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October Newsletter

crossmedia — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:53:12 +0100

Clearspring October 2008

crossmedia — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:53:34 +0100

October Newsletter
Scroll down for news, features and recipes

Hello and welcome to the Clearspring October Newsletter. At Clearspring we take great pride in bringing you delicious and healthy cooking ingredients and Clearspring Organic Brown Sushi Rice, which is being launched this month, is first class. As more and more people are becoming concerned with their diet, their lifestyles and the environment, it gives me great pleasure to be able to promote healthy living by offering nutritious, ethically sourced, organic foods. In order to do this one of the things we do is to exhibit at consumer shows such as Rude Health in Dublin. See below for details of this and other recent events. We also have some great autumnal recipes for you and the start of our new series exploring in-depth the oils in the Clearspring range. Enjoy!

Best wishes,

Christopher Dawson

Founder

CS Organic Brown Sushi Rice

By popular demand, we are delighted to announce that we have now added Organic Brown Rice to our sushi range. This tasty and nutritious rice is grown in Italy from the selenio grain, just like Clearspring Organic Sushi Rice. It is a delicious wholegrain food which can also be used to make tasty sushi packed full of vitamins and minerals. Find cooking instructions and nutritional information here.

CS at Rude Health, Dublin and the London Vegan Festival, Kensington

On the weekend of September 6 Clearspring had a busy time exhibiting at both the Rude Health Show in Dublin and the London Vegan Festival in Kensington. It was a fantastic opportunity for us to promote healthy lifestyle choices in the 21st century and to showcase some of our products. Many thanks to all of you who came along - it was a great weekend.

Win a meal for two

Once again it’s competition time. This month we are giving you the opportunity to win a free meal for two at the sophisticated new Japanese restaurant - Soseki. The restaurant, which is right next to the Gherkin in London, serves high-end Japanese cuisine with a selection of delicious, seasonal dishes, carefully chosen by executive chef Kurokawa Takanori to delight the customers. They also use several Clearspring ingredients and serve Clearspring Tamaki Sake. To enter simply send us an original, vegan recipe using Clearspring ingredients and we will choose the best one. The winning recipe will also be featured on the website. To take part send an email to info@clearspring.co.uk marked ‘Soseki’ with your name and recipe included. Closing date: 05.11.08

CS oil logos explained

You may have noticed that the Clearspring Oil Range labels have changed. We’ve added some great new temperature logos to help you make the most of them. Find out what it all means here. Also, this month we are waving good bye to the seasonal vegetable series and hello to an exploration of our extensive oil range, so keep reading.

Exploring the CS oil range: Pumpkin Seed

With Halloween just around the corner, what better time to take a look at Clearspring Toasted Pumpkin Seed Oil. Find out about where it comes from, what to do with it and its nutritional benefits here .

Recipes of the Month

Split pea soup

This thick, rich, and satisfying pea soup is an all-time favourite.

Stir-Fried Rice, Tofu and Vegetables

Make the most of our fantastic new Clearspring Brown Rice with this tasty stir-fry.

Fried Apple Rings with Hazelnut Sauce

Celebrate all things autumnal with these delicious and indulgent fried apple rings.

Topical Links

Find out about Clearspring in the press here.

This month Clearspring will be visiting Terra Madre in Turin, Italy from 24-27 October.

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Exploring the Clearspring oil range

crossmedia — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:33:28 +0100

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Organic Toasted Pumpkin Seed Oil

Clearspring Toasted Pumpkin Seed Oil is both nutritious and delicious. It has a dark green colour, a silky texture and a luscious nutty flavour. It is naturally pressed in Austria using local Styrian pumpkins. Interestingly these pumpkins are grown for their seeds rather than their flesh. The seeds have no outer shell, which makes them ideal for pressing into oil and for use into healthy snacks such as Clearspring Organic Roasted Styrian Pumpkin Seeds.

They are also packed with vitamins and minerals including A, B1, B2, B6, C, D, E, and K, calcium and zinc and the essential fatty acids omega -3 and -6. It is said that pumpkin oil is beneficial in the treatment of urinary tract infections and the prevention of prostate cancer.

Toasted pumpkin seed oil is a versatile cooking ingredient which can be used in a plenty of different dishes. Try mixing it with some freshly squeezed orange juice and a dash of Clearspring Balsamic Vinegar for a delicious dressing. Drizzle this over grated apple, carrot and Clearspring Organic Roasted Styrian Pumpkin Seeds for a healthy and nutritious salad. Alternatively you can make an interesting pesto by blending a little Clearspring Toasted Pumpkin Seed Oil with basil, garlic, almonds and a pinch of Clearspring Traditional Sea Salt. It also complements the earthy flavour of wild rice dishes and adds a nutty richness to soups. If you really want to go pumpkin crazy why not make a batch of spicy pumpkin soup and drizzle pumpkin oil on top, it is October after all!

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Clearspring Authentic Japanese Shoyu and Tamari

crossmedia — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 16:51:11 +0100

Soya and Health

crossmedia — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:25:37 +0100

Clearspring September 2008

crossmedia — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:15:14 +0100

September Newsletter
Scroll down for news, features and recipes

Hello and welcome to the Clearspring September newsletter. The autumn is already off to a great start for us with a new award. With the new season you will also be able to discover some new products in our range. Read on for all the details. Also as September is my birthday month I am hoping that we can all enjoy some Indian summer weather. Thank you to all of you who took part in out Cinema giveaway in August and congratulations to the winners.
This month I would like to take the opportunity to pay tribute to one of my personal heroes - Masanobu Fukuoka - who passed away on the 16th of August at the age of 95. He was the pioneer of ‘natural farming’, an organic method by which crops are grown without ploughing, weeding, fertilizers and pesticides. He won awards in India and the Philippines for his work and wrote the widely translated and truly inspirational book ‘The One Straw revolution’. Fukuoka died of natural causes at his home in Ehime Prefecture, Japan, with his family around him. I have admired his work for many years and would love to have met him.

Best wishes,

Christopher Dawson

Founder

Clearspring Authentic Japanese Organic Shoyu and Tamari – new 1L size now available

From this month Clearspring Shoyu and Tamari will be available in a new one litre size. We hope this makes it even easier for you to top up your Clearspring Shoyu Dispensers and to feel a little greener!

Awards for Clearspring foods

Different to most wasabi products on the market which contain additives and green dyes, Clearspring Wasabi is made from 100% natural ingredients including real wasabi root. Recently its superb quality has been acknowledged at the Great Taste Awards 2008 where it won a gold medal. We are equally pleased to announce that Clearspring Organic Tamari Roasted Almonds were recently commended by The Soil Association.

Cinema ticket giveaway results

Well done to the winners of our ICA cinema ticket giveaway last month. We hope you enjoy the film. We had a good response to the competition, and it was great to get your feedback on our products. Many thanks to all of you who entered.

Soya and Health

Recently soybeans have been getting some bad press as a dietary ingredient. We’d like to set the records straight, weighing up the pros and cons and allowing you to make your own mind up, find out more.

Vegetable of the Month: Leek

The leek - a vegetable so good that the Welsh proudly pin it to their chests as one of their national symbols. Well, we think it’s great too, so, this month we will be exploring its virtues in our seasonal vegetable section.

Recipes of the Month

Noodles and Vegetables in Broth

This popular dish is quick and easy to prepare and makes a satisfying light lunch or starter.

Gingered Sweet Potato & Fennel Stew

White miso seasoning gives this dish a sweet lightness that may be enjoyed all year round.

Apple and Blackberry Pie

There’s nothing quite like a homemade fruit pie, and it’s even more delicious when you collect your own blackberries!

Topical Links

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Sushi at Home

crossmedia — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:31:09 +0100

Clearspring Organic Cold Pressed Oils

crossmedia — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:09:15 +0100

August Newsletter

crossmedia — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 16:09:40 +0100

Japanese Women Don't Get Old or Fat - extract

Catherine Maille — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:26:05 +0100

Japanese ingredients decoded and demystified, taken from Japanese Women Don't Get Old or Fat by Naomi Moriyama and William Doyle.

When I squeeze inside my mother's kitchen, I am struck by how similar it looks to a reduced-version of a typical Western kitchen – a cooker, sink, worktop, cupboards, microwave oven, refrigerator – yet how radically different is much of the food that comes out of it.

The secrets are revealed on closer inspection. Scattered around the place you'll find a few pieces of cookware and a number of basic ingredients and seasonings that you'll rarely find in the West. Once you stock up on these basics, your start-up Tokyo Kitchen will be almost ready for action.

As for the ingredients, you may never have heard of some of them. You may think they have weird-sounding names and a disconcertingly mysterious appearance when you look at the packages. What in the world is ‘kombu'? Will it bite me? When my husband asked his sister Kate if she had ever had mugicha (a delicious cold barley tea), she replied, ‘Is it something you have to take medicine for?'

But unusual as they may look and sound, all these foods and ingredients are in fact both easy to understand and easy to use. Beyond that, they have three other things in common: they are the basic powerhouses of the Japanese home kitchen, providing the foundation for everything that makes Japanese home-style cooking what it is. They are used by tens of millions of Japanese women, in kitchens that are probably half the size, if not less, of yours. And you're likely to find most or all of them compatible with your own tastes if you're willing to experiment a little and give them a try.

You're also likely to find many of them at a shop near you. Many of the major supermarket chains carry the most popular Japanese home-style cooking items, like tofu, miso and soy sauce. Many health food shops stock at least some Japanese ingredients too. If you're lucky enough to live near a Japanese grocery store, or an Asian, Korean, or ‘Oriental' specialist market that carries Japanese grocery products, you'll feel like you've hit the jackpot since you'll be able to pick from a wide range of products. Not only is the variety of products much greater, but the prices are often lower than what you'll find in the average supermarket.

The main thing is not to let yourself be intimidated by how foreign-looking all these products are. Since Japanese grocery stores stock seasonings and ingredients imported from Japan, it means that usually the writing on the packaging is in Japanese. Not to worry. On the back of almost every product is a label in English, listing the product name, ingredients, nutrition facts, manufacturer and importer.

On your first few trips to a Japanese grocer's, take the shopping list with you and ask the staff to direct you to the appropriate parts of the shop. Then start turning over the packages to find the English-language labels on the back.

If you don't live within range of a Japanese grocery store, there's still good news. Remember that you can use the Internet to help you shop for Japanese ingredients. If you go to Google's Froogle, Yahoo Shopping, Amazon's gourmet food section, or websites like www.clearspring.co.uk, you'll find a number of sources for Japanese goodies.

Don't get overwhelmed by the sheer abundance of what you see on the shelves. Keep in mind that just like bread or milk in this country, each of the basic Japanese food ingredients and seasoning products come in many different varieties from many different manufacturers. In fact, you may at first think there are too many. Having such an array of choices can be very confusing.

I understand the feeling. I was once a Japanese girl fresh off the plane and newly transplanted to the bewilderingly vast consumer culture of America ; I felt lost every time I walked into a supermarket. Just to buy milk, I found that I had to choose among whole milk, skimmed, low-fat (1 per cent or 2 per cent), half and half, lactose-free, soya, rice, in different sizes – not to mention having to choose which brand I preferred. This was completely overwhelming to me.

Which reminds me of a man I know named Mel Berger. He is one of the top literary agents in New York . In fact, he is my agent. He is a deal maker. I've seen him in action in business and he comes across as brilliant and fearless. But Mel Berger has a secret fear.

He lives in New Jersey , close to a branch of a fantastic Japanese grocery store – the Mitsuwa Marketplace. Inside its doors is a wonderland of Japanese home-cooking ingredients and equipment, foods, beverages, flavourings, cakes and sweets, fresh vegetables and succulent fruit, some of it fresh off the plane from Tokyo .

Mel likes Japanese food. Yet he has never gone inside. Why?
‘Because,' he confessed quietly to me one day, ‘I'm afraid of it.'
‘Why are you afraid?' I asked.
He replied, ‘I don't know what's in it.'

Naturally, some Japanese ingredients will seem unfamiliar to you. And even once you've worked up the courage to go shopping for them, some may seem a bit foreign to your taste. However, don't give up on the first trial tasting, just because you or a family member did not like the flavour. Try small tastes of many different dishes, until you find the ones you like. And don't decide on the basis of any one tasting that you don't like a whole category of food, because within a given category there are so many different tastes.

Take miso, for example. For the Japanese, miso is like wine, cheese or coffee – something very familiar that comes in dozens of subtle varieties of flavour, aroma, colour and texture. You might love one kind of miso and not another. As you'll read below, some misos are mild and sweet, others salty and pungent; some are smooth and refined, others slightly coarse or pebbly in texture.

You will probably not know what style of miso you prefer. But how did you find out which blend and brand of coffee you like most? Did you stick with the first you tried, or switch among several until you found your current favourite? And what about wine? If you're a wine lover, I'm sure you have your favourites, but you're probably always learning about new wines to enjoy. Apply a similar process to researching your favourites when you shop for your Tokyo Kitchen. Testing and tasting is part of the pleasure of cooking and eating.

Also, try not to prejudge any of the ingredients because you think they sound weird, or you've had them and are convinced you don't like them. That was how I was about cheese when I first came to America . In Japan , when I was growing up, we had basically one kind of cheese. It was a processed, gooey, semi-hard block. Sliced into small rectangular shapes, it was layered onto slices of bread that we toasted, or it was grilled with eggs, put into salads or sandwiches, or eaten plain. This was all I knew of cheese and I wasn't too crazy about it, because no matter how we used it, it never had a taste or texture that I found appealing.

Only in America did I discover the wonderful world of cheese. In Illinois, I was introduced to the famous cheeses of nearby Wisconsin. Now I love to eat wedges of those sharp tangy cheeses with slices of apple. And I've learned about lots of other cheeses since then. I break and sprinkle Roquefort cheese with dried cranberries over salads. I smear goat's cheese from my local farmers' market on thinly sliced baguettes from a great bakery in my neighbourhood. I love to prepare a simple dish of fresh mozzarella with ripe tomato slices sprinkled with olive oil and fresh basil. So, never say never!

This is an extract taken from Japanese Women Don't Get Old or Fat by Naomi Moriyama and William Doyle. For more details on this book, please click here.