Hothouse at CuisinArt Resort, Anguilla
What vegetables did you have for dinner? Did you have any for lunch? If so, what were they? How about yesterday or the day before? How many different vegetables do you eat in one day?
I’ve been researching the differences in diet between early man and his more ‘progressive’ farming cousin. Who do you think was healthier? If you said the guy who grows his own food….you’d be wrong. Early man won that race. He had better teeth, stronger bones and probably would have lived longer if he didn’t have all those larger predators after him. Why? Major question with many differing theoretical answers.
The current winning theory on our healthy Paleo man is that he had variety in his diet. Lots of variety. But his plate didn’t have the requisite protein, carbohydrate and three vegetables, followed by dessert. He ate what ever was available at any given time and in any given place. That meant nuts that grew at higher altitudes, berries on the lowlands and anything and everything he could find from foraging. Look at a book of wild, edible plants and you’ll find a lot of pages. Variety abounds.
Diversity makes for a successful ecosystem. Everything living in that system gets well fed encouraging growth and expansion.
On Anguilla, a small island in the Carribbean, there is a hydroponic farm, an incredible set up that any gardener, including myself, would envy. Within its hurricane proof glass and metal walls is a well controlled ecosystem. With little diversity. Most greenhouses are like that. They focus on the popular hot house vegetables like tomatoes, cucumber, peppers and eggplant. It tells us a little bit about 21th century man’s diet. Not much variety! Were any of those vegetables on your dinner or lunch plate?
Back to my initial question. What vegetables have you eaten over the past few days? How many were the same ones? How about other foods? Were they the same basic ingredients you consume every day?
Though the greenhouse is a much needed, life saving enterprise on a small
Growing Local Food Anguilla
island, it only grows specific foods, ones our palates have become accustomed to eating. It doesn’t produce variety but sticks to the cash crops, the ones tourists like to eat and are familiar with. There’s no local food to add to the diversity, no okra, kalaloo, or pumpkin. Surely those crops would do well in a greenhouse!
Our body functions better, more efficiently, when it is fuelled by a variety of foods. Metabolic wastes build up in the body. When the same food is eaten every day the wastes created by that food don’t get a chance to completely flush from the body. With variety there isn’t the same build up of toxins. This could be one of the reasons why Paleo man did so well. He was one detoxed human.
But large agribusinesses, needing to reap large profits from cash crops focus on a handful of food items. It’s easier and more profitable that way, especially if they have contracts to supply millions of dollars worth of product to large companies who process and sell that single crop.
The point I’m trying to make here is that we are losing biodiversity, not just in our environment, but also in the food we eat. Diversity in nature means a successful food chain. Diversity in our diet means better health. We seem to be losing ground on both.
Fortunately, the earth has several alternative plans in her back pocket. The most important involving her incredible ability to heal and adapt. Given the right resources she can and will repair herself and quite nicely, without any human intervention. I just happen to want to stay apart of the process.
Solution? Eat more variety. Instead of having wheat in some form every day, try millet or amaranth. Instead of eating tomatoes, in some form, every day, change it up and try something different, like cauliflower or okra.
We value humanity for its individual uniqueness, for its biodiversity of personality and looks. We celebrate it in words, anthems, poetry and stories. Lets embrace all diversity not just in humanity but in every aspect of living that includes what we put on our plate.
Today, I’m making a rye congee. I have some broccoli leaves left from the garden, fennel seed collected from one of my plants and some dried cauliflower fungus from last year. Tomorrow we may have lamb congee made creamy with potatoes and parsnips. Change it up people, change it up!
Butternut Squash Congee
Good for building immunity or for anyone feeling under the weather from a chesty cold.
8 cups water
1 chicken thigh and drumstick
1 chicken wing
1 cup basmati brown rice
¼ cup wild rice
¼ cup dried shitake mushrooms
½ chopped onion
4 cups coarsely chopped butternut squash
½ tablespoon dried and powdered ginger
1-2 teaspoons Herbamare or Himalayan Salt
In a slow cooker turned to high add water and chicken. Let cook on high for two hours. Add the rest of the ingredients and let simmer on high for about 5 hours or until the water has completely gone. If the dish is getting too thick just add ¼ cup water at a time.
Stir it whenever you think about it, bringing the rice from the bottom to the top. When it’s reached the desired creamy consistency remove bones and serve hot.
I’m excited, really excited. Okay so I get excited easily, but a friend and I are heading up island to pick up some pasture fed bison products and on the way back we’re stopping in at Sloping Hill Farm.
Eat Local Live Longer 