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Recipes Indigenous peoples of the Americas had a cornucopia of foods available. Nothing much can beat the connection to culture and the pride one feels by preparing food in the “old way,” such as gathering wild onions, cultivating crops, hunting wild game, and grinding corn. Eating precontact foods is greatly empowering, and knowledge of those foods is crucial to our cultural identity. There are, however, too many nutritious foods from the Old World that complement this hemisphere’s offerings, and we must take advantage of them. Many of my favorite foods are from the Old World: I cannot imagine grilling squash without sprinkling garlic on it or making banaha without adding sweet peas. The point is that “eating simply”—that is, consuming fruits, vegetables, and lean meats and avoiding sugar—can make a tremendous difference in our physical and mental health. Because we do have choices and because many of us have limited time to spend in the kitchen and at the grinder, you will read here that some of these dishes feature some Old World foods, mainly spices such as garlic and onions, and preparation tactics are different from historical methods. Foods not indigenous to this hemisphere are marked with an asterisk. Regardless of what you choose, try to buy non-gmo ingredients. See the Non-gmo Shopping Guide site, http://www.nongmoshoppingguide.com/.
Experiment with Foods One way to start on the road to better health is to learn as much as you can about what your ancestors ate on a regular basis. Here is a list of some healthy, vitamin-and mineral-rich foods. Make a star by the foods you like and cross out the ones you know you 213