Be true to your foooood! OK, think of the Beach Boys’ hit, “Be true to your school!”

Yesterday I went to one of my favorite places…the library. I checked out an assortment of DVDs, magazines, and books. One of the books was a nonfiction tome entitled, “True Food”. It was published by National Geographic and came out this year.

I woke up early this morning and couldn’t get back to sleep so I decided to read instead of toss and turn. The purpose of "True Food" is to give 8 simple steps to a healthier you.
In a nutshell:
1 Eat local food
2 Eat a variety of foods
3 Aim for organic
4 Eat lower on the food chain
5 Eat fresh food
6 Eat whole foods
7 Stock your pantry
8 Green your kitchen

Most of these are pretty easy to figure out. Chapter one was try to buy food grown locally or grow your own. Chapters 2, 4, 5, 6 were very similar – eat more fruits and vegetables and less meat and processed foods. There was quite a bit of information on herbs which was good as well as vegetables and their nutritional value.

Stock your pantry was instructions on buying less processed foods like all purpose flour and more foods that are natural.

Green your kitchen had some ideas such as use kitchen towels instead of paper towels, reuse glass bottles instead of plastic, and make your own cleaning supplies instead of purchasing harmful chemicals.

It was an adequate book, but I didn’t really learn anything new. I guess I had hoped to find some new truths. Fortunately I did not purchase, but borrowed the book from our local library. I'm sure for a newbie, they would find some merit in reading it.
I guess it pays to be a cheapskate!

I did, however, see a recipe I want to try tonight: shoestring zucchini with rosemary:

1 very large zucchini
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons white whole wheat flour or unbleached all purpose
1. Cute the squash lengthwise into halves, then cut into ¼ inch slices, then cut those into 1/8 inch slices
2. Sprinkle and toss with salt in a colander and set in the sink to drain for 30 minutes. After draining, squeeze out as much water as you can with your hands
3. Heat oil in a skillet – you want the oil very hot, but not smoking
4. Toss zucchini with flour in a bowl, and then add it to the oil in batches. Cook for about 5 minutes until zucchini is just golden, then toss in a few leaves of rosemary. Cook for another minute until zucchini is golden.
5. Drain zucchini on paper towel and served immediately.

If nothing else, I am true to zucchini!