In case anyone missed the PBS special The Botany of Desire based on Michael Pollan's book which premiered Wednesday, October 28, 2009, you can still watch the entire program online. It's incredible. BOTANY OF DESIRE is a documentary which tells the utterly original story of everyday plants and the way they have domesticated humankind. An interpretation of the relationship between plants and people. This two-hour documentary explores plant evolution and takes viewers from the potato fields of Peru and Idaho, the apple forests of Kazakhstan, and the tulip markets of Amsterdam. View online in it's entirety: here This is another related program by the same presenter on LINK TV (a cable access channel) which is timely: Deep Agriculture Traditional methods of agriculture in most developed nations have long ignored environmental concerns. Factors such as soil erosion, water shortage and the impact of chemicals on bio-systems have been overlooked in favour of massive crop yields and cheaper food. But what impact does this have on our health and our environment? View online in it's entirety: here __________________________ Sit down with a cup of tea or coffee and witness the evolution of an Organic Kitchen Garden.

Sorry but all salsa is cooked to some degree. It is the method of preserving it that is in question. If you plan to can it (process it as a vacuum sealed food in a jar) then you'll encounter several problems with pH (given your list of ingredients) as well as density issues that will make computing the required amount of added acid and the processing time difficult. By including all those low acid vegetables it would have to be pressure canned rather than BWB canned and most states will not allow the sale of pressure canned foods to the public without an inspected and certified kitchen and license. So be sure to check local requirements before investing much time or money into it. They will likely require lab testing and certification. Salsa is considered especially risky for food poisoning concerns because of all its low acid ingredients. For that reason making up your own recipe rather than using already tested and approved ones is strongly discouraged. The article linked below explains some of the issues in more detail. Of course if you can develop a recipe for a frozen salsa then many of the safety concerns are voided. Dave Here is a link that might be useful: NCHFP - Burning Issues - Canning your own salsa recipe

one of my all-time fav recipes is Pasta w/ Vodka Cream Sauce because from start to clean up it takes 35-45 minutes, makes few dirty dishes and for me it's o.k. to reheat for lunch. this is my go to meal when i have to cook just for myself, which is 2-3 nights and honestly i could eat it atleast 2x a week for dinners plus lunches lol. it's from cookinglight... http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1654684 Hoisin glazed beef kabobs is another fav and thou it has a few different ingredients, it is very very easy and to help clean up i do the marinade in a ziploc bag. i serve it w/ rice noodles which just soak in warm water while i'm grilling the kabobs. i use tomatoes, mushrooms, green onions/sweet onions, zucchini, green/red peppers and yellow squash on cheap wood skewers (disposable) to add more bulk to the meal. i like my grilled meat on the red side and the veggies still crisp which enables me to reheat this for lunch and it not be overcooked. http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1816367 two wonderful deserts from cookinglight i make are: Roasted Banana Bars w/ Brown Butter Frosting (has several steps and makes some dirty dishes but worth it) & Chocolate-Mint Bars (i keep these in the fridge or freezer). i like cookinglight recipes alot because they have a user rating system so before i waste time and $$ making something i can find out if it's worth it and tips on changes also. i have also found Shape & Self Magazines to often have very tasty healthy recipes. ~ liz

The cream of tartar in Grainlady's recipe is tartaric acid and that does help prevent crystallization. However, depending upon the recipe, it might not be enough acid for the desired result. The advantage of corn syrup is you are adding another form of sugar and that does help prevent the sugar crystals from adhering to each other. (I mean a small amount of corn syrup in a candy along with granulated sugar.) When I have candy where crystallization is a risk (like Oklahoma Brown Candy) I usually add a bit of lemon juice and a tablespoon or so of corn syrup. Neither is enough to alter the flavor but it does make for a smooth texture. I think Annie has a family recipe for white fudge that calls for cream of tartar. It's the same principle; add a bit of acid to inhibit crystal formation. Carol