Michael Pollan's Food Rules

My good friend Tracy Kellner over at Provenance Food and Wine has been blogging about Michael Pollan's most recent book Food Rules. In today's post, Purple Asparagus got quite a nice mention.

"Food Rules #9: Avoid foods w/the terms "lite", "low-fat" or "nonfat" in their names

Pollan makes an interesting point: We've gotten fat on low-fat products over the last 40 years. I've long thought it was odd that if you compared people in pictures, movies, etc. from 40, 50 or more years ago to those in today's culture, movies, etc. we are so much bigger & taller than we used to be! Does anyone else find it strange that some middle schoolers are nearing 6'? Or the rate of obesity has risen as much as it has in the last 20-30 years? Call me crazy, but it's GOT to have something to do with our food supply and the way food is produced, doesn't it? All these "lite" and "diet" foods seem to have more carbs, are more processed and contain more chemicals (& we are eating MORE of them).

A friend of mine runs a non-profit called Purple Asparagus, which works to bring families together through food, but also does a lot of work with childhood nutrition and getting into schools to teach kids how to cook, the value of eating fresh, local foods and avoiding 'junk' foods." To read more, click here

I agree. About a year ago, I prepared a Healthy, Sustainable Snack Handout for Purple Asparagus, which had this to say on the subject of dairy:

"While many nutritional organizations suggest serving either low-fat or non-fat dairy products, with the exception of skim milk, Purple Asparagus does not recommend non-fat dairy foods. There’s some debate among nutritionists as to whether the “de-fatting” processes leaches nutrients out of the final product. There are also some nutritionists and doctors who suggest that eating full-fat or low-fat products as opposed to non-fat products encourage people to eat less because they feel more satisfied. We suggest that parents try portion control before introducing non-fat products into a child’s diet."

Click here to read the entire handout.

"Eat Food, Not Too Much, Mostly Plants"

In my sustainable cooking classes, I always advise people to follow this haiku-like admonition of Michael Pollan. While no one would ever confuse me with a vegetarian (on my favorite food chat board my tag line is "I've never met a pork product that I didn't like."), we do not eat meat every night. One of my favorite vegetarian meals is from Deborah Madison's wonderful book, Vegetarian Suppers. Chickpea and Chard with Cilantro & Cumin is meaty and flavorful and will satisfy even the most unrepenetent carnviore. Here is the recipe with my personal adaptations.

Chickpeas and Chard with Cilantro & Cumin
3 servings

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
a pinch of saffron threads
2 garlic cloves
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 cup cilantro leaves
1/4 cup parsley leaves
3 basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons tomato paste or 1 plum tomato, finely diced
2 medium bunches Swiss chard
2 15 ounce cans chick peas with liquid
1 tablespoon white wine

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and saffron and saute until the onions are lightly browned, approximately 15 minutes. In the meantime, coarsely grind the parsley, cilantro, basil garlic, smoked paprika, cumin, salt and pepper to taste in a food processor or mortar and pestle. Wash the swiss chard, remove the stems and slice into 1 1/2 inch ribbons. Put the chard in a large pot with 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the leaves from the water and drain. Finely chop the stems and add to the water. Cook for 10 minutes. Add the herb mixture and tomato paste or tomatoes to the onions, cook for 5 minutes. Add chickpeas with their liquid, the swiss chard leaves and white wine and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the stems and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Kids Cooking Tips
Kids can help with the stirring, the cleaning of the chard and the grinding of the herb mixture.

Provenance
Onins and herbs from Genesis Growers
Tomato and chard from Green Acres