"KansasCity" news and stories

Sunday afternoon, midwesterners packed a small independent movie theater in Kansas City, Mo., for a screening of the new documentary "Fresh," which takes a close and at times disturbing look at factory farming in the United States. Along with its director, Ana Sofia Joanes, "Fresh" (click the trailer above) is wending its way across the country in the hopes, Joanes said at a panel discussion between two sold-out screenings, of "changing the misconception that we need the industrial food system." This isn't the first new anti-Big Farming flick to hit the silver screen, so we're calling a trend.

"Fresh" follows the lives of four farm families, including a Missouri hog farmer who exterminated his industrial stock after being gored by one of his hogs and doctors found that he was resistant to most antibiotics. Michael Pollan and John E. Ikerd, Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Economics at the University of Missouri, make cameos as talking heads.

The real star, however, may be the swoon-worthy (if you like the rugged type) sustainable Virginia farmer Joel Salatin, who has the vocabulary of a professor and no shame about embracing "the chickenness" of his hens when greeting them with a "Good morning, girls!" each day.

• For those looking to dodge the Hamburger Helper, the Star offers up a super-adaptable one-skillet Italian meal full of ground round and veggies.
• An interview with Erma Peterson, a teacher turned cookbook writer, featuring the tastes of Kansas City -- and her Low-Fat Chocolate Raspberry Cake recipe, to boot!
• A two-sentence ode to Domaine Chazelles Vire Clesse 2007, a clean and lemony Chardonnay.
• A lesson in aquaculture: Why we need to eat fish, how we can get it safely, the best farmed seafood and a recipe for Catfish Tacos with Red Chili Salsa.
• Partying on a budget: Why at-home entertaining is good in this economy, and how to do it right.
• A 7-day menu planner, starting with lamb chops and Pumpkin Pie Mousse with Toasted Pecans (including a recipe).
• Online nutrition tools have now extended beyond calories and fat, with additional perks like listing specific nutrients, the "fullness factor" and glycemic impact.