A4
Opinion
wallowa.com
November 22, 2017
Wallowa County Chieftain
Gobble up
some turkey
Is it only me or does time seem to fly at a nanosecond pace
during the holiday portion of the year? Seems like yesterday
we were running results from the county fair and, boom, it’s
Thanksgiving.
They say time flies when you’re having fun.
Most of us have fond and warm memories of Thanksgiving
Day –– the food, the traditions, the football games ... and don’t
forget the food.
The centerpiece is most often turkey. Historians tell us has
that has been the case since President Abraham Lincoln created
a national day of thanksgiving.
Of course, turkeys have long been associated with Christ-
mas. Remember Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol?”
Some culinary historians believe Scrooge’s gift of a Christ-
mas turkey to the Cratchit family helped cement the turkey’s
place at the cen-
ter of the holi-
day meal for both
modest and afflu-
ent households.
Having lived
Paul Wahl
for 20 years in
Minnesota –– the
top turkey-pro-
ducing state in the
national –– we have had our share of the big birds. Because of
the abundant supply, turkeys often sold for as little as 39 cents a
pound or sometimes were given free or nearly free with a mini-
mum purchase at one of the major grocery stores.
Stuffing has long been an art and a science in my family. It
involves copious quantities of dried bread, a mix of ingredients
and spices and, most importantly, not packing it too tight into
the bird.
The recipe began with my great-grandmother on mother’s side
whose decidedly German-from-Russia heritage was evident. You
didn’t toss anything into the garbage. Dried bread was the perfect
beginnings for stuffing. Not cornbread. That was for southerners.
My grandmother and aunts added their own variations, includ-
ing the switch from homemade bread dried to French bread.
Apparently it added special panache, that je ne sais quoi. Who
knows. Perhaps it was because my grandmother was getting older
and baking less bread in her wood-fired stove on a weekly basis.
My mother added touches of her own as did my sisters.
Mom omitted sage since it was not one of her favorite spices.
One sister began adding celery to the recipe. Anathema to the
traditionalists in the family, but a hit with those looking to eat
more healthy. Hey, celery is green.
I make a version of the stuffing that is mostly my own, but
keeping as many of the traditional ingredients as possible. Some
years back, we had friends who had lived on the East Coast and
their tradition was fresh oysters in their stuffing.
It took two years of experimenting, but by year three, I had
developed a very edible oyster stuffing. The key being that the
oysters really only needed to be heated through. Any additional
cooking turns them into tiny bits of shoe leather.
Of course, during those years, I had to make two versions of
stuffing for those who were not oyster lovers.
WAHL TO WALL
WE HAVE also had the good fortune to live in communities
where free Thanksgiving meals for all comers were served. My
first exposure to this was in my wife’s hometown, Delano, Calif.
One day in late October, the of the local Cadillac dealership,
came to the newspaper and began telling me about his plan to
provide a meal for anyone who wanted to come free. Our contri-
bution was to be the advertising. The idea grew out of his Sikh
religion.
It was also intended as an open house for his newly con-
structed dealership. The service bays were cleaned to the point
where you could eat off the floor –– literally –– and that first
event attracted around 500 people. It remains a tradition in Del-
ano to this day.
In Minnesota, many Lutheran churches served a free
Thanksgiving meal. The community we moved here from,
Montrose, Colo., produced a meal that fed around 2,000 people
hearty doses of turkey and ham, potatoes and pies. Some folks
came only for the pies, they were that good.
We were pleased to discover that Wallowa County has its
own version of the free Thanksgiving meal. It will be served at
1 p.m. at the Community Connection Senior Center, 702 NW
1st St., Enterprise.
The menu features turkey and all the trimmings. Guests are
asked to bring a donation for the Community Connection Food
Bank. Reservations are not necessary.
See you there!
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Contents copyright © 2017. All rights reserved.
Reproduction without permission is prohibited.
Volume 134
1 Year
$40.00
$57.00
Thankful for the right to dissent
America was conceived in the prom-
ise of a New World and founded on the
right to dissent. In November, we are
reminded of our heritage by a holiday
honoring veterans and another, which
celebrates our right to give thanks for
our blessings, to spend time with fam-
ily, to eat heartily and then watch foot-
ball games.
And as Shakespeare once commented
long before the invention of Ameri-
can football: “aye, there’s the rub.”
Because ever since former San Fran-
cisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaeper-
nick first decided to sit and then take a
knee during the playing of the National
Anthem, many football fans have experi-
enced indigestion because of the protests
of Kaepernick and other players.
Some of his colleagues, like for-
mer Bengals quarterback Boomer Esia-
son and all-time great Jim Brown, have
called these protests disgraceful, while
other players have demonstrated their
support for Kaepernick’s attempt to cast
light on the injustices of police brutality
and racial discrimination.
President Trump, who relishes con-
troversy of all sorts and seems especially
eager to fan the flames of racial divisions,
labeled Kaepernick and other protestors
SOBs and called on the NFL and its own-
ers to ban kneeling during the anthem
and to suspend or fire players who did
not stand for it.
His tweets had the opposite effect,
at least in the short-term, as more and
more players either knelt, locked arms
as a team or remained in the locker room
during the anthem to show President
Trump that they would not stand –– lit-
erally –– for his attacks on them. But the
president is no dummy when it comes
to pushing people’s buttons to get the
response he is hoping for, and the counter
reaction of most fans to the anthem pro-
tests has been primarily in Trump’s favor.
POLITICAL
PHILOSOPHY
John McColgan
As a former first-grade teacher and
Cubmaster and a current Rotarian, I am
comfortable with having practiced the
ritual of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance
with my class, pack or club. I am proud
to live in a country that honors veterans
and gives thanks for its many blessings.
We are the land
of the free and the
home of the brave
precisely because we
honor the rights of
those who disagree
even when they express
their views in a form
that we ourselves
might not choose.
And as an avid sports fan, I enjoy
standing for the National Anthem at
baseball and football games, just as I like
joining in singing the anthem any time
the crowd is invited to do so.
But even as I say the words of the
pledge or sing the lyrics of the anthem, I
am mindful of their significance and their
gravity. We are blessed to live in a nation
that many of us regard as the greatest in
the history of the world, but we should
also recognize that our greatness derives
largely because we are a nation that was
founded on ideals and one that is always
striving for “a more perfect union.”
We are the land of the free and the
home of the brave precisely because we
honor the rights of those who disagree
even when they express their views in a
form that we ourselves might not choose.
I respect Kaepernick and others who
have knelt in support of his critique
regarding police brutality and social and
racial injustice. I would not have chosen
his means of expression, but if I were an
NFL player, I would probably be one of
those locking arms with teammates who
kneel as a way of demonstrating solidar-
ity with them.
And I disagree completely with
Trump’s position, which I suspect is
motivated partially by his desire to court
antagonisms, and partially by an old
grudge that he holds against the NFL
from the days when the league refused to
accept him as a team owner and thwarted
his efforts to develop a rival league.
As a footnote, since I have men-
tioned that I personally enjoy singing the
National Anthem, I will add that it is not
a song for a soloist to attempt casually,
as many professional singers have dis-
covered to their embarrassment before a
national audience.
The anthem is best begun in a key that
is as low as the second word “say” allows
at the bottom of the singer’s range. Bet-
ter choices for a national anthem, based
purely on their melodic or lyrical quali-
ties, might have been “God Bless Amer-
ica,” “America the Beautiful,” “You’re a
Grand Old Flag” or “This Land is Your
Land.”
John McColgan writes from his home
in Joseph. He can carry a tune much bet-
ter than he can throw a pass.
Don’t answer when pie is calling
You know you should follow a healthy
diet, even during the holidays. But that
deep dish apple pie with vanilla ice cream?
It’s calling, no, make that screaming your
name.
What do you do?
And let’s not forget all the cookies,
candy and other holiday goodies your
children are interested in eating. To make
matters worse, it isn’t just coming at you
from home, but at work, from friends and
neighbors (all well-meaning) and at family
get-togethers.
Your children are not immune, either.
They are tempted at school, too. After all,
‘tis the season, right?
First, know it’s OK to give yourself per-
mission to indulge a little. That means a
small serving of pie, not the whole pie, and
not every day. It means one or two cookies,
not the whole batch.
The holidays come around once a year,
and to try to deny yourself a holiday treat by
force of will power will result in over-eat-
ing and bouts of self-recrimination.
Remember, too, you can lead by exam-
ple. If your children see that you are making
healthy choices they will, too.
Try to focus on the treats and sweets that
are most meaningful to you or that you enjoy
EATING
RIGHT
Ann Bloom
the most.
There are a variety of fall and win-
ter vegetables and fruit with which to fill
your plate at meal times. One of the many
advantages of fruits and vegetables is that
they contain fiber and thus are filling. This
means you will be satisfied with less food,
and be less tempted to reach for sugar and
fat-laden options.
There are many root vegetables avail-
able this time of year including turnips,
rutabagas, sweet potatoes, yams and pars-
nips, which all taste good roasted with a
little olive oil, salt and pepper. A rule of
thumb is to make half your plate fruits and
vegetables at meal times.
Whole grains are another healthy
option to keep the intake of unhealthy
fats and sweets at a minimum. Whole
grains, as opposed to their refined coun-
terparts, include all the parts of a kernel of
grain, which contains all the vitamins and
minerals.
In addition to brown rice, farro, qui-
noa and barley all make excellent holiday
side dishes, either alone or in combination.
Generally low in fat, but high in fiber and
B Vitamins, whole grains are an important
part of a healthy diet. Aim to make at least
50 percent of your daily grain intake whole
grains.
In addition to fruits and vegetables
(fresh, canned and frozen are all good),
and whole grains, remember to choose lean
protein options and make dairy choices
low-fat or nonfat.
Also, try to keep up your daily physical
activity program. Physical activity will not
only burn off calories and give you more
time with your family and friends during
the holiday season, but you will be less
likely to overeat if you are outside being
active and away from those tempting trays
of treats.
By making more healthful choices
during the holidays, you and your family
can begin the New Year on a healthy note.
Ann Bloom is a nutrition program assis-
tant for the OSU Extension Service in Wal-
lowa County. She can be contacted at
541-426-3143.
etters to the Editor are subject to editing and should be limited to 275 words. Writers should also include a phone number
with their signature so we can call to verify identity. The Chieftain does not run anonymous letters.
In terms of content, writers should refrain from personal attacks. It’s acceptable, however, to attack (or support) another par-
ty’s ideas.
We do not routinely run thank-you letters, a policy we’ll consider waiving only in unusual situations where reason compels
the exception.
You can submit a letter to the Wallowa County Chieftain in person; by mail to P.O. Box 338, Enterprise, OR 97828; by
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