Comments on: Meeting of Minds http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/ Jews, Food, and Contemporary Issues Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:57:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.2 By: chanie http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-4040 chanie Mon, 21 Jan 2008 09:49:31 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-4040 interesting about time - i've been cooking and preparing a lot too, and kind of took pollans original statement about money and priorities to extend to time and priorities, so i'm glad to see that being discussed. my kids are 7 and 10, and another advantage to cooking from scratch for them is that it has turned into cooking with them. they both love to cook and help, and jump up and down about the 'surprise presents' that come in our csa box. besides the healthy food, they are getting an education and appreciation of it all, so i see it as time well spent in that regard too. interesting about time - i’ve been cooking and preparing a lot too, and kind of took pollans original statement about money and priorities to extend to time and priorities, so i’m glad to see that being discussed.

my kids are 7 and 10, and another advantage to cooking from scratch for them is that it has turned into cooking with them. they both love to cook and help, and jump up and down about the ’surprise presents’ that come in our csa box. besides the healthy food, they are getting an education and appreciation of it all, so i see it as time well spent in that regard too.

]]> By: Phyllis Bieri http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3989 Phyllis Bieri Tue, 15 Jan 2008 20:30:18 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3989 With 3 children under the age of 8, I spend a huge amount of time shopping for food, picking up CSA vegetables, organizing the refrigerator, cooking, and planning menus. As Shev says, it is NOT easy, and in fact our family loses revenue because I do this work during normal working hours. I cut back on my paying job so that I could do this. Eating well, i.e. real food, together as a family, was more important to me than career advancement. Yes, I am very lucky. Glad you corrected your statement about how much time the average American spends eating and preparing food, Leah (hour and a half, total time). Every Monday morning I go grocery shopping and have a rough idea of the dinners through Thursday night. It takes 30 minutes to an hour to cook dinner, on average. The slow cooker helps, as does the rice maker. That doesn't include breakfast and lunch, which also takes some time. Our average weekday family dinner lasts from 30 minutes to an hour. The 3-year-old doesn't sit at the table the whole time, of course, but she sees how much we enjoy our conversation. The older the kids get the longer they stay at the table. Yes, absolutely as Shev says, this is just one aspect of a life well lived. For me it helps define our family life, and provides a reason to sit down and share, and be thankful together. Along with gettig enough sleep and exercise, it also avoids visits to the doctor. With 3 children under the age of 8, I spend a huge amount of time shopping for food, picking up CSA vegetables, organizing the refrigerator, cooking, and planning menus. As Shev says, it is NOT easy, and in fact our family loses revenue because I do this work during normal working hours. I cut back on my paying job so that I could do this. Eating well, i.e. real food, together as a family, was more important to me than career advancement. Yes, I am very lucky.

Glad you corrected your statement about how much time the average American spends eating and preparing food, Leah (hour and a half, total time). Every Monday morning I go grocery shopping and have a rough idea of the dinners through Thursday night. It takes 30 minutes to an hour to cook dinner, on average. The slow cooker helps, as does the rice maker. That doesn’t include breakfast and lunch, which also takes some time. Our average weekday family dinner lasts from 30 minutes to an hour. The 3-year-old doesn’t sit at the table the whole time, of course, but she sees how much we enjoy our conversation. The older the kids get the longer they stay at the table.

Yes, absolutely as Shev says, this is just one aspect of a life well lived. For me it helps define our family life, and provides a reason to sit down and share, and be thankful together. Along with gettig enough sleep and exercise, it also avoids visits to the doctor.

]]> By: Leah Koenig http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3988 Leah Koenig Tue, 15 Jan 2008 19:42:16 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3988 Correction - either I misheard the panelist, or he misspoke, but Pollan writes in his book In Defense of Food that Americans actually spend a mere half hour preparing their food each day and an hour or less eating it. I wrote an hour and 1/2 of cooking alone (which did seem a little high when I thought about the minute and a half it takes to microwave a can of soup). Correction - either I misheard the panelist, or he misspoke, but Pollan writes in his book In Defense of Food that Americans actually spend a mere half hour preparing their food each day and an hour or less eating it.

I wrote an hour and 1/2 of cooking alone (which did seem a little high when I thought about the minute and a half it takes to microwave a can of soup).

]]> By: Shev http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3987 Shev Tue, 15 Jan 2008 19:36:43 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3987 Well, I wasn't writing to say "Yay me!", but to respond to Pollan's idea that finding a little extra time to cook from scratch should be easy! A pleasure! A no-brainer! When in fact, it can be downright painful. Making food from scratch with kids underfoot is - how shall I say this? - a CHALLENGE. Making food from scratch for a family requires Energy and Time (planning, shopping, cooking, clearing, cleaning), and guess what, parents of school-age kids aren't exactly overflowing with Excess Energy or Too Much Time On Our Hands. Besides, we have homework to see to... Michael Pollan is certainly a Gadol HaDor :) but I wish he would acknowledge that eating real food is just one aspect of a life well lived. Well, I wasn’t writing to say “Yay me!”, but to respond to Pollan’s idea that finding a little extra time to cook from scratch should be easy! A pleasure! A no-brainer!

When in fact, it can be downright painful. Making food from scratch with kids underfoot is - how shall I say this? - a CHALLENGE. Making food from scratch for a family requires Energy and Time (planning, shopping, cooking, clearing, cleaning), and guess what, parents of school-age kids aren’t exactly overflowing with Excess Energy or Too Much Time On Our Hands. Besides, we have homework to see to…

Michael Pollan is certainly a Gadol HaDor :) but I wish he would acknowledge that eating real food is just one aspect of a life well lived.

]]> By: Rhea http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3977 Rhea Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:55:46 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3977 Leah, I'm glad you brought up the time issue with food prep (and Shev, bravo to you for cooking from scratch!) When I heard Pollan point this out in a radio interview I wanted to hug him. I suddenly didn't feel so freakish for preferring to come home and cook a nice dinner over watching Grey's Anatomy. I also appreciate his point about spending on better quality, sustainably-grown food. We somehow find the money for things we didn't care about a few years ago like cell phones and Netflix, so maybe we CAN afford that log of local goat cheese. Yay! Leah, I’m glad you brought up the time issue with food prep (and Shev, bravo to you for cooking from scratch!) When I heard Pollan point this out in a radio interview I wanted to hug him. I suddenly didn’t feel so freakish for preferring to come home and cook a nice dinner over watching Grey’s Anatomy.

I also appreciate his point about spending on better quality, sustainably-grown food. We somehow find the money for things we didn’t care about a few years ago like cell phones and Netflix, so maybe we CAN afford that log of local goat cheese. Yay!

]]> By: Shev http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3976 Shev Mon, 14 Jan 2008 22:59:19 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/meeting-of-minds/#comment-3976 Great article! I enjoyed hearing Michael Pollan in Philly last week, he's a lot of fun, and is so interesting! I've got to respond to that last point; we have four kids under the age of 10. We make nearly all the food from scratch, and watch pretty much no tv. The bottom line is, the more vege's we eat, the more work it is. Making your own bread and challah really does take more time than buying it. It's worth it, but it's not easy. Great article! I enjoyed hearing Michael Pollan in Philly last week, he’s a lot of fun, and is so interesting!

I’ve got to respond to that last point; we have four kids under the age of 10. We make nearly all the food from scratch, and watch pretty much no tv. The bottom line is, the more vege’s we eat, the more work it is. Making your own bread and challah really does take more time than buying it. It’s worth it, but it’s not easy.

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