this and that

This and That January 2010

This message found on a fast-food restaurant sign sums up one of the reasons Americans are fat. Others are a lack of exercise and poor cooking habits. At Relish, there's not much we can do about super-sizing and inactivity, but we hope to make a difference in the way Americans cook.

According to an article in the New York Times Sunday magazine (Aug. 2, 2009) by Michael Pollan, Americans generally spend a mere 27 minutes cooking dinner, less than half the time it takes to watch an episode of Top Chef. Quoted in the same article was Harry Balzer, a food marketing researcher, who who has spent the better part of his career documenting the demise of cooking, while studying American eating habits since 1978. He offered up a brilliant diet plan: "It's short, and it's simple. Cook it yourself."

Bravo. Instead of tackling wacky diet plans, start cooking. Getting back in the kitchen helps you eat better, creates quality time for you and your family and passes on traditions and cultures that otherwise may be lost. Now that's worth super-sizing.
Jill Melton, Editor

Super-Size Crime in the Theater
Popcorn can be a healthy snack, but not when you get it at the movies. If there was ever a place to bring your own, the movie theater is it.

Small popcorn = 670 calories, 34 grams saturated fat (With the "butter topping," you'll add 125 calories and 2 grams saturated fat per tablespoon.)
Small soft drink = 300 calories (32 ounces)
Medium popcorn has 1,200 calories and 60 grams of fat. And a large (54-ounce) soft drink has a whopping 500 calories.

—Nutrition Action Health Letter

Let There Be Light
For an easy winter centerpiece, place a small glass bottle in the center of a glass cylinder. Fill space between with nuts, bay leaves, star anise, pine cones and other natural items. Fill the bottle with lamp oil and place a wick in it (wicks and clips available at most craft stores).
—Teresa Blackburn

Kitchen Trick
The best way to peel fresh ginger is with a spoon. Holding a spoon bowl-side out, scrape the skin off the ginger. This method takes only the skin and maintains more of the ginger flesh than peeling with a knife.