Mess Up & Move On

Maia — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:34:06 +0000

Happy accidents or complete disasters, mistakes are an essential part of the learning process. Trust me, I know what I’m talking about.

Case in point…

The first time I made dinner for a boy was a disaster. Food this bad should be outlawed. Seriously. But there I was—17 and feeling pretty cocky about my mad kitchen skills. The challenge? His favorite—homemade macaroni and cheese. From scratch. No recipe required. How hard could it be? Make the mac, throw in the cheese along with some other mac-n-cheese-friendly stuff, stick in the oven and wait.

What could happen?

Right. Let me paint a picture to illustrate the magnitude of my glorious catastrophe. Imagine a tasteless mess of mushy macaroni floating in a milky sea bobbing with clumps of separated cheese chunks. Now sprinkle on some half soggy, half crispy breadcrumbs and you’ve got the idea…

Is she really writing a cookbook?

What I love about that all-too-true story is that I was fearless. I’d never considered failure as an option and so I didn’t see it as one. We laughed and moved on. The defining aspect of that moment is that it didn’t define me as a lousy cook.

If I could make a meal that bad, then I knew I had in me the potential for something really good. After all, every action has an equal and opposite reaction…

A Happy Accident

I may not have bastardized any comfort food lately, but I can still make a damned good mistake. For instance, that last minute addition to a dinner party when I decided the menu had to include broccoli slaw (btw, there has to be a better name for this—I’m taking suggestions). Except of course, I had used the ingredients—the ones I “knew” I had—in other dishes. There was not so much as a drop of yogurt, the raisins had disappeared into thin air and every last slivered almond was spoken for.

So I made it up as I went along. My homemade mayonnaise (with a splash of apple cider vinegar and some sucanat) replaced the yogurt and I found water chestnuts were a delightful replacement for the crunch of the almonds. As far as those wayward raisins, I simply substituted dried cranberries. Voila! An accidental success!

Don’t let preconceived notions or a fear of failure keep you out of the kitchen. Have fun! Go wild! And remember, if you’re not making mistakes, you’re not cooking!

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Fight Cancer…with Vegetables!

Maia — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 11:36:55 +0000

There are many reasons to include locally grown produce in your healthy diet–from supporting your local economy to reducing your carbon footprint. And did you know that locally grown produce is also better for you? Vegetables and fruits are at their most nutritious when they’re allowed to ripen before harvesting, and because they’re not being shipped halfway across the country or around the world, they can be picked closer to their optimum harvest time and still be fresh when you pick them up at your local farmers’ market. Not to mention, the fresher they are the better they taste!

Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale etc.) are fresh and plentiful this time of year–and these vegetables may help lower your risk for cancer. These vegetables are high in fibre, vitamins and minerals, as well as containing antioxidants beta carotene and sulforaphane, a phytochemical which stimulates the body to produce carcinogen-detoxifying enzymes.

Here are a few simple ways to add cruciferous vegetables to your diet. One great way is to add them in at breakfast by tossing some steamed broccoli or wilted kale into a healthy omelet. Broccoli or cauliflower added to any salad gives it a nice nutritional boost.

humbleneighborhood.com» cruciferous vegetables

Mess Up & Move On

Fight Cancer…with Vegetables!