Like everybody else in the civilized world, Osman Rodas enjoys pizza. Also like everyone else, he is a fan of well-made fried chicken. And, as the owner of Pardo’s restaurant in Mandeville, he loves – absolutely loves – pasta.
The thing is, pizza, fried chicken and pasta don’t always love him back.
That’s just the way things work when hyperprocessed foods collide with a digestive tract of a certain age.
That doesn’t mean he can’t splurge from time to time, though. It just takes a bit of mindfulness.
“It’s all about the ingredients,” he said. “It does make a difference what you put in your body and where it comes from.”
A perfect example: the Pecan Pesto Chicken Breasts with Chickpea Pasta he made recently as part of the latest Eat Well, Live Well cooking demonstration series hosted by Healthier Northshore, a local nonprofit consortium spearheaded by St. Tammany Health System and including more than 50 other local community stakeholders.
The recipe calls for such familiar ingredients as olive oil, chicken and fresh bell peppers. His choice of pasta, however – chickpea pasta, available at most grocery stores – might give some pause.
Rodas understands. He felt the same way when his wife suggested it.
“I was like, ‘Absolutely not,’’ he said. “But she made it, and it was pretty phenomenal.”
Just as importantly, it packs a nutritional punch when compared to traditional dried pasta, including boasting 50% more protein, as well as more fiber and no gluten.
Rodas is also a proponent of locally sourced ingredients, both to support local farmers and because such ingredients will be fresher than something trucked from some far-flung locale.
That’s why his pesto recipe calls for a notably local (and more affordable) substitute for pine nuts.
“We live in the South,” he said. “So let’s use pecans.”
In addition to getting a tasting sample following the demo, all audience members also received a box of fresh ingredients – as they do at all Eat Well, Live Well demos – so they could re-create the dish at home, courtesy of the American Heart Association with support from Rick and Tina Flick of Banner Ford.
Judging by the chorus of “mmms” among those audience members, it was appreciated.
“I truly, truly believe meals are sacred,” Rodas said. “There’s a special moment you experience when you have a meal, even if you have a meal by yourself.”