28% of Americans Can't or Won't Cook

If you asked me if I could mow the lawn, I would admit I did not have the know how. But the truth of the matter is I don't want to know how. I was told ages ago in my early 20's that if I knew how to mow, I would be stuck performing that task forever. If instead I was told that mowing the lawn was a physically and mentally rewarding excercise that improved my health and saved me thousands of dollars a year, and was a benefit to my family, I could learn. In a recent survey, Impulse Research found that 28% of Americans say they do not know how to cook. Others avoid cooking because they hate cleaning up the kitchen, say they do not have time, and/or see grocery shopping as a time-consuming vacuum to their day. Alice Lichtenstein, DSc, directorof Tufts' HNRCA Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory, believes, "The results of this survey highlight what we have known for some time: the importance of incorporating food preparation and purchasing skills into the school curriculum. Food shopping, preparation and clean-up do not have to be time-consuming if you plan ahead and know some simple facts. This is the message we need to propagate and we need to back it up with examples of how to achieve it." This is EXACTLY why I have this web site, put together a 15 minute DVD, and blog about the importance of banning together with your spouse, friends, neighbors to form your own "Team of Cooks" to put dinner on your own table!!! My night 2 cook means you find a way to cook one night a week in quantity, then share the planning, cooking, cleaning-up , and shopping with others. Yahoo finance cited "Cooking Co-Op" as the #1 best way to save big bucks( they estimate a family of 4 could save $3-4,000/ per year- maybe more with the high cost of gas). The beauty of cooking yourself is you can always learn new recipes. This week-end I had the most delicious dinner eating out which included a sweet potato- black bean cake with a cilantro sauce- so I will be searching the internet to find that recipe. Where there is a will, there is a way. Don't tell an American they no can do- yes we can!

March Madness- Good Food, Good Results

Saturday I woke my 16 year old up early to play in his first AAU Basketball tournament. He grumbled about not getting to watch the VCU game that evening as he and the team would still be traveling. I encouraged him and said maybe one day he could be playing in March Madness vs. watching it. Now it took time but I had volunteered to make man sandwiches and brownies for the team. I made Deluxe Turkey and Havarti Cheese with Bacon Club Sandwiches in the round loaves of Hawaiian bread(see Youvegotsupper.com for recipe) and cut in wedges. They loved the sandwiches- 8 of them ate 18 wedges. But here is the rest of the story. They won the first game after eating my sandwiches in DOUBLE OT !!! Did the home-made sandwiches vs. eating fast food hamburgers give them the edge? Just 1 degree difference makes hot water boil. Haven't you noticed in these March Madness close games- so often the difference in winning or losing "boils" down to one shot or smart play? Good food brings winning results in games and in our health. And good food makes life so much more enjoyable. You are worth the extra effort! As Nike say, "Just do it"- fix more meals in your own kitchen!

Spring Break

Once again, food serves as the WD-40 to get conversation going. My daughter is home for Spring Break this week and my son came home from a week at the beach after his Spring Break. So I made a home-made-from scratch chocolate cake with fluffy 7 minute frosting. So I get my daughter to the table, and as we take a bite of the cake, "...so mom, did I tell you..." It is amazing what you can find out about your children's lives by listening at the table with good food on the plate. Now earlier, I had chopped up all these veges and made steak stir fry. No matter how hard I try, I can not make as good a sauce as Peking- our local Chinese food restaurant expert. So I have come up with an idea- I plan to call and see what the price would be to just buy their sauce. By the time I buy the oyster sauce and bean paste etc.- it would be worth it. Spend more time cooking and learn more of life's lessons!