Policy Point Wednesday - What Are You Eating?

The blog Visual Economics offered us some terrific food-related eye-candy last week that I thought I'd share with you - along with a good explanation of why Americans are overweight.

Note that, although the kinds of foods we eat don't seem as out of whack as I'd thought they might be (I suppose we could be eating more high-fiber grains, vegetables, fish -  and I'm a bit surprised at the high proportion of dairy foods) the big picture shows that we're taking in 2,700 calories per day: about 700 -800 more than is recommended for men to maintain their current weight, and about 900-1000 more than women need to maintain their current weight (not considering other factors like exercise, etc.) 

I'll let the graphic speak for itself.

From Visual Economics: http://www.visualeconomics.com/food-consumption-in-america_2010-07-12/

  

Sundays with Sparky - Crusty Bread Part I

Sparky was home on a bleak, rainy afternoon - so I thought "homemade bread." Nothing quite lifts the spirits like the smell of bread baking, does it? At any rate, I've been meaning to try the  Simple Crusty Bread recipe from Artesan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, just to see if it really worked - and if it didn't, hey, I have a bowlful of really stretchy and inexpensive playdo. It's a can't lose situation.


So, off we went - with some coaxing, Sparky emerged from his room, hands washed, and watched me measure the 1 1/2 tbsp of yeast into the huge bowl I decided to use. He carefully poured in 3 cups of water and whisked vigorously, sniffing curiously as the yeast began to bloom - we already had discussed that the holes in bread are because the little yeast beasties gorge themselves on the sugars in the flour and get gas. I added 1 1/2 tbsp of sea salt (the recipe called for kosher and I think I should have used a bit more to compensate, but I couldn't find the regular salt) and, with Sparky whisking all the while, I added 2 of the 6 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour. We switched to a spatula as I added the rest of the flour, and then I let him go to town (the recipe directs that all the flour be wet - Sparky took that to mean let no glob go unturned)

I explained to him that the flour had a glue in it: gluten, and that the gluten was forming thin sheets in the dough, which eventually would catch the gas of the yeastie beasties like a balloon or bubble gum and give us bread instead of flat pastry. To that end, we set the dough aside - near the stove, for warmth - for two hours, after which it had doubled in volume and become almost frothy in texture. I then snipped it into four pieces with scissors, scooping one blobby quarter into Sparky's well-floured hands. The remainder of the dough went into the refrigerator for future use.

With a little prompting and a lot of extra flour, he figured out the technique of rolling the top of the dough down into the underside of the bottom, so it became a little ball. This we set on a cornmeal-dusted cookie sheet near the oven, and ignored for 40 minutes (word to the wise, preheat your oven to 450 about 25 minutes in.) After the second rise, I sliced 3 expansion slits in the loaf and put it in the preheated oven, with a pan of hot water sitting directly on the oven floor underneath it.

The bread baked for 30 minutes, filling the house with that wonderful fragrance that only homemade bread can offer. Our efforts had produced a beautiful little crusty loaf with a nice chewy crumb, made even better with the Plugra I had squirreled away for a rainy day. Ain't rain wonderful?

The Food Desert Project: Hoppin' John Burgers

Well, since no one participated in the BSI contest, I guess I'll share my own Black Eye Pea recipe:  Blackeye peas actually come to us from Africa (which is why they look like beans, but are referred to as peas: both are legumes, but beans - typically a summer crop - originated in the Americas, where peas - typically a cool-season crop - originated in West Africa.)  All the pea and bean members of the legume family are healthy foods: I love the creamy texture of peas, blackeye peas in particular.  Hoppin' John comes to us from African slaves who lived in the Carolinas, and who brought their foods with them from Africa.  Next week's BSI contest will be hosted by Hema at h4hemh4help

Hoppin' John Burgers

½ cup of uncooked rice (ideally brown rice, but add 10 minutes to cooking time)
1 cup of water
1 tbsp dried onion flakes
½ tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 ½ cups of cooked or canned blackeye peas
¼ cup shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 cup egg substitute or 3 egg whites
Fresh breadcrumbs (put a stale hotdog bun or two in the blender)
Bacon fat
Oil

Cook the rice and seasonings together (bring water and seasonings to a boil, add rice, turn down to low and simmer for 15 minutes) add the blackeye peas and allow to cool. Place in a chopper, blender or food processor with 3 eggs and cheese and blend to a chunky paste (like chunky peanut butter) form into loose patties and dredge in breadcrumbs. Fry in oil flavored with rendered bacon fat.  Makes 4 burgers: Nutrition information (burgers as prepared with bacon topping only; no bun or mayo)

Serve on toasted hamburger buns slathered in mayo. Top with bacon.

We often buy the frozen blackeye peas, which I assume are no different than if you bought dried ones and soaked them overnight. I like having these in my pantry; they brighten up a plain bowl of rice - all you have to do is toss them in the pot with raw rice and water, and cook the rice as you would normally.

Sundays with Sparky - Campfire Apple Muffins In Oranges

We recently went on a short car-camping trip to Blue Mounds, WI (an excellent campground which I highly recommend, if you're in the area)  I particularly enjoy the challenge of cooking over an open fire, which is easy enough to do when you're grilling meats and vegetables, or toasting marshmallows, but a bit more challenging when it comes to baking, not in the least because you don't have the equipment.

I had pre-made and packed an applesauce muffin mix - simple enough, and requiring only a few additions to prepare it:

For the mix:

1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
2 tablespoons quick cooking oats

(note: save a bit of the mix for dusting the bottom of each orange)

To prepare, add:

1 egg, lightly beaten - or at a campsite, I use a liquid egg substitute 

1 cup unsweetened applesauce plus 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup oil or melted butter

So, I set Sparky to combining the mix and wet ingredients with our camp whisk while I prepared the oranges:

First, I cut the top and a thin slice off the bottom of each orange like so:

Then, I cut a small conical section out of each orange, to reach the rest of the insides more easily.  After that, I cut around the inside of the orange and lifted it out in semicircle-like sections, and scraped the remaining pulp from the bottom with the point of my knife.

After that, Sparky put all the empty orange peels in aluminum foil, filled them with muffin batter, and carefully closed the top. 

Then, using tongs, we nestled the packets in the coals of our fire, and turned them periodically for about thirty minutes, opening to check them occasionally.  The muffins were done when the sides of the oranges gave slight resistance to the tongs.

We then peeled the foil away, and had beautiful applesauce muffins in our oranges.  Delicious!  The scent of orange zest filled the whole campsite, and the muffins were moist and smoky and hot and apple-orangey.   Quite the pleasant wake-up call when you're camping in the North Woods - and you can squeeze the orange pulp in a cheesecloth and have fresh OJ to go with your muffin.

The Food Desert Project - Easy Tasty Oatmeal Cottage Cheese Pancakes

Last year, Sparky took his first standardized test.  Choosing breakfast foods that are rich in whole grains, fiber, and protein while low in added sugar may boost kids' attention span, concentration, and memory Knowing that a good breakfast is even more important in such a mentally stressful situation, and that protein is particularly important for kids who struggle to pay attention, I researched a number of high-protein, low-fat breakfasts and found this new favorite:  Oatmeal Cottage Cheese Pancakes.

This recipe could not possibly be simpler, and has the advantage of being whole-grain, high-protien, low-fat, low-sugar and gluten-free - and it tastes like a cross between creme brulee and pancakes! 

1/2 cup oatmeal (instant will make a more custardy pancake, rolled oats will make a more rustic one)
1/2 cup non-fat cottage cheese
2 eggs, 4 egg whites, or 2 eggs worth of nonfat egg substitute
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Dump all ingredients in the blender, blend on high until smooth.

Pour in small dollops on a pre heated, well-greased skillet, turn when you can slide a spatula underneath easily, and serve (the bubble trick doesn't really work for these, check the underneath with your spatula.)  Cooking does take a tiny bit longer than regular pancakes, when they pouff in the center, check for doneness with a finger, they should spring back slightly - these custardy pancakes are a real delight eaten with syrup.  Makes about 6 -8 pancakes, serves about 2 people.  Nutrition information (Using whole eggs instead of eggwhites or egg substitute adds 2 grams of fat and 211 mg of cholesterol)

...however, why would we want to stop there, when we can make these into a truly decadent, but still healthy treat?  After you pour the mixture into the skillet, dot with frozen fruit mixture of your choice (frozen is preferable to canned, because there is usually less added sugar - but use what you got.) 

Flip, finish cooking, and serve with the top lightly drizzled with a little heated Nutella (don't put a Nutella container in the microwave - it will melt - put it in a microwave-safe container and if you need to thin it more, add some milk.)

Policy Point Wednesday - Who should be in charge?

In a recent decision by the UK Health Secretary, the Food Standards Agency will be subsumed into the Department of Health, causing worry among groups concerned about whether this is an act of concession for the food industry.  It is important to remember that this agency is relatively new: it was created in 2000 to address the standards in the meat packing industry related to BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy.)  Interestingly, the FSA is a relatively independent organization, making its decisions at open, public board meetings.

The FSA website shows similarities to our own USDA, but with express directives related to food and health.  For instance, this salt  in bread calculator offers artisan bakers not only a way to measure the amount of salt in their final product - but also a specific goal of how much salt they should be using.  In 2004, they released an action plan to set standards on advertising food to children, something that remains controversial in the US.

So is the answer to allow food companies to regulate themselves, as has been suggested will be the result of this subsumation?  Recent attacks by food companies on health initiatives suggest that they will continue to promote unhealthy products as long as they are profitable.  For instance, when the Institute of Medicine suggested limits on salt in processed foods,  instead of creating an action plan to address limits, Cargill hired Food-TV personality Alton Brown to market and promote salt.  Lobbyists abound at the Institute of Medicine's 2009 conference to discuss the Child Nutrition Act.  In the UK, Health Secretary Andrew Lansley (who is proposing to disband the FSA) has promised not to regulate junk food, but instead mounted a food-lobby-funded advertising campaign, raising concerns of a conflict of interest.  In the US, Food-lawyer Jonathan Emord has been hired by the food industry to oppose the FDA's requirement of product-specific substantiation - a requirement that food companies offer scientific studies to back marketing health claims.

***Don't forget - four more days to enter your recipe in the Blogger Secret Ingredient Contest!***

Show me YOUR stuff - Blogger Secret Ingredient Contest!

This week I'm trying something new.  Nicole at Making Good Choices asked me to host this week's BSI (Blogger Secret Ingredient Contest) and so I thought I'd take a break from my regularly scheduled programming and see if I can tease all your brains for ideas for my own project! Next week's BSI contest will be hosted by Hema at h4hemh4help

BSI stands for Blogger Secret Ingredient. It's kind of an Iron-Chef-style recipe challenge, where each week a new host picks an ingredient and anyone (food blogger or not) can submit a recipe. The contests starts on a Monday, and recipes need to be submitted by Sunday night of that week. Then the next day the host chooses a winner and picks someone to host next week's contest.

The secret ingredient for this week is....drum roll please...BLACK EYE PEAS! Although I will choose the recipe I deem to be the tastiest as the winner, bloggers who successfully follow the parameters of the Food Desert Project (using only foods you can find in a dollar or drugstore) will get a special mention and link on the winning page (feel free to browse the food desert project for techniques!) 

Send your recipes to me no later than Sunday at 8pm at michelhays AT juno DOT com.  You can either link to a blog post, or send the entire recipe as an email - please send photos if you've got them!   


NOTE: once you've sent your recipe, please post a comment on my blog, just to double-check that I received it.  At this time, odds are pretty good for an entry to win!

The winner will receive a charming picnic-cooler-for-two, similar to this one! (sorry, I can only ship to the contiguous US states)

If you are considering hosting, please let me know in your email.  Prizes are entirely the discretion of each week's host – for my win, I received a much-appreciated bar of Lindt chocolate that went to good use in s'mores!  Be forewarned - if you participate, I may send an email to hit you up to host next week's round (it's easy, and you'll meet and be viewed by all kinds of foodbloggers)

To recap -
Hosts:

1. Pick an ingredient, preferably one that is in season and readily available and not too expensive;
2. Link back to all the other previous weekly hosts;
3. Review the recipe submissions by Sunday night of each week;
4. Pick a recipe that is your favorite; and
5. Post the winner Monday morning and send the winner a token prize of your choosing.

Participants:

1. Do not have to have a food blog to participate
2. Do not have to submit a photograph  
3. Can submit a recipe via email to that week's host if they don't have a blog - the host will post your recipe for you!

Past blog hosts and their ingredients have been:

Week 87: Quips, Travails, and Braised Oxtails - Black eye Peas
Week 86: Making Good Choices – Applesauce
Week 85: Non-Dairy Queen - Raspberries
Week 84: Healthy Exposures - Bulgar Wheat
Week 83: Clarity in Creation – Peaches
Week 82: Mo’s Kitchen - Rice
Week 81: Waisting Duxie - Swiss Chard
Week 80: Fuss Free Flavours - Capers
Week 79: Jenn Cuisine - Honey
Week 78: Living Free - Cashews
Week 77: Affairs of Living – Artichokes
Week 76: One Frugal Foodie - Sunflower Seeds
Week 75: Part of the Whole - Beets
Week 74: Dinner at Christina’s - Sour Cream
Week 73: The Chef in My Head - Goat Cheese
Week 72: 5 Star Foodie - Asparagus
Week 71: Eats Well With Others – Carrots
Week 70: Burp and Slurp - Brussel Sprouts
Week 69: Fun Fearless Foodie – Parmesan Cheese
Week: 68: Natalie’s Killer Cuisine - Cocoa Powder
Week 67: Eat, Live, Travel, Write - Lemon Zest
Week 66: Travel Eat Love - Coconut Milk
Week 65: Run Beans Run - Tofu
Week 64: Chicago Marathon Val - Mushrooms
Week 63: Biggest Diabetic Loser – Cheddar Cheese
Week 62: A Fit and Spicy Life – Balsamic Vinegar
Week 61: Peanut Butter Fingers - Nutmeg
Week 60: Jenn Eats Nutritiously Now - Garlic
Week 59: Home Cooked Em – Cinnamon
Week 58: The Balanced Broad – Flax
Week 57: Cookin Fanatic - Blue Cheese
Week 56: Foodie in the City - Ricotta Cheese
Week 55: Savvy Eats - Maple Syrup
Week 54: Sound Eats - Dried Fruit
Week 53: Mega Nerd Runs - Acorn Squash
Week 52: Healthy Tipping Point - Pancake Mix
Week 51: Live, Laugh Eat - Almond Butter
Week 50: Balance, Joy and Delicias! – Cauliflower
Week 49: Healthy San Diego Living - Chickpeas
Week 48: Thought 4 Food - Yogurt
Week 47: London Foodie in New York - Chocolate
Week 46: Johnstone’s Vin Blanc - Oats
Week 45: Guilty Kitchen - Figs
Week 44: Ordinary Recipes Made Gourmet - Peanut Butter
Week 43: The Sophisticated Gourmet - Brown Sugar
Week 42: My Kitchen Addiction – Lime
Week 41: Nutmeg Nanny – Coffee
Week 40: Chaya’s Comfy Cook – Broccoli
Week 39: Healthy Delicious – Plums
Week 38: Zoe - Feta
Week 37: ChezWhat- Potatoes
Week 36: Cinnamon, Spice & Everything Nice – Blueberries
Week 35: Girlichef -Greens
Week 34: The Ungourmet – Watermelon
Week 33: Bread + Butter – Bell Pepper
Week 32: Burp and Slurp -Corn
Week 31: Say Yes to Salad – Kabocha
Week 31 1/2: Simply Fabulous Now – Cherries
Week 30: Thinspired – Bananas
Week 29: To Be The Whole Package – Almonds
Week 28: Kristas Kravings – Lemon
Week 27: From French Fries To Flax Seeds – Coconut
Week 26: Plentiful Plants – Avocado
Week 25: Training Fuel – Eggs
Week 24: Dinner at Christina’s – Cabbage
Week 23: Hey What’s for Dinner, Mom? – Strawberries
Week 22: One Bite at a Time – Basil
Week 21: Just Sweet Enough – Black Beans
Week 20: What I Ate Yesterday – Kale
Week 19: What’s for Dinner – Orange
Week 18: BranAppetit! –Spinach
Week 17: Tales of Expansion Dates
Week 16: Biggest Diabetic Loser – Zucchini
Week 15: Sweet & Natural –Peppermint
Week 14: bella eats [and runs] – Ginger
Week 13: Coffee Talk – Walnuts
Week 12: For the Love of Oats – Pumpkin
Week 11: Trying to Heal – Sweet Potatoes
Week 10: The Inner Workings of a College Graduate – Eggplant
Week 9: Itzy’s Kitchen – Pears
Week 8: The Fitnessista – Cranberries
Week 7: Tri to Cook – Lentils
Week 6: Rhodey Girl Tests – Polenta
Week 5: Eating Bender – Butternut Squash
Week 4: Care to Eat – Apples
Week 3: On a Lobster Placemat – Mushrooms
Week 2: Hangry Pants – Tomatoes
Week 1: sportsnutritionliving – Quinoa

Sundays with Sparky - All-Fruit Icicle Pops

I do love my kitchen appliances, and often fall victim to the unitasker.  Such was the case when I was regifted a FoodSaver: after vacu-sealing chicken breasts, I realized there was only one real use for the thing: making plastic-encased icicle pops, the no-mess summer treat that make me cringe whenever I buy the neon-colored, sugary ones from the store.  Unfortunately, after using them I discovered that liquids weren't ideal for vacu-sealing; they tended to get sucked up.

Recently, Del Monte released a product called "Fruit Chillers," which I realized was just flavored, sweetened, frozen applesauce (well, pear sauce, really) - and I realized that a fruit puree might solve my problem, so Sparky and I got right on that.  We started with a large canteloupe, a nice, flavorful fruit.

 I cut it in half, Sparky scooped out the seeds, and then - using his kevlar gloves - peeled it by cutting away the rind from the outside of the fruit.  We then  cut the fruit into big chunks.  The rest was simple: we dumped it into a blender, blended it into a puree, and added a touch of lime juice and a tablespoon of maple syrup, just in case freezing deadened the flavor.

We then poured our puree into some water-bottle ice-cube trays, just to make vacu-sealing a little easier.  After these were frozen, we started struggling with the FoodSaver.  Unfortunately, this version of a vacuum sealer leaves a very long edge between the sealed item and the seal - so our first attempt created short, stubby but exceptionally tasty icicle pops - I'm telling you, you'll never go back to the other kind. 

After nosing about on internet food sites, someone on David Lebovitz's Facebook page mentioned that I might try vacu-sealing the empty bags the long way, and then filling them - and this turned out to work like a charm.  For our second attempt, we (I, because pineapples are tough and tricky to cut) peeled, cored, and chopped a pineapple and added a pint of blueberries that were a bit tired, but still good.  We also treated a honeydew melon much the same way: peeled, seeded, chopped, pureed.  Sparky then helped me inject these fillings into the new long, skinny bags using a turkey baster (pictures to be added later; sorry - we skipped right to the eating part too quickly) and the tops were sealed.  These nothing-but-fruit pops were even better than the first!  (We were in too much of a hurry to take pictures, but I'll update this post with photos of how we did it as soon as I get the chance!)

  

Policy Point Wednesday - DASH off your SoFAS!

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee just released a new report on Dietary Guidelines for Americans, jointly issued by the USDA and the US Department of Health and Human Services every five years.  It notes that the majority of Americans are overweight but at the same time, are undernourished in several key ingredients.

The report coins the term SoFAS to describe what they believe is the major problem in American diets: Solid Fats and Added Sugars.  "Solid fats and added sugars contribute substantially (approximately 35% of calories) to total energy intakes of Americans, thereby leading to excessive saturated fat and cholesterol intakes and insufficient intake of dietary fiber and other nutrients"  It specifies the types of foods where Americans are consuming these energy-dense, nutritionally-insufficient calories:


Solid fats (percent of solid fat intake)

• Grain-based desserts, including cakes, cookies, pies, doughnuts, and granola bars (10.9%)
• Regular cheese (7.7%)
• Sausage, franks, bacon, and ribs (7.1%)
• Report of the DGAC on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010
• Pizza (5.9%)
• Fried white potatoes, including French fries and hash browns (5.5%)
• Dairy-based desserts, such as ice cream (5.1%)

Added sugars (percent of added sugars intake)

• Soda (36.6%)
• Grain-based desserts (11.7%)
• Fruit drinks (11.5%)
• Dairy-based desserts (6.4%)
• Candy (6.2%)

The report recommends that Americans reduce their intake of SoFAS to 5-10%, where they currently comprise 35% of our diets, partly in hope that this will increase our intake of vegetables - dried beans and peas are specifically mentioned - fruits, whole grains, and fat-free or lowfat milk products.  They also recommend that at least half of all grains consumed be whole grain products.

A variety of dietary approaches to addressing these issues are described, but the predominate recommendation is that Americans follow the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) eating plan produced by the National Institute of Health.  This diet focuses on reducing SoFAS as well as increasing intakes of nutrient-rich foods.  It also suggests that, while recognizing that there is a wide range of eating habits in the Mediterranean, this diet has been studied for a significant length of time, and does seem to meet the criterion for lowering risk of coronary artery disease.  It suggests that may warrant further study, for instance Asian diets (Japanese) or vegetarian diets, but that there is not sufficient data at this time to support these diets in the same manner as the first two.

Sundays with Sparky - Boy Meets Grill

For our next venture, we decided to move on to working with meat, and started with a very simple prep every young man should know: grilled burgers.


Mise en place:

2lbs hamburger meat (since it came from our frozen quarter-steer, affectionately known as Bossy, we didn't get too particular about meat types, but I usually prefer ground chuck in an 85/15 blend)
1/2 a small onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 tsp steak seasoning of your choice
salt to taste
(few dashes worchestershire sauce)
pepper to taste
food chopper
saucer

First, we liquified the onion, garlic, and seasonings in our small food processor/chopper - you could use a blender if need be. Then, we loosely spread out the meat over a large plate, and sprinkled the liquified onion mixture over it. We gently folded the seasonings into the meat, taking care not to compress or overwork it.


After measuring our bun against the saucer, we used it as a guide to form our burgers, making them slightly larger than the buns to account for shrinkage.  Meat was piled loosely on, and then the whole thing was overturned, and the burger was dumped and formed in our hands.

Then, Dad and Sparky lit the chimney starter on the grill, got a nice hot fire going, and, after he oiled the grill grates well with a paper towel dipped in canola oil, Dad finished them off, along with some sweet corn.


And here they are: yield, 4 huge burgers, shown with the corn (that, incidentally, Sparky planted) and Mom's potato salad:

The Food Desert Project - Moroccan B'stilla in Polenta Crust

Shortly after I began this blog, we attended a Pi day celebration.  A friend - familiar with this project, and something of a gastronome himself, had brought "Moorish Chicken Pie," a delightful savory-sweet combination of chicken, dried fruit, nuts, and complex moor-influenced seasonings he'd discovered in The New Spanish Table.  I mentioned that I'd been looking for a recipe where canned chicken might work, and thought it would do nicely in this capacity.

Moorish influences abound in Spanish cooking, but it turns out this particular recipe is one still made in Morocco, where it is called B'stilla - often made with squab, but with the same delectable sweet-savory mix this time wrapped in a type of phyllo pastry instead of puff pastry (phyllo is the one where you have single sheets of dough that you layer, spreading some kind of fat in between - puff pastry is that exceptionally buttery dough whose layers expand when they cook.  Both are much easier to purchase than to cook, and are available frozen.)

I had been casting about for a pastry recipe to use with this pie that would suit this project - but I wanted to find something that was relatively healthy.  Unfortunately, one of the defining features of pastry is a lot of added fat (see Pie in the Sky for the Fourth of July,) not necessarily a terrific choice for food desert dwellers trying to improve what they eat.  Phyllo would work admirably in this situation - just wrap the filling as you would a spanakopita - but I wasn't certain of its availability in the food desert.

I did a bit of searching, and found that polenta - a healthy food in its own right - is often used as a crust for lowfat quiches.  Polenta, interestingly, doesn't appear in Morocco often, perhaps because semolina couscous is the preferred starch there - although another primarily Berber country, Ethiopia, does use cornmeal both in a porridge, Uji,  and in its famous bread, inijera.  So we are taking quite a bit of liberty here, but I think the result is worthwhile.

As for the canned chicken, initially I was a bit skeptical - with the exception of canned fish, most canned meats (e.g. spam) are so high in sodium and fat that the protein content is essentially a loss.  I was pl2g of fat and pleasantly surprised to find that the canned chicken I picked up contained only "white chicken, water, and sea salt" as its ingredients - and had less than 2g of fat and only 8% of a day's sodium - for 12g of protein.  It is frighteningly cartoon-pig-pink when you open the can - but, when treated gently, it was not that different from home-cooked poached chicken meat - it needs the strong flavors here, but works well with them.

Ingredients

Crust:
1 cup cornmeal
2 cups chicken broth (canned is fine)
1/2 tsp salt
about 2 tbsp butter

Filling:
1 12 oz can chicken meat, drained (low-salt, if possible - rinsed, if not)
3/4 cups white wine, divided
2 tbsp dried onion flakes
2 tbsp EVOO
1 tbsp sweet paprika
3/4 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup jarred salsa of your choice
1/3 cup dried fruit: either raisins or diced stone fruits such as prunes or apricots
1/4 cup pine nuts or slivered almonds (or a mixture)

Pour the cornmeal, salt and the chicken broth into a saucepan over high heat, whisking thoroughly until incorporated.   Continue whisking as you bring the mixture up to a boil - it will thicken rather suddenly. Keep heating and stirring until your mixture is a spreadable texture, then take it off the heat.  Thoroughly butter a large pie tin or tart form.  Once the polenta mixture has cooled somewhat, but is still spreadable, pour it into the tart form and spread it around, creating a side crust by pushing it up the side of the dish.  Dot the polenta with butter and spread it around.  Put your crust in a 450 degree oven while you prepare the filling; it should bake for about 20 minutes.

Mix the onion flakes and 1/4 cup of white wine (you can do this ahead of time and allow it to rehydrate in the refrigerator overnight; if not, put it in the microwave for about 30 seconds and set aside for 5 minutes.)  When flakes are rehydrated, pour EVOO into a skillet, and turn the heat on high.  Saute the onion flakes until the wine has evaporated.  Add the spices and continue stirring until they are fragrant, deglazing with a bit of wine as necessary.  Add the salsa, the remainder of the wine, and the fruit - turn the heat to low and allow it to simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove the crust from the oven and allow to cool a bit (it will be soft, don't worry.)  Drain the chicken (note the odd color?  Don't worry, the paprika makes it all better) and add it to the onion mixture, then gently spread the filling over the piecrust.  Top with a layer of nuts. Bake in the 450 degree oven for 15 minutes, until the nuts are toasted. Nutritional information.

Allow to cool to just above room temperature before serving, or refrigerate to cool thoroughly, and warm lightly before serving (the polenta will firm up as it cools.)  Enjoy!