Tonight table = desk, because I wasn't home until well after eight. I made hummus yesterday, so that and pita bread were thrown together to take the edge off the appetite. At its base, hummus is a pretty humble food: Chickpeas (a.k.a. garbanzo beans) are ridiculously cheap. The most expensive ingredient in the recipe is tahini, i.e. sesame seed paste, and I'm paying a "premium" for that b/c the only kind that's stocked where I normally shop is organic. But slap that on slices of whole wheat pita bread, and the nutritional return on investment is considerable (protein and fiber), far more than its "tapas" vibe would suggest.
However, it's extravagant in that the chickpeas have to be boiled for nearly two hours...and that on top of soaking overnight in the 'fridge. It wouldn't have been a big deal back in the days when the stove was probably going 24/7 to heat the house. Central heating changed the underlying economics of hummus, but has certainly not catapulted it into the league of foie gras. Even the jazzed-up "roasted garlic this," "roasted bell pepper that" versions at the deli are still pretty cheap...in terms of price and the obvious overuse of filler corn products.
On a slightly different tack, think about what you most often see carried out on plates when you have breakfast at a "family-style" restaurant. Simple starches (pancakes, toast, french toast, potatoes, not to mention flavored corn syrup), pork products (bacon, ham, sausage), eggs, and animal fats (eggs, bacon, sausage, and the inevitable butter for toast, pancakes, french toast). Basically, we're still eating like we've just come in from feeding and milking the cows, and mucking out after them--and all by hand. Except that precious few of us will burn through those calories before lunch. Again, our cultural perceptions/habits have not caught up with the caloric "economics" of an urban lifestyle.
All of which makes me wonder what other mismatches between habits and economic realities are out there. Not necessarily involving food--those were just the examples that jumped to mind. How many billions are lost to unthinking habit or norms. And, conversely, how much money is there to be made from leading a culture past wasteful attitudes and norms that no longer apply? I wish I had an answer for you--we might then all die rich...or at least accomplished. But maybe cultivating the habit of looking for obsolete habits--organizationally speaking--isn't the worst thing you can do for your career or business.
