Unintended Consequences

No sooner does the City Health Commissioner call on city food establishments to cut down on heart-diseasy trans fats (dont even ask why they needed to study how many restaurants use trans fats . . . your tax dollars at work!) than some wiseass pulls an op-ed off his hard drive calling for cooks everywhere to revisit the usefulness of lard in in the kitchen:

When the New York City health department asked restaurants to stop serving food containing trans fats this week, it aroused anxiety in some diners but joyful anticipation in me. The stage might be set at last for the comeback of the great misunderstood fat: lard.

. . .

After prodding by nutrition advocates, the Food and Drug Administration has taken the stand that there is no healthy level of trans fat in the diet, and as of January will require manufacturers to state the presence of trans fats on every food label. Now comes the call from Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, New York’s health commissioner, for restaurants to “voluntarily make an oil change and remove artificial trans fat from their kitchens.” What are beleaguered manufacturers and cooks to do? The loss of trans fats makes things tough. It makes pastry tough too.

. . .

The health department is suggesting alternative oils including olive oil and neutral oils like peanut, sunflower and cottonseed. Olive oil is a true gift of nature, of course, and good for anything on a grill or from the garden. But when it comes to cherry pie or fried chicken or French fries, excessive reliance on these oils has the potential to clear both arteries and restaurants. Chefs and short-order cooks can do everyone a favor – even the guardians of the public health – by reaching for the fat that everyone knows tastes the best: lard.

To quote our commander-in-chief: Bring. It. On!