A Plea to Cook at Home: Fast Italian Food

The two sentences above are part of a well written article by Mark Bittman, the esteemed journalist and food writer.  Bittman's main thesis is centered on the notion that Americans do not cook enough of their own food, rather they rely on ready to eat foods prepared via fast food outlets, restaurants, or mega-corporations.   In short, Bittman believes that we've lost the basic ability to cook at home and, for many, were never taught the basic life skill.

My view on the topic is rather straightforward as I believe we don't, despite recent efforts to improve the fresh food system, have a tradition or passion for food in the United States.  Children are not taught to eat well because they are not feed well; all fueling the myth that making food at home is expensive, laborious, and simply nor worth it.  

As Bittman argues, I think there's an easy way to solve the food crisis in America and it doesn't involve money (a common answer to many problems).  The answer is to simply start cooking at home and begin your home cooking adventures with simple dishes.  Bittman mentions lentils, stir frys, and chopped salad as basic dishes.  I happen to think the entire Italian food repatoire is a good starting point as acookblog.com author states, "One of the things I like best about Italian food is that at heart it's open-source peasant food; whatever is on hand can be made to work"

So, where do you start if you don't come from a tradition of making food at home?  My suggestion is to start with a few basic kitchen essentials (can't cook without tools) and then dive right in with the following dishes:

Pea and Rice Soup (or Risi e Bisi) Escarole and Bean SoupChicken CutletPasta with olive oil, garlic, and parsley (or Alio e Olio)Baked Fish with Savory Breadcrumbs

So, become a home cook or encourage the folks in your life to make good food at home.