I can't abide broccoli plain

I'm surely cheating to the extent of getting very little nutritional return, but I've been steaming TJ's broccoli slaw to get my broc portion. Unlike my childhood self, I much prefer steamed cauliflower plain over broccoli.

Bev, I've been using TJ's 'everyday seasoning', which features sea salt, pepper, mustard, garlic and some other stuff, as a way to get more flavor with less salt...because my love for salt borders on the manic. I can recommend the combo. It gives nice 'bites' of differing flavors in a 'hmm what's next?' sort of way. I likee.

I love broccoli.

I also am perfectly happy eating sheep intestines cooked on the grill. So.

fresh lime juice ice cubes

Oh! I've rediscovered lime! In other forms than jello and sherbet, I mean.

I have long avoided lemon in...nearly everything. I don't know when the aversion became so strong, but I now can't abide it in scents for cleaners or disinfectants as well as in my glass of water. Sherbet? Meringue pie? Sure, even lemonade, but man, those all require a shedload of sugar. I'd rather eschew than substitute--subs all taste like cheats to me and I never eat what they're trying to achieve, so I just do without.

But H picked up a Perrier for me one hot day when we were away from our home fizzy water. I took one sip and spat it out: lemon-ized. Couldn't drink it. This weekend I bought Perrier again, making sure there was no lemon on the label. One sip and--oh! that's...not bad at all. That's actually quite GOOD. The green lime symbol against the green label hadn't shown up.

I may have a new addiction.

sea salt actually contains less sodium than table salt

This is true if measured by volume, but not if measured by weight - sea salt is considerably less dense than table salt because of the crystal size. For the same amount of salty taste you'll get the same amount of sodium, though, which is why baking books recommend weighing salt rather than trusting volume measurements, especially if you use sea salt or kosher salt instead of table salt, since different sea salt and kosher salts will actually have different densities from each other.

I do think you're less likely to over-salt using larger salt crystals, though, so in practice switching will probably reduce your sodium intake some. Most sodium intake problems start at the grocery store or restaurant kitchen, though, not the salt shaker.

Most sodium intake problems start at the grocery store

(nods) Which is why we use almost nothing that's prepared. Cold cereal, but storebrand rice chex and oatie-os for me and Raisin bran for H, almond milk--no dairy for him, no soy for me. No instant anything ever because of the sodium content. It takes as long to make rolled oats as to boil water for instant, and I throw the ground cloves and walnut pieces and dried cranberries into the water while it's coming to a boil, add the oats once it boils and let set for five minutes while I decant the coffee and wash the pot. Who needs instant? The hard part is finding a pot small enough to make *one serving* of oatmeal without scorching.

Meats, poultry, and fish are fresh, so is produce (usually steamed or roasted), and we do use pastas--that's the extent of our prepared foods.

We patronize a vanishing few restaurants because of sodium issues. We're down to one Chinese place, one Pho house, and one steakhouse.

Well, foo. Last tenant left a big balance, so I have to go into a service center to set up Internet. Goes on the list for tomorrow.

Your industry is fascinating to watch, smonster. We need pictures, soon.

Plus, I read somewhere but won't swear to it that sea salt actually contains less sodium than table salt, so I feel all virtuous now for using sea salt.

Mayo Clinic says that they are the same, fwiw. (eta or what Gris said using more science)

I love se salt too! Esp the pink TJ's kind in the grinder. So much fun and pretty and tasty! Fortunately, I haven't had any issues with my blood pressure so far.

I think most people (Americans anyway) get too much sodium because they eat so much processed food which often has loads of sodium added.

That DASH diet sounds pretty sensible and doable, Scrappy.

The diet I'm on right now is the Mostly Tee-totalin' w/ More Whole Grains and Fewer Potatoes June Diet.

Of course, today I am eating linguini and red sauce as I haven't eaten much in days and it is the only thing I really want to eat.

Stoopid bronchitis is stoopid.

I codeined through my cousin's wedding though, and that's all that really matters. It was beautiful.

Thanks, Bev. I did finish the floor in one room, and it looks enough better that I might keep going, 15 minutes at a time. I also picked up trash in the yard for about 10 minutes, including a 10kg weight, broken mop, and a dog skull. Now very sweaty and taking a break. I'm no sarameg, but I do want this place to look nice, even if I don't own it. I'm putting a grabber on my wishlist, because some former tenant dropped a shedload (nice word, btw) of beer cans and bottles in the gap between side fences.