Life After Mashed Potatoes

     This  section of Special Flavors is designed to help viewers bring more vegetables into our regular diet, for both pleasure and health.
     Pleasure comes, at the least, in being able to eat more. Vegetables are simply less filling than more fatty foods. 
     Health comes from better protection against heart attack, hypertension, and cancer, as we have been advised for many years now by the people who study such things. Aren't we lucky that the same basic diet is advised for all these potential maladies?
     This is a new section (11/14/03) so we'd appreciate comments and knowing what you would like to see in this section. E-mail Larry at:   specialflavors@141.com

     The LAMP Section has three parts.

Recipes
    Here you will find delicious recipes for main vegetable servings, as well as their inclusion in appetizers, snacks, soups, salads, and side dishes. 
     Hints are given to intrigue partners or family whose devotion to a healthy vegetable diet may less than total.  

Strategy
     In my own efforts I found that recipes are not enough. If you really want to bring more vegetables into your diet on a consistent basis, a strategy is needed. 
     To begin with, vegetables vary as to nutritional worth. Which ones are really worth courting? See Vegetables - Pick Your Partners in the Strategy Section. 
     Then when you cook for others, you must consider your partner or family. They might or might not be enthusiastic about your vegetable program. 
     Shopping considerations also apply. Children present special opportunities and problems. 
     All these matters will be discussed in the Strategy Section. 

Nutrition
     LAMP focuses on vegetables. Of course this is only part of the nutrition story. There are such matters as excess meat and animal fat. The Mediterranean Diet seems to be generally recommended as a model. In our household we look to this as a guide, with its use of olive oil, limiting of meat and animal fats generally, and of course increased use of fruits and vegetables generally.  Click for more on the Mediterranean Diet.
     The Nutrition section also will contain various nitty-gritty nutritional considerations. Not everyone will want to consult this section. Feel free to do so or not, as you are inclined. You may find that you pick up enough in the course of the recipes. 

Is There Life After Mashed Potatoes?
     The title for this section was inspired by the New American Plate program of the American Institute for Cancer Research.
     The New American Plate is designed to replace the Old American Plate, which consisted of a big steak and buttery mashed potatoes, with a few peas thrown in for garnish. 
     The challenge for the AICR, and now for us, is to replace this plate with less meat and a greater variety of vegetables.     

     The AICR postulates four stages in evolving to a better diet.

Stage 1: The Old American Plate

     Here we see a "typical American meal." Half the plate is covered with an 8-10 ounce steak. The remainder contains a hearty helping of mashed potatoes, with a few peas for garnish. 

Stage 2: A Transitional Plate

     In this plate the meat is reduced to 4-6 ounces. Mashed potatoes are replaced by a whole grain, seasoned brown rice. A large helping of green beans completes the picture. This plate is "on the right track, but doesn't yet take advantage of the all the good-tasting foods the New American Plate has to offer."

Stage 3: A Better Plate

     Now the meat, poultry, or fish is reduced to 3 ounces (4 ounces raw). Two vegetables, perhaps broccoli and zucchini increase the proportion of plant-based foods. A whole grain again appears, as in Stage 2. This plate "features a wider variety of foods, resulting in a diverse assortment of cancer-fighting nutrients."

Stage 4: The New American Plate

     The AICR's final stage is a one-dish meal. It is filled with "colorful vegetables, hearty grains, and cancer-fighting vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals." Meat, poultry, or seafood is reduced to a condiment, contributing a bit of flavor and interest, no longer the centerpiece.

Our Household and the New American Plate

     In the LAMP section of Special Flavors I rely heavily on the experience of Nina's and my household. This is not an option, but a necessity. There are so many ways to use vegetables that a general discussion is out of the question. Ours is only one possible solution to the balance of enjoyment, nutrition, and cooking technique for a family's daily menus.   
     At present we are camped out at Stage 3. We are not yet ready to declare fish or poultry a condiment. This would mean looking to vegetables for protein, which involves more study than we wish. In our particular balance, we take protein in a four ounce portion of fish or poultry. Then we can use vegetables for their taste and general nutrients, without being limited by protein content. 
     Also Stage 3 seems to be the natural form of the Mediterranean Diet, with its host of healthy recipes developed over the years, and which we follow as a general guide. 
     But who knows what the future will bring? Say this for the Stage 4 one-dish meal: it's easy on the cook. Maybe we'll get there eventually, although the present trend does not point that way. 

A Note on the Presentation
     In this presentation I have felt it desirable to relate my own experiences as I gradually incorporated more vegetables into the family diet. This is not because I think anybody will follow these. You can use someone else's recipe for a party dish, but you will never follow anyone else in your cooking day by day. 
     You will take from here and there, and my experience can be one source among many. It does have the value, I should think, of highlighting some of the decisions that must be made. 
     I also identify approaches considered, but not followed.  These paths not taken can be explored by others.