Eating On The Wild Side

Eating On The Wild Side

I keep preaching on how people's diets have been going to Hades
in the proverbial handbasket since factory farms took over for the
American Gothic couple and Ronald McDonald starting handing out toys.
What I did not know was that this slippery slope began well before
white folks set foot on the what was to become the United States.
When I laid eyes on Jo Robinson's Eating On The Wild Side: The
Missing Link to Optimal Health I had no clue what a ride I was in
for! Let me tell you...
...The hunter gatherers had it good in terms of nutrients.
Native plants, which was what was available then, had ingredients
necessary for good health: vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids,
fiber, and bionutrients. At some point our way distant ancestors
decided to stay in one place and raise food. When they started
cultivating, human nature being what it is, they concentrated on sweet
varieties of fruits and vegetables, not realizing more bitter strains
were much better for them. A lot of what we see on the grocery store
shelves is a hollow shell of its former self.
Of course we can't go back to the hunter gatherer life style.
But there is an alternative to gloom and doom. Robinson lays it out
for us. In chapters on different veggies and fruits she explains
succinctly what varieties to look for at supermarkets and farmers'
markets or to grow, how to find the best specimens, and how to store
and prepare them to bring out the very best in them. She also
supplies some pretty awesome recipes. Her writing style is
refreshingly natural and conversational. This is one of the most
reader friendly volumes it's ever been my great fortune to read.
That alone would make Eating On The Wild Side more than worth
its price. But it's so much more. The vivid heritage of the foods'
development and usage make it a really fun read. Did you know, for
example, that during the Civil War onions were used for field
dressings for wounds and amputations as well as incorporated into
soldiers' diets? They were considered so essential to warfare that
when General Ulysses S. Grant ran out he refused to move his troops
until he was resupplied. Did you know that Welch's Grape Juice
originated in an effort to create a non intoxicating communion beverage?
For most books I recommend buying or borrowing. This volume, in
my mind, is a must buy, a priceless reference work. It belongs right
there with your other favorites. I don't care if they're TV Guide,
Uncle Henrys, the Betty Crocker Cookbook, or The King James Bible. It
deserves a place among them. I know what I'm asking Santa for this
Christmas. And, yeah, I'm pretty confident I've made the nice list.
On a personal note, Orono Community Garden is thriving and producing
bountifully. Our Tuesday evenings are harvesting and delivery
parties. Tillie and her lovely cream colored dog joined us this
week. That dog and Mika Star became BFFs. It was a joy to see them
playing joyously.
A great big shout out goes out to community gardens large and small
and the folks who maintain those little pieces of heaven on earth.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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