Please Pass The Creamed Aparagus

[Martha]

As I mentioned on another thread, this is exactly what I thought and said a few years ago. Now I figure it's more like this: Putting the right kind of gas and oil in my car is important, even if the car has lasted much longer than expected.

BTW, that other post lead me to an interesting thought. I've had a number of accidents, injuries, and diseases in my life which, had I lived in prehistoric/premedicine times, would have killed me at a young age.

But let's say I lived back then (transported back in time 10,000 years as an infant), and didn't have any of those. And let's say that I wasn't killed by a saber-toothed tiger or marauding tribe. I wouldn't be that different, genetically, from my caveman buddies.

Would I have lived to the age of 56? What would I look like?

From what I have read you likely would have lived to 56 if you made it through the illnesses and injuries. Just the odds of making it through those illnesses and injuries was slim.

 

[samclem]

You are saying it is clear we should eat differently from our ancestors? And if so, in what way - which ways have been proven to be better?

No, I'm only saying that there's no indication that studying what our ancestors ate should be expected to provide any information about what we, as individuals, should eat if we want to live a long time.

Our ancestors died young, and 99% of them died of injuries, starvation, infections, and communicable diseases. Heart disease, cancer, arthritis were generally not concerns, and there's not much reason to believe their diet, or their genetic adaptation to that diet (which would take thousands of years) will offer us much of a guide to preventing these diseases in ourt individual cases.

We're using these bodies well beyond the age they've ever been asked to last before. I think that reducing saturated fat in our diets probably makes sense. I don't think I could eat like an inuit and expect to live a long time.

Milk: I have no strong opinions--I usually use the 1% stuff.

 

[audreyh1]

No, I'm only saying that there's no indication that studying what our ancestors ate should be expected to provide any information about what we, as individuals, should eat if we want to live a long time.

I think there is an indication. Studies of which societies have better health statistics indicate that those who eat in more traditional ways versus modern high-carb-load and processed fast-foods - e.g. the Mediterranean diet, seem to be doing better in modern times. There also appear to be more than one traditional diet that is "healthy" which is not surprising. Also, these same societies get more exercise as did our ancestors and so its somewhat hard to figure which is more important, not that it matters.

So, until I see overwhelming evidence otherwise, I am going with the more "traditional" approaches.

And by the way - I'm not looking to maximize longevity, if I were, I'd be doing the restricted calorie thing. I'm going for quality of life with hopefully some decent longevity.

Audrey

 

[Martha]

I had baked asparagus with grated Parmesan cheese for lunch. Nummy.

 

[TromboneAl]

I had aparagus.

 

[W2R]

You two are making me hungry!! And I do have asparagus, and parmesan, so I could have baked asparagus with grated parmesan for dinner. Sounds divine.

 

[audreyh1]

Asparagus tossed with olive oil, garlic, salt and fresh cracked pepper - grilled or roasted in oven on a cookie tray - easy and awesome!!!

Audrey

 

[RonBoyd]

Even canned Asparagus can be delicious -- year round enjoyment. As I mentioned before:

As a side, I put a can of asparagus in a small pie pan, dotted it with a 1/2 stick of butter and a couple tablespoons of parmesan cheese. Put it under a broiler for five minutes.

 

[W2R]

With so many of us eating asparagus, you'd think we were a bunch of millionaires instead of a bunch of LBYM'ers.... Oh, that's right! A lot of us fit into either or both of those categories.

 

[Khan]

Asparagus tossed with olive oil, garlic, salt and fresh cracked pepper - grilled or roasted in oven on a cookie tray - easy and awesome!!!

Audrey

Sauteed in a bit of ghee.

 

[Martha]

Asparagus tossed with olive oil, garlic, salt and fresh cracked pepper - grilled or roasted in oven on a cookie tray - easy and awesome!!!

Audrey

That is what I do, plus grate a bit of Parmesan on top when it is done.

 

[unclemick]

Real ice cream(chocolate) covered with Hersey's syrup.

heh heh heh -

 

[Moemg]

Asparagus tossed with olive oil, garlic, salt and fresh cracked pepper - grilled or roasted in oven on a cookie tray - easy and awesome!!!

Audrey

How long and at what temperature do you cook it ?

 

[Notmuchlonger]

How long and at what temperature do you cook it ?

I do ours around 400 on the grill. Doesn't take long depending on the thickness. Maybe 2 to 3 minutes a side turning once.

 

[audreyh1]

How long and at what temperature do you cook it ?

Like notmuchlonger - that's usually the grill surface temp. Usually takes less than 10 minutes, and I turn once.

Oven - preheated to 350 or 400. Check after 10 minutes. When it is done depends on the size of the asparagus.

Audrey

 

[Notmuchlonger]

I love me some asparagaraagus! Just got a weird hankering for it.

 

[TromboneAl]

How does one decide how much stalk to cut off?

 

[RonBoyd]

How does one decide how much stalk to cut off?

This is the method I use:

Cookbook:Asparagus - Wikibooks, collection of open-content textbooks

Almost the whole shoot is edible, but the prized portion is the tender growing end. The base of the shoot can be woody and fibrous, and it is generally discarded about a third of the way up. The traditional way to prepare asparagus for cooking is to take hold of a few shoots at a time, holding an end in each hand, and firmly but gently 'snap' it. The shoots will snap at their natural break point, which should be where the woody end meets the more tender portion. Another way to prepare asparagus for cooking is to peel the bottom end with a knife or a vegetable peeler, working from the middle towards the end. This will remove the toughest fibers from the outside although some will remain and will need to be cut an inch or so from the base of the stems.

 

[Martha]

I barely cut any of the white part off, just enough to remove the dried cut ends.

 

[Notmuchlonger]

Going on sale tomorrow at the local place. 1.97 a lb. Not bad for Californie prices. Ill be sure to give you the low down tomorrow

 

[TromboneAl]

So HaHa, what kind of milk do you drink?

I've gone to great pains to get used to nonfat milk, and like it fine. But after reading Good Calories Bad Calories and studies like this, I'm thinking about full fat milk.

 

[haha]

So HaHa, what kind of milk do you drink?

I've gone to great pains to get used to nonfat milk, and like it fine. But after reading Good Calories Bad Calories and studies like this, I'm thinking about full fat milk.

Al, I usually don't drink milk. My dairy is full fat yogurt ( usually Trader Joe's French Market brand), whipping cream, sour cream (from a Russian deli if I am in the neighborhood, otherwise the Greek stuff from Wholefoods, grass fed butter and many different cheeses. When I was young and had kids at home we drank unpasteurized milk right off the farm, and goats' milk.

Personally, I am not really sure about the fat thing. I have other issues so overall I think it is best for me to eat what I most enjoy, which is full fat. At worst it seems that it might have a small negative effect, if any at all.
But if I were you I would do a lot of research before going back on whole milk, since you like non-fat milk. I hated it and really liked whole dairy. Once youk go back to high quality full fat dairy you might find it hard to go through weaning yourself off it once again.

Good luck with whatever you try.

Ha