Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Watercress....pleasant sounding huh?

What's behind the glare....Watercress!

I bought this from the Whole Foods yesterday just because the name sounded so fresh and alive. Say it with me-----Watercress.

One thing about dark green vegetables is they are power packed with nutrients. They are so packed that these nutrients can be hard to get out. One method to get at them is cooking. Cooking is great....but it is kind of like blowing up an entire city just because you have a quarrel with one person. That doesn't really make sense.

We still need to coax these beautiful life giving friends out of the tight cellular wall that contains them. Last night I chopped up the Watercress and placed it in a Ziplock bag with some vinegar and dried cranberries. The vinegar will act as an agent to break down the cell walls and let the vital nutrients out. Ancient traditions put vinegar on all sorts of vegetable for this very reason. It also helps increase their shelf life. This method survives today and is known as "pickling" as in Pickles!

Of course, I didn't place these items in a jar and leave them on a shelf for six months because I just can't wait to eat this beautiful sounding plant --- Watercress.

stay positive,

matthew

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