YumSugar

Come Party With Me: Movie Club Meeting - Invite

partysugar — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:15:41 -0700

Recently my friend Kirin told me about her decision to start a documentary film club. The club will be similar to a book club, but instead of reading and discussing a book, guests will watch and chat about a documentary. I was excited by the idea and volunteered to create a menu for the first meeting, where King Corn will be the featured movie. Since the foodie film focuses on the lifecycle of the crop, Kirin wants the party to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Instead of wasting paper by sending hard invites, she's requested that I make a green email invite. To see how I made the one shown here, read more.

To make a similar invite you will need the following supplies:

image of corn or a corn field
computer

To assemble the invite:

Start by dragging the image into Photoshop. Create a new file and copy and paste the image into the blank file. Center the image to the left and write out the details of the party on the right. For my invite I used the font Calisto MT in size 18 to write the following message:

Dear Friend,

You’ve been selected
to be a part of my
documentary film club.

Please join me for
a screening of
King Corn

A green, vegetarian dinner and a lively discussion
to follow

Wednesday, August 20
6:30 pm

Kirin’s House,
San Francisco

regrets only 415.333.3333

Check for spelling and grammar mistakes.
If desired add a creative background or extra designs.
Once satisfied with the invite, save as a jpeg. Send attached as part of an email. When I send email invites, I like to send the invite to myself first to make sure it sends how I envisioned. Next I send to a mass email list of all invited guests. You can also upload the image to an online invite service like evite or pingg.

Source

What Is Your Favorite Foodie Film of 2007?

YumSugar — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 06:59:39 -0800

Now that we've covered all the little screen options - fave foodie reality shows, fave foodie shows, and fave cooking show - we thought we'd turn our Best of 2007 coverage to the big screen. Which of these foodie films is your favorite of 2007?

Source

King Corn: A Food Documentary to Watch

YumSugar — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 10:45:05 -0700

"Everything on your plate is corn." That line, uttered by an interviewee in King Corn, is essentially the premise behind this new food-focused documentary. Much the way that Super Size Me uses a clever gimmick to take on the fast-food industry, King Corn follows two friends, Ian Cheney and Kurt Ellis, who move to Iowa to find out how this unassuming crop has made its way into so many grocery-store staples in the form of corn syrup, malodextrin, and other not-so-healthy ingredients.

With humor and a vagabond attitude, Cheney and Ellis establish a one-acre corn farm so that they can follow the life cycle of their crop. Along the way, they visit the Midwest's sprawling corn complexes and interview experts about how the highly subsidized crop has become an easy target in the fight against obesity. The movie opened this weekend in New York, and over the next few weeks will be showing in other cities, including LA, San Francisco, Austin, and Chicago. (Check the King Corn site to find out if it's coming to your city.) Watch the trailer and tell me what you think when you read more

King Corn Trailer

Add to My Profile | More Videos

Source

Come Party With Me: Movie Club Meeting

partysugar — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 07:45:00 -0700

The foodie documentary King Corn will be shown at my movie club meeting, so the menu features a variety of vegetarian corn dishes. During the screening, let guests nibble on corn cakes and pizzettas with corn and zucchini.

After the movie is finished, invite everyone around the table for a light meal of cheddar corn chowder with an arugula fresh corn salad on the side. The soup can be kept warm during the movie, while the salad can be assembled in advance and dressed just before serving.

For these delicious recipes that highlight the sweet flavor of corn, read more.

Corn Cakes With Fresh Corn and Chives
From Better Homes and Gardens magazine

Ingredients

1 fresh ear of corn or 1/2 cup frozen whole kernel corn
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup milk
1 slightly beaten egg
1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives
3 tablespoons cooking oil
1 teaspoon snipped fresh chives or cilantro (optional)
1/3 cup dairy sour cream

Directions

Cut corn kernels from cob and measure 1/2 cup. In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Set aside.
In a medium bowl stir boiling water into cornmeal to make a stiff mush. Stir in milk until smooth; then stir in fresh or frozen corn, egg, and the 1 tablespoon chives. Add flour mixture and stir just until combined.
In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat. Drop batter by rounded tablespoons into hot oil. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown, turning once. Transfer to a serving platter; cover and keep warm.
Repeat with remaining batter, adding the remaining 1 tablespoon oil.
Meanwhile, if desired, stir the 1 teaspoon chives into the sour cream. Serve sour cream with the corn cakes.

Makes 6 servings.

Print recipe with images | without images

White-Cheddar Corn Chowder
From Martha Stewart

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
1 celery stalk, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 2 1/2 cups)
2 cups homemade or low-sodium store-bought vegetable stock
1 cup nonfat milk
3 cups fresh corn kernels (from about 6 ears of corn)
1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese, grated (about 3/4 cup)

Directions

Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add celery, and cook until tender, about 4 minutes. Add coriander, cumin, and cayenne.
Raise heat to medium-high, and add wine.
Cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes. Add potatoes, stock, and milk, and bring to a boil (skim any foam from surface). Reduce heat, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
Add corn, and cook until tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat.
Transfer 2 cups soup to a blender. Let cool slightly, then puree. Return puree to pan, and stir. Reheat if needed. Season with salt and pepper. Pour into bowls, and top with cheese. Chowder can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Serves 6.

Print recipe with images | without images

Arugula, Fresh Corn and Tomato Salad
From Food and Wine magazine

Ingredients

1/4 cup Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar
1/4 cup minced shallots
Salt and freshly ground pepper
6 ears white corn with small kernels, shucked
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 loosely packed cups arugula or peppercress (about 3/4 pound)
3 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
8 fresh organic nasturtiums (see Note), gently torn into bite-size pieces (optional)

Directions

In a large bowl, mix the Champagne vinegar with the minced shallots and season the mixture with salt and pepper. Let the shallots stand in the vinegar for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, using a sharp, thin knife and working over another bowl, cut the kernels from the ears of white corn.
Whisk the olive oil into the Champagne vinegar and shallots until blended. Add the arugula and toss with the dressing.
Add the cherry tomatoes and the corn kernels and toss gently. Transfer the salad to a large platter, scatter the nasturtiums on top and serve.

Serves 8.

Print recipe with images | without images

Elvis Cutting Board: Love It or Hate It?

YumSugar — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 05:50:44 -0700

This King of cutting boards ($20) had me cracking up at first sight. I'm not an avid Elvis fan, but the whole concept - his eggplant hair, his bell pepper ear, his carrot-and-corn collar - makes me laugh. I love the vibrant colors, too. Still, I could see how some might find this accessory too garish and gaudy for their kitchen.