-modified sugar beets were introduced to the U.S. market in 2009. Like others, they’ve been modified by Monsanto to resist herbicides. Monsanto has had USDA liability issues with the planting of its sugarbeets. They were ordered to remove seeds from the soil due to illegal approval.
4. Aspartame – Aspartame is a toxic additive used in numerous food products, and should be avoided for numerous reasons, including the fact that it is created with genetically modified bacteria. When y’all finally tell us you will stop drinking Diet Coke, we will get rid of it. As you may notice aspartame was banned from Joe’s sugar bowls long ago.
5. Papayas – GMO papayas have been grown in Hawaii for consumption since 1999. They are banned in the European Union. They are welcome in the U.S. and Can.
6. Canola – One of the most chemically altered foods in the U.S. diet, canola oil is obtained from rapeseed through a series of chemical actions. (a personal note, when in Saskatchewan recently, we saw huge fields of rapeseed/canola being sprayed by plane for fungus).
7. Cotton – Cotton from India and China in particular has serious risks. (Note: our Tees are organic USA cotton).
8. Dairy – Since as many as one-fifth of all dairy cows in America are injected with these hormones. Monsanto’s health-hazardous rBHG has been banned in 27 countries, but is still in most US cows. (!!)
9. & 10. Zucchini and Yellow Squash – These two squash varieties are modified to resist viruses.
“Doctor, I have a memory problem!” The doctor says, “When did it start?” “When did what start?”
After some recent research, I have become fascinated by the new natural therapies for memory loss, dementia, Parkinson’s and related neurologic and cognitive disorders in our aging population. Alzheimer’s and dementia are some of the scariest and most emotionally-triggering diseases. But they are easier to prevent than previously thought. Look to future newsletters – I will elaborate. Here for the moment are 10 foods you should add into your diet that can help improve your mind:
1. Leafy greens. kale, spinach, collard and mustard greens – high in folate and B9, which improve cognition and reduce depression. (Note: *I would add purslane to this list – high in A, C, folate, calcium, magnesium, potassium.)
2. Cruciferous vegetables. Broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, brussels sprouts and kale contain folate and carotenoids that lower homo-cysteine (an amino acid linked with cognitive impairment).
3. Beans and legumes contain folate, iron, magnesium and potassium that can help with general body function and neuron firing. They also contain choline, that boosts a neuro transmitter critical for brain function.
4. Whole grains – quinoa, kammut and gluten-free oats.
5. Berries and cherries contain anthocyanin that protects the brain from free radical damage, have anti-inflammatory properties and contain antioxidants.
6. Pumpkin, squash, asparagus, tomatoes, carrots and beets help with cognition.
7. Omega 3s. People whose diets contain daily omega 3s have been shown to have 26% less risk of having brain lesions that cause dementia. Cold water fish, flax seeds and grass-finished meats are sources.
8. Almonds, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts, peanuts and pecans contain Omega-3s and omega-6s, vitamin E, folate, vitamin B6 and magnesium.
9. Sunflower and pumpkin seeds – contain zinc, choline and vitamin E.
10. Cinnamon, sage, turmeric and cumin all help to break up brain plaque and reduce brain inflammation. Note: the Indian population, who use turmeric, has a far lower rate of AD than we do here in the US and CAN.
Why is locally grown food so very important to Joe’s? Why do we keep hammering on this “buy local” theme? There are many factors that are out of our hands when it comes to our food supply. Most of what ends up on the American dinner table derives from a shockingly few giant agribusinesses. Their influence reaches from designing the (GMO) seeds to planting, harvesting, processing and shipping. We as consumers cannot with confidence hand over the entire stewardship of our food to these few multinationals. Our passion here at Joe’s is for a local sustainable food supply – food produced by growers who are accountable for what they grow. KYG – Know Your Grower. We are able to look our local farmer in the eye and ask him about his growing practices or even visit his operation. This gives us the confidence that we are eating food that is healthy, wholesome, non-genetically engineered, often better than organic, humanely treated and minimally processed. It is grown with a smaller energy-use footprint and transported short distances. We cannot divorce human health, the economy, ecology, personal (perhaps spiritual) satisfaction or honorable work from food. Food is fundamental. What we eat, where it comes from, the stewardship of food animals, the nurturing and building of soils – all these factors affect us at a cellular and visceral level … whether we slow down enough to be aware of it or not. We are fortunate in Santa Fe to have a dedicated farm base producing a wonderful array of goods. Here at Joe’s we do our best to offer this bounty to you, keeping dollars in the community. In the interest of transparency, in 2008 Joe’s spent $30,000 on local foods. In 2009 that increased to $60,000. And for 2012 we exceeded $100,000. During the growing season as much as 95% of our menu is locally sourced.
Land, economy, health – inseparable.
*Here are some of the farmers/ranchers we have developed long-standing partnerships with – Monte Vista Organics (Dave and Loretta), Camino de Paz Farm & School (Greg & Patty), Shepherd’s Lamb (Antonio and Molly), La Mont’s Buffalo (Monte and Lana), Green Tractor Farms (Tom and Mary), Synergia Ranch (Mark), La Montanita Co-Op, Matt Romero Farms, Sweetgrass Co-Op.
Joe’s “frequent diner” or gift card – when you purchase $100 gift card with cash or check, get a $10 card free!
Giggles: There are 3 essential tools: duct tape, WD40 and a hammer. If something is moving and it shouldn’t be, duct tape it. If it isn’t moving and it should be, use WD40. If it still doesn’t move, hit it with a hammer. If it breaks, tape it back together with the duct tape.
Joe’s
2801 Rodeo Rd (at Zia Rd) Santa Fe, NM 87507
505-471-3800 www.JoesDining.com
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