The most Colorful Plate!

I have come to believe that the majority of one's food should not be comprised of foods that are white, tan, or brown. Grains and starches have been a staple food for ages because it was the easiest to refine into calorie dense materials that can be stored for long periods of time; ale and beer was once a nutrient rich staple food, not simply a libation as it is today. Before the days of canning and freezing, not to mention of preservation and transportation technologies, finding ways to make calorie dense foods which could be kept good for months was essential to survival. Not the healthiest ways to eat; but when faced with starvation, any food is "healthy".

That habit of turning to grain & root based meals is so ingrained (snerk) into us that breaking that habit is extremely hard. I often find myself reaching for a slice of bread, or a granola bar, when I should grab an apple or banana or something a bit fresher and less processed. Even worse, when I do decide to reach for a fruit or vegitable I find myself automatically hunting up something to put it on, in, or to put upon it (yogurt, cheese, a dressing, ice cream, whipping cream). Now, one reason for this is that the average grocery store fruit or vegitable is produced for appearance and spoilage-resistance, not for flavor. When an item has little flavor, one HAS to improve it or eating becomes a drudgery.

This week I bought honeydew melon and tomatos from the local Student Organic Farm. These items did not look "perfect" as one sees in the store, but were exploding with flavor. I picked up heirloom tomatos from our local farmer's stand today, which looked just ghastly, but the meat was nearly burgandy red and made you swoon with flavor. We also got some "donut peaches", which look very funny but are a delicious treat and actually easier and less messy to consume than a standard peach.  I also bought cucumbers and squash, three varieties of sweet peppers, blackberries, blue berries, and eggplant. I plan to spend the weekend enjoying a veritable rainbow of flavors!

I won't enter into the argument about whether the organic and heirloom varieties are "more nutritious" than the mass produced/farmed versions that we have in the super markets... that is an argument for the zealots, not for me. However, I will challenge anyone to provide me with a mass-market fruit or vegitable that TASTES as good as the organic/heirloom varieties!