The front page of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune Taste Section this week was devoted to Zen and the Art of Cooking.
But, according to the author of the piece, not Zen-trendy (whatever that is. . .Asian print shirts?), but rather true Zen--"the teachings that Buddhist monks have handed down for centuries: simply living every day with awareness."
- Savor the moment.
- Balance the menu.
- Keep it simple.
- Strive for freshness.
- Follow the seasons.
- And breathe deeply.
So how Zen am I?
Savor the moment. I try. I really try. I’d like to stand there savoring the act of stirring the polenta for 20 minutes, but most likely I am, at the same time, having to tell a story about what happened in Red Wing when hot, molten lava threatened the town and the Bionicles had to save it from destruction. Sometimes the moment is too full to savor at the time, although in retrospect it’s very sweet. Does retrospect count in Zen? If it doesn't, it should.
Balance the menu: This I can do. James Willet’s food pyramid still hangs on my fridge, even if we completely disregard it when we have Spaghetti a la Carbonara.
Keep it simple. Simplicity is the the goal, the purpose of all this rather frantic, haphazard cooking now. I admit I’m all over the culinary map but I figure if nothing else, a great variety in what we eat is the surest protection against any one single dietary evil.
Strive for Freshness: I live by the “when in doubt, throw it out maxim. Four days in my refrigerator is about max for anything cooked or to be cooked. This is in conflict with the Zen disdain for wastefullness, however. Whoops.
Follow the seasons: For me this means, if it’s winter, use the oven. If it’s summer, use the outdoor grill. But if I want to eat blueberries in the winter time, I'm going to. Getting your anti-oxidants whenever you can should be Zen.
Breathe deeply. I always forget this. If I had to think about breathing, (and the really nice thing about breathing is that I don’t) it would be yet another thing to clutter up the moment I’m supposed to be savoring.
I’m a little tired of the millions of articles published telling me better ways to look, feel, and be. But exasperation aside, I will admit, there’s room for a little more Zen in my kitchen. So this is what I’m going to do. From now on I will wash all the breakfast and lunch dishes by hand. I like to warm my hands up in the sudsy water anyway.
(Note: I resolved this same thing, more or less 3 years ago, when I used to keep a little food diary over at recipestoday.com. They haven't yanked me yet from their site, even though I stopped writing once I realized my words became their intellectual property and not my own.)
11:13:23 PM 
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