May 23, 2015 (Lakeside) --Lakeside's River Park Conservancy's first ever Boars & Brew event is scheduled for Saturday, June 20^th—the summer solstice.  You’re invited  for a beer stroll along the section of the San Diego River Trail that the Conservancy manages for an evening full of “great tasting beer, perfectly cooked food, and amazing company,” according to the invitation.

Plus 3 peachy-keen recipes!

By Greg Dunne

May 17, 2015 (San Diego’s East County)--Peaches, Nectarines, Apricots, and Plums are all coming into season again! Time for fruit salads, fruit salads with yogurt, ambrosia fruit salads, as well as pies and cobblers and just good ‘ol out of hand healthy snacking!

Peach Cobbler? My wife Dianne is starting to use “stone fruit” in her meals at home and her Peach Cobbler is incredible. She picks up her peaches and nectarines at Barons Market in Alpine. Her recipes for Peach, Cherry & Chicken Salad, Peach Cobbler and Grilled Stone Fruit Dessert Pouches are at bottom of this article.

By Leon Thompson

May 15, 2015 (San Quintin, Baja Mexico) – About 220 miles south of Tecate near the Pacific Coast is the rich agricultural region known as San Quintin.  Strawberry fields stretch as far as the eye can see.  Tomatoes, blackberries and raspberries bound for American grocery stores like Whole Foods and Vons are grown in this fertile valley.  The work is backbreaking, the weather is scorching and the workers work from sunup to sundown.  They earn around $5 per day – about the cost of a basket of strawberries at Whole Foods.

Consumer group starts petition to urge more review

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: GMO salmon (back) is larger than non-GMO salmon of same age

May 2, 2015 (Washington D.C.)  -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is considering approving a genetically modified salmon – not as a food, but as an “animal drug,” according to Sarah Alexander at Food and Water Watch.  If approved, it would be the first GMO animal allowed into our food chain. But tests have found high levels of both hormone and potential allergens.  Only six fish were tested for allergies – but those fish had an allergenic potency was 20 to 50 percent higher in the GMO salmon than non-GMO salmon.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Pawen Kuznier, creative commons

April 25, 2015 (Washington D.C.)--Should a government-backed board be able to seize part of farmers’ crops in order to keep supplies down and prices up?

April 19, 2015 (Ramona) – You’re invited to East County Magazine’s Spanish Fiesta celebration on Sunday, April 26^th from 12-2 p.m. at the beautiful Hacienda de las Rosas Winery in Ramona!

Your ticket includes wonderful wine-tasting, live flamenco guitar music by Myles Moynier, Peruvian Paso equestrian demonstration by Jorge Valenzuela, fabulous lunch by Jeremy’s on the Hill, delightful desserts from Grove Pastry Shop,  plus a silent auction and fabulous opportunity drawing prizes!

This event is limited to our subscribers--subscribe free at http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/wild-fire-alerts for our weekly newsletter, wildfire alerts or both.  Proceeds benefit our wildfire reporting for fire season. 

RSVP by Wednesday to enter a drawing for a Spanish guitar CD by the famous Romeros family. 

SDG&E will also be on hand with free gifts and energy saving tips.

For detail on the event, our fabulous line-up of prizes and more, click "read more" and scroll down.

Fabulous prizes! Olaf Wieghorst signed Western print, barbecue grill and accessories, Hacienda de las Rosas wine basket, happy hour at Hatfield Creek Vineyard, Ramona Ranch Vineyard wine, vintage jewelry from Antiques in the Village, arrowhead jewelry from Mountain Gypsy, earrings from Warm Hearth, Hand-wove scarves from Weaving Works in Santa Ysabel, gift certificate from Kathy’s Dress Shop, Array Mbira music lessons, guitar or vocal lessons from Ed Barrena, craft items, gift baskets, tickets to Julian Wild & Scenic Film Festival, tickets to Sage & Songbirds garden tour and festival, Circle Players "Cafe Murder" theater tickets, wine and tastings from Woof 'n' Rose Winery, and more!

April 20, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Greg and Dianne Dunne have submitted this tempting recipe – ideal for hiking enthusiasts and nature lovers in our high desert regions.   Spanish Yucca blossoms are “growing everywhere and in bloom right now,” says Greg Dunne, a produce manager, though the special ingredient here is one you’ll have to harvest yourself.

Recipe:  Sauteed Sherry Kale

By Greg Dunne

April 19, 2015 (Alpine)--Wow, Easter dinner was good! Most of the dinner was healthy – but maybe I had a bit too much dressing on the salad, or went a little heavy with gravy on the mashed potatoes and then sampled all of the desert items even though I was full. Sautéing some fresh greens this week will be delicious and healthy and will do the trick on getting back to eating healthy.

Part V in a series

By the East County Eaters

Week 5: Mediterraneo Italian Bar & Bistro and The Brigantine Seafood & Oyster Bar

April 17, 2015 (San Diego’s East County)--For this week’s series, our Eaters returned to savor happy hour specials at two local favorites: Mediterraneo Italian Bar & Bistro in Alpine and The Brigantine on Mt. Helix.  The first offers divine Italian food in a European-style ambience, the second specializes in seafood served up amid a nautical theme.  Both are delightful and unexpected “finds” for newcomers in East County—so it’s no wonder that each of these restaurants are popular gathering spots for locals in the know.

East County News Service

April 11, 2015 (Washington D.C.) – A nationwide recall of hummus products has been issued by Sabra Dipping Company due to possible contamination with Listeria. The recall includes 30,000 cases which were distributed to retail outlets nationally including supermarkets and food service outlets.

EarthTalk®

E - The Environmental Magazine

Dear EarthTalk: What is the "Dirty Dozen Guide to Food Additives?"

 -- Meredith LaGarde, New Orleans, LA

April 8, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) - The Environmental Working Group (EWG), a non-profit dedicated to protecting human health and the environment through research, education and advocacy, launched its “Dirty Dozen Guide to Food Additives” in November 2014 to educate consumers about which food additives are associated with health concerns, which are restricted in other countries, and/or which just shouldn’t be in our foods to begin with. EWG hopes the new guide will help consumers avoid unhealthy foods and also influence policymakers to develop more stringent rules for food producers moving forward.

Covering San Diego’s craft beer industry in East County

By Ed Barrena

April 1, 2015 (San Diego’s east County) - The Brewers Association is a non-profit trade group, based in Boulder, Colorado, which represents small and independent craft brewers.  On March 31^st they released their annual list of the Top 50 craft brewing companies for 2014. Four San Diego brewers made the list, including one in the top ten. The list was compiled from data on beer sales volume.

East County Magazine invites you to join us for a night of wine tasting, wonderful food, spirited merrymaking, plus a sneak preview of our special La Mesa community news section! 

Join the festivities on Tuesday, March 31^st from 5:30 to 7:30 at the San Pasqual Winery & Gallery Tasting Room, 8364 La Mesa Blvd. in La Mesa. Limited space - reserve now to enjoy:

• Delicious foods from Tiramisu Trattoria, Bo Beau's and Grove Pastry Shop
• Unveiling of Mesa Community special section on www.EastCountyMagazine.org!
• Live music by “one man band” Paul Nichols
• Tell us what you’d like to see covered in La Mesa
• Learn about opportunities to “be the media”
• Hear about opportunities for your business or organization
• Plenty of prizes and surprises!
  

By Miriam Raftery

March 20, 2015 (San Diego’s East County)--A class action lawsuit has been filed by four individuals on behalf of California consumers who purchased certain wines in the past four years.  The suit was filed against 28 California wineries, claiming that their wines have high levels of arsenic—in some cases, 500 times higher than what is considered safe, plaintiffs contend. However, a California wine industry association insists that its wines are safe.

By Leon Thompson

March 18, 2015 – (San Diego’s East County) That familiar blue box dinner may have shards of metal in it.  Kraft has recalled its Macaroni & Cheese dinners, after receiving eight consumer complaints.