There's this over-arching perception that healthy food is bland and boring and gourmet food is stuffy and complicated. In my much younger years I subscribed to this notion but today, I absolutely do not.  Now, let’s qualify the terms “healthy” and “gourmet”.

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Before being diagnosed with hypertension several years ago, my diet was laden with salty, fatty, sticky, sweet deliciousness; from soul food Sundays with Mac & Cheese, smothered chicken, and butter-rich cornbread to weeknight meals of sauce-heavy pastas, steak, burgers, and cheese, cheese, and more cheese. The aromas emanating from my kitchen were sinful! The few boundaries I did have only existed because of vanity until ...