#millet drenched in rain

[snackative]

5 South Indian Evening Snacks That You’ll Love to Munch Non-Stop

You have just shut down your laptop and leaned back on your couch. You are working from home, there’s no impending commute, and a long evening stretches ahead of you. Yet, it feels like something is missing. You my friend, have a serious case of the munchies!

Evenings are snack time, especially on work days and religiously on weekends. The English have their ‘Afternoon Tea’, there is ‘Fika’ in Sweden, and then there are the Indians with their beloved ‘Chai naashta’ or ‘Adda’. What’s an evening without a snack to munch on?

Have you considered trying the blockbuster South Indian snacks?

Crispy, fried, spicy or sweet, there’s overwhelming diversity in South Indian snacks. They are so good that you will love to munch on them non-stop. Here are the top five that you definitely shouldn’t miss.

Murukku

A fried lentil snack with a super crispy texture. This swirly twisted perfection consists of a combination of flours such as rice, gram, wheat, and a mixture of lentils and spices. It’s a perfect partner to a hot beverage. This light snack is a muncher’s delight.

2. Kadalai

This one’s a winner whether you favour savoury or sweet snacks. Go nuts for this crispy and spicy Masala Kadalai that is coated in spiced chickpea flour and deep-fried. Or you can opt for the sweet peanut candy or Kadalai Mittai which is healthy and nutritious, packed with proteins.

3. Kara Sev

This popular deep-fried snack makes you feel festive. Karasev is usually prepared in the festival season using gram flour and rice flour. It has a crunchy and thick texture, rich with spices, especially pepper and asafoetida. An interesting bite every time will have you munching it non-stop.

4. Ragi Olai Pakoda

This is an insanely tasty snack which is also healthy, so win-win! Ragi or finger millet flour mixed with spices, cut into ribbon-like strips and fried to perfection. Ragi is a healthy and nutritious grain. Munch into this crispy, savoury snack without a second thought.

5. Kerala Jackfruit Chips

Raw jackfruit fried to crisp golden deliciousness in coconut oil will make your evenings delightful. Its characteristic taste will transport you to the rain-drenched beautiful state. This crunchy number with a mild sweetness is also a healthy snack option. So, don’t let guilt stop you from munching it.

The treasure trove of South Indian flavours

These South Indian munchies are so good that they won’t let you stop. The regional varieties spanning the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana can mesmerise you and make snack time your favourite part of the day. Catch some South Indian action (or drama) on your favourite OTT platform while you are at it.

Whenever you’re craving South Indian snacks, we will make sure it reaches you. We specialize in a range of South Indian snacks and sweets and we ship worldwide. Take a break and relive your childhood memories or simply explore new South Indian flavours. Order something delicious to munch on!

[best24news]

Haryan News: बारिश से भीगा कई हजार क्विंटल बाजरा, Hafed DM ने किया निरीक्षण

Haryan News: बारिश से भीगा कई हजार क्विंटल बाजरा, Hafed DM ने किया निरीक्षण

हरियाणा: दो दिन से रूक रूक कर ​बारिश हो रही है। बारिश के चलते कोसली व रेवाडी में कई हजार क्विंटल बाजरा ​भीग गया है। अब अधिकारी एक दूसरे पर आरोप लग रहे है। डीएम ने किया निरीक्षक: कोसली अनाज मंडी का हैफेड डीएम ने औचक निरीक्षक किया। रुक-रुक कर हो रही बारिश से कोसली मंडी में लगभग तीस हजार क्विंटल बाजरा भीग गया। यहां उन्होंने भीगे हुए बाजरे का जिम्मेदार व्यापारियों को ठहराया है। वहीं भड़के व्यापारियों…

[volkswagonblues]

(part 3/?) deleted scene from firebender’s guide: life in ba sing se + zuko’s petty feud with his 80yo neighbour

[note: going through my old drafts and realized i have a LOT of deleted scenes and materials from firebenders’s guide that got cut for pacing/plot reasons. Here’s a scene that was cut because it got WAY too long, and also i realised what I really want to do was write a weird slice-of-life social drama about a ba sing se ghetto]

Back in the Lower Ring of Ba Sing Se, in the tenement where Zuko and Iroh had lived, they had an elderly neighbour who ran a fruit-and-vegetable stall on the street corner. On days when her normal grocery boy failed to show – mornings after festival nights, usually, when he stayed late in bed nursing a sore head from drinking – on those days Mrs. Seung hired Zuko as a replacement. His job was to haul in the crates of produce in from the farmers’ wagons. She’d come knock on their door on early mornings before the tea shop opened, and Zuko would come out and carry and stack boxes for her, in the small space behind the wooden counter of her stand.

He made five copper pieces for this, six if Mrs. Seung judged he did a good job fitting the monstrous amount of crates into the impossibly tiny space. It was surreal, watching the old woman carefully count out each piece from her wooden money box, the coins rattling in her shaking hands. Can’t you tell that I’m a prince? Zuko wanted to say sometimes. I was born swaddled in silk. I had a teething ring made of gold and amber. I could recite the names of my great grandfather’s great grandfathers. A single one of my toys could have bought your stand a thousands times over.  

But of course he never did. 

[rest under cut]

He took the five copper pieces the same way he did everything at the time, mute and sullen. Grateful for the extra money and resentful that he needed it in the first place. The hard-bitten gratitude of a refugee, nothing like a prince at all.

Still. It was something to do, at least, in the long hour between waking up at dawn and the opening of the tea ship. Everyone woke up so late in Ba Sing Se, because they all went to bed so late. It was unlike his regimented childhood in the palace and it was unlike his regimented existence on the ship, when he was still chasing the Avatar. Ba Sing Se came alive at night. There were noodle shops whose pots only start billowing steam after sundown; there were street performers and puppet shows and poetry clubs and cheap dance halls whose lanterns only lit up after the daytime labourers were done their regular work. Zuko had never seen any place with such concentrated filth and squalor as the Lower Rings, but he had also never seen any place whose people came so alive. That was the essence of city life, he concluded. Everyone had to find some way to enjoy themselves at night, if only to make the next day bearable.

Iroh had gone out a few times; he liked the music and the late night markets. Zuko had gone to the noodle shops exactly once, on a disastrous date that he’d rather forget about. But sometimes, in the dark hours of the night, when Zuko was too anxious or angry or plain homesick to fall asleep, he would open a window and just listen to the noises of the city below. The strange medley lulled him: the sounds of street brawls, lovers’ arguments, babies crying, stray cats chasing rat-pigeons through the alleys. Along with the noise, the breeze carried in the odours of strange foods and lye soap from their neighbours’ clothesline; it carried in the evidence of a million other lives stacked on top of each other. Some nights it carried in the sounds of Mrs. Seung’s two-stringed fiddle. Her hands never shook when they were holding a bow, and she played beautiful melodies in keys Zuko couldn’t recognise. Some old Earth Kingdom folk songs, maybe, sad and lamenting. 

���She’s very good,” Iroh said once, without any preamble. “A real master with rare talent. You should ask her how she learned, or what she’s playing.”

Zuko only shrugged. He never did ask Mrs. Seung about her playing; at that point in his life the only person Zuko had been interested in was Zuko himself.

Besides, he was feuding with her at the time. He’d just learned that Mrs. Seung’s regular grocery boy made ten copper pieces for the same work that Zuko filled in for, and he had gone in and demanded a raise only for the old lady to laugh at him for his presumptuousness. 

“Be grateful you’re getting any work at all,” she had sniffed. “This used to be a nice neighbourhood before people like you started crowding in here, demanding everyone accommodate you just because you think city life is easier than whatever backwater field you crawled out of. Five copper pieces is more than enough.” 

Zuko, his pride bruised, decided he was no longer speaking to her. He very carefully looked the other way when he passed her in the tenement hallway, and once when it was raining reeled her clothesline out further into the yard, so her fresh laundry got drenched and she’d have to wash them again. 

The last time he saw here was right after Iroh’s Jasmine Dragon contract came through. As a celebration, Zuko had bought a box of imported Fire Nation figs from the fruit-seller across the street from Mrs. Seung. He loitered long enough that he was sure Mrs. Seung had seen him, and then plunked down a whole silver piece and loudly told the other seller – her name was Mrs. Yang, she was Mrs. Seung worst enemy and bitterest rival – to keep the change, Zuko and his uncle were moving away tomorrow, they wanted to leave a gift for their kind neighbours. 

The figs were overripe and slightly bruised, but after months of living off tea and plain millet, the figs were the best thing Zuko had tasted. Their skins were green and pungent, their flesh milky sweet flesh. After he and his uncle was done, he left the discarded pile of skins outside Mrs. Seung’s door, so they’d be the first thing she stepped on the next morning.

It was petty and unbecoming for a prince, but then again, Zuko was no longer one. And Lee – Lee the refugee got his petty revenge wherever he could, and Lee didn’t regret a thing.

deleted scene 1: in which Zuko meets another firebender in the South Pole (here)

deleted scene 2: in which the boys discuss PTSD and therapy, and also Sokka is a stuff-gremlin (here)

deleted scene 4:  Sokka and Toph invent proto-braille (here)

[cuisinecravings]

Is Rice Considered a Vegetable? Complete Guide

Is Rice Considered a Vegetable? Rice is the world's third most consumed grain. From India and China to Spain and the United States, it is a staple dish heavy in starchy carbohydrates. It is the main component in paella, risotto, jambalaya, and kedgeree, as well as a famous curry side item and a key ingredient in Japanese sushi. Nowadays, buying rice at the store may be a mind-boggling experience. There are numerous varieties of rice available, each with its own unique form, size, texture, and flavor. Long grain, short grain, basmati, jasmine, Arborio, and brown are some of the varieties available in supermarkets. However, there are wild, crimson, and even black rice kinds.

Is Rice Considered a Vegetable Rice is used in a variety of cuisines all over the world, many of which have grown popular in our own country and are household favorites. Is Rice Considered a Vegetable Rice is a satisfying staple food with a high carbohydrate content and either soluble or insoluble fiber, depending on the variety. But is rice considered a vegetable? Rice is classified as a grain rather than a vegetable. Grain foods are those that are the edible seeds of grasses and typically come in a casing known as a "husk."

What Plant Produces Rice?

All of the rice varieties we consume are derived from various types of grass. The grains of rice are actually the grass seeds. The husk is an outer shell that surrounds the grain of rice. The husks are found at the top of the grass stalks and are harvested when they are ready, which takes between 105 and 150 days depending on the cultivar.

Is grass considered a vegetable?

Grass could be called a vegetable because the definition of a vegetable is any plant that is edible. After all, cattle and other animals consume it, don't they? Is Rice Considered a Vegetable But that would also imply that fruit is a vegetable, which would be extremely perplexing! As a result, a significantly more exact definition of a vegetable is "any plant consumed for food that is neither a fruit or seed." Because rice is essentially the seed of a grass, it has its own definition of a grain.

What exactly is a grain?

A grain is the edible component of a grass plant, which is actually its seed. Many of these grains, such as wheat, oats, buckwheat, barley, and millet, are also known as cereal grains. Because they contain a lot of sweet starch, they are commonly referred to as starchy carbs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqP4wSWsYr4 Many grains, including rice, can be processed into flour. These various flours are subsequently transformed into bread, tortillas, biscuits, cakes, and chapattis. Is Rice Considered a Vegetable Depending on the meteorological conditions during crop growth, this makes grain an incredibly valuable and frequently inexpensive food supply.

How Is Rice Produced?

Rice is planted in either water-drenched paddy fields or on plowed dry land that is later irrigated. Rice is a water-intensive crop that cannot endure drought conditions. As a result, many producers in Asia and South East Asia take use of monsoon rains and flood fields to cultivate their rice crops. The plant is then propagated and transplanted into the flooded fields, either by hand or machine. If the land is in a drought-prone area, it must be thoroughly prepared and leveled to allow seedlings to grow more quickly and to promote better crop management. Is Rice Considered a Vegetable As a result, crop yields increase and rice quality improves. Other techniques include planting an aerobic rice variety in raised beds with mulch. This aerobic rice is tolerant in arid circumstances.

How Do Rice and Vegetables Compare?

Rice is regarded as a staple food. This signifies that it is a food type that accounts for the majority of a population's diet. Although rice is high in carbohydrates, it lacks several nutrients, whereas vegetables do. Rice is high in magnesium, phosphorus, manganese, selenium, and iron, as well as the B vitamins folic acid, thiamine, and niacin. Brown rice retains the husk and hence contains slightly more nutrients, but it also contains a higher quantity of insoluble fiber, making it excellent for the intestines. White rice, on the other hand, has no husk and is largely composed of soluble fiber, which gives it its starchy component. Is Rice Considered a Vegetable This means it digests much faster and can cause blood sugar spikes as a result. Vegetables, on the other hand, have a far more complete spectrum of vitamins and minerals. Kale, for example, is one of the most nutrient-dense vegetables available. This is due to the fact that the nutrients are found in the leaves rather than the seeds. This is why it is usually preferable to eat more vegetables than grains with a meal. Is it Safe to Eat Raw Rice? Raw rice should not be consumed by humans. It can cause food poisoning due to the bacterium Bacillus cereus. Bacillus cereus sickens around 60,000 people in the United States each year. This nasty little bacterium produces spores that can withstand boiling temperatures. So it is critical to consume rice as soon as it is cooked, and once cooled, it should be refrigerated and used within 48 hours. Furthermore, eating raw rice might cause digestive problems since the body is unable to deal with the protein, lectin, which it finds tough to digest. Is Rice Considered a Vegetable Because they might impair your body's ability to absorb essential nutrients, lectins are frequently referred to as anti-nutrients. Plant lectins are commonly found in grains, and their primary function is to protect the plant from pests. This risk can be reduced by washing the rice before cooking. To be safe, always remember to cook and store cooked rice carefully. Related Articles:- - Can Italian Sausage Be a Little Pink? - Can Meatballs Be a Little Pink? - This is what’s on the Dunkin’s fall menu this year and will be available next week - Can You Freeze Cannolis? How to Freeze Properly? - Does Canned Soup Go Bad? How to Check & Know? - Can You Freeze Stuffed Peppers? How to Freeze Properly? Read the full article

[benjamingarden]

What I've Learned From Whole Foods Plant Based Eating

I've been eating a strict whole foods plant based (WFPB) diet since the middle of September of this year.  I've lost almost 30 pounds in that short period of time and more than that, I feel good.  I have a lot more energy (although the release of stress from caretaking is likely part of that).  I don't suffer any sinus headaches at all (and with fall I usually suffered immensely) and my immune system feels stronger.   This post is in no way an attempt to convince anyone to go WFPB.  Heck, I'm not at all sure how long I will continue following the strict guidelines, but I have learned a LOT in this short period of time and thought I would share what I've learned with you.  I feel some of it I should have known, but I guess I never really thought about it.  Regardless, it came about, I suppose, when I needed to see it. A Quick Recap: Four years ago I gave up dairy.  I was sick of being sick.  Sinus infection after sinus infection continued to land me in Urgent Care and my doctor's office and after one rather severe infection that just wouldn't get better I decided to give it up.  That was step one in my WFPB journey. I've suffered from seasonal and dust mite allergies since my early twenties and developed additional allergies to cats and dogs in the past 10 years.  My allergies caused me constant issues (after all, I have cats AND dogs in my life and live around molds and mildews of the great northeast!) and some years I would end up on antibiotics up to 4 times.  After 30 days of being dairy free, I felt so good that I decided to try what I'd suspected might help me out health wise - going WFPB.  Mostly to help lower my blood pressure and gradually increasing cholesterol. If you look up info on the WFPB movement, it involves giving up not only meat, seafood, and dairy but also oils, salt, and refined sugar too in addition to cutting down consumption of nuts to just a small handful daily, at most.  While that is a quick list of what to cut out, what you add in is just as important.  Veggies - a LOT of veggies, at least two times a day.  Lots of leafy greens, cruciferous veg, as well as all of the other types you can think of.  Beans or legumes and whole grains as well as fruits are added in volume to your daily meal plan too. When I first gave up meat, almost three years ago, I did not go completely WFPB.  I was still cooking with oils half the time and water the other half, I started using butter again, but only as a spread for bread.  I still consumed refined sugar (although quite a bit less)and although I believed I was eating nuts in moderation, I now know that I wasn't.  I was also eating some vegan "junk food" (vegan cheese & vegan sausage/"meats").  I lost 15 pounds and I did feel a bit better.  While I did not get any further sinus infections, I continued to suffer from sinus headaches with the changing of seasons, before rain or snow, etc. After about a year and a half of that I began eating meat and seafood here and there, once every 1-2 weeks.  Then, when I began trying to adjust my life to include caring for my terminally ill mother, I began eating more meat.  Rather than finding time that I didn't have to continue cooking a meal for J, a meal for her (food was very difficult for her at the end), and a meal for me for lunches and dinners. Every. Single. Day.  For months.  I gave into eating meat and seafood about 3 times a week so that I could cook one meal for two of us and then I only had to figure out a separate meal for my mom.  And I gained most of the 15 pounds back.

Me sporting my graying hair

My mother passed away in September of this year and what really shook me to the core was how rare her cancer was.  Not only how rare it was but also how far progressed it was by the time anyone found it.  My health suddenly became the most important thing in my life (which it should have been...).  I fully understand that I can't do much about genetics.  But what I can do, is try to be the healthiest version of me that I can so hopefully when/if I have to battle a serious illness, my body will respond well.  I can also hope that being the healthiest version of myself may help protect me for either a longer period of time or, lessen the impact.  I went full-on WFPB the very next day. Here is what I've learned the past 2 months that I've been following a strict WFPB diet:

1. Nuts Are Good (In Moderation)

     While there are some studies that show and physicians who believe that the nutritional value nuts holds is not worth the risk of consuming the amount of fat they are comprised of, most say they are very good for us in moderation.  Moderation is further defined as a small handful per day.

     I began adding a small handful of chopped walnuts to my daily oatmeal and thought "I've got this!"  Additionally, once a month I eat 2-4 Brazilian nuts.  Once I switched to the strict WFPB guidelines, and began actually consciously paying attention to what I was eating, I realized I'd been fooling myself.  Most vegan alternatives ("cheese", "sauces", "milk", etc.) contain nuts.  This meant I was eating my small handful in the morning (I use oat milk rather than nut milk), and then again at lunch with a "cheese" I added to my veggie burger, and sometimes at dinner in a sauce made of a large amount of cashews.      My personal theory is that following the "nuts are good in moderation" determination is the one I'd like to continue following.  I believe they do offer a significant nutritional benefit, I enjoy them, and will choose to continue consuming them.  In moderation, of course, because first, they are high in fats and I'm not interested in ever going back to consuming as much fat as I'd previously been consuming.  Second, they are expensive.  And third, there are other ways to make sauces, etc.  It just takes a bit of research and trial and error.

2. Most Of Us Do Not Consume Enough Vegetables       Eating a strict WFPB diet where I incorporate a salad of leafy greens with almost every meal has really opened my eyes to the fact that I was definitely not previously eating enough vegetables.  I mean, honestly, when was the last time you ate leafy greens (they don't count if they were drenched in a high fat dressing) with lunch AND with dinner for more than one day in a row? They are chock full of nutrients and just make you feel good.      Additionally, there's just so much information out there touting the benefits of cruciferous veggies as well as eating a rainbow of colors at every meal, that I will definitely continue this practice.  I've found that chopping veggies on the weekend and keeping them in the refrigerator in containers allows me to easily make side salads to go with my weeks worth of lunches and dinners.  If I don't prep ahead of time it's, unfortunately, more likely I will not eat a salad.

3. Are "Healthy Oils" Really Healthy?      The short answer is, I have no idea.  There's so much research on both ends of the spectrum, but what I do know is that I have been using and consuming way too much oil.  (did you know that many packaged oat milks contain oil?  what????  it makes no sense to me....) Like nuts, oil is expensive, so at the very least using less is good for my budget.  But the bigger picture is that oil-free cooking and eating is really easy once you get used to the alternatives.  Salad dressings, roasted veggies, stir fry, and baking are all easily created with healthy replacements to oils.  I use water or broth for roasting or stir frying, applesauce for baking, and I'm a big fan of just a bit of balsamic vinegar for my salad.      That also brings up processed vegan foods.  When you look at the ingredients list for most alternative meats, cheeses, etc. they are loaded with oils.  Loaded I tell you!  Yes, technically they can call the "plant-based" because the oils come from plants.  But is that really healthy???  I, personally, don't believe it is so I'm choosing to continue to omit them from my life.      Oils as a part of a whole food (fish, avocado, olive, etc.) I can see could be healthy.  But stripping oil from the food and just consuming the oil (like consuming fruit juice instead of the whole fruit leaves you devoid of fiber) doesn't seem like it would be a good idea.  Again, I never thought of this before until I began delving into WFPB but it sits well with me. 4. Whole Grains Have A Place In My Heart      I have no issue at all with a switch from white pasta to whole wheat.  I also have found a short-grain brown rice that I really like.  My husband, on the other hand, isn't interested in trying either.  He's sticking with the white versions, thank you very much.  If you can't or aren't interested in eating wheat, quinoa and millet are gluten free and also delicious and so easy to prepare (even my husband likes both of these!).  There are a number of alternative whole grains out there whether you are gluten-free or not, and they are a great addition to meals.      One thing I have found, however, is you could go broke and crazy (ok, not really, but you get the idea) trying to follow different whole grain recipes because it seems like each one calls for a different grain.  I've decided to convert any recipe I try to using one of the 4 grains I'm choosing to purchase (whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, quinoa, & millet).      Whole grains make me feel full, they are satisfying to me, and I plan to continue eating them.

5. Eating Natural Or Other Sugars Sparingly Is Key      We know this, right?  But do we follow this?  I may have told myself I was eating sugars sparingly, but after really examining my daily eating habits, I was not.  (look closely at labels - it's so frustrating how many items have sugar in them!) If you aren't addicted to sweet foods then this isn't an issue for you (and you are VERY lucky).  I, however, am.  I've begun using primarily maple syrup and dates for sweeteners and they have worked out very well!  But even better, I've cut down what I make that needs any sweetener and instead we eat whole fruit.  And fruit is sooooooo much sweeter now that I rarely consume any sweetener.      Although I may consume refined sugar very rarely and not be so restrictive, I have no desire to go back to consuming it more than a couple of times a year.  For a few reasons.  First, I don't believe it's a good thing to put in our bodies.  Second, it's too easy for me to get addicted to it and want it more and more.  And third, because I want to continue with natural sugars for any baked goods we do consume, which is rare nowadays. 6. No Salt, Or Low Salt?      On WFPB you either cut out salt completely  or cut it back quite a bit, depending on who's version you follow.  Salt is an item I don't eat a lot of but I have cut it back even more (because of my high blood pressure).  For the first month I consumed no added salt.  The few items I purchase that are processed (canned tomatoes and boxed veggie broth) I purchased the no salt added versions.  These past couple of weeks, I have added a very small amount of salt here and there because, well, it just makes food taste soooo much better.      I now use Redmond Real Salt from Utah (affiliate link) and really like it.  And I use it very very sparingly.  It only took about 2 weeks for my taste buds to adjust when I originally omitted it, although many foods do still taste very bland without any salt.  Those are now the only ones I (sparingly) salt and I no longer use it when cooking. 7. Follow Your Gut      I really believe that we know, intuitively, what is best for us.  And what is best for me may not be best for you.  We have to also factor in that we change - our bodies change, our needs change, etc.  I don't know about you but I've spent my entire life worried about weight.  Weight and clothing size have been the main focus points.  No more! My focus now shifts to getting myself and then keeping myself as healthy as I can.      The only numbers I'm going to concern myself with are those from routine blood tests and blood pressure tests.  No more scale or clothing size.  Additionally, I want to keep the weight off my middle (which is where I gain it first) since that's the most dangerous, and feeling good.  Stress and poor eating have nearly destroyed my immune system and I'm sure I will spend the next year or more rebuilding it.   That being said, I've made that commitment to myself.

Oliver doesn't care if I eat WFPB or not.  As long as he gets his treats.

So, for now I continue to eat WFPB as I work on healing my immune system.  As noted above, many of the guidelines I will continue to follow, regardless of whether or not I continue with the strictness of WFPB.  I can see the benefit of following it but I do crave fish and will likely eat it at the very least, when we occasionally go out for dinner.    

What I've Learned From Whole Foods Plant Based Eating was originally posted by My Favorite Chicken Blogs(benjamingardening)

[kathleenseiber]

Map shows how grains took over the world

A new map shows how ancient cereal crops spread from isolated pockets of first cultivation to become dietary staples in civilizations across the Old World.

Since the beginning of archaeology, researchers have combed the globe searching for evidence of the first domesticated crops. Painstakingly extracting charred bits of barley, wheat, millet, and rice from the remains of ancient hearths and campfires, they’ve published studies contending that a particular region or country was among the first to bring some ancient grain into cultivation. The new research brings those studies together to trace the spread of grains around the world.

“The very fact that the ‘food globalization’ in prehistory spanned more than three thousand years indicates perhaps a major driver of the process was the perpetual needs of the poor rather than more ephemeral cultural choices of the powerful in the Neolithic and Bronze Age,” says Xinyi Liu, assistant professor of anthropology in the School of Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.

Animation illustrates how four of the ancient world’s most important domesticated grain crops spread across the Old World between 7,000 and 3,500 years ago. (Credit: Javier Ventura/Washington U. in St. Louis)

The study illustrates the current scientific consensus on the prehistoric food globalization process that transformed diets across Eurasia and Northern Africa between 7,000 and 3,500 years ago.

The study suggests that the season-to-season ingenuity of poor peasant farmers looking for new ways to put just a little more food on their tables drove food globalization in prehistoric times rather than exotic appetites of ruling elites.

“Recent research developments shift the focus from chronology and routes to the drivers of the ‘food globalization’ process and considers the context in which agricultural and dietary innovations arose and what agents were involved,” Liu says. “These studies emphasize the role played by the primary agents of agricultural production, the ordinary farmers in the past.”

Prehistoric peasant farmers expanded the cultivation of domestic grains into extreme climate regions of the Old World, such as this barley field in Zuoni County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. (Credit: Xinyi Liu/Washington U. in St. Louis)

By trying new types of seed, plowing fields a little further up or down the mountain, or shifting planting and harvest times, peasant farmers used a trial-and-error approach to overcome climatic challenges and expand the geographic boundaries of where they could plant certain grains. Gradually, this experimentation led to vastly improved yields as farmers learned to extend the growing season by planting both spring and fall crops in the same fields.

While many people are familiar with the global spread of food crops following the exploration of the New World—a process known as the Columbian Exchange—Liu contends that the prehistoric food globalization process had an equally dramatic impact on food cultivation in the Old World.

Wheat and barley moved from southwest Asia to Europe, India, and China, while broom and foxtail millet moved in the other direction: from China to the West. Rice traveled across East, South, and Southeast Asia; African millets and sorghum moved across sub-Saharan Africa and across the Indian Ocean, Liu says.

“While much of the exotic foods we enjoy today are the results of modern trade networks, the food globalization process clearly has its roots in prehistory,” Liu says.

Winter barley field in the Himalayas, south central Tibet. (Credit: Xinyi Liu)

“Food globalization was well underway before the Columbia Exchange and the Islamic Agricultural Revolution. It predates even the earliest material evidence of trans-Eurasian contact, such as the Silk Route, by millennia.”

Liu’s study traces the farm-to-table journeys of mainstay cereal crops as they criss-crossed continents of the Old World in three distinct waves:

Before 5000 BCE, early farming communities sprang up in isolated pockets of fertile foothills and stream drainage basins where conditions were optimal for cultivating wild grains that originated nearby. Crop dispersals are generally limited to neighboring regions that are broadly compatible in terms of climate and seasonality.

Between 5000 and 2500 BCE, farmers found ways to push cultivation of various grains across wide regions where major mountain systems, such as those associated with the Tibetan Plateau and the Tianshan Mountains, contained and separated crop-compatible weather systems.

Between 2500 and 1500 BCE, farmers found ways to move beyond natural and climatic barriers that had long separated east and west, north and south—mastering the cultivation of grains that had evolved to flourish in the extreme elevations of the Tibetan Plateau or the drenching rains of Asian monsoons. Previously isolated agricultural systems were brought together, ushering in a new kind of agriculture in which the planting of both local and exotic crops enables multiple cropping and extended growing seasons.

“The whole process is not only about adoption but also about ‘rejection,’ reflect a range of choices that different communities made, sometimes driven by ecological expediency in novel environments, sometimes by culinary conservatism,” Liu says.

“As the old Chinese saying goes: For what has been long united, it will fall apart, and for what has been long divided, it will come together eventually.”

The research appears in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews. Additional coauthors are from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, Zheijiang University in China, the Lithuanian Institute of History, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing.

Source: Washington University in St. Louis

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What I've Learned From Whole Foods Plant Based Eating

I've been eating a strict whole foods plant based (WFPB) diet since the middle of September of this year.  I've lost almost 30 pounds in that short period of time and more than that, I feel good.  I have a lot more energy (although the release of stress from caretaking is likely part of that).  I don't suffer any sinus headaches at all (and with fall I usually suffered immensely) and my immune system feels stronger.   This post is in no way an attempt to convince anyone to go WFPB.  Heck, I'm not at all sure how long I will continue following the strict guidelines, but I have learned a LOT in this short period of time and thought I would share what I've learned with you.  I feel some of it I should have known, but I guess I never really thought about it.  Regardless, it came about, I suppose, when I needed to see it. A Quick Recap: Four years ago I gave up dairy.  I was sick of being sick.  Sinus infection after sinus infection continued to land me in Urgent Care and my doctor's office and after one rather severe infection that just wouldn't get better I decided to give it up.  That was step one in my WFPB journey. I've suffered from seasonal and dust mite allergies since my early twenties and developed additional allergies to cats and dogs in the past 10 years.  My allergies caused me constant issues (after all, I have cats AND dogs in my life and live around molds and mildews of the great northeast!) and some years I would end up on antibiotics up to 4 times.  After 30 days of being dairy free, I felt so good that I decided to try what I'd suspected might help me out health wise - going WFPB.  Mostly to help lower my blood pressure and gradually increasing cholesterol. If you look up info on the WFPB movement, it involves giving up not only meat, seafood, and dairy but also oils, salt, and refined sugar too in addition to cutting down consumption of nuts to just a small handful daily, at most.  While that is a quick list of what to cut out, what you add in is just as important.  Veggies - a LOT of veggies, at least two times a day.  Lots of leafy greens, cruciferous veg, as well as all of the other types you can think of.  Beans or legumes and whole grains as well as fruits are added in volume to your daily meal plan too. When I first gave up meat, almost three years ago, I did not go completely WFPB.  I was still cooking with oils half the time and water the other half, I started using butter again, but only as a spread for bread.  I still consumed refined sugar (although quite a bit less)and although I believed I was eating nuts in moderation, I now know that I wasn't.  I was also eating some vegan "junk food" (vegan cheese & vegan sausage/"meats").  I lost 15 pounds and I did feel a bit better.  While I did not get any further sinus infections, I continued to suffer from sinus headaches with the changing of seasons, before rain or snow, etc. After about a year and a half of that I began eating meat and seafood here and there, once every 1-2 weeks.  Then, when I began trying to adjust my life to include caring for my terminally ill mother, I began eating more meat.  Rather than finding time that I didn't have to continue cooking a meal for J, a meal for her (food was very difficult for her at the end), and a meal for me for lunches and dinners. Every. Single. Day.  For months.  I gave into eating meat and seafood about 3 times a week so that I could cook one meal for two of us and then I only had to figure out a separate meal for my mom.  And I gained most of the 15 pounds back.

Me sporting my graying hair

My mother passed away in September of this year and what really shook me to the core was how rare her cancer was.  Not only how rare it was but also how far progressed it was by the time anyone found it.  My health suddenly became the most important thing in my life (which it should have been...).  I fully understand that I can't do much about genetics.  But what I can do, is try to be the healthiest version of me that I can so hopefully when/if I have to battle a serious illness, my body will respond well.  I can also hope that being the healthiest version of myself may help protect me for either a longer period of time or, lessen the impact.  I went full-on WFPB the very next day. Here is what I've learned the past 2 months that I've been following a strict WFPB diet:

1. Nuts Are Good (In Moderation)

     While there are some studies that show and physicians who believe that the nutritional value nuts holds is not worth the risk of consuming the amount of fat they are comprised of, most say they are very good for us in moderation.  Moderation is further defined as a small handful per day.

     I began adding a small handful of chopped walnuts to my daily oatmeal and thought "I've got this!"  Additionally, once a month I eat 2-4 Brazilian nuts.  Once I switched to the strict WFPB guidelines, and began actually consciously paying attention to what I was eating, I realized I'd been fooling myself.  Most vegan alternatives ("cheese", "sauces", "milk", etc.) contain nuts.  This meant I was eating my small handful in the morning (I use oat milk rather than nut milk), and then again at lunch with a "cheese" I added to my veggie burger, and sometimes at dinner in a sauce made of a large amount of cashews.      My personal theory is that following the "nuts are good in moderation" determination is the one I'd like to continue following.  I believe they do offer a significant nutritional benefit, I enjoy them, and will choose to continue consuming them.  In moderation, of course, because first, they are high in fats and I'm not interested in ever going back to consuming as much fat as I'd previously been consuming.  Second, they are expensive.  And third, there are other ways to make sauces, etc.  It just takes a bit of research and trial and error.

2. Most Of Us Do Not Consume Enough Vegetables       Eating a strict WFPB diet where I incorporate a salad of leafy greens with almost every meal has really opened my eyes to the fact that I was definitely not previously eating enough vegetables.  I mean, honestly, when was the last time you ate leafy greens (they don't count if they were drenched in a high fat dressing) with lunch AND with dinner for more than one day in a row? They are chock full of nutrients and just make you feel good.      Additionally, there's just so much information out there touting the benefits of cruciferous veggies as well as eating a rainbow of colors at every meal, that I will definitely continue this practice.  I've found that chopping veggies on the weekend and keeping them in the refrigerator in containers allows me to easily make side salads to go with my weeks worth of lunches and dinners.  If I don't prep ahead of time it's, unfortunately, more likely I will not eat a salad.

3. Are "Healthy Oils" Really Healthy?      The short answer is, I have no idea.  There's so much research on both ends of the spectrum, but what I do know is that I have been using and consuming way too much oil.  (did you know that many packaged oat milks contain oil?  what????  it makes no sense to me....) Like nuts, oil is expensive, so at the very least using less is good for my budget.  But the bigger picture is that oil-free cooking and eating is really easy once you get used to the alternatives.  Salad dressings, roasted veggies, stir fry, and baking are all easily created with healthy replacements to oils.  I use water or broth for roasting or stir frying, applesauce for baking, and I'm a big fan of just a bit of balsamic vinegar for my salad.      That also brings up processed vegan foods.  When you look at the ingredients list for most alternative meats, cheeses, etc. they are loaded with oils.  Loaded I tell you!  Yes, technically they can call the "plant-based" because the oils come from plants.  But is that really healthy???  I, personally, don't believe it is so I'm choosing to continue to omit them from my life.      Oils as a part of a whole food (fish, avocado, olive, etc.) I can see could be healthy.  But stripping oil from the food and just consuming the oil (like consuming fruit juice instead of the whole fruit leaves you devoid of fiber) doesn't seem like it would be a good idea.  Again, I never thought of this before until I began delving into WFPB but it sits well with me. 4. Whole Grains Have A Place In My Heart      I have no issue at all with a switch from white pasta to whole wheat.  I also have found a short-grain brown rice that I really like.  My husband, on the other hand, isn't interested in trying either.  He's sticking with the white versions, thank you very much.  If you can't or aren't interested in eating wheat, quinoa and millet are gluten free and also delicious and so easy to prepare (even my husband likes both of these!).  There are a number of alternative whole grains out there whether you are gluten-free or not, and they are a great addition to meals.      One thing I have found, however, is you could go broke and crazy (ok, not really, but you get the idea) trying to follow different whole grain recipes because it seems like each one calls for a different grain.  I've decided to convert any recipe I try to using one of the 4 grains I'm choosing to purchase (whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, quinoa, & millet).      Whole grains make me feel full, they are satisfying to me, and I plan to continue eating them.

5. Eating Natural Or Other Sugars Sparingly Is Key      We know this, right?  But do we follow this?  I may have told myself I was eating sugars sparingly, but after really examining my daily eating habits, I was not.  (look closely at labels - it's so frustrating how many items have sugar in them!) If you aren't addicted to sweet foods then this isn't an issue for you (and you are VERY lucky).  I, however, am.  I've begun using primarily maple syrup and dates for sweeteners and they have worked out very well!  But even better, I've cut down what I make that needs any sweetener and instead we eat whole fruit.  And fruit is sooooooo much sweeter now that I rarely consume any sweetener.      Although I may consume refined sugar very rarely and not be so restrictive, I have no desire to go back to consuming it more than a couple of times a year.  For a few reasons.  First, I don't believe it's a good thing to put in our bodies.  Second, it's too easy for me to get addicted to it and want it more and more.  And third, because I want to continue with natural sugars for any baked goods we do consume, which is rare nowadays. 6. No Salt, Or Low Salt?      On WFPB you either cut out salt completely  or cut it back quite a bit, depending on who's version you follow.  Salt is an item I don't eat a lot of but I have cut it back even more (because of my high blood pressure).  For the first month I consumed no added salt.  The few items I purchase that are processed (canned tomatoes and boxed veggie broth) I purchased the no salt added versions.  These past couple of weeks, I have added a very small amount of salt here and there because, well, it just makes food taste soooo much better.      I now use Redmond Real Salt from Utah (affiliate link) and really like it.  And I use it very very sparingly.  It only took about 2 weeks for my taste buds to adjust when I originally omitted it, although many foods do still taste very bland without any salt.  Those are now the only ones I (sparingly) salt and I no longer use it when cooking. 7. Follow Your Gut      I really believe that we know, intuitively, what is best for us.  And what is best for me may not be best for you.  We have to also factor in that we change - our bodies change, our needs change, etc.  I don't know about you but I've spent my entire life worried about weight.  Weight and clothing size have been the main focus points.  No more! My focus now shifts to getting myself and then keeping myself as healthy as I can.      The only numbers I'm going to concern myself with are those from routine blood tests and blood pressure tests.  No more scale or clothing size.  Additionally, I want to keep the weight off my middle (which is where I gain it first) since that's the most dangerous, and feeling good.  Stress and poor eating have nearly destroyed my immune system and I'm sure I will spend the next year or more rebuilding it.   That being said, I've made that commitment to myself.

Oliver doesn't care if I eat WFPB or not.  As long as he gets his treats.

So, for now I continue to eat WFPB as I work on healing my immune system.  As noted above, many of the guidelines I will continue to follow, regardless of whether or not I continue with the strictness of WFPB.  I can see the benefit of following it but I do crave fish and will likely eat it at the very least, when we occasionally go out for dinner.    

What I've Learned From Whole Foods Plant Based Eating was originally posted by My Favorite Chicken Blogs(benjamingardening)