Subj : health food
To : JIM WELLER
From : Ruth Haffly
Date : Tue Oct 04 2022 14:15:36
Hi Jim,
-=> Quoting Ruth Haffly to Jim Weller <=-
RH> We tried cutting out salt almost completly some years ago. It didn't
RH> do anything one way or another for our blood pressure so we added some
RH> back into our diet. I still cook in the lower salt range but I know
RH> some things have to have it to taste "right".
JW> My blood pressure was creeping up but I managed to get it under
JW> control without medications by reducing both my caffeine and sodium
JW> intake. I still have one cup of coffee every morning. I don't add
I have a cup (mug of tea) every morning but one of my meds has caffiene
in it. Blood pressure was all out of control and I kept losing potassium
until my primary dr. (now gone to work elsewhere) set up an appointment
with an endocrinologist. Found out my adrenal glands were putting out
too much aldosterone so got that regulated and BP is doing better. Still
on meds but a reduced amount.
JW> salt to my cooking. I use a lot of lemon juice as a flavour enhancer
JW> and do have salt on the table for everyone else of course. I also
JW> cut way back on cold cuts and cured meats (both of which I love) and
JW> stopped eating foods like potato chips.
We'll buy the sliced turkey, ham and roast beef (cut from the roasts)
but don't get bologna and things like that any more. We don't do a lot
of things like potato chips (Steve eats a lot more of them than I do.)
but unsalted "saltine" crackers just don't have the same flavor. (G)
JW> Country hans are very rare and hard to find in Canada.
RH> They're easy to find around here
JW> They are not just an American thing but a southern thing.
And I'm in prime ham country. (G)
RH> but a good one isn't cheap.
JW> And neither is prosciutto or an aged Spanish ham
I know, we've seen some of the dried Spanish hams at Wegman's--how to
easily blow your food budget with the purchase of one of them.
JW> The price is not out of line considering the shrinkage from water
JW> loss vs the added water in plumped up lightly brined ones. The cost
JW> of the protein is not all that different.
Still, not something we do except maybe pieces of country ham for ham
biscuits or seasoning a mess of greens.
JW> Almost everyone had ice houses
RH> They used to do that up in NY State also. Layer the ice with sawdust
RH> and it might last into the summer.
JW> My parent's country lot (I won't call it a farm as they didn't
JW> farm) had both an ice house and a milk shed on it. Both of them were
JW> of double walled log construction with a foot of sawdust and packed
JW> straw between the inner and out walls. They were also located in the
JW> shade of huge elm and maple trees. We had a generator, a freezer and
JW> two fridges so those buildings got used for other things.
Ice year round. (G)
RH> I found a really good recipe for minestrone some years ago,
RH> have to see if I can hunt it down to make this winter.
JW> Minestrone doesn't really need a recipe and is very versatile
JW> depending on what is on hand.
I've had a number of them that were mediocre but this one was really
good. IIRC, it was from a Sara Moulton cook book.
JW> A very different soup pulled from my squash collection ...
