Bob Myers wrote:

> Sure, 50 years ago (or maybe a bit longer), pretty much everything
> people ate was scratch-built, home-cooked, etc.. But that was
> because they HAD to - there was simply no alternative. And quite
> frankly, a lot of that "home-cooked" food simply wasn't all that
> great. It MAY have been healthier or tastier in some cases, just due
> to the use of fresh ingredients and lack of added chemicals - but then
> on the other hand a lot of that "Mom's home cooking" was nothing
> but starch-and-fat-laden crud.

50 years ago a lot more people had maids and cooks. Even in houses where
food was made from scratch it was done by the cook.

> cook them, I personally don't care. And my experience is that we
> have in general a better selection of ingredients these days than
> was the case 50 years ago, or even 20-30 years ago.

That's for sure. When I was a kid the local grocery store had a tiny produce
section. There were no strawberries or strawberries except in June and
July. No blueberries at all. Pineapple came in a can. Oranges were a rare
treat. Kiwis did not exist. Nor did mangoes, papayas, nectarines. There were
no snow peas, okra, chili peppers. Fish came in frozen boxes. If we went
into the city to shop there was a larger supply of the same stuff, but
slightly cheaper, but not much greater variety.