one can’t fault the burger giants for being ignorant of the anti fast food establishment. last time a film came out, which put the spot light on the clever tricks used by the fast food industry to make people eat and become addicted to processed and high in fat foods, fast food corporations were only able to respond with damage control. a response which required an appearance by their ceo on television advertisements. now, a month before the film fast food nation is due to be released in australia, mc donalds australia has started a new advertising campaign.

the ads show young mc donalds employees in their uniforms who are sick of the flack they cop from their friends about the real contents of the beef in the patties used for burgers or frisbees in the kitchens of mc donalds. they set out to find the real answers and how do they solve this age old dilema? why, they drive out to the meat processing factory, set on a sunny hill somewhere in the country. we know this because before they meet the factory workers all decked out in sterile white, we get a montage of clear pastures, happy coutry folk giving them directions and and a general feeling of niceness. once our loyal emplyees reach the factory, they ask the factory employees the hard hitting questions: “which part of the cow is used?” we are told that there is only 100% beef in those patties, with the help of a diagram of a cow. if only everyone could walk around with a pointing stick and a diagram, the world would be so much more simpler no?

seeing as the book, and now film tries to look at the fast food industry through the eyes of workers in the fast food and meat industry, the ads just serve to highlight the beast people like morgan spurlock and eric schlosser are up against.

The word foodie scares me at times. It reminds me of strange groups of people who walk around with cameras attached to their hands taking photographs of products in deli’s, grocery stores, restuarants, even in their own homes. They make children wait until they have captured every angle of a cupcake before allowing the little ones to lick the strawberry buttercream frosting off. Evening meals are eaten cold after being plated carefully and photographed in the best possible light. And dishes are left unattended to because they have hopped onto fast speed internet to upload said photographs and write about their fooding adventures and meals. Oh hang on, I mean food bloggers.

Ha.

While food blogging definitely brings to mind a compulsive obsessive description, I have found it is also a great community of like minded people who really are passionate about what many enjoy; food. Another article has appeared in the Australian press talking about food blogging, this time the Courier Mail has made the effort to explore more Australian food bloggers. Anthony, Helen, Kelly and new food blogger (at least to me) Marilyn have been featured.

I hope I didn’t frighten Natascha Mirosch when she interviewed me. From memory it was a warm summer’s day when I spoke to her and I was slurping a waffle cone of gelato while walking up a steep hill. It was a creme caramel creation; and it was sweet and delicious.

Dear Brigitte,

You see, my state of domestic bliss was under threat as a certain someone isn’t happy with beans on toast (even yummy sourdough and fancy cheese sprinkled on top!) on those evenings when it nearly 10pm and you’ve spent all day at work and most of the evening in class. And then there was this; so simple because there is always pasta, bacon, broccoli and chilli flakes in the kitchen.

The pasta wasn’t penne, but as you can see it still turned out really well with its frilly edges. And the bacon, oh the little piggy was extra tasty because of the garlic-y olive oil you suggested it be fried in. And that green beauty of broccoli seemed much plumper and juicier after being boiled in the same water as the pasta.

I don’t write fan mail, (well not since my New Kids on the Block phase) but really this was my saving grace from seeing a glum face before the end of the evening. And really I much prefer creamy pasta with garlic and chilli to beans on toast - even if it is sourdough.

A range of food blogs are featured in today’s Good Living section of the Sydney Morning Herald. The main focus of the article is the gastronomic adventures of Chez Pim, as featured in the Guardian a few weeks back. Also mentioned are Man That Cooks, Sydney Food Diary and Sticky Rice.

The fourth edition of Omnivoribus Australis is on the way. Stay tuned.

[Edit: I have a scanned version of the article available, as there doesn’t appear to be a link on the SMH site. It is a re-print of the Observer Food Monthly article, so save your pennies and email me if you want to check out the layout and other Australian Food and Wine blog appearances - Saffron]