So, as some of you know Bryan and I like food – we like food A LOT J My dad is an amateur gourmet chef, all of my grandparents are excellent cooks, Bryan’s mom is a superb cook who comes from an Armenian background where food and eating together as a family was seen as very important - so from an early age we were both taught the value of good food. We have been taught the importance of really enjoying food and taking pleasure in eating good food with good friends.

Over the last few years though we have started to eat more intentionally. My health problems (I have a chemical sensitivity) have lead us to learn more about what we put into our bodies and has led us to avoid pretty much all processed and packaged foods. It’s actually been a fun adventure. We make almost all of our meals at home from scratch now and I think that has really improved our cooking skills.

I think all of this plays together to create a keen interest in food and especially in how food relates to health. So, when we came across these videos recently we were quick to watch them and we weren’t disappointed.

This first video is of a lecture that the author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food and even though it is a bit long (about an hour) it is definitely worth watching. I found it totally fascinating and interesting and more than a little entertaining as well. If these issues interest you at all I highly recommend it. And if these issues don’t interest you then I still highly recommend that you check it out.

This second video is one of the TED lectures given by Mark Bittman. He talks about meat and meat consumption in the US in extreme but fascinating terms. I really enjoyed watching this video as well.

Rejoicing in the journey - Beth Stedman