Am I wrong to think that there seems to be a trend of going back to other times and basics? I hope not.
Have you noticed a change in your grocery bill as of late? It sometimes seems like the price is higher with less food put on the table. Maybe it is time to not only look at what we put on our plate, (as often diagramed) but also what goes in our grocery cart. Maybe it is time to go back to basic cooking.
We should always ask ourselves what we can learn by proper eating to reaffirm what we've learned before. What, when and why we eat is that important. We need to take the time to eat well — no "open the can and throw it on the table".
In preparing your food yourself, you are forced to make plans ahead of time, so when you go grocery shopping, you carefully consider what you will be cooking: choosing ingredients rather than accepting what the manufacturer prepares for you. Cooking yourself does takes a little longer, but often it is just a matter of minutes.
Take the time to plan your meals, cook wisely, and enjoy your family and guests. The current emphasis on home cooking goes back to basics.
While winter always brings out thoughts of body and soul-warming stews, we realize it doesn't have to come from a can. Homemade items enhance your taste as well as provides good health.
Fast food may scramble to bring out new things for the "drive through market," but it is just not the same as what you cook at home. It just doesn't satisfy one’s hunger.
The newly expanded local meat market in Geneva is so exceptional because we know where that meat comes from and that it is what it says it is. The cost of meat also makes us give second thought to how much red meat we should really be eating.
Being over generous is no longer a positive but a motivation to return to "by gone days" when enough was enough. Thin frosting on the cake was not an indication of a stingy cook, but a smart one.
Taking the time to look into the value and taste of herbs and spices is well worth it, as there is less need of salt, which is more or less a threat to the human body.
As you all know, I always enjoy my cousin Jim’s enthusiasm for life and his enjoyment of experiencing so many different things. It seems that somewhere over the holidays he acquired a pressure cooker and has been exploring the good things he can accomplish with it and all the great foods he has been able to make.
Cousin Jim has been having the "time of his life" rediscovering the pressure cooker. Whoa, before you think about the old time pressure cooker that "blew up" or left pea soup on the ceiling in Mother’s day, (and they do still make the stovetop models, though they are much improved) remember that most cookers now are electric.
Jim checked consumer reports, and the Nesco brand was recommended so be bought one at Wal-Mart for $89. The new cookers are fool proof. They can’t build pressure unless the lid is on correctly. They are versatile; they do a good job of browning meats, then cook in the same pan.
When done cooking, they automatically revert to “warm” setting. They can also be used as a crock pot slow cooker, and they can be set for certain cooking times or pre-programmed to start when you want.
But I am getting ahead of myself. What caused him to look into this new adventure? Using his words, "I discovered (or rediscovered) the pressure cooker while Bud Grant and I were hunting turkeys along the Missouri River.
When we came back from hunting, it was dark, and we were cold and hungry. Our guide had been a chef in Wisconsin. We asked him what we were having for dinner, and he said, ‘I’ll make some chicken soup along with some fried chicken.’”
Jim said he was shocked when he brought out a semi-frozen chicken. Jim also said that he thought it would be hours before they would eat, or that he would put it in the microwave and make a rubbery mess.
Instead, the guide put it in an electric pressure cooker, and turned it to steam to thaw and partially cooked the chicken using chicken broth from doing the same thing a couple of nights earlier. After cooking the chicken for 15 minutes, he took the partially cooked chicken out and quartered it, using the dark meat for soup.
He added the shredded meat back into the pot, threw in some garlic and some frozen pre-chopped vegetables and some frozen corn and put it back on steam. In the meantime, he fried the white meat. Dinner was served in only half an hour — from semi-frozen!
Jim said that he has since done chuck roasts that came out fork-tender and shreds the leftovers and uses some of the broth to make Italian Beef. He also said that they have done pork ribs; half an hour of cooking (plus 15 minutes on the grill) instead of hours. Same with a pork shoulder steak, a cheap cut of meat.
The leftovers were shredded to make southern-style pulled pork sandwiches, and he added pre-cut vegetables and potatoes to make a delicious pork stew in only 12 minutes.
Count up the advantages: time, heat, energy, and total use of ordinary foods with a delicious outcome. The great thing about pressure cookers, other than speed, is that the flavor stays in the pot. Nothing gets cooked out.
The vegetables are bright and flavorfully fresh and not out of a can. Note that even the steaming liquid becomes delicious broth for the next meal; absolutely nothing is wasted.
In a future column, I would like to explore other food options from the past that are making a comeback in a slightly changed form. I would be interested in what you remember about foods and economizing during an economic recession. Please write me!
Side note: Do they still teach "Home Economics" any more? If they did, people would be aware of the economics of preparing food at home. Home Ec. — boys should be taking it, too!
Some of our Star Eagle readers have commented they like to read about events such as family and school reunions, birthdays and anniversaries, and birth and wedding announcements. In order to read about these important things, we need our faithful readers to pass along the information to us. If you have news, please contact me via e-mail, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; by postal mail, P. O. Box 192, Geneva, MN 56035 or telephone, 507-256-4405.
Birthdays and Anniversaries:
• Thursday, February 21st: Jeannie Worrell, Andy Butler, Phillip Ingvaldson, Bryan Dirkson, Leanna Peterson, Chris & Kim Jensen, Darrell & Cynthia Farr, Max & Marlene Jensen.
• Friday, February 22nd: Shelia Nelson White, Carlie Thompson, Dalys Waltz, Joan & Marian Mast.
• Saturday, February 23rd: Sharon Gasner Ramaker, Bernie Warnke, Josh Krueger, Markus Allen Misgen, Daniel Suelter, Dale Waltz, Tiffany Mischke, Daniel Walterman, Laura & Jamie Baudoin.
• Sunday, February 24th: Jerry Hemingway, Rick Draper, Nathan Wayne, Roxy Menefee Ray, Sarah Zamora, Nancy Larson, Kathy & Daryl Reed.
• Monday, February 25th: Berniece Farr Mattson, Colton Hagen, Brad Hagen, LuAnn Miller, Sherri Larson Fritz, Steve & Vicky Dobberstein.
• Tuesday, February 26th: Sharon Menefee, Shawn Jensen, Becky Lassahn, Ray Coxworth, Ginger Cornelius, Mary Lou Spurr, Chris Sauke, Mike Glynn, Jeff & Robin Christensen, Joel & Peg Radjenovich.
• Wednesday, February 27th: Steve Pence, Jean Anderson, Garry Nordhorn, Doris Rasmussen, Journey Churchill-Malcolm, Erik Cooper, John Olson, Jayden Dakota Tonkins, Nancy Ingvaldson, Daryl Van Ravenhorst.
