Jean-Louis:

>1] I was told in Montrame that you don't smell cassia -just taste it
>(I don't understand why).

My suggestion: although Cassia is available in Montrame the whole year it is
not permanently harvested. So you may get stored Cassia. Storing makes it
more and more dry. The smell will become fainter and fainter.

A trick: Put your Cassia into a plastic bag and keep it closed firmly. It
won't perish if it hasn't been so wet that it literally drops of wet. In mor-
ning time open your bag and inhale the first air coming out of it. If this
gives you a smell, try the Cassia.
I experienced some weeks that even this gave  n o   smell at all to me. Then
I didn't try the Cassia.

Apply a similar trick to old nuts, seeds and grains:
You might soak them to get a smell. But this isn't so funny because if they
don't, what should you do with the soaked ones? If you soak only single pieces
you need to wait for the next day for soaking more of the one you chose.
Soaking is needed at least for dry lentils, dry beans (stonehard otherwise.)

Better: get out the 3 or 4 best smelling dry proteins, then add another 3
that aren't smelling. Now   t a s t e   all of these (without swallowing!!!)
and finally eat the protein that gave the best taste. If all tastes are more
or less boring, then let it be and eat vegetables.
If you while tasting find that you are excited by one taste so much that
you want to continue eating this one immediately, then do so. It will be the
right choice then.
If your selection got one of the proteins for which soaking is a must you have
to wait for the next day (or at least 3 hours.)


Jean-Louis:
>2] Some theories say that the body is not able to analyze the effects
>of a food at the first time. It is only when that food has been

Yes, it might be that our food-analyzing computer in our head needs at least
one kick for each food in your life to get the appropriate program started.
Could be a ressource-saving method of our brain, not to trouble with analyzing
a food it has never been served before in our life.

Instinctive greetings,

Stefan