Balance of Food

What's Tempting: Salting the pasta water Part II

The book on whether to salt the pasta water had been written by your humble narrator in 2014. Experiments were done. The consensus was that there was little difference to adding salt in the process.

My recent trip to Italy opened my eyes to the world of Italian cooking. Saving the pasta water, using wine, and salting the pasta water was part of the drill. So I rethought the salt in the pasta water.

The food learning process is an ongoing experience. Even when you test things out, the results aren't the final results.

What's Tempting: Salting the pasta water

The argument delves between salting the pasta water in the beginning or once the water has reached a boil. I actually wrote this sentence in 2014. 

"Before we start, I should note that when I did salt the pasta water, I made the mistake of salting the water when it first went onto the stovetop. You are supposed to salt the water after it has reached a boil."

That was a fairly presumptuous point. Cooking rarely has a singular path to success. In the 2016 experiment, I still chose to salt the water at the beginning out of personal preference.

Whether salting the pasta water depends on a pair of other factors: type and quantity of salt. I might have used kosher salt in both experiments but I'm not sure about which salt I used in 2014. I did use a couple of levels of salt in the 2014 experiment but perhaps I added more in the 2016 experiments. I used a lot less than Giada de Laurentiis does on television.

The one element missing from the 2014 experiment was fresh pasta. I admitted at the time that I only experimented on dried pasta.

So in the 2016 experiments, I tried fresh and dried pasta. I used about the same amount of salt in both tests. The difference between 2014 and 2016 was using a much smaller pot so the salt:water ratio would have been higher.

The impact on the fresh pasta was somewhat significant. The taste of the pasta was improved and the pasta didn't feel salty. On occasion, I certainly add elements to pasta that are salty: pancetta, bacon, anchovies, olives. But those salty foods don't change the taste of the pasta.

The dried pasta did have more of a salty taste, a negative. The impact on dried pasta was much less than on fresh pasta.

What's Tempting column collection

The original story stemmed from a criticism by a hedge fund on Olive Garden's refusal to salt the pasta water. The chain was more concerned about the impact of salt on the pans than in improving the taste of the pasta. Given the blandness of Olive Garden food, salt might not have been enough to save those pasta dishes.

While the 2016 experiment conclusion was significantly different, the consensus on whether to salt the pasta water isn't certain. The pasta dishes were just fine without salt. And I tend to be salt-conscious in my diet to not get too much salt.

Taste buds change over time. Your increased knowledge can make a difference. Or like this example, you may want to try variations on your experiment techniques.

Using salt for the pasta water is a better method to get the needed sodium in your diet as opposed to junk food filled with salt. There is definitely a ceiling on using too much salt in a dish but recognize that there is a floor to using salt and there are times when food needs to be a bit salty.

You still don't have to salt your pasta water, but this is a reminder that your food needs can change over time.

What's Tempting: Adult Halloween candy

Adult Halloween candy sounds a bit dirty like erotic lollipops carried as part of a "naughty schoolgirl" costume. Fortunately, this column doesn't get any dirtier than the previous sentence.

Kids think about Halloween candy as a reality starting on October 31. Adults start thinking about Halloween candy much earlier. Chances are you already have bought some or all of the Halloween candy.

Some people can't handle having the bags of candy in their house, waiting for the big day. They might feel tempted to break open a bag to try out the candy. But we have good news: you can buy Halloween candy just for adults.

Buy some really nice chocolate for yourself. High quality, dark chocolate. If you enjoy the nonpareils, the chocolate drops with the shiny white "beads" on them, this is your time.

Not everyone who buys Halloween candy is a parent, but they are adults. Parents understand the concept of "this is for adults" and "this is for children." The idea is to create a separation in the house. The "adult" candy is for the adults; the "children" candy is for the children.

The candy you buy for yourself shouldn't be that tempting to the child. They won't want you to break into that supply for them. Kids know that their focus has to be on the candy valuable to them. They can't waste time on the idea of candy that isn't in their wheelhouse.

What's Tempting: Candy season

Good candy management makes all the difference on Halloween

Starting the holiday chocolate express to weight gain?

What's Tempting columns

Children are smart enough to know the difference between adult and child candy. Adults are smarter than children, so by transitive property, adults should really know the impact of adult candy vs. children candy.

So what does having "adult candy" accomplish in a household?

• The children candy no longer is a temptation. It's not for you. That candy serves you no purpose. Besides, you have your own candy.
• You're still eating candy. But adult candy is not as binge-worthy as children candy. Adult candy is consumed in smaller amounts and meant to be savored.
• Adult candy takes longer to consume. So you can't make the excuse that you are out of candy for yourself when you still have candy.
• Eating less candy over a long period of time is still eating candy but you consume far fewer calories with better taste.
• If you have adult candy, watching children eat their candy isn't a trigger since your candy is an option.

This idea of adults eating children candy doesn't come up in September or July. The children candy at the supermarket checkout isn't a consideration in March or August. October is a trigger month because candy is everywhere.

This battle between adult candy vs. children candy isn't so much about candy, but about nostalgia. I loved 3 Musketeers bars as a kid, especially if they were a little bit cold. For about 35 days a year, a 3 Musketeers bar is tempting. The bar is tempting not because of the taste of the candy bar but, because, nostalgia.

I remember eating a 3 Musketeers bar. I also remember eating bologna sandwiches as a child. I don't want to go back to eating bologna sandwiches or 3 Musketeers bars.

My nostalgia is for Kentucky Fried Chicken back when the chicken was cooked to a dark brown on the outside. My nostalgia is for a time when you could buy a soft drink off the shelf, any soft drink, and know that high-fructose corn syrup was a strange concept that wouldn't make sense to the palate.

When I do have a need for candy or something sweet, I have a list of possible adult sweet options. Children candy isn't on the radar.

My tastes are not the same as when I was a child, thank goodness. My adult palate is much more enjoyable. I appreciate nonpareils.

"Member berries" is a creation from the current season of South Park. Eating the member berries brings back nostalgia, the yearning for a simpler time. The berries themselves talk about some past time and memory.

Have those wonderful memories of being a child eating Halloween candy. Enjoy those memories. But you don't have to relive those memories for yourself.

Give out Halloween candy to children. Watch the joy in their eyes. If you have kids, watch them eat their candy. Live the Halloween candy experience through others. You have had your fun with children candy. Embrace your adult candy, adult tastes. Let children enjoy their candy; you enjoy your candy.

photo credit: South Park/Comedy Central

What's Tempting: Small side of bacon

MyPlate paints the ideal picture of dividing your plate by color to figure the proper proportion of food on a single plate. Europeans believe in eating small amounts of really good food. Some vegetarians don't eat meat, but occasionally succumb to the temptation of bacon.

The best of all these approaches is the tiniest of plates, a special "bacon plate" even if that means more dishwasher loads.

Small amounts of well-grown bacon can add wonders to a meal. It's not just for breakfast: a small container of bacon can make that vegetable easier to swallow or the boring egg-white omelet seem more palatable. (Just eat the yolks. Seriously. You'll be fine.)

Use the MyPlate system for the rest of the food but add a small container of bacon on the side.

What's Tempting: True price of cheap bacon

Bacon goes well on everything, even a veggie burger

Valentine's Day reminds us to set high standards in bacon, love, and food

Before you start imaging a world where a small container of bacon is filled with 3-4 slices, imagine more like a slice of cooked bacon off to the side. Or even ½ slice of bacon alongside your meal.

A slice of bacon by itself does look pretty small. However, if you cut the bacon into small pieces, like the fancy chefs do on the Cooking Channel and Food Network, that single slice of bacon comes in several parts.

You end up with several "pieces" of bacon. Slices are no longer a measurement of bacon. Having several smaller pieces makes you feel like you are eating more bacon than you are. If you are using really good bacon, you'll get more meat flavor for relatively few calories.

You could put that bacon into a salad, but too often, the taste of bacon is lost in a dish. We are so excited to learn bacon is in a dish but too often, the feeling of bacon comes up short. Better to eat that bacon by itself than to waste it in a dish.

If bacon horrifies you, take the suggestion and apply it to something you like that, in copious amounts, otherwise wouldn't be smart.  Or you can try something that excites your palate but in a small amount. The idea is to have a small splash of taste for your mouth.

People want nutrition and taste. They should go together in a lot of foods, but for some, this is more of a battle. A small amount of bacon can guide people to eat better with a little culinary incentive. We should eat well but sadly menus are often prepared based on fun. Bacon is fun. A little bit of bacon can also be fun. If done properly, reduced amounts of bacon can still provide fun and flavor in an overall balanced diet.

photo credit: here

What's Tempting: Overnight oatmeal

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, yet nobody has "time" for breakfast. As someone who couldn't leave the house in the morning without breakfast, somehow I find time to have breakfast.

But even I would like to find an easier way to get what I need before leaving the house.

Overnight oatmeal is something I knew existed but was a bit cynical as to whether the overnight version could taste like oatmeal. Oatmeal is a great way to start the day, but cooking oatmeal when very tired did not appeal to me.

The premise, for those who are unfamiliar with overnight oatmeal, is that the rolled oats soak up the milk overnight so you have oatmeal ready to go in the morning. You could even take the jar with you on the commute or even starting eating the oatmeal if you get stuck in traffic.

I don't deal with traffic in the traditional sense, but if I had a rough morning, the idea of a portable breakfast had some strong appeal.

At my day job, I got a chance to try overnight oatmeal. The rolled oats and vanilla soy milk were enhanced by dried cranberries and slivered almonds. The mixture was satisfying, feeling more like I was eating granola in milk but a lot less sweet. This could be breakfast.

Long-time readers are wondering: you have a standard atypical breakfast that has worked for you. Why would you change something that is working?

Change was in the air for a number of reasons, so changing breakfast had more appeal. Plus the plan was to push the non-traditional breakfast to a later timeslot in the day.

So how do you perform the magic that is overnight oatmeal?

• Find a glass jar. Start with a 1:1 ratio of rolled oats to liquid of choice. Use whatever ingredients you want. For foods that might get soggy, feel free to add those in the morning.
• Combine ingredients; shake heartily. Put in refrigerator. Go to sleep.

The first night, I combined the ingredients, starting with rolled oats and whole cow's milk. Followed the instructions. Woke up the next morning eager to see what refrigerator magic had happened.

8 hours in the refrigerator should have been enough time for overnight oatmeal magic. My first attempt had a lot of milk remaining in the glass jar. The oats weren't crunchy but were very chewy. This smelled like oatmeal but didn't taste like what I had expected.

I bought the oats from the farmers market and kept them in the refrigerator, as instructed. I had used a 1:1 ratio.

If you watch enough food television, you might think everything happens perfectly. That is television. My first attempt was not perfect, but within the realm of possibility.

Trying something new in food doesn't require perfection but learning how to adjust for the next time. I decided that 8 hours wasn't enough for these oats, so I would try 11 hours on the second night.

11 hours was a lot better than 8 hours. I did find on some nights with more than 8 hours, I still had too much milk. None of the batches so far truly feels like oatmeal, but the contents of the glass jar get devoured each morning.

You do have to remember to do the overnight oatmeal before you go out for the evening. You do save time in the morning, but you have to spend some time at night.

You can leave the oatmeal in for longer if that is more convenient, but as we've seen, your mileage may vary.

I add a little maple sugar and some cinnamon that enhance the taste. Chia seeds can help soak up more liquid if you run into the same trouble. Your overnight oatmeal options are endless.

If you want traditional oatmeal, you can cook the oatmeal at night and reheat in the microwave oven in the morning. But overnight oatmeal is a lot easier with no stove requirement. You just have to change your definition of oatmeal and breakfast.

photos credit: me

What's Tempting: an even smaller Coca-Cola

In the Super Bowl 50 ad, the mighty 12 oz. can of Coca-Cola is represented by the Incredible Hulk and the 7.5 oz. Coke Mini can is the equivalent of Ant-Man. David and Goliath have nothing on this matchup.

What if there was an even smaller Coca-Cola can? Would that be an actual ant in comparison?

The Coca-Cola cans I got on my flight back from Europe last summer was very, very small. The 7.5 oz. version, the Ant-Man equivalent, is 222 milliliters (metric is scary, but don't worry). This European Coca-Cola is 150 ml, 32% smaller than the U.S. Coke Mini and 58% smaller than the standard U.S. can.

With smaller cars (think Fiat) and healthier standards, a truly miniature Coca-Cola makes more sense in Europe than in the United States. The 7.5 oz. isn't much smaller than a 8 oz. bottle.

Given that the "kids these days" are drinking from 20 oz. plastic bottles, the European miniature can is 75% smaller than the plastic bottle. If a 12 oz. can is the Incredible Hulk, what kind of creature would be the equivalent of the 20 oz. bottle?

Coca-Cola size differential

Container	Ounces	Milliliters	Calories
Regular size U.S. bottle	20	591	240
Regular size U.S. can	12	355	140
U.S. Coke Mini	7.5	222	90
Europe Coca-Cola mini	5.1	150	63

 

We have praised small serving sizes in soft drinks because occasionally you want a treat but don't want to open a 12 oz. can. That would be like having to eat a whole dark chocolate bar instead of breaking off a square for a small treat. When opened, dark chocolate bars keep better than carbonated soft drinks.

The U.S. part of Coca-Cola should be applauded for instituting smaller sizes, though it isn't the only company jumping on this trend. The drawback is that they are still selling the high-fructose corn syrup version so buying them isn't viable.

I would love to have a 7.5 oz. version of the Kosher for Passover Coca-Cola sold each spring. But in the last few years, we can't even get 12 oz. cans, much less a smaller version.

Kosher for Passover coverage 2015 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009

Having a smaller Mexican Coca-Cola would be welcome, too. The 12 oz. glass bottles add to the experience, but an 8 oz. bottle would be even better.

Yes, we know we are paying more per ounce for these smaller sizes, but reducing the amount of added sugar is worth the price. Sometimes you want a little treat to be truly little.

Coca-Cola sizes in Great Britain

The 5 oz. European version is the real deal made with real sugar. And if you want a little treat, 150 ml goes real quick. 200 ml, just under 7 oz., would be a better size in most instances. Doesn't take much effort to finish off a 150 ml version; it's the perfect size to go with a snack, but comes up, well, short in terms of being enough to drink with a meal. 200 ml would only be 84 calories, a good amount for a treat.

We're told that we should enjoy well-made food in small amounts. Whatever you think of the merits of carbonated soft drinks, we should have a way to enjoy one with good ingredients in small packages. We shouldn't have to wait until another plane trip back from Europe to have that opportunity.

video credit: Coca-Cola U.S.
photo credit: me (first 2); Coca-Cola UK

What's Tempting: 100% Parmesan cheese

"No consumer's health or safety was ever jeopardized as a result of the labeling matters at issue."

This was the response from Stephen Stallings, attorney for Castle Cheese Inc. president Michelle Myrter over charges of selling Parmesan cheese that wasn't indeed Parmesan cheese. Myrter is expected to plead guilty to criminal charges this month to charges related to the cheese issue.

The FDA investigation looked into several cheese producers that were adding a significant amount of cellulose into their product. Cellulose is a fancy word for wood pulp. Fiber, yes; taste, no.

What's Tempting: Eating real cheese

Canada proves that high cheese standards are worth having

U.S. standards need to limit labeling 'cheese' for actual cheese

But here is where Stallings really has it wrong. "The FDA accused Castle Cheese of marketing as real grated Parmesan what was in fact a mixture of imitation cheese and trimmings of Swiss, white cheddar, Havarti and mozzarella."

I can handle most cheese without an issue, but have a hard time with mozzarella. The headaches in the back of my head, the nausea. Life slows down when that happens. True, I won't die from eating mozzarella cheese but my health is jeopardized by eating mozzarella cheese.

From what I've been told, I don't have an allergy to mozzarella cheese but I do have a reaction. I would love to get tested for an allergy but that is $500 I don't have to spend.

For most people, what Castle did was deception. For me, it's more … and personal.

"Essential Everyday 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese, from Jewel-Osco, was 8.8 percent cellulose, while Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s Great Value 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese registered 7.8 percent, according to test results."

Those results are from a Bloomberg investigation. This sadly reminds us of the Taco Bell meat filling story, where the issue wasn't cellulose (wood pulp) but silicon dioxide (sand).

Stephen Colbert opens up can of sand as Taco Bell lawsuit gets more publicity

The best way to avoid this conflict is to buy blocks of cheese from hopefully good sources and grate your own cheese yourself. Sure it's more work, but you have a better idea of what you are getting.

Parmesan is capitalized in Parmesan cheese because of strict standards that distinguish that cheese, including where the cheese is made. As the folks at The Nightly Show would say, Keep it 100, as in 100% pure Parmesan cheese.

We have a bit of fun with the lax standards and even more lax investigative powers in the U.S. food supply. But thanks to the FDA and the U.S. justice system, we have a better idea of what we might be eating. And we have yet another food product category where saving a few pennies is more important than food integrity.

What's Tempting: Finding balance during holiday temptation

We like to imagine there are 2 doors to choose from during holiday eating time. Go completely nuts and eat everything in sight or "be good" all the time at the height of temptation.

Either way, we feel like we lose no matter the decision.

The truth, the true reality, lies in a mixture of the 2 doors in the combination we choose. Yes, 100% in either direction is a choice but there is a rainbow of combinations. Find what works for you. 

This requires a bit from Column A (in this case, removing temptation) and Column B (being realistic). So click on our previous advice on these topics, and find your own combination to withstand the pressures.  

Removing holiday temptation

Balancing holiday temptation with reality

If you find the pressure is too much, you can always end up in a Chinese restaurant with your Jewish friends on Christmas Day. This analogy may not work for your scenario, but take the point the analogy is trying to make. Reduce the pressure; the holidays are supposed to be fun. Reducing the stress of holidays may allow you to eat well without going too far and without having to set too many limits.

If all else fails, the beginning of 2016 brings weight-loss TV shows that can help with stress and/or binge eating. Happy Holidays!! 

To look back at our complete library of temptations, click here.

photo credit: CaesarP

What's Tempting: Mushrooms on toast

Thanksgiving teaches us that the more we eat, the better food experience we have. At other times of the year, if you find a great combination of ingredients, you don't need to eat that much to get that better food experience.

Man can not live on bread alone. If that turns out not to be true, I know where I would start.

I first met this grilled sourdough in a long weekend in Halifax, Nova Scotia in late summer in 2009. I was on a tourist trolley riding through downtown Halifax and asked the guide about where I should eat. He absolutely recommended Jane's on the Common.

Halifax is built on a hill so just about anything in the downtown area is uphill. And Jane's was not all that near the downtown area where I had been for most of the trip.

Though the journey was long, the meal was very good. I had beautiful ingredients well-prepared, but even at the meal, I didn't want to eat the last bite of this amazing grilled sourdough. Not because it wasn't beautiful, but if I ate the last bite, there would be no more.

Balanceoffood.com Canada food policy coverage

Flash forward to this past summer. I am back in Halifax. I already know that Jane's is gone; there is a catering operation but no restaurant. Edna's is next door to Jane's catering: Edna is Jane's daughter and Edna's is a restaurant. Could Edna's have brought over the same grilled sourdough from her mother?

Edna's is uphill from downtown — in the same neighborhood where I stayed at a less-than-ideal hostel in 2009 — but a much shorter walk than the journey to the Common.

Edna's felt more upscale than Jane's but still relaxed. The exterior was a bit rougher (by Canadian standards) than the Common. What counted was the bread; would it be similar? Would it be as good?

I scoured the menu for bread-related dishes. Sure I could pick a dish that didn't involve bread and get the bread on the side. Why not find a fun dish that included the bread?

Appetizers presented some wonderful sounding options. Then I saw what I was looking for, even if I hadn't ever ordered this dish: mushrooms on toast.

Criminis and chanterelles with brandy peppercorn cream, shaved pecorino, and truffle oil on grilled sourdough. To my right, a lovely couple was eating even lovelier looking steaks, but my mission was bread.

I like mushrooms. I like toast. The combination may not be as cool as avocado toast has become, but fancy mushrooms on really fancy tasting bread sounded cool in the moment.

Though you can't see the whole appetizer menu, mushrooms on toast at $13 was the most expensive appetizer on the menu. I couldn't tell you what I paid at Jane's in 2009. I still remembered that meal many years later, just what you want from a travel experience. Though to be fair, $13 Canadian ran about $10.50 in U.S. currency in 2015. Still, money wasn't the concern; great bread was that important.

The presentation was very festive. Even though the food experts tell us we eat with our eyes (we don't), how was the bread?

This was grilled sourdough, hearty but not too tangy. Beautiful tasting bread.

The dish was an intriguing combination: nothing was too overpowering. The dish was fancy but very simple. The bread made the dish. But was the bread exactly the same as 2009?

The bread was as close as I could imagine. Jane's bread was served on the side, so I tasted the bread more. Edna's bread was part of the meal. Edna's bread made me happy much in the way Jane's bread did in 2009.

BalanceofFood.com travel coverage

Thanksgiving should be a feast of quantity as well as quality. The story isn't designed to take away from that message. The idea is that a feast can be a bunch of amazing tastes in small bites as well as mindlessly stuffing manufactured chips into an overly processed dip. Quality and quantity: have plenty of the latter but don't forget the importance of the former.

photos credit: me

What's Tempting: All-day breakfast

McDonald's all-day breakfast reminds us of Michael Bloomberg's legislation to ban large-size soft drinks in New York City. Both are very full of holes that you wonder why they tried.

Whatever we might think of the ways Americans approach food, half-assed just doesn't cut it.

Will you be able to get hash browns all day? Depends on the McDonald's restaurant configuration. So the location that is 3 miles away may not have them, but the location 5 miles in the other direction might have hash browns.

The primary difference is that McMuffin sandwiches and biscuit sandwiches are regionalized after regular breakfast hours. In the South outside Florida, biscuits rule. Otherwise, McMuffins are the only option. McDonald's says they can't do both after regular breakfast hours.

However, if you are hankering for a McMuffin of some kind and you live in the proper part of the country, this is exciting.

Unlike most of the country, my enthusiasm for fast food breakfast is not as high as "everyone." The only McDonald's breakfast option that had even the slightest appeal for your humble narrator is the sausage biscuit. That isn't an option unless I'm visiting Southern relatives. But even then, and somehow forced to eat at McDonald's, I would still pick lunch over breakfast.

The best tasting fast food breakfast item that I've had in years is the Chick-Fil-A spicy chicken biscuit. But I'm not usually near a location at breakfast time, the chain is not open on Sundays, and the whole anti-gay thing is also a concern.

When I was dipping into the fast food world, I had the opposite issue: wanting burgers and fries for breakfast. I was able to order burgers and fries for breakfast at Jack in the Box in the St. Louis area a number of years back. No one applauded when I order burgers and fries before 7 am and this was before Twitter. While I wanted that in other major fast food restaurants, I severely cut back on fast food before that could ever happen.

I like the idea of breakfast all day. I like the idea of lunch all day. Dinner too. Most of my breakfasts over the last decade have looked more like dinner than breakfast.

We believe in setting your own rules as long as you get what you need throughout the whole day. That includes breakfast for dinner. But you also have plenty of choices to do so, not just what McDonald's can serve you after 10:30 am.

video credit: Late Show with Stephen Colbert

What's Tempting: Finally tasting raw milk

I enjoy trying unusual or difficult to find foods to try and find my own internal Balance of Food. One food has eluded me for a long time: raw milk. As we've noted in several stories, you can score any major illegal drug easier than getting a glass of unpasteurized milk in many parts of the United States.

I came out at the beginning of 2014 and pleaded for help in finding raw milk. The search took until September 2015, but I finally scored raw milk.

The catch is that I didn't find the raw milk in the United States but in a market in London, England.

No trenchcoats or secret codes or whispers in the dark. Just walked up to a stand in the market and asked for raw milk. Money was exchanged in broad daylight (£3 for 2 pints) and I had a container of raw milk in my hand.

What's Tempting: Raw milk from a vending machine

What's Tempting: Raw milk in 2014

Raw milk has to go underground despite a lack of negative proof

Colbert showcases government extreme on addressing raw milk

Slider Bites: Lime shortage calls for better food diversity

What's Tempting: Keeping FDA away from artisanal dairy products

The joy of raw milk didn't lie in the taste of raw milk but in the potential health benefits of drinking raw milk over a long period of time. Still, how raw milk tasted was really important because you still have to like raw milk to get the benefits.

I closed my eyes as I drank from the jug of raw milk. The milk tasted lighter than traditional milk with a bit of grass in the milk. The raw milk tasted good but different, maybe not quench your thirst good, but drink by itself or use in coffee or cereal good.

Raw milk is a bit of a roll of the dice, even more when you consume it on vacation. Then again, England has an excellent health system. Buying the milk from an established source did give me some piece of mind. Even if none of that were true, I would still drink the raw milk. 

I had no health concern or issue in drinking the raw milk. With the second container I got, I did have it out most of the day without being refrigerated, then refrigerated it overnight, and drank it the next morning and still had no issues. 

After having drank 3 pints of raw milk, I had to admit that the secrecy felt pretty silly. Even if raw milk was more readily available, few in the United States would ever drink it. For many, the slight risk does not justify the reward. 

There are many adults who would indulge in raw milk if they didn't have to go through a secret network to make that happen. These adults should have the right to drink raw milk without fear.

In the previous stories, we've noted how ridiculous the anti raw milk side has been. This was all the more reason to try raw milk to see for myself whether the concern was justified.

Again, raw milk is not for everyone. The very young and old and those with vulnerabilities are more susceptible to the potential negative effects of raw milk. Know what the concerns are and respond accordingly.

If I had a regular source, I could give a better idea of the long-term potential of raw milk. Short of moving to Europe, that scenario isn't likely. If your definition of freedom means drinking raw milk, find a good opportunity and go for it. Hopefully, you can score raw milk easier than flying to Europe for the privilege.

photo credit: me