Super Foods

This article in the New York Times Web site lists the 11 best (and most reasonable) foods that we all should be eating:

1. Beets: a rich source of folate as well as natural red pigments that may be cancer fighters.
2. Cabbage: loaded with sulforaphane, a chemical said to boost cancer-fighting enzymes.
   
3. Swiss chard: packed with carotenoids that protect aging eyes.
4. Cinnamon: May control blood sugar and cholesterol.
5. Pomegranate juice: loaded with antioxidants and may lower blood pressure.
6. Dried plums: packed with antioxidants.
   
7. Pumpkin seeds: packed with magnesium, which is associated with lower risk for early death.
   
8. Sardines: high in omega-3’s, contain virtually no mercury and loaded with calcium. They also contain iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, copper and manganese, as well as a full complement of B vitamins.
9. Turmeric: anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties.
10. Frozen blueberries: associated with better memory in animal studies.
    How to eat: Blended with yogurt or chocolate soy milk and sprinkled with crushed almonds.
11. Canned pumpkin: high in fiber and immune-stimulating vitamin A; fills you up on very few calories.

Now, nevermind how many of these foods are currently in my pantry, nor those which might have made an appearance on my grocery bills over the last 6 months.  Let’s focus on the positive: I had two meals (plus leftovers) with cabbage this week, and I liked them both!

I rediscovered cabbage a year or so ago when my mother-in-law cleaned out her refrigerator prior to extended travel (that means she sent a bag of leftover groceries to my house) and I was determined to find uses for the items that I would NEVER have purchased for myself (except for the Greek yogurt; that I threw straight down the garbage disposal). The Canadian bacon made a fine breakfast strata, but the cabbage sent me to the bookshelf.

In The Best Vegetable Recipe cookbook (put out by the fine folks at Cooks Illustrated), I found two recipes that I’ll use again and again, I’m sure.  Braising cabbage with green apple and apple juice pairs well with pot stickers from the frozen food aisle at Trader Joe’s, and then this weekend I braised the cabbage with beer and brown mustard in which I had previously cooked pork brats.  Yum.

That’s probably not the way the New York Times wants me to eat cabbage. But such is life.