The Hamas today released two more hostages. Both female and full citizens of Israel, one is 79 and the other 85. Supposedly, they had breathing and medication problems. Qatar and Egypt mediated. Thus, this attack by the Hamas to capture hostages no doubt was a good part of their plans to insure for their future. By dribbling out hostages, they buy time to gain international support and solidify their defenses. Also, a third truck convoy entered the Gaza Strip.
The world benefit is that Israel cannot send their troops into the Gaza Strip until this all plays out, thus minimizing a Hezbollah attack from the north and other incursions from Jordan and Syria by Iranian-supported terrorists. While revenge and future safety factors will never go away until Israel does something to control future Hamas attacks, for now, this Middle East war has not escalated as the Yom Kippur War did, throwing the future of the world at stake.
In the meantime, the Republicans in the House are further retrograding, and have sunk to the point where they now have 9 possible candidates. They will again have a candidate forum, tonight at 6:30PM, an internal conference vote at 9AM Tuesday, and, if all turns out well, a floor vote later in the day to vote on the survivor. That is the best case scenario that will almost surely not occur.
At this time, it is looking like current Majority Whip Tom Emmer from Minnesota looks like the favorite. He is already in a leadership position, and is supported by former speaker Kevin McCarthy.
I just found that I am just out of olive oil. In fact, I don't have any other kind of oil also, so I went to Amazon.com and learned that I can't have them mail a bottle to me. Well, they would if I paid around $10 for Whole Foods to deliver. I need to go to Whole Foods and buy one. Amazon in 2017 bought Whole Foods for $13.7 billion. So it got me thinking. Is olive oil all that much better than other oils?
- Fats have a terrible reputation in nutrition, but, it turns out that they are an essential part of a well-rounded diet. Further, fat is a very underappreciated nutrient that is essential for optimal health.
- Factors to consider.
- You want to avoid oils with a low smoke point.
- Stay away from those high in saturated fat, and go for those that are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Another posting, but some saturated fats can be good.
Olive oil is popular for a good reason.- Full of flavor and versatile.
- Has good nutrients, antioxidants and heart-healthy fats.
- But, whoops, has a low smoke point, so watch out. Use for medium to low-heat cooking, baking and dressings.
- Extra virgin oil is best.
Avocado oil has the same benefits as olive oil, but as a plus, has a higher smoking point, so it is great for sauteing or pan frying.- Is full of vitamin E and has one of the highest monounsaturated fat contents in oil.
- Doesn't have much flavor, so will not overpower cuisine.
- I definitely should try this next.
Coconut oil has had a lot of hype the past few years,- I was into this once because I basically like the taste of coconut.
- However, has a pretty high concentration of saturated fat.
- But it does have a high smoke point and healthy benefits.
- Can improve cholesterol.
- Kills harmful bacteria. I wonder how it avoids killing good bacteria?
- Boosts metabolism.
And here is the kicker....some saturated fats are okay for you, like from coconut oil.- First, coconut is 92% saturated fat and raises cholesterol levels like butter and lard.
- However, it contains a medium chain saturated fat called lauric acid that research shows raises HDL or good cholesterol levels, which should lower overall heart disease risk.
- Further, promotes weight loss and fights cancer and immune disorders.
Look for pure virgin coconut oil that has not been chemically processed or hydrogenated (in case you wondered what "virgin" was).- Has a shelf life of several years when stored in a cool dry place, not necessarily in a refrigerator.
- I don't think I kept any coconut oils when I moved into 15 Craigside, mostly because I thought I would eat in a dining room. I once had a variety of different types. Now I find out that I dine in maybe only 20% of the time. Otherwise, I mostly cook by enhancing what they serve. Thus, oils have become important.
- Sunflower oil.
- Packs almost 30% of the daily recommended intake of vitamin E in JUST ONE TABLESPOON.
- High in omega-6 fatty acids.
- Has around the highest smoke point (450F), so great for steaks and sauteing.
- Has only a mild flavor.
- Said to have a one year shelf life in the pantry. But can be refrigerated.
- Butter.
- Yes, butter.
- Unprocessed butter can be fairly nutritious.
- Full of vitamins A, E and K2.
- Rich in inflammation-fighting acids.
- High in Omega-3 fatty acids.
- Best to use pure butterfat or ghee (clarified butter with lactose removed--can be stored indefinitely), which is free of sugar and proteins.
- Butter from grass-fed cows are better.
- In case you wondered what unprocessed butter was: raw better made from heavy cream that has never been pasteurized.
- According to this source, raw butter will sour in a refrigerator after 60 days or at room temperature quicker, HOWEVER, it is still safe to consume, just like sour cream. It might actually be more nutritious when sour. I would imagine that this advice would be applicable to un-raw butter or process-butter also.
- Sesame oil also has a high smoke point with a relatively neutral flavor. However, if you like the taste of sesame, get the nuttier TOASTED sesame oil. Great for crispy rice and fried eggs.
- There are others, like hempseed, flaxseed, almond, walnut, peanut, pistachio, canola, soybean, pumpkin and on and on...oils.
- Looks like I'm going to have fun with avocado butter for sure, maybe go back to coconut butter, and add toasted sesame oil butter to my mix. Yes, these oils also can be processed into a kind of butter. Which would be a financial pain, because where I live the butter at 15 Craigside is free.
- Helps lower your blood pressure.
- Fights inflammation.
- Lowers risk of heart disease.
- Prevents blood clots.
- Loaded with antioxidants to ward off cell damage.
- According to Harvard, the greater the consumption of olive oil, the higher the longevity. Greater than half a tablespoon resulted in 19% lower risk of early death compared to people who never or rarely used olive oil.
- But is olive oil all that much better than those others mentioned above? Probably not much.
I recall my mother using Crisco. What is this?
- Remember something called lard?
- Made from animal fat, usually pork.
- Some chefs are beginning to return to lard.
- Crisco looked like lard.
- However, Crisco was made from partially hydrogenated cottonseed or soy bean oil, but the solidification process, good for baking, resulted in trans fats, implicated in heart disease.
- More recently, Crisco changed its processing to reduce trans fats to less than 0.5 grams/serving, for which the FDA now allows the company to say it contains zero trans fats.
- It is made from some vegetable, like soy bean or corn.
- Back in 2011 there was a class-action lawsuit that Wesson Oil engaged in false advertising.
- Essentially, their ads said it was 100% natural. But what is natural? Apparently, genetically modified corn and soy bean are not.
- Then ConAgra, which owned the company when the legal proceeding began, but sold it to Richardson International in 2019, agreed to a $3 million settlement.
- There is a complicated settlement that make allows some consumer to claim some of this money. Something like 15 cents/bottle. But this period expired in May of this year.
I'll end with potato chips, something we all sneak in now and then.
- Covid forced people to stay home. These souls found solace in potato chips. From 2019 to 2020, this snack increased in national sales by $350 million.
- Do you know who might have been responsible for potato chips, which were invented in the USA?
- Back in 1853 Cornelius Vanderbilt was eating at Moon's when he ordered some fried potatoes.
- He return them to the kitchen because it was too thick.
- Chef George Crum, of Native and African American descent, then went on to slice some potatoes as slenderly as he could, and fried them to a crisp to Vanderbilt as a prank.
- Vanderbilt was overjoyed.
- Became known as Crum's Saratoga chips.
- In 1860, Crum opened his own restaurant near Saratoga, New York, where a basket of potato chips sat invitingly at every table.
- A New York Herald writer called him the best cook in America.
- He was the Edison of grease.
- Historians, though, found an earlier recipe for potato chips dating back to 1817 in England, when William Kitchiner published The Cook's Oracle.
- Also earlier than Crum, in 1849 "Eliza" a cook in Saratoga Springs, New York, had a prominent reputation for potato chips.
- Yet, there is acknowledgement that it was Crum who most popularized the chip.
- You can still buy Saratoga Chips.
- In 1895 an Ohio entrepreneur, William Tappenden, formed an operation to stock grocery shelves of his potato chips.
- Then in 1926, Californian Laura Scudder, began packaging chips in wax-paper bags with a freshness date, and more so, boasted that it had "the noisiest chips in the world."
- She later expanded into peanut butter and mayonnaise.
- In 1957 the Laura Scudder brand potato hips held greater than a 50% share of the California market.
- Her company was sold that year, and she passed away in 1959.
- Borden bought Laura Scudder Inc. in 1987 for $100 million.
- The peanut butter business went to J.M.Smucker Company in 1994.
- In March 2020 there now appears to be two Laura Scudder brands.
By the way, when I went shopping for olive oil, I noticed that I would need to pay more than $20/bottle for a decent smallish bottle. When did oil prices go so high? I thought oil cost $5-$10 in a supermarket. Of course, I haven't shopped for this commodity in decades, but something else has happened.
Well, for one, there has been a two-year drought in Spain, and prices have been skyrocketing. Why? Spain produces 1.3 million tons of the world's 3.1 million ton annual production. The European Union produces two-thirds of all the olive oil and the USA is in tenth place.
Here is the Vegetable Oil Price Index, and note the relative high cost of olive oil.
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