Entomophagy Anthropology
JULIE LESNIK
Associate Professor
Dept of Anthropology
Wayne State University
Detroit, MI
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Recipes from the Cricket Flour Bake Off!

4/14/2015

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FOR ALL RECIPES, WE USED ASPIRE 100% PURE CRICKET POWDER

"The Early Bird Gets The Cricket” Muffins - 2015 WINNER!

yield: 12 MUFFINS
prep time: 15 MINUTES
cook time: 25 MINUTES
total time: 40 MINUTES


INGREDIENTS:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup 100% pure cricket powder (or up to 1/3 flour ratio for more protein!)
1 cup rolled oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup milk
3/4 cup applesauce
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups carrot, grated (about 3 medium carrots)
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup crushed pineapple
1/2 cup raisins


DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease or place cupcake wrappers in a standard-size, 12-cup muffin pan.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, cricket powder, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, applesauce, brown sugar, vegetable oil, egg, and vanilla extract.
4. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and whisk just until all ingredients are incorporated. Gently stir in the carrots, 1/2 cup coconut, raisins and pineapple.
5. Divide the mixture between the muffin cups. Cups should be filled to the top.
6. Sprinkle tops evenly with remaining coconut.
7. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until muffin tops spring back when poked and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
8. Allow to cool for 5 – 10 minutes before removing from the muffin tin. Serve plain or with butter, if desired.


Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 – 3 days, or freeze.


Chocolate Cup with Cashew and Cricket Cream Ingredients

INGREDIENTS
1 bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup cashews
½ cricket flour
1 cup powdered sugar
1 ½ whipping cream
2 tbsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp vegetable oil


DIRECTIONS
1.Blend together the cashew and cricket flour in a blender until smooth (add a few tbsp of water to help get a creamy texture)
2. Add in 2 tbsp of vanilla extract to the blended mixture
3. In a separate bowl whip 1 ½ cups of heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form.
4. Add 1 cup of powdered sugar to the whipping cream slowly and blend until you can’t see sugar lumps on the surface
5. Take the cashew mixture and fold it into the whipped cream making sure not to overmix.
7. Put the mixture into a piping bag with a metal piping tip
8. Melt the chocolate chips and add 3 tbsp of vegetable oil.
9. Take 1 tbsp of the chocolate and pour into mini cupcake tin liner and put the tray into the fridge.
10. After the chocolate has cooled pipe a small amount of the cream into the center of the cups (add any kind of fruit on top).
11. Add 2 tbsp of the melted chocolate on top until fully covered and set to cool for 20 minutes.


Jiminy Cornbread

INGREDIENTS
2 cups yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup 100% pure cricket powder
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup honey
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray 9- x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray, then set aside.
2. In large bowl, whisk cornmeal with flour, cricket powder, sugar, baking powder and salt until combined. Set aside.
3. In medium bowl, whisk milk with melted butter, honey, eggs, and vanilla until combined. Add milk mixture to cornmeal mixture, and use spatula or wooden spoon to stir until just combined.
4. Transfer batter to prepared baking pan and bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Let corn bread cool slightly before slicing and serving.


Space Hop Flat Bread with Amogio Sauce

INGREDIENTS
Amogio sauce:
2 cups of diced tomatoes; no need to peel
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3 or more cloves or garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons or more of minced basil
a squirt of lemon juice
pinch table salt
pinch finely ground pepper


Flat bread:
2 cups flour
1 cup Cricket flour
1 1/4 water
1 tsp salt
1 tbl spoon mixed spices (garlic, rosemary, salt, dried tomato pieces, and whichever pepper one prefers)


1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees
2 . Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and begin kneading with hands
this will take approximately 5 minutes until it is a non powdery ball of dough.
3. Once the substance is non powdery, roll into a ball and cut in half
cut the two halves in half and continue until cutting the halves until there are sixteen slices
4. Roll each of these into a ball
5. Put the individual rolls on a cutting board and take a rolling pin, rolling each ball into flat cakes about 1/4 inch thick

6. Finally same spices but cut with 2-3 table spoons of olive oil based over the top thinly with a cooking brush, leaning towards not enough vs too much
 7. Cook in oven for 7-8 minutes checking them to make sure they don't bubble
8.  Put Amogio ingredients through the blender and mix well until desired consistency


Chocolate Cricket Bundt Cake

INGREDIENTS
1 cup unsalted butter, plus more for the pan
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup 100% pure cricket powder
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream 
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon confectioners sugar (optional)

DIRECTIONS
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 10 or 12-cup Bundt pan and set aside.

2. In a small saucepan, combine the butter, cocoa powder, salt, and water and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring, just until melted and combined. Remove from the heat and set aside.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cricket powder, sugar, and baking soda. Add half of the melted butter mixture and whisk until completely blended. The mixture will be thick. Add the remaining butter mixture and whisk until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking until completely blended. Whisk in the sour cream and the vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth.

4. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes and then invert onto a rack. Dust with confectioners sugar and serve when cool.

Alternative "mini cakes" option: Line mini muffin pan with mini muffin paper cups, fill each cup about 3/4 full, and bake for 20-25 mins.



Bread Machine Rosemary Cricket Bread

INGREDIENTS
1 cup warm water
2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 tablespoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons crushed dried rosemary
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup 100% pure cricket powder 


DIRECTIONS
1. Pour the water into the pan of a bread machine, then sprinkle in the yeast and sugar. 
2. Let the mixture sit in the bread machine until a creamy foam forms on top of the water (about 10 minutes). 
3. Sprinkle in the salt, then add the olive oil, thyme, garlic powder, rosemary and flour.  
4. Set the machine for light crust setting, and start the machine.

Recipe is for a 1.5 lb loaf.
Cook time ~ 3hrs.
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Where are all the Anthropologists?

4/8/2015

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As an anthropologist planning a conference, most the grants for which I can apply are in anthropology.  However, these conference and workshop grants or designed to help anthropologists come together, even from organizations that emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration.  So I am trying to put together a group of international anthropologists to come together for a workshop on insects as food.  The plan is that it will be the day after the Eating Innovation conference so that we have lots of fodder for discussion.  However, I am having a hard time finding anthropologists!

Many scholars write about the eating of insects by humans and even use the term "anthropo-entomophagy," most notably J. Ramos-Elorduy in the journal Entomological Research, and most recently E.M. Costa-Neto in the Journal of Insects as Food and Feed.  However, there is a great difference between 'anthropo-entomophagy' and 'entomophagy anthropology' and I am searching for people out there who understand that difference.  

So please, if you are an anthropologist (or a social scientist in general) outside of the US who studies insects as food (or studies food more broadly and is interested in investigating entomophagy), get into contact with me!  I want to work with you to come up with money to bring you here to Detroit for the 2016 conference next May!





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Cricket flour bake-off panel of judges

4/1/2015

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The cricket flour bake off is around the corner!  April 7th will be here so soon!  I am thrilled at the panel of judges that are coming together for this event.  We seriously have superstars from Detroit's food community as well as WSU powerhouses joining us.  I felt the best way to convey how starstruck they make me was to put together this poster:
Many thanks to all of our judges.  We couldn't do this without you!
So a little bit more about our judges:

Jordi Carbonell
Carbonell is the founder and owner of  Café Con Leche coffee shop in the Southwest neighborhood of Detroit.  Carbonell aims to bring together different cultures - be it Spanish coffee to Detroit or coffee shop culture to the Southwest - and Café Con Leche is doing an excellent job in achieving this goal.  We are honored to have this multicultural perspective represented in our cricket flour bake-off.  As anthropologists we know food has so much social and cultural significance, and it is great to have an entrepreneur join us who has been so successful who is actualizing this in his business.

Dave Mancini
Detroiters likely recognize Mancini by name, but if not, they are sure to recognize Supino Pizzeria in Eastern Market.  The small shop with thin crust pizzas inspired by Italy is a breath of fresh air in a city where chains for thick crust pizzas are born.   The biggest buzz around Mancini right now is that he will be opening a full-menu Italian restaurant, La Rondinella.  Maybe this summer?  We all can't wait.  Maybe he will consider a desert incorporating nectar-filled ingluvies like those eaten in traditional Northeast Italy.  We are excited to hear what he has to say about the potential of insects as food.

Tracie McMillan
McMillan is the award-winning author of the book The American Way of Eating, a contributing journalist to news sources such as NPR, Slate, and National Geographic to name a few, as well as an active blogger on her popular website traciemcmillan.com. Her list of awards and achievements are extensive and we in Michigan are proud to call her one of our own.   McMillan works to address the inequalities of our food system and hunger in America.  Her perspective is going to be invaluable at our event as we think about who can benefit from insects as food.

Molly O'Meara
O'Meara is a freelance graphic designer turned specialty preserves entrepreneur with her business Beau Bien Fine Foods.  O'Meara incorporates sweet and savory flavors from herbs, spices, peppers and flowers to create new combinations of flavors that please the palate.  Additionally, she designs all of the company's beautiful packaging and promotional materials.  This intersection of taste and presentation is definitely something we think a lot about in entomophagy, and we are lucky to have her input at our event.

Wayne Raskind
Raskind is the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.  The. Dean.  When I first started my job at Wayne State I raved about how supported and included I immediately felt, and Dean Raskind's participation in our event speaks volumes to this.  With an event like this, it will be easy to get swept up in the fun and the tastings, but Raskind's presence will help us remember that we are here for a larger purpose; to explore the anthropology and apply what we do as academics to something even greater.  

Jessica Robbins-Ruszkowski
With Robbins-Ruszkowski as a judge, we nearly have one third of the faculty of the Department of Anthropology actively participating of this event (in addition to myself, Todd Meyers, and Yuson Jung).  I view Robbins-Ruszkowski as the glue of the judging panel.  Her expertise in sociocultural anthropology and focus on individual experience within broader contexts of culture, history, politics, etc., lends itself to great discussions about American perceptions of insects as food.  

Starlett Simmons
Simmons, founder and owner of Five Star Cakes,  comes to us from FoodLab Detroit, one of our community partners for this event.  Foodlab helps individuals grow and experiment with their food start-ups so that they can cultivate a successful business rooted in the Detroit community.  Five Star Cakes is an excellent example of the Detroit entrepreneurial spirit.  Simmons not only knows her baked goods, but she knows what it takes to turn specialty products into a thriving business model.  We are lucky to have her input as we try to create delectable baked goods using cricket flour.

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    Author

    Julie Lesnik received her PhD studying the role of termites in the diet of fossil hominins and has since started exploring insects as food more broadly.

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