Food

[garote]

Just beneath the current coat of sadness and fatigue, I feel the part of me that is content. It can generate joy and happiness and energy.  With a brief act of silent concentration I can call that part forth again, in private.  But even those brief meditations are denied me in my present life.  Why?

I am beginning to suspect that the largest reason is my eating habits.  For all the cooking I have observed and critiqued, I do not have very good kitchen skills of my own.  I have strong ideas about what's healthy to eat, but not enough experience making those foods for myself.

If I close my eyes I can picture the foods that would make me feel best.  Salads of green and deep purple, vinegar dressing, oranges and tangerines, pho broth, broccoli, hardboiled eggs with big flaky salt...  Nowhere in the picture is the chocolate, the ice cream, the milk, the sugar, the wheat and soy that I used to derive all my protein from.  Somehow I need to make acceptable dishes for myself, because I am not able to find them in the surrounding culture, without spending too much money and too much time in transport.

Cooking is a measure of my independence and I think I need to enhance it.

Does anyone have any favorite salad combinations to share?

Comments

[bluepapercup]

Two delicious summer salads (keeping in mind that you don't like avocado or tomatoes):

(1) Romaine and red leaf lettuce, washed and torn into pieces. Fresh chopped cucumbers (here I would add fresh tomatoes and avocado), chopped colorful peppers, chopped olives (black are very nice but so are kalamata), then dressed with a vinaigrette. On the very top I put either cubed cold steak or chopped seasoned cold chicken breasts. YUM. I change the spices in the dressing to match however I spiced the chicken.

(2) Giant pile of spinach. Cold sausage or bacon. Vinegar dressing. MMM.

I have lots more salad ideas...but those are two that seem appealing today.

[conflictdswitch.livejournal.com]

To what "kitchen skills" are you referring to specifically? Most basic skills can be picked up from a general cook book. Also, public television cooking shows are pretty good; avoid anything on Food Network or the Cooking Channel (They're recipes are alright, but the shows tend to be about the personalities and *not* the food... except for "Good Eats.").

 I have strong ideas about what's healthy to eat, but not enough experience making those foods for myself.

So track down a recipe and learn how to execute it. Don't just do it once, try it out for a few days, or even a whole week, until you've got the steps down. Then mix it up; substitute an ingredient or a spice, or add something of your own. If you screw up, eat the results and learn from your mistakes.