Author Archives: Genesis Rivas

LC13

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For my last post on our Citizen Appetites blog, I decided to write about my experiences in LC13 here at Wagner College. When I chose this LC I had no idea what to expect from the classes I would be taking. All I knew was that I was a food lover and anything related to food interested me. It was interesting once I got into my classes how much knowledge could be gained from looking at the world through a food lens. The history of food and food ways has been used to uncover the history of New York City. I learned about New York City history dating back to the Lenape Indians. I particularly enjoyed my psychology class because I like knowing about why humans and animals do what they do. Within our psych class we learned about food and nutrition and the interactions these things have with humans. After our lessons in our psychology class, I would leave and apply lessons I learned to my own eating habits and friends eating habits. Most recently my friend decided to tell me that I should not be eating so many potatoes because carbs are “bad for you”. However, I learned that this idea that carbs are bad for you is false. What really matters is how much you consume of that food. The lessons I learned in my LC are ones that I am grateful for learning and knowing about because it knowledge that can be applied to everyone’s lives. As humans, we all need food to survive. It was interesting learning in depth about food and its connections with history and psychology.

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Here’s a picture from orientation weekend at Wagner with some of us in LC13. Happy Holidays to everyone, this semester has been a fun ride! 🙂

The Halal Guys

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Being a native New Yorker, I have always heard about the famous Halal Guys and how great their food was. However, I never actually experienced or tasted their food. After recently having a history paper where we had to look into the changing food ways of New York City, I looked into the history of the Halal Guys and realized that they have truly influenced and changed the food industry not just in New York, but nationwide. A New York Times article, states that these three Egyptian immigrants who started the Halal Guys initially started their food cart as a hot dog stand. Yet once they discovered the demand for good halal food from the immigrant cab drivers, they began a new revolutionary business. These three men created a small food cart and have turned it into a huge franchise that is going to be available in parts all around America and even in European countries. What most amazed me the most about the history of the Halal Guys was the role of immigration and how much it impacted this business. The migration of all the Egyptian, Bangladeshi, and Afghan people into New York can be seen as an influential factor in the success of these food carts. The Halal Guys cater to this specific group of people because of the way they cook their food. Another New York times article says that they use halal cooking methods which means that they cook their food in mannerisms that follow the Muslim Koran. Although, when this business began they initially targeted those immigrant cab drivers, it became something that was desired by all kinds of people. These halal food carts are infamous for having their longest lines late at night serving all those young people who spent their nights partying in New York City clubs. Their huge success depicts a change in New York City food ways. We embrace a more ethnic food culture and that is something that I find truly great about living in New York. In my opinion I love living in a place that is a known as a huge melting pot that allows for any one and everyone to make something of themselves no matter where they come from.

Oxfam America Hunger Banquet

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One of our last experiential learning opportunities was held on November 30th at 6pm. It was an experience that had me think about a lot of situations that I do not normally think about regarding food. This banquet was held in order to raise awareness about food insecurity and the problems associated with excess food waste in America. When we first entered into our event we were given a card that said what social class we were and that determined where we sat for the evening. On my card I had written, “Middle Income”. AlsoIMG_0019 on that card was a name of someone who survived off of middle income with a short snippet of their lives. I got a woman from Somalia who was named Halima. Halima was a mother of five and worked as a nurse. It was interesting to see what others around me got on their cards. Since I was middle class, I got to sit at a table with others in my social class which I was happy about because I was fortunate enough to actually get a seat. However, my friends who all got “Low Income” on their cards succumbed to sitting on the floor. The very few people who got “High Income” on their cards sat at a table that had a fancier set up and had salads and water waiting for them as they sat.

As the evening progressed, we were informed about the food insecurity that many individuals (more than we think) in America experience. I was particularly intrigued by the situation of excessive food waste. I grew up in a home where I was always forced to eat all the food on my plate. If I left even a bite on the plate, my mother and father would tell me, “There are other kids around the world who are starving.” They never allowed for me or my sibling to leave any food because they hated wasting food. Whenever there were  leftovers for dinner my mother would always pack it up and have it ready for my dad to take to lunch the next day. Throwing out food was never something that happened in my house. However, coming into college and having all these food choices, I’ve experienced myself doing exactly what I was told not to do all my life. Yet, I have not really thought much about my actions until the problems of food insecurity and food waste were brought to my attention. When they mentioned specifically about how kids in our dining hall are notorious for getting plates and plates of food and not finishing it all, it hit close to home and reminded me of my upbringing. Because I am surrounded by so many options, I don’t usually think twice about going up more than once even if my first plate was not finished. Hunger is an issue that many Americans experience everyday which is an unfathomable thing to think about because the amount of food that goes into the garbage everyday is enough to feed those that are hungry. I think this experiential learning was something that I personally needed to hear. It made me aware of my carelessness as well as reminded me that others are not so fortunate to have the options I do. Now will I go into dining hall and attempt to not contribute to this problem of excessive food waste in America. This event was an eye opening experience that I am grateful to have experienced and I think would be very beneficial for others to hear.

Does Dark Chocolate help with Hypertension?

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For our last psychology paper, our class was assigned to choose a super food and find supportive evidence if there were the health benefits that are associated with that food. I chose to research and write about the dark chocolate and its effect on individuals with hypertension. As someone who is a fond lover of chocolate herself, I decided to see if the claims about whether this food can reduce high blood pressure were true. After some research, studies have shown that the consumption of dark chocolate can lower a persons blood pressure with the help of polyphenols. Polyphenols are a micronutrient that carry antioxidant properties and increase a particular nitric acid in our bodies. That increase in acid promotes the widening of our blood vessels which causes a lower systolic an diastolic blood pressure reading.  There was no information that I found that said exactly how much dark chocolate was needed in order to reduce blood pressure. Yet, one experiment showed that as little as 100g of dark chocolate was able to lower blood pressure readings.

When I continued reading about the experiments that were conducted, it elaborated more about the positive relationship between dark chocolate and hypertension. However, there were some experiments where those who participated in the experiments found that eating dark chocolate had some adverse effects. Due to the caffeine content within dark chocolate, individuals reported that after daily consumption of this food, they had difficulty sleeping. Also, some reported that merely eating dark chocolate everyday gave them feelings of nausea. Thus, due to these consequences dark chocolate does not seem like a feasible form of treatment to reduce blood pressure. Growing up, I have always heard how dark chocolate could potentially be beneficial to ones health however, I did not know that there were scientific studies that actually supported the claims. Upon finding these answers about dark chocolate, I was fascinated. Even though it may not be a great form of treatment for individuals with hypertension, it is still satisfying to know that when I do eat dark chocolate there are some benefits.

Here are some articles that I read that helped me write my paper: polyphenols and dark chocolate

Adventures to Elsie’s Parlor

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This past weekend my friends and I ventured into Crown Heights Brooklyn for a school project. When we first got assigned our neighborhood we first were a little intimidated. None of us knew this area besides what we have read online. Thus, we did some research and looked for interesting places to go eat or visit. We read about this called place called Elsie’s Doughnuts and saw some mouthwatering pictures of pastries. I immediately wanted the doughnut that was covered in chocolate and coconut shavings. We knew Elsie’s was a place we had to go visit upon our visit. When we got to Crown Heights, we walked around and explored this unfamiliar place. It was obvious that this neighborhood was one that was indeed changing. The visual difference from one block to the next was drastic. On one side there would be run down homes and on the next there would be brand new condominiums. Even the differences in businesses ranged from bodegas to trendy hipster restaurants. We walked around Crown Heights for a couple of hours and to finish up our trip we stopped at Elsie’s Doughnuts. With our luck, our GPS took us to Elsie’s Doughnuts on Bergen St which turned out to be an abandoned doughnut shop that was closed down. We wandered about thinking, “what do we do now?” Luckily, there was another Elsie’s but it was called Elsie’s Parlor just a few minutes away. When we finally found it, we encountered a cute place that was small and empty. The doughnuts offered at this Elsie’s were not as extravagant as the one we initially wanted to go to. Thus, instead of my chocolate covered doughnut with coconut shavings I settled for a glazed doughnut and my friend got a black and white doughnut. The prices for each doughnut was $2.50 which (to me at least) is a little pricey however, it was a pretty big doughnut and it was delicious. My experience at Crown Heights was a positive one that made me excited to go back and find other delicious places to eat and explore.

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Mentoring

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20151023_123620On Friday, October 23 I visited my mentee named Rebecca at Port Richmond High School. When the class bell rang, the students got straight to work. It was so interesting to see all of them grabbing pots, pans, ingredients, kitchen tools and getting down to business. I asked my mentee what they have done during the past week and what they have made. She told me that earlier in the week they had prepared fried rice and that today they were making chicken stir fry. I paid close attention to the ingredients used and how they made the chicken stir fry. The main components of the meal were chicken, bell peppers, and bok choy. They then added things like garlic, ginger, vegetable and sesame oil to cook the stir fry in. I am not much of a cook myself so to see these high school students handle and maneuver the kitchen in such a professional and knowledgeable manner was really inspiring. After they finished cooking, they started serving the fried rice and chicken stir fry. The room smelled delicious. I got handed a plate and after one bite I was so impressed. It tasted really good. This time around at Port Richmond High School, I learned from Rebecca and her peers more so than she learned from me. I was inspired by these students and their obvious passion for cooking. I suppose the great part of this mentorship project is that I never know what I am going to get. Sometimes I will leave feeling like I learned something new ( as I did that Friday) and other times I hope to inspire my mentee which will leave her feeling as I did after my visit. I can’t wait to see what other dishes, lessons, and advice I will encounter during this mentor partnership with Port Richmond High School. 🙂

Weight Stigma and the Media

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For our Reflective Tutorial class we recently wrote a paper regarding weight stigma. I decided to focus my paper on the effects that arise from stigmatization. I was particularly interested in this paper because it truly fascinates me how society and the media portray what the “ideal” body type is. I read an article (that can be found here) that briefly spoke about the media and the effects it has on those who are overweight. It states that when someone who is overweight is depicted on television or in films, they are usually targets of ridicule, stereotyped as having maladaptive eating behaviors, and not featured as being a part of a romantic relationship. This article clearly states that “Weight bias in the media is not subtle”. I agree that the media, without remorse, instills these ideas of what the “perfect” body type is, making girls around the world (overweight or not) feel self-conscious about their own bodies. I constantly question “where did this all start?”, “who was the person who said that said “thin is in””? All around Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and many other social media applications, there are pictures of women who are sculpted with beautiful figures, glowing skin, and gorgeous healthy hair. Although I feel like we all know that these photos are not reality and they are edited with one and a million filters, it still has its affect on those who are overweight and even those who are not. When will society infiltrate individuals with positive messages and pictures of real everyday women. Women who do not wear pounds of makeup everyday or have a flat tummy with abs. The research process of this paper was one that I did learn a lot from. This paper really got me thinking about things that I never thought of before such as weight stigma, body image and the effects the media has on them. Topics like these really ignite a fire inside me because I just can not wait for the day that society stops choosing certain body and facial features and declaring them “beautiful”. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder not the eye of the media.

My Port Richmond Experience

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On October 8th, a beautiful Thursday morning my class and I ventured into Port Richmond. For our experiential learning in our LC’s, our class is going to take on the task of being suitable mentors for the students in Port Richmond High School. More specifically, the students a part of the schools’ culinary program. I remember first walking into the classroom and thinking, “Oh god, how am I going to mentor someone and help them out when I was in their position merely a few years ago!?” I was nervous but, at the same time excited. I enjoy helping other people out in whatever way I can. I get a sense of satisfaction from simply being able to put a smile on someone else’s face. Thus, when we first walked into the room to meet our mentees, it appeared to me that both classes just awkwardly stood their for a while just looking at each others apprehensive facial expressions. Then one teacher called out “Okay guys just introduce yourselves to someone and make friends.” With that said, everyone began to socialize with one another. I, still confused and nervous, just stood their for a few moments just thinking who am I going to mentor? Then, with some encouragement from my friend, went up to a girl in front of me to simply get to know her. Her name was Rebecca. Rebecca and I instantly clicked. She was a sweet, enthusiastic, and funny girl with a strong passion for cooking and baking. We spoke about all the foods she’s made as well as her experiences in the culinary class. We even shared a few laughs about my lack of cooking skills. By the end of the class, a friend from my class needed a mentee and decided to join Rebecca and I. Now that the three of us have been placed together for the rest of the semester, we will get the opportunity to get to know each other, learn from each other and grow from each others experiences. I’m excited to see what this mentor-mentee relationship will bring about for I have truly enjoyed my trip to Port Richmond High School. 🙂

Freshman Fifteen

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For tonight’s post I thought I would talk about the infamous freshman fifteen. First things first, I would like to begin with the new knowledge I’ve recently learned about and that is that the idea of the “Freshman Fifteen” is simply a myth. There is no study that actually proves that new college students gain 15 pounds their freshman year. It is actually shown that students gain a natural 2.5 to 6 pounds over a gradual period of time. However, although there might not be an excessive weight gain, there is indeed an excessive amount of unhealthy food options that do make bad eating habits easy to form. So, although this freshman fifteen may be false I have noticed a change in since I first started college.

Growing up I was never big into eating out or eating fast food. Whenever my mother would have a busy week at work and didn’t have time to make a home cooked meal, I would genuinely get upset by that. I would ask, “When are we going to eat home food again, I don’t want to eat at McDonald’s!” I don’t know what 8 year old did not want McDonald’s all the time but apparently, I was that kid. Thus, my eating habits, by choice, were never that bad. Long story short, I never indulged into bad food much when I was younger. Now a month into my freshman year at college I find myself constantly eating burgers, chicken tenders, fries, pizza and everything else that is just absolutely not okay! The worst part of it all is we do have the option of fruit, vegetables(although they don’t taste fresh at all), and chicken(that is chicken that is not deliciously fried into chicken tenders.) Before reading the article that I linked above, I believed that the freshman fifteen was bound to happen to me since all I have been eating is junk. Thus, recently I have made the promise to myself that I would attempt to eat the healthier options provided to me. One day at lunch I was looking at all my choices and on my plate that so far consisted of pizza, a slice of turkey and some potatoes. Then my friend grabs a piece of broccoli and I remembered the promise I told myself to keep.

In our psychology class we learned that more often than not the reason why people eat is not because they are actually hungry.There are many factors that influence why people eat when they do. One of these factors includes social influences. This is the idea that how much someone eats and what someone chooses to eat is altered depending on who they are with. Hence, if I was eating alone for lunch that day I probably would have stayed with my pizza on my plate and nothing more. However, watching my friend grab a healthier food option made me want to do the same. So although everyday that walk past the pepperoni pie is extremely difficult, I am highly successful in grabbing a more nutritious plate for dinner…most of the time. 🙂

Tortillas Y Mucho Mas

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Yesterday my class and I ventured out into Port Richmond in Staten Island. We took a tour and I was intrigued by the number of restaurants down Port Richmond Ave. There were tons of restaurants serving a variety of foods ranging from Chinese, Mexican, Peruvian, Dominican, and even Italian. Coming from a Hispanic descent, when I saw all the Latin food restaurants I immediately thought of the food I eat at home. I am Salvadorian however, traditional Spanish food is all very similar. We all enjoy foods like rice, beans, plantains and tortillas-especially tortillas. While walking down the parade of restaurants, we passed by a a restaurant that made fresh tortillas. It reminded me of home because my mother makes homemade tortillas from time to time. It shocked me that they were using a machine to make the tortillas because my mother usually makes them by hand and then yells at me to learn how to make them. Yet, I find it very difficult to make tortillas. I can never get the shape of a perfect circle and if I do I can never get it to stay intact and not break apart. There’s a hidden talent to making handmade tortillas that I have yet to discover. Fresh made tortillas that are still warm from the pan are so good. My parents can eat them with almost everything yet, I only like them with particular food like this soup my mother makes called Sopa de Res. Sopa de Res is a soup filled with all kinds of vegetables and beef. My mother does not always make handmade tortillas because they are a lot of work. Whenever there aren’t any fresh made tortillas we just buy corn tortillas from the store because my family simply cannot go without it. Whether it be breakfast, lunch, or dinner we always have a side of tortillas for our meals. Our class trip to Port Richmond was a trip that I particularly enjoyed because it hit really close to home. I can’t wait to go back and try all of the different kinds of food they have to offer.

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The man is running the dough through this machine I suppose to flatten it out before forming the circular tortilla shape.