It Happened in the Kitchen: Recipes for Food and Thought

From the moment her son Ralph came to national attention, Rose Nader was constantly asked, "What did you feed Ralph?" People weren't just curious about her son's impressive height (6'4") - they wanted to know what they should cook in order to create someone like Ralph Nader, that rare creature blessed with a compassionate heart and the brains and talent to do battle against overwhelming forces - like, say, General Motors. If "You Are What You Eat" is true (and it is; our bodies are made of food), what is Ralph Nader made of? What are the secret ingredients? To answer that question, Mrs. Nader wrote "It Happened in The Kitchen: Recipes For Food and Thought", a book about cooking and child-rearing, with a bonus chapter containing the wit and wisdom of Ralph's father, Nathra Nader, the Oscar Wilde of Winsted, Connecticut. Mrs. Nader was a woman ahead of her time, a homemaker who cooked low-fat recipes and disdained hot dogs and processed foods made by corporations who had no qualms about pushing their junk foods on the public - and specifically, on impressionable children. Mrs. Nader lived to be 99 (she died just 18 days shy of her 100th birthday). Ralph's father lived to be 98. At the party celebrating the 40th anniversary of the publication of Ralph's landmark book, "Unsafe at Any Speed," I personally witnessed 71-year-old Ralph, at the end of a long day, jogging up two flights of stairs. No matter what you think of Ralph or where you stand politically, that visual should be enough to make you put on your apron and whip up a big batch of hummus. The recipe can be found on page 44 of "It Happened in the Kitchen."

i got this book quite a few years ago b'c i had seen ralph nader and his mom on oprah. it was touching and beautiful to hear his mom's philosophy on life and how it all starts with good food. recipes call for whole and fresh foods only -- which is very old world, and very healthy. Ms. Nader grew up in Lebanon, so there are many middle eastern spices and ingredients used. although there are lamb and beef recipes (which i personally have a problem with) there is a fish section as well as one for vegetable-only main dishes. the hummus is the best, and you can adjust it easily to suit your tastebuds...more garlic? more lemon! yum. there are also desserts, bread, yogurt and cheese recipes. the preface is thought-provoking...ralph's mom's (rose's) reflections on food, family and how the two were so important to the development of her mind and her perspective on life. also, she talks about how the time preparing the meals as well as eating them was where you really got to know your family and relatives. i can totally relate to this with my italian background. a lot of my best memories are times spent enjoying food with family. the concept is basic, but often lost in today's micro-wave, fast-food, processed food society.