The kitchen smelled like the sea as I unwrapped the packages and started my preparation. Those clams were purchased alive in their shell. And yes, I did the brutal steaming business myself. As for the scallops, someone else did the shucking and the shrimp were beheaded then preserved in ice to make their journey northward from either the Gulf or the Carolinas.
The north east has great seafood. The clams are from Long Island. The scallops come from Massachusetts . And I consider the Carolina’s east coast. The olive oil is extra virgin 100% California ans my preferred brand of pasta is imported from Italy. As per the manufacturer, the linguine is cold extruded but the bronze-cut dyes soften the excursion process.
INGREDIENTS: cooked pasta, shrimp, clams, scallops, olive oil, dry vermouth, parsley, fennel, garlic.
RETHINKING HEALTHY
Each carefully sourced ingredient puts its own unique texture, flavor, and nutrient profile on the plate. Wonderful aromas. Delicious and complex tastes. Does a totally satisfying subjective eating experience count as healthy? Not as per government guidelines unless the numbers add up. So let’s take a look at the numbers.
NUTRIENTS OF NOTE AS PER LABELED SERVING
High Sodium. 19g PROTEIN. Good source iron.
As you can see from the mixture of red and green, the message that gets communicates is mixed. Our dietary guidelines recommend eating more seafood so my linguine also gets bonus points.
I’ve set the serving size for 1 cup because that is the amount used in most pre-prepared products which contain seafood and pasta. Practically speaking however, 1 cup is a skimpy serving. 1 1/2 to 3 cups is a lot more realistic.
The sodium value is high despite no addition salt added during cooking. Too high in fact to qualify as healthy if the serving size exceeds 1 cup. Eat more seafood. Eat less salt. Two pieces of equally valid advice which are, qualitatively speaking, incompatible. No wonder folks are confused.
Experts love to quantify, but I’m more into heuristic thinking. I’ve been hung up on healthy since the day I walked into my first course in nutrition. Is my seafood linguine healthy? The numbers on the label say otherwise, but I believe that when what I’m cooking fills my kitchen with a fresh sea aroma, something healthy is going on.
The nutrition facts tells us nothing about the origins or quality of the ingredients. Or about the pleasure I take in making and serving the plate to those who sit at my table. And that lovely delicious sea air aroma lingers in my memory only to be reinforced each time I make the dish.