Go Foie Yourself

No matter where you stand on the foie gras debate, it's always good to open yourself up to dialogue. (I always like to say that "The smartest person knows what she does not not know." But maybe that just comes from dealing with know-it-all idiots a few times too many?)

That said, until I hear something more compelling than what's already out there, I will continue to enjoy the socially-conscious foie gras from Hudson Valley Farms. And oohhhhh will I enjoy it.

I think I'll enjoy its mere existence right now, with a post from Offthebroiler.wordpress.com:

"The “Foie You”, a croissant sandwich prepared especially for our friends at Farm Sanctuary..All profits from the sales of the sandwich will be donated to the Center for Food Action...

Recently, a friend of mine, Christine Nunn, who owns Picnic Caterers in Emerson, NJ, received a threatening letter from Farm Sanctuary, an special interest group which has a focus on protecting the rights of animals in our food supply. Christine received the letter no doubt due to her use of Foie Gras in one of her dishes at the Ultimate Chef Bergen County Finals. It should be noted that due to the fact that since Foie Gras is such an incredibly expensive ingredient, she only finds use for about two lobes total per year for special events and customers that specifically request it, so she shouldn’t be considered a mass consumer of Foie Gras by any stretch of the imagination.

It should be also be noted that Christine only uses Hudson Valley Foie Gras, which is not raised in “intensively confined” environments that foreign Foie Gras producers use and is one of the elements of Farm Sanctuary’s complaints. As to whether the gavage feeding methods to fatten the ducks are “inhumane”, no conclusive scientific evidence has been found to date to support that the ducks being raised for Foie Gras actually feel any discomfort from the process, as they don’t eat in the same way human beings or other animals do and thus may lack a gag reflex.

While Christine and I both believe that our food animals should be treated humanely, it should be a personal choice for chefs and restaurateurs to serve whatever ingredients they want to their customers, not via agendas that are forced down OUR collective throats by special interest groups...Not to be bullied, [we]decided that perhaps it was apropos to create a dish that was representative of our views on this matter.

FOIE YOU."

Jason Perlow's Foie You Croissant Sandwich...with Hudson Valley foie gras, smoked duck breast, thin sliced pears, terrine de foie gras; and blackberry jam.

For more information on the conflict between Farm Sanctuary and Picnic Caterers, or to more tasty foie gras pictures, click on the link above.