December 01, 2003

Food

This morning, I fooled myself into thinking that the Granny Smith apples we bought yesterday were appropriate for something other than burying in a bread. (I changed my mind and made a yummy cranberry bread, rich with molasses, instead.)

So I cut up the apple and had some with the cranberry bread and yogurt. Even between the two of us, Sam and I didn't finish the apple. And it wasn't a big one. I haven't tasted a good Granny Smith in years, but I still always bite in thinking, "This time it's going to taste like it's supposed to." But instead of the taste taking me back to my childhood, when produce had flavor, the taste takes me to the garbage can.

Over the past twenty years, there has been a notable decline in the flavor of fruits and vegetables in the US (source: my taste buds). Over the past twenty years, there has also been a notable increase in the number of obese people in the US (source: CDC). Maybe if there was less of a focus on engineering pretty and uniform produce that doesn't have much flavor and can be stored for months, and more of a focus on letting nature do its magic in the realm of food, people would want to eat more that's good for them and less processed food.

A girl can dream.

Posted by Shokufeh at December 1, 2003 12:32 PM
Comments

Dude, I know what you mean. Recently I bought some nice looking pears. First I put them in the fridge, but after a few days I realized they were still hard as rocks. Then I put them into a paper bag, hoping this would help them ripen more quickly. It's been over a week now and they're barely softening. Geesh. I bought the danged things because I felt like eating a pear...a couple of weeks ago. I don't want my fruit to have the shelf life of twinkies.

Posted by: Sharyn at December 2, 2003 09:55 AM

i'm with you, babe. although i must say, i have found some pretty tasty apples lately! and wouldn't you know it - they're organic! if you can, find "pink lady" and "honey crisp" apples. YUMMO and seriously sweet. we get them at Whole Foods here on the mainland. :)

Posted by: delara at December 2, 2003 10:30 AM

Over the past 20-some years, Shokufeh R. has developed an unrivaled sense of humor, illustrated best by her use of language while blogging. (source: my involuntary giggling while reading your last paragraph).

Posted by: kari at December 2, 2003 12:59 PM

Well, what to expect of an apple that's been modified so that it stays fresh longer than nature designed it to be? An apple that, on top, has been picked before being ripe and tasty, so that it would arrive at the super less scratchy and less ugly. Food is produced by food designers. But other than that, there is no much nutritive value in a Granny Smith apple, it just looks nicey. The red types are better for health...
A backyard big enough to host a few fruit trees and a bit space to grow one's own vegetables...what a nice dream :)

Posted by: mademoiselle a. at December 3, 2003 07:59 AM

I will eat fresher foods while on the mainland. Even a lot of our organic produce isn't fab, since it's still come a long way to get here. Thanks, Kari, for your kind words.

Posted by: shokufeh at December 3, 2003 09:01 PM