Friday Interview: Alaine Janosy - Part 2

This is part 2 of my interview with Alaine Janosy. Follow this link to read Part 1.

TRE: Excellent point. Seeing books like [In Defense of Food] on the best seller lists certainly indicates a lot of people are interested. For those people who have started the education process, what stops them from taking the next steps?

AJ: So I think that a lot of it has to do with money - like [Michael Pollan] says in the book, not everyone can afford to shop at the farmer’s market. Also I think it has to do with the fact that it takes work and effort and time to eat this way, you cant just grab something quick, and many people, even after reading the books and maybe finding some truth in them, just cannot make what they eat important enough on their list of things to do in a day in order to make the transition.

Also, for you and me, we are single people (note: I’m actually not, but my wife and I are changing our eating habits together) making choices that really only affect us so it’s easy, but based on how much of a hard time I used to give my mom, I’m sure a lot of parents just don’t have the wherewithal to fight with their children over another thing because if someone cooking for an entire family decides to make this change they need to get everyone on board and that’s a tough task - a worthwhile one in my opinion, but I can see why a lot of people wouldn’t bother.

I also think the reason people have not adopted this way of eating is laziness. Americans are lazy, that’s why we are so susceptible to diet trends - we want things to show us results right away, and eating this way is not easy. You have to be willing to commit and make the effort because it’s not a short-term diet, and there is no magical result that suddenly happens (i.e. loose 50 lbs) so people don’t want to invest the time in something that they have to commit to forever and cannot see the product of straight away.

TRE: I was hoping we’d get to money eventually. Michael Pollan reminds us that, as a percentage of income, we now spend half as much as we did 60 years ago (supporting article). So if long term health is a priority, we should be able to find a way, right? The trouble is that it takes decades to see the payoff of all the extra time and money spent. Which is why a lot of people still smoke. You don’t smoke, do you?

AJ: Yes, I think that we need to reevaluate how we spend our money and put high quality food closer to the top of the list of expenses and spend a larger percentage of our salary on it. I mean, I think it’s a little ridiculous that people have been so appalled by the fact that, because of the recent state of the economy, the price of food has increased. The rest of the world has always been forced to spend a fortune on food, and we’re still not even close to what they spend, yet we are of the mindset that food should always be cheap, so when it’s not, we become upset.

It’s so interesting to see where as a population we place our priorities. I don’t really think it’s much of a stretch to see how this ‘cheap food’ mentality has created the primary health problem we are currently having in this country - obesity. And no, I don’t smoke. Frankly I am thrilled to live in NYC where you basically cannot smoke anywhere except the sidewalk anymore.

TRE: Speaking of which, the New York City ban on trans-fats just recently went into effect. What are your thoughts on the government stepping in with regards to what we eat? It’s not like people are dying from second hand trans-fat. Also, how does this affect you as a baker?

AJ: So in regards to trans-fats, in general I am not in favor of the government stepping in and making decisions for people, but is it possible that our eating habits have become so disastrous that they qualify as a country-wide epidemic? I don’t really know, but I think a strong argument can be made that obesity has reached epidemic proportions, thus doing something like banning trans-fats might be called for.

I think the intention is good, but the end product will likely not really be what legislators are hoping. I think legislators believe that this ban will make the way city inhabitants and visitors eat more healthy overall. Although it is too soon to tell if this will be the end product, I think it is more likely that people will actually eat more fried food after the ban goes into effect, instead of less as legislators are hoping. People will rationalize that now that there are no trans-fats in their fried food, these foods no longer impose a negative impact on their overall health, thus they are fine to eat.

I actually think that people are more likely to be affected by the new city law that requires all fast food restaurants to post calorie counts for their food in plain sight of customers. I have seen this new law in effect at Starbucks and I think it is very powerful because social pressures will cause people to hesitate before ordering a beverage or food item that plainly says it has 800 or 900 calories per serving. People will frequently eat whatever they want in private, but in front of other people they will at least hesitate, if not avoid ordering such items all together. Putting numbers right in front of people’s faces is a very powerful thing.

This does not really affect me when I’m baking because I have never baked with things that have trans-fats. As far as calorie counts, I think that people eat dessert because they are choosing to indulge. Now this does not mean that, everything considered, dessert has to be incredibly caloric, but in general you’re not going to be eating a piece of cake if you’re deep in calorie counting mode. When baking my philosophy is to use high quality, organic when possible, ingredients and give people something so delicious they won’t regret the indulgence.

TRE: What made you decide to get into baking? It seems like the opposite of being a management consultant.

AJ: Baking is definitely the opposite of Management Consulting, so I guess it is an expression of another side of my personality. I think that I got into baking because it is an expression of my slightly artistic side. Baking is different from cooking in that it is very precise and measured. All of the ingredients need to be exact, you cann
ot just be free form tossing in a little of this or a little of that, as in cooking.

I suppose baking is like chemistry, and so while I consider it a bit of an expression of my more artistic side, in that I can create something beautiful that makes other people happy, it is still a logical thing for a type A personality like me to love, because it is so precise and controlled. I was also drawn to baking because unlike regular cooking/food - dessert is extra. It is not necessary for survival, but it does help people thrive.

Cooking is a necessity, but baking is love.

(brownies baked by Alaine for Saveur Magazine, photo by: Andre Baranowski)

TRE: Loving the things you spend your time on in life is so important to our happiness. Even if you eat only fast food, we spend so much of our lives eating that it makes a lot of sense to change the whole experience of eating from something utilitarian, into something that we love. If you could leave our readers with just one piece of advice, what would it be?

AJ: I think my one piece of advice would be to get back in touch with your food. I think that the disconnect between people and their food is a major cause of obesity, eating disorders, crazy diets, and other diseases that have become rampant in our country. People have begun to believe that food just naturally comes in a box ready to be popped in the microwave, and I really think that if people took the time to get to know their food again, these things would slowly begin to decrease.

There is nothing more wonderful than going to your local farmers market and walking around on a bright sunny morning seeing, touching, and smelling all the beautiful food. When you take the time to go and pick out your food, even if that means going to your local supermarket and picking up fresh food instead of something already in a box, and then prepare that food with your own hands, you are able to truly savor eating. This will help people to remember what food is always supposed to be, not just a thing that fuels your body, but a rich experience that feeds your soul.

The Reluctant Eater would like to thank Alaine Janosy for her wonderful insights. You can check out her in-progress website at: http://www.bakeordye.com/ or contact her via email at: alainejanosy@bakeordye.com