How Does My Garden Grow: Strawberry Mint Iced Tea

I have no patience for hulling. It looks nice and all, but honestly, when you have a 4 year old chanting for food, you want to get the job done as quickly as possible, which means decisively lopping off the top part of the fruit, leaves and all.  Anything less in an exercise in ritalin. 

That being said, I am always wondering what to do with the strawberry tops.  My cat seems to like them; she can lick the cut ends for hours.  But other than that, they are kind of like the infamous (albeit inverted) muffin stumps from Seinfeld - nobody wants them.  Until now.

I have discovered that they make a very nice tea.  Next time you have a few strawberry tops, give the leaves a sniff; they are floral, fragrant, and sweet, all good characteristics for tea leaves. And it's a nice nod to thrift, as well as a tasty pick me up.   

A couple of notes on this recipe:

• This is the strawberry season of all strawberry seasons.  Here in NJ, they will be ready to pick in a few weeks.  But the US crop is largely dominated by California and Florida growers; this year, weather conditions have forced the two states' growing seasons to overlap, resulting in supermarkets flooded with inexpensive, delicious fruit.  A wonderful change after a winter of $8 for a pint of cardboard tasting third cousins removed.  
  
  
• Mint can always be purchased, but really consider growing it.  Like strawberries, it grows well anywhere whether a field or a container garden.  Mint is incredibly hearty, requires little care or maintenance, and makes everything around it green and fragrant. 
• You can sweeten this tea pretty much any way you please.  Simple syrup works well, as it does in any beverage. Agave also works, but it needs to be diluted with hot water first, to thin it out.  Personally, I have been experimenting with liquid stevia and really enjoying it.  It's an herb (very common in Latin America, where they grow it like basil), has no calories, no glycemic impact, and the liquid cuts the bitterness found in the powder form.

This tea is best made with fresh ingredients, and is a nice portents of great things to come in the garden.  Enjoy.

Strawberry Mint Iced Tea

Makes 4 cups of tea

Ingredients

10 fresh strawberries

5 fresh mint leaves, crushed

4 1/4 cups hot water

1/4 cup sugar or 10 drops of liquid stevia

Method

1. Remove leaves from strawberries.  Common sense tip: Discard any leaves that seem molded or mildewed. Add with mint to a small infuser. 
   
2. Pour 4 cups of hot water over the infuser and let steep in a tea pot for 10 minutes.  
3. Fill a pitcher with ice cubes. 
4. Mix strawberries (without leaves) in a blender (you may need to add 1 tbsp water here, to get it to liquify properly). Strain and add to pitcher. 
5. Heat remaining 1/4 cup of water.  Dissolve sugar in water and and add to pitcher.  Alternatively,  add the liquid stevia.
6. Pour hot tea into the pitcher with ice cubes. Stir, and serve.  

Images:

Simon Howden / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Michelle Meiklejohn / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

In Vitro Meat

Artificially manufactured meat. I have been meaning to post about it for a while but needed some time to, um, digest this. 

The Telegraph reported last November on a scientific breakthrough that allows us humans to grow meat in a lab. Not grow animals, just the muscle and tissues.  So nothing ever is slaughtered/dies, but then again no being ever lives. Here is a grueling excerpt:

Mark Post, professor of physiology at Eindhoven University, told The Sunday Times: “What we have at the moment is rather like wasted muscle tissue. We need to find ways of improving it by training it and stretching it, but we will get there.

“This product will be good for the environment and will reduce animal suffering. If it feels and tastes like meat, people will buy it.

“You could take the meat from one animal and create the volume of meat previously provided by a million animals.”

The PETA people actually support this, as do a number of environmental groups. It certainly takes the punch out of the vegan parry, "I never eat anything that had a face." My gut (sorry) instinct is never, no way, but I have a feeling it is going to become commonplace, and soon. What do you think? Comments below please.

Image: Maggie Smith / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Paella Party

Every Friday night I make a big family dinner, with fresh bread, a roasted chicken, and string beans.  Every Friday night I make a big family dinner, with fresh bread, a roasted chicken, and string beans. Every Friday night I make a big family dinner, with fresh bread, a roasted chicken, and string beans. 

It makes me a very dull girl. 

Anyway, this week we were having guests, and I was behind as usual.  As I cursed under (and let's face it, above) my breath, I had a realization.  This wasn't any fun.  And I wanted a good time, not just for me, but for all of us.  Spring is finally here after a long, crappy winter, and it seemed like a little fresh air was in order. And then it hit me - paella.

Paella is one of those dishes that seems a lot more complicated than it really is.  It uses simple but easily found ingredients, cooks in less than 30 minutes, and serves family style. Paella is tasty, colorful, and when done right looks like confetti in a pot. In short, Paella is a party. 

Here are a couple of tricks that have served me well when making this dish:

• Use a large, cast iron, dutch oven.  Ladies, this is the time to bat your eyelashes and ask your handsome husband/boyfriend/girlfriend/neighbor/boy next door that you wanted to talk to but could not find an excuse to do so, to lug your super heavy Le Creuset out of the closet and onto the stove.  It goes from the burner into the oven, and you need something that can take the heat.  Well made stainless steel would probably work.  I would not recommend using anything non-stick, or thinly made.  
• Paella is all about the rice.  You can try long grain rice, but beware that it will not work well with a paella recipe.  You need something starchier, say an aborrio, short grain, or medium grain.  Personally, I keep the latter on hand in the pantry; medium grain rice is inexpensive and readily available in the Spanish foods section of your market.  I like the Goya brand. 
• Use a dry white wine.  I prefer sherry or vermouth. 
• Try and find a high quality sausage.  Chorizo is the traditional choice.  But I like the chicken andouille  kinds that are out there; they are healthier and easier on the stomach. Looking for a kosher brand?  Try Neshama, which is kosher and organic.  If you can find me a grass fed, pasture raised brand, please post a comment about it below.

I made my paella and because it came together so quickly and easily, I didn't need that extra pill before the guests arrived.  Everyone enjoyed themselves, and we all had a lovely evening. Oh, and ps: clean up was a breeze because this is a one pot meal, and Le Creuset washes like a dream.  All just in time for The Shining's 30th anniversary - maybe The Overlook can start serving it in the dining room, cheer the place up a little.  

Chicken and Andouille Paella

Adapted from Marc Bitman's How to Cook Everything

Serves 4

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups of chicken stock

Pinch of saffron

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

4 bone in, skin on chicken thighs

1 medium onion, chopped

2 tbsp chopped garlic

fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper

8 oz chorizo or andouille sausage (I use a chicken version)

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup tomato puree

2 tsp paprika (smoked if you've go it, sweet if you don't)

8 roasted red peppers, rough chopped (piquillo are best if you can find them)

2 cups medium grain rice

Chopped, fresh cilantro leaves

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. Place stock and saffron in a sauce pan and warm. 
3. In a large dutch oven (preferably cast iron), cook chicken in oil until deeply browned on both sides. Add onion and garlic and cook on medium until soft. 
4. Add chorizo, wine, tomato puree, and paprika. Bring to boil and cook for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.  
5. Add the peppers.  Add rice, scattering it evenly across the pan. Cook for 1 - 2 minutes. Add the warm stock and stir until just combined. 
6. Place pan in oven and bake for 15 minutes. If the rice seems dry but not done, add a little stock or water. Turn off the oven and let the pot sit in there for another 5 - 15 minutes. 
7. Remove pan from oven, sprinkle with cilantro, and serve.

Rethinking shopping

I admit it, I am a grocery shopping addict.  A real fiend.  It is my go to excuse when I need to get out of the house, which we chose in part because it was across the street from the local A&P.  I love perusing the produce and imagining the possibilities in the spice section.  There is something so hopeful about the whole expedition; when I am at the market I can envision making anything.  In my mind while seeking flour, I can assemble tall cakes in a single bound.  When the farmer's markets open, I am shopping for truth, justice, and the American way.

My preferences include smaller, local/regional stores, which are in abundance here in Hoboken. It is not uncommon to find me gazing at apples around 9 am, then at another store for fish at noon, and back to market again after dinner for staples.  It is not that I am unorganized about shopping, I just like to buy different things at different places.  The store with the best strawberries may not have a seafood counter or carry toilet paper. And if my daughter comes along, they better have the right band aids or it is going to be a loooong afternoon.

That being said, I am rethinking shopping.  The uptick of coops, CSA's, online stores,and other mechanisms are pushing me in this direction, and there are distinct advantages to buying food like this, including:

• Quality: It seems like I am getting higher quality food.  My meat, poultry, and eggs are grass fed and pasture raised.  The produce is beyond organic, with local farms adhering to higher and less costly standards.
• Safety: I know exactly where my food originates from; it hasn't been centralized or merged or anything that would make it difficult to track.  It also comforts me knowing how close I am to the source, as opposed to the supermarkets, where there is a little too much mystery behind the cellophane.
• Convenience: I really like having things delivered to the house. It's very retro and makes me want to put on pearls and a circle pin. When the eggs and cheese arrive, they go right in the fridge, with no crappy check out aisle or customer card.  And while I was skeptical of the whole meat in the mail concept, it has turned out to be one of the best choices I have ever made. 
• Efficiency: There is something to be said about buying in bulk.  Obviously there are cost savings involved, but more important is the time.  I use chick peas two or three times a week; buying a five pound bag of them means that I only have to shop for them once a in a blue moon.  

Then there is the whole locavore argument; I am torn here, because on the one hand, my food is largely local.  I get my eggs and cheese from a farm in PA.  Our CSA will provide me with fruits and vegetables from an in state farm from June - October.  And even though my meat is delivered, it originates from farms within 90 miles of my house.  But this means less business for local businesses here in my little city, and that is a problem.  They do not have all the products I want, but on the other hand do have a store front here in town that pays taxes and is part of the community. It is an urban dilemma, and I don't see any full reconciliation of these issues until the products sold through alternative markets become more in demand, more mainstream.  

So for now, I will continue with my CSA and coops and online sources.  But I am still shopping locally for things that are best found around the corner, like bread, flowers, and Superman band-aids. 

How about you?  Have you changed your grocery shopping ways?  Leave a comment below and tell me about it.

Image: Suat Eman / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Gefilte Fish

Whenever I think about gefilte fish, I always think of my husband. Raised Catholic and from Boston, he only knew what he knew. So when dragged him to my family seder in Brooklyn that first year, I should have probably prepped him. Not only was he subjected to the BQE and my chaotic family, but then there was the dinner itself. When the gefilte fish came out in all its glory, he seemed honestly shocked. Then he looked like he was sure some monumental prank was being perpetuated, as if the family was pulling a fast one. Fish from a jar. With jelly all over it. Served cold. As he looked around for Alan Funt, I knew I would need to make some adjustments.

Despite this, he married me and we began to create our own traditions for Passover. We found a Hagaddah that worked for us and teamed up to get everything ready. Generally, I cook, and he cleans - this works for us on most occasions.  One year I decided to chuck the jars and make my own gefilte fish.  I ordered the fish, picked it up, brought it home, and feeling like the little red hen began to cook.  Except I forgot to ask them to grind it...but no worries, I had received a food processor as a wedding gift. How hard could it be.  

Lesson learned, chopping fish is not easy.  Whether you do it the old fashioned way (with multiple cleavers and all your friends and relatives in a small apartment kitchen in Brooklyn) or with a La Machine, it is messy, time consuming, and downright ugly.  First, I chopped the fish into 2 inch squares and added them to the machine.  After about five seconds of the most terrifying noise ever heard, it started to smell like it was burning.  I grabbed the plug, dumped it all out, and started again.  In the end, it took me over 2 hours to grind that fish at home, and two minutes to realize that I would never do it again.  My husband wisely stayed out of the kitchen.  

I let the mixture sit overnight as directed, giving myself some time to cool down and my husband an opportunity to clean up the ground fish that found its way into every corner of our kitchen. I am telling you, this man is a miracle - he actually got it all up - left to my own devices I would have just called Terminix.  The next day was a new day, and as I put two large stockpots up to boil, I was feeling more confident.  Until the stock.  Now, I had asked for the heads and bones per the recipe, but was not prepared to actually handle them.  So creepy looking and sharp to the touch, I could not believe I was going to use this as food.  To calm myself, I sang the fish head song (you know it..fish heads, fish heads, roly poly fish heads. Fish heads, fish heads, eat them up, yum.).  That seemed to do the trick, as I triumphantly added the fish to the pots.  

Later on, my husband went to to clean up, he was pleasantly surprised to see me calm, with 20 or so delicious gefiltes waiting to be eaten.  He went to clean the stockpots and let out a little scream, not expecting the fish carcasses to cascade down into the sink, bobbing about like little sea demons.  I bet he missed the jarred kind that year. 

Anyway, we have now gotten into a better routine.  I know to get the fish ground at the fish monger, he knows what to expect in the pot.  Both of us really enjoy the results, and our guests are always surprised and grateful to have this relatively simple dish, if you know the tricks. Enjoy and happy Passover.  

Gefilte Fish
 From The Second Avenue Deli Cookbook

Ingredients

For the gefilte fish balls

• 1 (1 1/2-pound) fillet of whitefish and (1 1/2-pound) fillet of carp or pike (at fish store, ask for whole fish, filleted and skinned. Retain the heads and bones. Many stores will also grind the fish for you)
• 2 large onions (about 2 cups when grated; don't tamp it down)
• 1 stalk celery
• 1/2 medium carrot
• 6 eggs, beaten
• 4 teaspoons sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 3/8 teaspoon pepper
• 3/4 cup corn oil
• 1 cup matzo meal

For the cooking

• Heads and bones from fish
• 4 medium onions, peeled and quartered
• 2 stalks celery, trimmed and chopped into 3-inch pieces
• 2 medium carrots, peeled

Method

1. In a food processor or grinder, grind fish (refrigerate heads and bones for later use), 2 onions, 1 stalk celery, and half a carrot. (If you use a food processor, make sure you leave no large pieces of fish or bones; you may want to transfer the mixture, bit by bit, into a wooden bowl, and go over it vigorously with a hand chopper.)
   
2. Place fish mixture in a large bowl, and add eggs, sugar, salt, pepper, and corn oil, mixing thoroughly with a wire whisk. Stir in matzo meal, and continue to mix until everything is thoroughly blended. Refrigerate for 1 hour or more (longer, even overnight, is better).
   
3. Fill 2 large stockpots three-quarters full of water, and bring to a vigorous boil. In each, throw in half the fish heads and bones, 2 onions, half the celery, and a carrot. Divide batter into 12 patties of equal size. (Don't worry that your batter is a little loose; it has to be that way to keep your gefilte fish light.) Transfer each patty to a large cooking spoon, shape into an oval, and very gently lower it into the boiling water. Put 6 in each pot. Lower heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
   
4. Remove fish balls and carrots from pots, and refrigerate on a covered plate. Discard everything else. Serve chilled with red and/or white horseradish. Slice carrots for garnish.
   

On the List: From China With Love

Hi all, I'm back...sorry for the delay in updating the blog.  My son has cerebral palsy, and he has been undergoing some fairly intense therapy. Managing that has consumed every moment of my free time for the past 3 months.  During that time, winter has turned to spring and the signs are everywhere. Flower buds, crocuses, lamb in the markets, artichokes, strawberries for less than $10/box of oldy, moldy berries...all good things that remind me of the equinox and all its wonder.

One thing that comes with spring is the new growing season.  And while I will be blogging about all the good things that come with this, it also reminds of me of some less than wonderful trends that have emerged over the past decades.  Specifically, I would like to discuss the advent of Chinese agricultural exports, and what it means to those who eat them.  Let me preface this with the fact that I am not some lunatic fringe, shut down trade agreements, I hate those lying commies gal.  To the contrary, I tend to swing toward classic, liberal economics.  Moreover, I admire China and its people, and predict great things for them.  But I do advocate a more pragmatic and cautious approach when it comes to their agricultural exports, both raw and processed.

There are the more obvious gaps, such as the great infant formula horror of 2008, when it was revealed that regular practice included lacing baby food with melamine, an additive used to make plastics and other industrial products.  No doubt you are also familiar with the fact that the same additive was found in Chinese cat and dog food exports a year earlier, resulting in many animals dying from renal failure.  The third time is a charm in 2010, when milk was pulled off shelves in China containing...melamine.  Get the picture?

There is a distinct and troubling pattern of repeating past mistakes and inability/refusal to undertake true quality control of food products. Now consider that China has become an agricultural world leader over the past 2 decades; more and more produce grown in and exported from China is landing in US supermarkets, often as the sole purchasing option. There are legitimate fair trade concerns, environmental problems, as well as quality assurance and health issues at stake.  As the Washington Post recently reported:

The FDA, responsible for inspecting some types of food from 130 countries, last year was deluged with 21 million shipments of food imports, among them 199,000 from China worth about $2.3 billion. FDA inspectors refused 298 food shipments from China in the first four months of this year: They included catfish laden with banned antibiotics, mushrooms laced with illegal pesticides, and others. The rejection rate for Chinese goods is about 25 times that for Canadian goods.

While not definitive, following are some key products that I have been following:

• Garlic: Gilroy is in trouble.  China increased its exports to the US 35% between 2004 and 2008.  It's a $48 million dollar business. (Source: UN Comtrade).  It is the US's largest fresh vegetable import from China, and let's not forget that it is often dried and then used in garlic powder and other spices, as well as pastes.  Some additional health concerns include reports of growing garlic in sewage, using chlorine to treat the garlic, and excessive spraying.
• Eggplant: China is the top global producer of eggplant, one of the most highly sprayed vegetables when produced commercially. There is also a lot of controversy about a new GMO version which actually produces its own insecticides.   
• Pine nuts: On the web, there are periodic complaints about eating pine nuts resulting in a metallic, bitter after taste that lasts for weeks.  This only seems to occur with pine nuts grown in China. 
• Fish and shellfish: China has a huge aquaculture infrastructure; their seafood comes from ponds, and is fraught controvery.  Let's see, again reports of it being raised in untreated sewage, use of illegal antibiotics, carcinogens, mercury, DDT,...the list goes on.  The water pollution problems in China are significant. The most common seafood exports (my perspective) from China include catfish, eel, shrimp, carp, crab, and salmon. 
• Soy: Wow, their soy beans are literally toxic, and they are everywhere you don't expect them.  All products, whole and processed.  This means soy milk, infant formula, nutrition bars, supplements, etc. Read the Cornucopia Report.

This problem is compounded with the fact that you will never see a "Made in China" label on agricultural products.  So what to do?  Well, always try to buy locally and seasonally is an obvious solution, but one that does not necessarily fit into everyone's personal philosophy and/or budget. More practical advice is to ask, ask, ask your produce manager about what you are purchasing.  Most of them are pretty smart and have lots of information to share.  If they tell you your produce is from China, buyer beware.  Worse, if they give you a blank stare or flip answer, think twice about your purchases or even shopping there anymore.  

Next, beware of processed foods. Chinese agricultural products sure are cheap.  And abundant.  When you buy that frozen dinner, pre-prepared meal, or even order at a restaurant, assume that any of the above are fair game as ingredients. Again, ask, ask, ask.  

Finally, there are some items that you will likely not need to worry about, as China actually imports these items to supplement their own crops (despite policies that clearly have prioritized domestic production of these crops).  You can be less concerned about wheat and rice. Chinese meat exports are prohibited in the US, but there are all kinds of weird arrangements regarding Chinese chicken imports (we grow it in the US, ship it to China for processing, and they send it back). For the politically minded, soybeans are a top US export to China, which gives us ongoing leverage not only from a trade perspective, but also from a security POV. Why do they need soy? To feed their fish, cows, pigs, chickens, and other animals...these are not grass fed, pasture raised creatures.  But I do wonder if there is ever a soy shortage, will melamine will creep into their animals' diets?

Additional links

Expect more U.S.-China farm trade tension: economist

Agriculture in China

On the List: Milk and Homemade Hot Chocolate

So does milk do a body good?

It really depends on who you ask.  The whole foods people will tell you yes, as long as it is whole milk and minimally processed. Raw movement followers will only take it raw.  Lactose intolerant folks have very real issues and need alternatives.  Vegans are adamantly opposed to eating any animal product. Vegetarians seem split on the issue; it depends on how they practice. 

Me, I am a fan.  I like it with cookies, in fact I like it in cookies - when it comes to cooking and baking, milk inevitably smooths out a recipe like nothing else. Visit my fridge and you will find dairy all around, including cheese, milk, yogurt, ice cream, heavy cream, half and half, chocolate, and more.  In addition to tasting great, milk is a super food.  It is a great source of calcium, vitamins A and D, and other vitamins and minerals.  Milk and milk products have  been found to reduce tooth decay. It also is frequently cited as a combatant to a host of ills including osteoporosis, high blood pressure, diabetes, and colon cancer. 

That being said, there is much controversy around milk, including the following issues:

Industrial farming 

Industrial farming is a problem; that is one idea all the different foodie groups can get behind.  There is a lot of play in the media on how this affects meat purchases, but far less conversation on milk and eggs.  Suffice it to say that the same problems (environmental, humane, gastronomic, and health) pervade and are passed through the animals into the dairy products.  Organic industrial milk is not much better than its mainstream counterparts; while the animals are not exposed to antibiotics, they are living in horrendous conditions and eating soy and corn 'vegetarian diets', both of which do not make for good food.  Cows are ruminants; they need to be able to roam on pasture and eat the grasses that have naturally produced milk for many years.  Organic milk does not guarantee these conditions. 

Pasteurization and homogenization

Pasteurization is a process to eliminate bacteria in milk, usually caused from unclean conditions.  The milk is boiled at various heats, rendering the milk more or less sterile.  Pasteurization also contributes to longer shelf life for milk products. There is some controversy here, as some believe that any pasteurization decreases milks nutritional qualities.  Others hold that the High Temperature Short Time process is the only acceptable form of pasteurization. Homogenization is a process that equally distributes cream with the rest of the milk; prior to it, folks would shake their milk bottle vigorously before pouring, to ensure cream did not collect at the top.  

Milk pasteurization is required per most State regulations.  It is a federal offense to transport raw (unpasteurized) milk across state lines.  Homogenization is not legally required.  

That being said, the raw milk movement has taken off in America.  If you are willing to make the trip to purchase it at various farms across the country, you are in for a tasty treat. 

Fat content

Whole, 1%, 2%, Skim...there are a lot of choices in the dairy case.  The whole food movement believes that milk should be eaten in it's purest form, which means whole milk only.  Lower fat alternatives are advocated by the American Heart Association and other like health organizations.  

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is added to most industrially farmed milk; it is not added to grass fed or raw milk products.  

Is it cruel to milk cows?

There is a lot of debate about this.  Industrialized farming does seem cruel when it comes to milking cows.  In order to give milk, they must be impregnated regularly.  They give birth to calves but are not allowed to feed their young (who are fed a milk supplement by machine, and if they are male eventually sent to the veal crates). They are milked several times a day using machinery that is said to cause lesions and be uncomfortable for the animals.  These practices are more likely to occur on large industrialized farms, which have the equipment and money necessary to implement large economy of scale production.  Smaller farms may include some of these practices, but they do not have the capital nor the mandate to do so as fully as industrialized farms.  

So what to do?  If we had a backyard and I had my druthers, we would have a pasture for pet cows, but for now I have to make some practical choices for me and my family.  We are dairy eaters and I will continue to use milk products for their heath and gastronomic benefits, albeit in moderation. I don't think it is necessary to drink milk with our meals, nor I do I include dairy products in every meal.  As far as snacks go, I think cheese is a great choice for nibbling, but try to avoid anything over processed such as flavored milks, gogurt, or milk chocolate that uses corn syrup as an added ingredient.  

That being said, I now shop much more carefully for dairy products. I buy grass fed, HSTS pasteurized, non-homogenized, whole milk.  Try saying that 5 times fast.  It is not easy to come by; I usually find it in the organic markets or Whole Foods.  I like the Natural by Nature and Sky Top Farms brands.  They are small farms within 150 miles of my home.  The milk tastes like the milk I remember drinking as a child; it is creamy, with a light floral scent (I am guessing from the grass), and cooks beautifully.  I kind of like shaking it before serving; it is a nice reminder of what I have chosen for my family and and excellent way to get my yaya's out.

When I cannot find this milk, my next stop is the Organic Valley brand. I like them because they actually make an effort to purchase grass fed milk from their cooperating farmers (mostly small farms).  But it is not a requirement (120 days of annual pasture feeding is their standard), and you can taste the difference; it tastes like any other organic milk.  This brand is homogenized and pasteurized, and is very readily available in most supermarkets and grocery stores across the US.  

As a side note, I am not a fan of soy milk; it highly processed, estrogenic, and environmentally problematic. More on that in a future post, but here is a link to a recent piece by Umami Girl on the matter - I agreed with her completely.  I do like coconut milk and use it regularly in my cooking and baking.  Goat milk is another great alternative, but it does take some getting used to.  

Below is one of my favorite milk treats, homemade hot chocolate with whipped cream.  Once you choose your milk, enjoy every sip.  

Note (4/15/10):  Here is a great link to the Cornucopia Institute's dairy report.  It describes the issues in much greater detail and also has a brand rating, which happily is consistent with my own analysis. 

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Hot Chocolate With Whipped Cream

Ingredients

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa

2 cups milk (any kind will work)

1/2 cup cream

Method

1. Sift sugar and cocoa together and add to a small sauce pot.  Add milk and turn heat on medium high.  Sir constantly until all ingredients are blended (about 5 minutes).  
2. Using an electric mixer, whip cream on high for 2 - 3 minutes, until stiff peaks form.  
3. Pour hot cocoa into cups, top with whipped cream, and serve. 

Image: Danilo Rizzuti / FreeDigitalPhotos.net