Judy E. Buss
Half of the people on antidepressant medications in this country are on them, most likely, because they attempted to use their new, state-of-the-art electronic kitchen devices. To use these “miracle time-savers,” they were forced to study 597 pages of operating and dismantling instructions. Truth is, the machines are the brainchildren of engineers who have never cooked or washed dishes! The gadgets require a great deal of time to assemble, take apart after use, wash, dry, re-assemble, and put away.
A major reason for our nation’s health crisis is the fact that folks are overscheduled and have taken a permanent leave of absence from cooking, or they never learned the art from their busy, overscheduled mothers.
Preparing fresh, nutritious fare is imperative for good health. Basic, inexpensive ingredients can be transformed in minutes into hundreds of body and soul nourishing dishes. 90% of cooking can be achieved without a single machine. The remaining 10% can be skipped. Keeping our kitchen equipment streamlined, and using simple cooking methods makes meal preparation enjoyable, speedy and rewarding. This is the essence of the KISS Method, as in: Keep It Simple, Silly!
The time we believe we save by not cooking, and instead, consuming “meals-on-wheels” of impoverished takeouts of junk, fast, canned, or frozen imitation food, is spent suffering at doctors’ waiting rooms or undergoing costly and unpleasant tests and surgeries. Friends, with each plate of food we consume we are sicker or healthier – the choice is ours!
Most soups do not need to be uniformly smooth. They actually taste better when left chunky or only partially mashed. Use a hand masher: this wonder-device doesn’t even need a battery! Do not buy exotic, often expensive ingredients, such as special oils, vinegars, sauces, or condiments, if they will only be used once or twice.
Limit your oil supply to two kinds of olive oil: cooking (also labeled “pure olive oil”) and extra virgin. Olive oil is also nutritionally superior to most other oils. Likewise, wine vinegar and/or apple cider vinegar are all the vinegar(s) needed. Basic kitchen utensils, the same ones our grandmothers used, will cover all bases.
Great news: You do not need an electronic banana peeler or balsamic carrot juice; use the KISS method – Bon appétit!
Kale With Ginger Dressing
(Serves 2)
5 cups raw kale
1 tablespoon ginger root, peeled, finely grated
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, finely grated
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds
Wash kale, remove stems, shred. Steam the kale 10 minutes or until wilted. When done, remove from stove and briefly rinse with cold water. Drain. In a bowl, combine ginger, oil, garlic and soy sauce. Add kale, mix well. Toss with sesame seeds. Serve hot or cold.
“Mission Nutrition” Tips and Recipe from Judy E. Buss, Health Columnist, Nutritional Cooking Instructor.
Excerpted from Judy E. Buss’ article, first published in the “Feeling Fit” Magazine, Sun Coast Media Group newspapers, Florida.
Stay tuned for more Judy E. Buss’ “Mission Nutrition” words of wisdom and recipes.
