The Farmer’s Daughter’s Guide to Nutritious and Delicious Eating

Chapter One “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you who you are.”- Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin This book is a little of what I know about growing, preparing, sharing, eating, and enjoying homemade, delectable, and memorable meals that are actually good for you, and good for the soul. I will help you not only prepare food, but know why you are eating it, besides the obvious, and give you some pointers on the spices, oils, and techniques that make the dish. Mindfulness. Mindful eating is conscious eating, and I believe an even better experience. Think about your body and all the parts that will flourish and be well nourished, with everything it needs and what you give it. Yes, I use short cuts in some recipes, but if you learn the art of preparing a meal, you will find many ways to eat well, and know your way around the grocery stores and farm markets, as well as the kitchen. I will share some of my travel experiences in this book as well, as they always bring me back to the wonderful food that new places and tastes bring, to help elevate even the most sophisticated palate. Of course, I admit to being a full blooded and bodied Sicilian woman, who believes health and food go together like pane and vino. I was born and raised in the country on a fruit and horse farm, and learned very early that having a garden of fresh vegetables and eating fruit off the tree, as well as knowing how to prepare these nutritional foods, was essential to my life. By the end of this book, you will realize that whatever you put in your mouth to eat, affects your health. Unfortunately, there are many other influences in our lives that contribute to our health, but this is the one thing we alone can control. Growing up in the country, my family had many businesses. One of which was our country market. I spent many a summer, weekend, and holiday there, working and learning. I watched my parents explaining the simple ways of preparing the beautiful fresh goods, as well as growing the lovely herbs and plants we had in our greenhouse, and felt very fortunate. Spring opened up the store with Mother’s Day and Easter plants in our beautiful greenhouse. In the summer, we would have a “pick-ur-own” strawberry patch, and all the freshest of fruits and vegetables. Flowers covered the front of the market. However, my favorite time of year was autumn. Apple picking time, a chill in the air, raw fresh cider, winter squash, pumpkins, and beautiful winter chrysanthemums lining the walkways. It was a busy time as we were in two places at once. Thanksgiving was a joyous and very grateful time, as harvest was over, and Christmas on its way. My mother would always have a cornucopia on the table with fresh fruit and flowers of the season. Our Horn of Plenty, was duly noted at our table. The store was closed until it was Christmas tree time. My father would reopen the store for a few short weeks to sell some of our beautiful trees including blue spruce, our customer’s last visit for the year. My first interest after high school was in healthcare. Since then, I broadened my career into the legal forum using my medical knowledge as a successful tool. Ultimately, my interests have become evident in holistic medicine. I finally received my bachelors in Holistic Nutrition, became certified as a Life Coach, and realized by then, I had a lot of information that needed to be shared. I found that many people avoid natural medicine and eating healthier, just for the simple reason they have not been exposed to, or educated, to understand it. I will try to give you a healthy foundation, as well as some of my personal experiences, for the overall picture that I wish to paint for your complete experience of the Farmer’s Daughter’s cookbook.