[at-l] Y2K food finally comes out of the closet..

[SaraSW@aol.com (SaraSW@aol.com)]

In a message dated 4/2/01 10:22:15 AM, texas12step@hotmail.com writes:

>The microwave oven is what makes convenience foods convenient.
>They're only really useful for quickly heating prepared (i.e.
>precooked) foods and leftovers. There are few unprocessed foods
>that you can actually "cook" by microwave.

I've cooked all kinds of "real" food in my microwave for years. It's true I 
don't cook rice or beans in it, but I do cook meat and veggies. I 
particularly like cooking fresh veggies in it because I can use less water.

> So instead of doling out inexpensive bulk foods such as canned meats, dry 
beans, >sacks of flour and the ever-popular brick of welfare cheese -- things 
from which a
>good balanced diet can be derived with a little effort and cooking skill -- 
we now get to >pay retail for single-serving microwaveable spaghettios, pizza 
pockets and Fruity >Pebbles.

But the problem here seems to be the overall American diet, as you point out 
in your comments about MacDonalds, not food stamps. People who are not on 
food stamps don't go in much for dry beans and rice either. They like the 
pre-packaged microwaveable stuff too. So if we want to encourage the art of 
cooking, we need to change the whole American diet and attitude, not just 
that of food stamp recipients.

>Food stamps and microwave ovens discourage home economics and the
>art of cooking in general. 

I suspect the real culprit--if "culprit" doesn't carry the wrong 
connotation--is not food stamps and microwaves, but the fact that women are 
working outside their homes in unprecedented numbers. A person who get up 
early, hits the road for work, spends the day on a job, picks up the kids 
from day care, runs errands, and finally gets back home after 12 hours or so 
away doesn't feel much like organizing a home cooked meal--especially if the 
evening includes soccer practice and homework and whatever else she has to do.

BTW, some KY food programs do provide bulk foods, and instructions in cooking 
them, and a cookbook designed to give instructions especially for those foods.
Vcat