Drink local water

I've been a local water snob since I lived in New York City. My friend David Grinstead, bartender at the Four Seasons and Algonquin, taught me to ask for "a glass of Croton Reservoir," please. Sounds better than just plain old tap water, doesn't it?

Here in the Bay Area I guess we'd have to call it "a glass of Hetch Hetchy", not quite as catchy.

Anyway, the NY Times reports that access to good drinking water in public schools can help fight obesity.

I know people who will claim that you need to filter your water for all kinds of reasons. Look, my brother has a Ph.D. in water quality and is one of the foremost experts on the subject in the state of California. He defined the mercury load for the San Francisco Bay. He told me to go ahead and drink our tap water unfiltered.

And now we see it prevents obesity? Okay!

Cabbage Salad for Helayne

Today I met Helayne Waldman in person, a Laurel resident and nutritionist who leads workshops and counsels clients. One of her specialties is nutrition for breast cancer. She spent a very productive hour with me, going over research on diet and the disease. I'm so fortunate to have met her - she is warm, dynamic, and very knowledgeable!

Helayne sent me home with copious notes, Meyer lemons, and ideas buzzing in my head. For dinner tonight I adapted a traditional Arabic cabbage salad recipe, adding certain ingredients based on Helayne's recommendations.

Cabbage Salad

1 pound Napa, Savoy or regular cabbage (500 grams)
2 carrots, peeled and grated
2 or 3 green onions, white parts finely minced (optional)
1 or 2 cloves garlic
1 lemon, preferably unsprayed, organic
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (75 ml)
Salt
Pepper
1 cup parsley, minced (60 ml)
Pomegranate seeds for garnish (optional, in season)

Chop cabbage finely, combine with carrots in large, non-reactive bowl.

Finely mince garlic or put through garlic press. Zest lemon peel onto cabbage mixture.

In a small, non-reactive bowl, juice lemon and add minced garlic, salt and pepper to taste, then slowly stir in olive oil until well emulsified. (If using a mortar and pestle or molcajete, then pound garlic with salt, add lemon juice, pounding, then use mortar and pestle to stir in olive oil. Add pepper to taste). Pour lemon-olive oil sauce over cabbage and toss well. Let sit for at least thirty minutes to blend flavors and soften cabbage.

Just before serving, add minced parsley and mix thoroughly. Correct seasonings. You add the parsley at the last minute to keep it from wilting, whereas the cabbage improves with a bit of time in the lemon vinaigrette.

Pomegranate seeds make a nice garnish in late autumn. In summer, use diced red or green sweet peppers (or both).

Recipe by Leila Abu-Saba