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Put
health on your holiday shopping list
Nov. 30, 2006
Suzanne Havala Hobbs
During
this season of giving, consider gifts aimed at helping improve
your and your loved ones’ diets.
One of the most important things you can do to improve your
diet is to make more of your meals at home. Scratch cooking
gives you more control over the ingredients in your meals,
so it’s easier to cut sodium, added sugar, trans fat
and other unhealthy additives.
But our busy lifestyles can make it hard to fix meals at home.
Here are some gift ideas that can help overcome the barriers:
* Time savers. An electric tea kettle keeps water hot and
ready to use to make cooked cereals, rice or couscous, soup,
pasta, and hot drinks. Sold in most discount or home stores
for under $40. The services of a professional organizer can
be another time saver. Once you’ve cleared clutter from
your cupboards and pantry, it’s easier to see what you
have and find what you need in the kitchen. A pretty kitchen
calendar can also be used to plan meals ahead of time –
use it to make daily or weekly notes, list groceries needed,
meal ideas, or – for “Sunday cooks” –
foods to fix in batches for the upcoming week.
* Tools of the trade. Give an old-fashioned cast iron skillet
or griddle – free of nonstick coatings that may let
off toxic fumes when overheated – for making sautéed
greens or whole grain pancakes. Some people on your list could
probably use a set of stainless steel mixing bowls (for making
whole grain muffins, cookies and quick breads or tossing salads),
liquid and dry measuring cups and stainless steel measuring
spoons – kitchen basics. Another nice gift: airtight
canisters for storing rice, lentils, whole wheat pasta, interesting
grains such as millet and quinoa, and whole wheat flour.
* Staple ingredients. Give a gift certificate to a natural
foods store. If you can splurge, give a subscription to a
CSA farm for a year’s supply of fresh, organic, locally-grown
fruits and vegetables (go online to http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/chatham/ag/SustAg/csafarms.html
for a list of small farms in NC). Gift baskets filled with
bean soup mix, dried fruits, pure maple syrup, olive oil,
whole grain crackers, spices, and other wholesome foods are
also fun to give and receive.
* Reliable information. Good reading: “What to Eat:
An Aisle-by-Aisle Guide to Savvy Food Choices and Good Eating”
by Marion Nestle (North Point Press, 2006); “Six Arguments
for a Greener Diet,” by Michael Jacobson and the Center
for Science in the Public Interest (2006); “The Omnivore’s
Dilemma” by Michael Pollan (Penguin Press, 2006); and
“Appetite for Profit” by Michele Simon (Nation
Books, 2006).
* Confidence. Help someone gain it by giving the gift of cooking
lessons. In the Triangle, classes are offered at A Southern
Season, Whole Foods Market, Fearrington House, in area restaurants
and by private, in-home instruction. In Charlotte, Johnson
& Wales University also offers Chef’s Choice, a
variety of single-session skills-building classes. Call 980-598-1085
or email chefschoice.clt@jwu.edu.
Check the Web for numerous options throughout the state.
One final gift can’t be given but comes with time: Experience.
Make the time and spend the effort to make more meals at home
and you’ll develop kitchen confidence and speed. It’s
worth the investment for the health of you and the people
you love.
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