The Kitchen

Ah yes, the kitchen.

For some, the kitchen brings thoughts of a dark, scary, and unpleasant place.

Many of us cringe and shy away from the idea of being in the kitchen.

This is a unfortunate by-product of the current state our food system is in.

I LOVE the kitchen.

In fact, the kitchen is the most important part about where I live. I spend a great deal of time in my kitchen. More so, than any other part of my home – including my room.

I truly believe that America has been brain-washed, manipulated, and taken advantage of by both our government and corporations who claim to have our best interest in mind.

Cooking creates a connection to food.

All food was once a living creature on this planet – or at least a by-product – but regardless it all comes from the planet.

It’s all connected.

You see when you take the time to pick out the perfectly ripened avocado at the grocery store it makes a small little connection to the piece of food you’re about to consume – a small but powerful connection.

There is a life force at work – a sense of energy – throughout the world and a large part of that force is our food and water.

The current state of our economical food system has made the general public forget where their food comes from AND what to do with it.

I met a girl once, who will remain nameless, that was 23 years old and had never tried asparagus and only had a green pepper recently.

This broke my heart. This especially hurt because I couldn’t express my love for how amazing asparagus is because she wouldn’t even begin to know how to judge what I’m saying.

This only happened because Americans have been spoon fed advertisements from media showing this fast-food, these chips, this ice cream, those frozen dinners, and all the garbage that we have basically been taught to eat as “regular” food.

The truth is, you never see a commercial about what fruit is coming into season and how to pick the best one and maybe an easy way to prepare it.

We’ve been taught that quick-and-easy, fast-and-go style of eating is acceptable. That we can live normal healthy lives and sustain our people on it.

That is a lie.

It’s thought that some 90% of Americans suffer from a nutritional deficiency(ies).

That basically means everyone you meet is deficient in some key element we need to survive.

Including YOU.

Yeah you, who is reading this right now.

Even myself.

The food industry is a billion dollar industry that is predominately ran by only a handful of companies – obviously this is a business.

Most kids couldn’t identify a zucchini, tomato, or even a potato.

America is so unhealthy and sick because of this broken system where we are taught to buy the stuff in the box that requires no effort aside from opening it.

The fact we are all deficient should show us that something has to change.

Being Vitamin D deficient can literally ruin your life if you don’t work to correct it. This is also true for every other deficiency. We NEED vitamins and minerals in our bodies in order to run properly.

The body is a high performance machine – like a race car or a sports bike – you need to put the proper clean fuel in it to run correctly.

Sadly, many people do not even know what it feels like to be healthy. Many have grown accustomed to being weary, dull-minded, and plain sluggish – looking and craving for the next energy drink.

Most don’t know how it feels to have energy all day, be quick-witted, and just overall more active.

The industry has us addicted and I plan to break that addiction.

This is only true because as I said earlier, many of us dread the kitchen.

We dread the kitchen because it intimidates most of us and for others it is seen a chore rather than a joy – for many different reasons but to the same result.

Disdain for the kitchen.

Because we have forgotten that we need food to survive.

Not processed garbage that is littered with chemicals, sugar, and other unnatural ingredients.

People are not taught how to cook anymore. Nor are we taught how to grow and cultivate food. The government has almost complete and utter control over the food system and America is almost completely dependent on the current food system.

If everything crashed tomorrow – many, many people would starve to death simply because their inability to cook and find food. To harness it.

Knowing how to cook isn’t just about the prepping and actual cooking. No, no. It runs much deeper than that – its understanding the food and its properties. Understanding how it connects with us and even how it can pair with other food. I say food meaning everything we eat. Oils, fruits, veggies, spices, and herbs and well you get the idea.

I was forced to learn how to cook. My parents were up and out the door to work by time I was ready for school and they worked until the sun was down.

I had to fend for myself.

It wasn’t very smooth in the beginning…

But I’m fairly efficient now.

I absolutely love being in the kitchen. I enjoy peeling my garlic by hand. I like cleaning my kale and understanding where it’s at and how I will consume it.

I find joy in making delicious and nutritious meals that are not only satisfying mentally but also physically.

I am going to start a new segment on my blog entitled “The Kitchen” and this is the first entry.

This new segment is going to be dedicated to food. Everything I eat and cook and recipes I explore. I plan to write out step by step details on how to shop, where to go, how to pick out produce and meats, and then of course the prep and cooking process. Hopefully I will be able to include some videos at some point but for now I will start with pictures of the processes.

I believe that reintroducing ourselves to the kitchen and our food can help bring down our current food system and create a healthier and more stable people.

Food is so very important and intimate. It is not something to be taken for granted.

If you have the confidence and skills in the kitchen you will no longer rely on ordering out, buying the quick and easy, or going to the local restaurant.

Not only will you instantly become healthier, you will also save money and gain a valuable life tool that you will hopefully pass along to your children.

Cooking at home is far less expensive than going out and it also ensures we are getting our essential vitamins and minerals from the source.

In case you didn’t know, most vitamins cannot be broken down and actually UTILIZED in pill form. Like those “multivitamins” people take.

Yeah, the average multivitamin on the market is just processed crap.

We need those nutrients from the source.

I found out I was vitamin D deficient several months ago and I was pretty shocked because I consider myself a pretty healthy individual. I exercise pretty rigorously and eat a very clean diet. Nonetheless, I was vitamin D deficient. I realized I must not have been outside in the sunlight enough – I was driving back and forth to Orlando twice a week and inside all day for classes and then worked those nights too.

I worked 5 and sometimes 6 nights a week.

When I wasn’t in school I was inside working on homework, cooking, cleaning, or sleeping.

I made a conscious effort to spend more time outdoors in the sun, to eat more things like mushrooms that are rich in vitamin D and to also make sure I am getting plenty of calcium in my diet.

All of this I was able to think of because I have gained a general understanding of food – inside and out. Once you understand the nutritional and health profile of food you can really begin to control your own life.

You can literally cure yourself with food.

As Hippocrates said…

Food Is Medicine.

I’m not knocking western medicine because everything has its role, however, food and natural remedies should be thoroughly sought after first.

Anyhow, I’m very excited about this new project.

I hope all of you follow along for ride In The Kitchen.

I hope to teach and show you that cooking is a very simple and fun process. It is not nearly as daunting or time consuming as some might think and I hope to prove just that.

If I can teach just one person how to cook on their own I’ve done something worth doing.

Please leave feedback and your thoughts on the recipes – especially if you try them!

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” – Hippocrates.