red apple fruit on brown woven basket

Book Review: “The Lost Foods Book” by Claude Davis

ByAbdul Khaliq

“As we race towards a future of genetically modified crops and lab-grown meat, it’s important to remember the wealth of knowledge and diversity we stand to lose. The Lost Foods Book is a journey through the forgotten ingredients, cooking techniques, and cultural traditions that have shaped our culinary heritage. Each chapter offers a glimpse into a disappearing world, from the wild greens foraged by our ancestors to the heirloom grains that sustained our grandparents. But this is not just a lament for what has been lost; it is a celebration of the flavors and stories that still linger, waiting to be rediscovered and preserved for future generations.”

man standing in front of produce stand

In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto Book by Michael Pollan

ByAbdul Khaliq

• “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.”
• “Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.”
• “Avoid food products that make health claims.”
• “Eat slowly and savor your food.”
• “If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made from a plant, don’t.”
• “Cooking made us human, but the industry has made us stupid.”
• “The shared meal elevates eating from a mechanical process of fueling the body to a ritual of family and community, from mere animal biology to an act of culture.”
• “The key to a healthy diet is not nutritionism but rather the omnivore’s dilemma: the problem of being able to eat anything.”
• “The more I learn about the food system and the effects of diet on health, the more convinced I become that the best way to fix the health-care crisis is to address the crisis in our food system.”
• “One of the problems with the American diet is that it has become disconnected from the natural rhythms of the year, the day, and the week. We eat the same way in December as we do in July. We eat on the run, at our desks, in the car, and in front of the TV.”
These quotes from Michael Pollan’s book give good advice on how to eat healthy and make people think about how the modern food industry has moved away from natural, traditional ways of eating. They talk about how important it is to cook, enjoy food, and the cultural value of eating together.