Dutch Food

Dutch geneticists have concluded that the reason the Dutch are the tallest nation in the world is protein. The daily consumption of a high protein diet with dairy products, fish and fresh produce, combined with home cooking, has made them the tallest nation in the world. Along with this comes a daily dose of cycling, not on an exercise machine, but a real peddle to the food markets.

Through my travels in South America I became much more aware of food, the lack of it and the manipulation of it. I also found the region to be a dumping ground of foods that are no longer popular or in favour in North America. Items such as highly-sugared cereals, instant coffee and heavily perfumed products, to name a few. I also became aware of the simplicity of foods such as fresh eggs, fresh tomatoes, fruit and green vegetables. Most meat is uninvitingly displayed in the markets as hacked carcasses, with few recognizable cuts. There is a very poor selection of cheese; protein does not invite there.

In the Netherlands there seems to be a balance and an availability of a broad variety of fresh produce. On the highways, one can not help but notice the the heavy truck traffic moving foods from Spain to Poland and everywhere between. In Spain we found fresh breads from the Dutch Baker in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands.

Today we had a busy day trying to organized Zonder Zorg with racks, hooks, shelves, storage boxes and bins. At the end of the day we picked up some grocery items, displayed in the photo. We spent €35 on the following items.

Two bottles of Alsace wine

Jar of Spanish olives

Trimmed Brussels sprouts

Chicken fillets

Huge pot of fresh Basil

Raisin buns

Half loaf of specialty bread

Ginger cake

French Brie

Fourme d'Ambert blue cheese

French Goat cheese

Breakfast sausage

Crackers

Dutch cookies

Whole wheat rusks

Back in Vancouver, just the wine and bread would have cost more. The cheese and bread on their own would have been more. I think we will stay here awhile.