Senate Tax Plan Could Have Significant Impact On Health Care, Medicare, Native And White Cooperation To Defend Rural Lands, Kitchen Creativity

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• Senate Tax Plan Could Have Significant Impact On Health Care, Medicare

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  The Affordable Care Act and Medicare could be hit hard if the tax plan being voted on by the Senate passes. We speak with Julie Rovner, Chief Washington Correspondent for Kaiser Health News, about what impact we could see on health care in the United States.

• To Be Creative In The Kitchen, Learn To Copy

  Karen Page wants people to enjoy cooking again.

  Only 10 percent of Americans say they like to cook, according to the Harvard Business Review. Page thinks a little creativity could help.

  And to be creative, they’ll have to learn to be a copycat first.

  “It’s something that Picasso has spoken of and written of,” Page said. “The fact that the secret to creativity is learning what the rules are so you can break them.”

  With that idea in mind, Page wrote “Kitchen Creativity: Unlocking Culinary Genius — with Wisdom, Inspiration, and Ideas from the World’s Most Creative Chefs,” a guide to changing up your typical routine. It uses advice from respected chefs as a starting point. The end goal is that readers can eventually open up their cupboards and throw something together that is ultimately delicious.

  “I think this is the kind of book that we’re hoping will help the other nine-tenths of the country,” Page said.

  In the book, Page writes that true creativity starts with mastery. She says reading a variety of cookbooks can help you build a base knowledge.

  Once you have that base knowledge, how do you make it special? Page makes a case for what she calls alchemy.

  “What we’re really talking about here is just the idea of how you can take the common and convert it into the precious,” she said. ” … A carrot can be something beautiful if you use the process of alchemy to combine it with just the right ingredients.”

  For example, a carrot may seem ordinary, even boring, when raw. But add a flavor such as orange to it — or roast it to caramelize it — and you can elevate the ingredient to another level.

  The book has an entire section of flavors that go well together. But Page says one can also learn which ingredients go together by simply testing them out.

  For example, you might think that all vinegars are the same, but switching from one vinegar to another vinegar can make a big difference, in part because of the acidity level. Sherry vinegar tends to have a high acidity, about 8 percent. By contrast, malt vinegar has a lower acidity, closer to 4 or 5 percent.

  Page recommends switching up the vinegar you use the next time you add vinegar and olive oil to your salad. Don’t be afraid to learn by doing. That knowledge can then extend to using vinegars in other dishes.

  “It’s a lot of fun to develop your palate that way and see what you like best,” she said.

• When Native Nations And White Communities Defend Rural Lands

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  When natural resources and rural areas come under threat, Native American nations and white communities have a surprising history of working together in defense of the land. We talk to an author and activist about what’s brought the groups together in the past, including during environmental movements in Wisconsin.

• Food Friday: Kitchen Creativity

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  A lot of people turn to classic dishes during the holidays…staples that have been made in their families for generations. But if you’re tired of the same old, same old, we’ve got some help for you on this Food Friday. We talk about the role creativity plays in the kitchen, and we learn some new ways to be more inventive and intuitive in our cooking.

  What do you use for inspiration in the kitchen? What are some of the ways you get creative when you’re cooking? What dishes do you need help spicing up or updating? What ingredients do you need help using?

  Let us know by emailing ideas@wpr.org

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