As a matter of fact, there were hardly any prepackaged foods at that time, store clerks weighed and wrapped everything to order, which contributed to the long lines.
At the time the unrefined oil wasn’t my favorite because of its pronounced smell and taste of the roasted sunflower seeds, but a few years ago I tried a salad dressed with it and realized how much I missed that taste.
Unrefined oil is pressed from the sunflower seeds with minimal processing allowing it to retain its natural taste. The byproduct of the oil production used to look like this…
…and is normally used for feeding cattle. During the starvation years of the WWII it was considered a treat for the people and my parents recalled eating it in their younger ears. I tried it once, it’s just compressed sunflower seed shells and solids and it tastes accordingly.
*tomato is for the illustration purposes only and does not come with oil.
Locally the unrefined sunflower oil can be purchased at the Russian store (as much as I advertise for them anonymously I should never have to pay for anything there, ever!).
Look for the similar words as I underlined on the bottom of this label “нерафинированное” which means “unrefined”. There is usually an English label as well, but the one I have didn’t say if it was unrefined. Refined oil has no taste, so there is no point of making a trip to get it there. 1 liter bottle is $4.19.
This oil is good on salads as well as for cooking; pan-fried potatoes are my favorite. However, I want to emphasize that it has a fairly strong smell and taste, which may be too much for some people, but if you don’t mind extra virgin olive oil you shouldn’t have a problem with the sunflower oil either.
If you are not just headed to the Kansas City Public Library to look at porn or have sex, you may want to visit their excellent free exhibit Alert Today, Alive Tomorrow: Living With the Atomic Bomb, 1945-65. Whether you are a history buff or just want to know why your crazy grandpa is storing canned water in the basement, you will find this collection of books, posters, games, educational materials, art and toys curious, exciting and somewhat morbid.
It’s hard to comprehend that generations of Americans grew up with the thought of a nuclear blast being a sure thing always in the back of their mind. And although Geiger counters and Atomic trains seem like cool toys today, at the time they served to get the children used to the idea that someday they will be using the real thing. From the neighborhood and personal fallout shelters to the best-selling atomic handbooks the subject of an inevitable nuclear attack determined the foreign and domestic policy for 20 years after United States bombed Japan and throughout the Cold War era.
As always I took a lot of pictures, but I suggest you check it out for yourself. The exhibit is fairly small and will take you about 30 minutes to get through.
Recently State of Missouri made an announcement about repealing some old ban on “yellow-tinted imitation butter and the other restrictions imposed on the sale, possession or shipment of substitute sandwich spread that is a different hue”. The question is why would anyone want to eat this crap in the first place. I understand that the law was written for different reasons but I wouldn’t mind them actually enforcing it to get fake products out of our grocery stores. And while they are at it, they might as well get rid of
disgusting turkey bacon
any food that has the word “flavored” in it’s name
products that have ingredients that can’t be explained
things that have artificial coloring (I wonder what their real color is)
fruits and vegetables possessing some unnatural characteristics such as crunchy tomatoes and strawberries
breads that can be compressed to 1/10 of original volume
anything in green packaging, green doesn’t mean healthy, it’s just a color
no-fat sour cream
rename rice- and soy-milk into rice- and soy-juice or whatever; it’s not milk even if it’s white
non-dairy dairy products
artificial powdered coffee creamer, WTF is that made of anyway
cheese in a can and powdered cheese
stop McRib comebacks
I am not a believer in things that are “good for you”, or “locavores”, or “slow foods”, or whatever else is in fashion right now. I do believe that if you want butter, you should eat butter, not some yellow crap in a tub. If you are unable to eat some foods due to health reasons, just enjoy something else, don’t eat fake chemical concoction designed in the lab to fool your senses.
In these times when most of our activities had been replaced by imaginary and virtual things, maybe we should draw the line at fake foods. Homey don’t eat that crap!
UPDATE: How could I forget the scam that is organic food. Thanks, L.L.!
Recently State of Missouri made an announcement about repealing some old ban on “yellow-tinted imitation butter and the other restrictions imposed on the sale, possession or shipment of substitute sandwich spread that is a different hue”. The question is why would anyone want to eat this crap in the first place. I understand that the law was written for different reasons but I wouldn’t mind them actually enforcing it to get fake products out of our grocery stores. And while they are at it, they might as well get rid of
