Myth v. Reality

The book that I'm procrastinating with, Affluenza, gave me some good thinking last night. It said that we have been sold on the idea that cooking for ourselves is difficult, time-consuming, drudgery by (surprise!) companies who make pre-packaged, processed convenience foods. Foods that often don't end up being as good for us as fresh and freshly prepared foods.

And although the last thing that I want to do some days is come home and cook, I agree with this for the most part. Cooking healthy food can be very simple. For example, today for lunch I had tilapia and broccoli. It took me between 15 and 20 minutes to cut up and steam a head of broccoli and cook the fish in a pan with non-stick cooking spray, including the time it took to defrost the fish filet in a bowl of water. Not hard at all, and I got some veggies in and lean protein. Cooking for yourself is also cheaper--I think my lunch probably cost less than $3, and it's hard to find food at restaurants or pre-packaged that is as cheap and as nutritious.

I didn't grow up cooking, but my husband and I both love to cook now. It does take practice, but usually nothing gets screwed up too badly. Also, after making your own meal, there is some feeling of accomplishment and who can't use more of that these days? ha.

One great resource I have found is Everyday Food, a Martha Stewart magazine that focuses on meals that are relatively simple and quick. Most recipes come in under an hour, but 35 minutes is probably the average. All of the recipes have nutritional information included. And there are sections on cooking tips and new foods to try. Love.

Really, the things stopping me from cooking is not the cooking itself, but the clean-up afterwards and the lack of regular grocery shopping. I'm taking steps to help me with this already.

Anyway, that's my ramblings on home cooking today.