Just nine ingredients we suggest, no we insist, that you to have on hand at all times unless allergies or alien captors keep you away. These are the seasonings that make real food – unprocessed produce and proteins -easier to prepare and better to eat. You most definitely have a few of these stocked up, but take a look at our list and consider the rest.

Lemons are a full service food. Their acidity tenderizes chicken and fish, while cutting the harsh tastes found in some greens – do you hear me bok choy? The fresh tanginess heightens nearly any beverage from tea to cocktails to soda and makes for lighter pasta sauces; my favorite is risotto. Let’s not forget that lemon juice prevents avocados, apples, and pears from turning brown and it removes fishy smells from your hands. It also removes the polish from your marble counter top. Lemon, like milk and toilet paper, should be on your weekly shopping list. read more

When cold rainy days happen to Southern California, it might as well be the Canadian Rockies in January. This is our cold season, the trigger that brings out Uggs, woolen coats, and scarves and gives us a long overdue excuse to stay inside. We had two days of California winter and I launched into hibernation mode with soups and baked desserts. Let’s not forget that a record heatwave would likely follow, but for the moment we were resigned to winter cozy.

Armed with a smart set of juicy plums, reds and blacks from my farming friends, and rather tired of snacking on these fine stone fruits as is, I tried another incarnation. I had held onto this recipe which I had found while looking for a new fix on granola. This inspired dessert relies on oatmeal and almonds for the crumble . Sure, like everyone, I delight over crumbles and cobblers with their intensely brown-sugared and buttery toppings – heck, I don’t even need the fruit with that kind of delectable – but we are always trying to have real food work on our behalf not against us, so I opted for more whole grain and less whole fat preparation. And, not to be outdone by the starring role of oats in this dessert, almonds joined in for a performance by adding good flavor and natural oils providing a much needed dosage of brain power. Now, that’s good thinking. read more

Let’s take a lesson out of the Mary Poppins handbook, only instead of spoonful we’ll go with sprinkle and instead of medicine we’ll go with cucumbers. A hint, and we mean a hint, of sugar in a salad or onbitter leafy greens will better balance the flavor for those young sensitive palates. Sugar is only the enemy when it’s consumed at the American rate of 22 teaspoons a day, a rate I know we’re all working hard to reduce. But, the benefits of adding a scant amount of sweet to nutrient-rich foods, far outweighs any negative toll sugar can take on the body. Further, there are all sorts of sweetening options that are not refined sugar; some of our favorites at crunchtime are honey, agave syrup and maple syrup. Which brings us to sunomono, the Japanese appetizer salad. read more

It was been a tough week for kale. First Miss Sherri reveals that KPS (Kale Protective Services) needs to be alerted to wrest custody of the wilted bunch confined to her fridge. Next the NYT prints an essay on one man’s despise for both kale and the farm from which it came.Finally, while shopping at the Boatfarm, I overhear a crunchy hipster express his disdain for this leafy wonder. Yes the BOATFARM! Is there anything more perfect for the Northwest than a farmer’s market off of a boat?

Back to kale. You know the usual “why you should eat it.” Fabulous numbers of vitamins, fiber and anti-oxidants. blah blah blah. Let’s talk about why our bodies NEED it. If you consider the evolution of the omnivorous mammal, you find that LEAVES are an important part of its diet, from rodents to raccoons to bears to monkeys to hunter/gathering humanoids. What did they eat and gather? Leaves, roots and berries. Thus one could argue that our bodies are not just designed to survive on

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“You wanna know how good bacon is? To improve other food, they wrap it in bacon. If it weren’t for bacon, we wouldn’t even know what a water chestnut is,” stand-up guy, Jim Gaffigan said as part of his 3 minute tribute to the greasy, tasty, banned-from-diets porky goodness – I insist you brighten your day by taking the three minutes to watch his bit – his bacon bit. I will wait.

See, now I have you in a happier place. So, bacon, as well as strong cheese, chicken sausage are all fine foods as flavor boosters; they don’t have to be the enemy. “Bacon for flavor, you can’t do better than that,” Mark Bittman, the minimalist chef declared just the other day on a morning news program. But we have given these foods – bacon, cheese, sausage – a bad rap because of the damage they can do without portion control. Using cautionary foods in scant amounts to elevate the flavor of really healthy foods, is not only acceptable, it’s encouraged so you actually eat more of the good stuff.

Guess what peeps, here is a way I have found to have your beans and eat your bacon too. Good For You Baked Beans, adapted from aCooking Light recipe is low in sugar, low in fat and easy to make. But first a reminder that beans should be a big part of your diet. The latest reports say we should have three cups a week for this fiber-filled food, which is also a powerful antioxidant. And if vanity is your hook, bean eaters are associated with having smaller waist sizes and a 22% lower risk of obesity. read more