Are you finding it harder to eat these days? For example:
remember all the excitement about blueberries? Blueberries were
nothing short of miraculous. The way nutritionists expounded about
blueberries, all those glowing reports about low calories,
antioxidants and such, you were practically expecting to hear
blueberries could do long division.
Are you finding it harder to eat these days? For example: remember all the excitement about blueberries? Blueberries were nothing short of miraculous. The way nutritionists expounded about blueberries, all those glowing reports about low calories, antioxidants and such, you were practically expecting to hear blueberries could do long division.
So of course I did what any rational person would do. I bought blueberries. Tons of blueberries. How could I not? Calorie-friendly, crammed full of stuff your body needs, and they were gosh-darned good on top of cereal. How great was that?
And then a few days ago came a new report. Sure, blueberries are still good for you – as long as they aren’t mixed into milk, which apparently nullifies blueberries’ better properties. Huh??? I mean, what is the deal here? Milk is good for you, right? So if milk is good for you, and blueberries are good for you, what kind of sense does it make to say one is not ok when eaten with the other?
The distressing thing about all this is that I’d become a convert to having a nutritious breakfast. Or so I thought. Whole grain cereal, low fat milk and blueberries. Such a healthy start to the day. And now, this? Well, it was enough to make me bury my head in a bowl of Chunky Monkey and just sob.
And it’s not just blueberries; remember the soymilk debacle? Wasn’t that just so typical? Do you know how long it took me to take a sip of soymilk? Years! When my younger brother was born he existed on soymilk because he was allergic to everything else. Not just allergic … he was so affected by milk from cows and goats that he regularly erupted with epic projectile plumes so dazzling they caused rocket scientists to sit up and take note. So my brother was fed soymilk, which in those days was an icky brown color.
But modern nutritionists were singing the praises of soy (which is mostly white these days unless you’re into the whole chocolate soymilk thing) so finally I overcame my aversion and tried it. It was tasty, too, especially when blended with frozen berries for a super cool shake.
Then out came new, negative reports about soy, and the next thing you know food “experts” said we’d practically grow tails were we to drink enough of it.
Now in the good old days, eating was much simpler. Of course food wasn’t so messed with back then; hormones, antibiotics, preservatives and heaven knows what other laboratory concoctions were not “improving” our eats back in the day. Simplicity was the style.
As a kid, I’d manifested my own simplistic eating style – a mere launch pad for more (ahem!) refined culinary tendencies that took hold later. My dinner consisted of meat, veggies and potatoes stationed on my plate with a freeway-width of space around each item. Nothing was allowed to touch. This, obviously, was my personal prologue to the young millennium’s ultra-stylish food trend: “deconstructed cuisine.”
Currently, this artful food fashion of “deconstructing” a dish involves preparing and treating foods separately. When I was a kid, I didn’t realize I was such a budding food fashionista. I preferred ALL of my food deconstructed. “Deconstructed Strawberry Shortcake” topped the list. And why my mother didn’t bop me upside the head for insisting on a separate dish for the strawberries, the shortcake, and the whipped cream, I’ll never know. Especially in those days before dishwashers were in everybody’s kitchen.
So why do I bring this deconstruction business up now? Blueberries. The time has come for better health through deconstruction. Tomorrow morning I’ll prepare a bowl of blueberries. And a bowl of cereal. And a bowl of milk. I’ll be a living testament to health and art. The milk will no longer play havoc with the blueberries. Unless … oh, boy. I wonder if there is a time element thing here. I mean, what do I consume first? The blueberries? The milk? Is there a mandatory waiting period between bites?
Before I figure that one out, let me mention one more important element about food deconstruction: foam. “What?” I can hear you groaning. “Foam? What in heaven’s name is ‘foam’ and how does it play into this ‘deconstruction’ business?”
Listen up deconstruction foodie fans: foods containing a protein element can be emulsified and aerated into foam (don’t ask me how; it just can). Such foam is served attractively on your plate with the remainder of the deconstructed dish. Therefore, how much more authentically “deconstructed” can my cereal/milk/blueberries be if I serve them with foam? And, hello, what better foam is there than good old spray-on whipped cream? That’s right: There is none!
Whew! All this deconstruction of good nutrition is making me hungry … I think I’ll just check the freezer for some old-fashioned, un-deconstructed Chunky Monkey.
