food rules

One of the best take-aways this past weekend was my grandma's recipe box. Because it is such a treasure, I will be scanning all of her handwritten recipes and making a book for all of my cousins, siblings and aunts and uncles. It's only fair, since many of her recipes, like brunswick stew, tijiana torte and shredded wheat bars, are legendary in my family. It wasn't that my grandma was a gourmet cook, but she was a comfort cook, and a healthy one. And she made healthy delicious.

Yesterday I read Michael Pollan's newest book, Food Rules. It's an easy 30 minute read, as it's just 65 brief rules, or policies, on eating. Other than drinking a glass of wine with dinner, I'd say my grandma followed them all. For a frugal, sugar-loathing farm girl who was eco-saavy long before the term was coined, this woman, with her arsenal of wholesome favorites and fridge full of leafy greens, was ahead of her time.

Eat what grows as a plant and not what's made in a plant. Check. Stay away from refined flour. Check. Don't eat anything with ingredients your great-grandmother couldn't identify. Check. Only eat at a table. Check.

As I read this excellent little book that I believe every American should read - and take to heart - I thought about how incredibly healthy and vital my grandma always was, and how she cooked and ate. As Pollan simply says: Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much. That was my grandma's diet and way of feeding her family in a nutshell.

I think it's time to get back to that simple, whole foods diet. Considering the general state of health in America today, I'd say it's long overdue.

Read the book. Then go look for your grandma's recipe box - when dinner wasn't prepared in a factory, encased in plastic or served out of a window. You know, the good old days. It''s not too late to get them back.