I've been focusing a lot on trying to figure out what is right for me. It's actually kind of fun to be sort of personalizing a way of eating that is perfect for Teddey. After I eat something, I really try and focus on how my body--and my mind--are reacting to it. I am also paying a lot more attention to how my kids act after they eat. When I served that tilapia/green bean/rice dinner the other night, I noticed how happy everyone was after dinner and how much energy they had.
For a long time I've known that coffee isn't good for me. I get a low-grade headache right after having it, and it always makes my stomach hurt. I also feel like it messes with my blood sugar--and learned from a local health coach that it actually does! Even though there are no calories in it, the caffeine has the same effect on your endocrine system as sugar and causes insulin to be released into your bloodstream--which can cause you to store fat unnecessarily even thought you're not eating any right at that moment!
So, coffee gives me headaches, makes my stomach hurt, and could be making me fat. Why did I drink it for so long? I figured out the answer: because everyone else does! True, I do enjoy a hot beverage in the morning, and everyone around me drinks a lot of coffee. It's so easy to be influenced by the presence of something in your life. I quit drinking it temporarily a couple of years ago, and I can still hear my sisters' voices: "Are you crazy?!"
It really is liberating to do something that you know is right for you, regardless of the rest of the world. It's a relatively small thing, but it's a big step in respecting my body and hearing the clues it is giving me. I guess the lesson is: your body will always tell you what it needs, and it feels great when you listen.
Enjoy your beautiful Monday!
Monday, September 30, 2013
Sunday, September 29, 2013
The best thing that ever happened to me with vegetables
Ok, so I know I'm a total nerd, but nothing gets me more jazzed than making a healthy, delicious meal that my family raves about. In addition, having the perfect amount of leftovers for another meal or to make something different is just icing on the cake. Mmm...cake.
The other night I made a delightful tilapia (from Today's Catch in Wilde Lake, of course) with a sauce of white wine, butter, and dill. It was amazing. I served it with fresh green beans from the farmers market and organic jasmine rice. All of it was perfect. Just one of those magical meals where everything is delicious and everyone eating loves it all.
The green beans were a whole project by themselves. I had never cooked fresh green beans before. Well, that's not true. I had never successfully cooked fresh green beans before. I picked some up last weekend with the goal of mastering their preparation. I found a recipe online that looked easy and tasty, and didn't involve boiling (which is my least favorite cooking method--doesn't it just seem like you're drowning the food and cooking out all of it's flavor??). Basically, the idea was the sautee them in chicken stock in a partially covered pan and season to taste. The recipe suggested beginning with bacon fat, which I naturally declined (my grandmother was the only person in the world who kept a big jar of bacon fat on her countertop--ok, maybe not the only one, but I think that's a tradition we can kiss goodbye). I just melted a little butter with some olive oil, threw the beans in, poured some stock in, slapped that lid on, and let them go for about 20 minutes. They cooked perfectly. While they were still hot, I sprinkled on some Montreal Steak seasoning (yes, I put that sh*t on everything). Divine!
I cooked the rice with a little chicken base for flavor, and it was also perfect.
Sydney took one bite of the green beans and said, "Mom, you mastered these." (She seriously said that.)
SO, I had some rice and green beans leftover (after sending the rest to school with the girls for lunch). I steamed some fresh organic broccoli, which took about 3 minutes, and threw some broccoli, the rice, and the green beans in a pan with a little canola oil. I heated it up, stirred it a bit, threw in some soy sauce and sriracha, and put it in a bowl. I sprinkled some peanuts on top (just regular dry roasted Planter's that I had in the cabinet), and tasted. It was too savory, so I balanced the flavor with a tablespoon or so of honey. It wasn't sweet--just more well-rounded. I have to say it was the most satisfying and delicious lunch I can ever remembering having. And I felt GREAT after eating it, which is really the way I judge every meal I make.
The other night I made a delightful tilapia (from Today's Catch in Wilde Lake, of course) with a sauce of white wine, butter, and dill. It was amazing. I served it with fresh green beans from the farmers market and organic jasmine rice. All of it was perfect. Just one of those magical meals where everything is delicious and everyone eating loves it all.
The green beans were a whole project by themselves. I had never cooked fresh green beans before. Well, that's not true. I had never successfully cooked fresh green beans before. I picked some up last weekend with the goal of mastering their preparation. I found a recipe online that looked easy and tasty, and didn't involve boiling (which is my least favorite cooking method--doesn't it just seem like you're drowning the food and cooking out all of it's flavor??). Basically, the idea was the sautee them in chicken stock in a partially covered pan and season to taste. The recipe suggested beginning with bacon fat, which I naturally declined (my grandmother was the only person in the world who kept a big jar of bacon fat on her countertop--ok, maybe not the only one, but I think that's a tradition we can kiss goodbye). I just melted a little butter with some olive oil, threw the beans in, poured some stock in, slapped that lid on, and let them go for about 20 minutes. They cooked perfectly. While they were still hot, I sprinkled on some Montreal Steak seasoning (yes, I put that sh*t on everything). Divine!
I cooked the rice with a little chicken base for flavor, and it was also perfect.
Sydney took one bite of the green beans and said, "Mom, you mastered these." (She seriously said that.)
SO, I had some rice and green beans leftover (after sending the rest to school with the girls for lunch). I steamed some fresh organic broccoli, which took about 3 minutes, and threw some broccoli, the rice, and the green beans in a pan with a little canola oil. I heated it up, stirred it a bit, threw in some soy sauce and sriracha, and put it in a bowl. I sprinkled some peanuts on top (just regular dry roasted Planter's that I had in the cabinet), and tasted. It was too savory, so I balanced the flavor with a tablespoon or so of honey. It wasn't sweet--just more well-rounded. I have to say it was the most satisfying and delicious lunch I can ever remembering having. And I felt GREAT after eating it, which is really the way I judge every meal I make.
Friday, September 27, 2013
Beets, or globs of dirt
I really love roasted beets, and there's something about that insane, radioactive purple/crimson color that makes me believe they just must be healthy for you. So, a couple weeks ago, I decided to roast beets at home for the first time...despite the sound of my sister's voice taunting me: "Beets?! What are we...in Russia?"
I carefully perused online tips and techniques and recipes, and felt pretty well prepared for this experience.
I bought some beets. I washed them, and lovingly massaged them with olive oil, and artfully sprinkled them with salt and pepper. I carefully wrapped them in foil, and slid them into the oven at the perfect temperature and set the timer for the perfect time.
When the timer went off, I stuck a fork in and they felt perfect--gentle and yielding, like a well-cooked potato. I started to imagine those lovely morsels of delight they serve at the Rumor Mill with blue cheese dressing and sections of orange. I was thinking words like velvety and buttery.
Then I got the skin off, and cut those bastards open. I sliced them up, and put them on a plate with a couple pieces of fresh farmers cheese that I had procured at the farmer's market just a few days before. During my research, I read that roasted beets pair well with sharp cheeses. I was SO excited.
I can't overstate the meticulous process and careful planning that went into this. I wanted to do it right, because I really love roasted beets.
They tasted like dirt. Crappy, smelly, dried dirt. Real dirt, like if you went outside and dug around in your yard, and brought it inside, and roasted it, and then tried to eat it. I still don't know what I did wrong...I have been too sad to try and figure it out.
I was going to give up on beets, but then I read something that said if you cook something and it doesn't turn out right, not to give up! Try again! I don't know if I've recovered sufficiently. Everywhere I go..the grocery story, the farmers market...they seem to have more beets than usual. Sometimes more than one type! Organic and non-organic, with the greens attached and with the greens cut off. Big ones and little ones. I'm sure they are mocking me.
I carefully perused online tips and techniques and recipes, and felt pretty well prepared for this experience.
I bought some beets. I washed them, and lovingly massaged them with olive oil, and artfully sprinkled them with salt and pepper. I carefully wrapped them in foil, and slid them into the oven at the perfect temperature and set the timer for the perfect time.
When the timer went off, I stuck a fork in and they felt perfect--gentle and yielding, like a well-cooked potato. I started to imagine those lovely morsels of delight they serve at the Rumor Mill with blue cheese dressing and sections of orange. I was thinking words like velvety and buttery.
Then I got the skin off, and cut those bastards open. I sliced them up, and put them on a plate with a couple pieces of fresh farmers cheese that I had procured at the farmer's market just a few days before. During my research, I read that roasted beets pair well with sharp cheeses. I was SO excited.
I can't overstate the meticulous process and careful planning that went into this. I wanted to do it right, because I really love roasted beets.
They tasted like dirt. Crappy, smelly, dried dirt. Real dirt, like if you went outside and dug around in your yard, and brought it inside, and roasted it, and then tried to eat it. I still don't know what I did wrong...I have been too sad to try and figure it out.
I was going to give up on beets, but then I read something that said if you cook something and it doesn't turn out right, not to give up! Try again! I don't know if I've recovered sufficiently. Everywhere I go..the grocery story, the farmers market...they seem to have more beets than usual. Sometimes more than one type! Organic and non-organic, with the greens attached and with the greens cut off. Big ones and little ones. I'm sure they are mocking me.
Why are we here?
While my family is very polite and nice, they are probably reaching their limit on how much they want to hear about what I made for dinner last night or how good I feel after I run. And as much as I used to think that people who wrote blogs were self-important know-it-alls, I really just feel like I have a lot to say and a lot I want to share and my facebook friends are getting tired of it. Either that, or I have become a self-important know-it-all.
When I was young (young being a relative term...like 20 years younger than I am now), I basically had no idea how to take care of myself. I went through phases when I ate almost nothing, when I ate almost everything, when I was a strict vegan, and when I was a vegetarian who subsisted on cheese and bread. I have always had major digestive issues, and ended up having emergency gall bladder surgery on my 18th birthday.
Then I got really, really heavy. Like so heavy that the guy doing the home study for our first adoption mentioned how physically taxing child care is and my OB-GYN said I was too heavy to safely get pregnant. So heavy that walking 10 minutes around my neighborhood pushing the stroller was a workout, and vacuuming left me with a backache and needing a nap. I remember literally scoffing at my mom when she would offer me a piece of fruit, and when I went grocery shopping I didn't even pause in the produce section (unless I needed apples to make apple pie). And, of course, I felt like crap almost 100% of the time. I could not make it through the day without a nap (at my desk or in my car), and my back hurt so much that it was affecting my ability to take care of my baby.
So, then I went on a really rigid diet and lost a lot of weight, and discovered running at the same time. But I had this nagging feeling that I still wasn't taking care of myself the way I should. And, of course, as soon as I went off the diet, I gained back a bunch of weight and felt like crap again. The focus of the diet was losing weight, so all that mattered was that the food I ate didn't have a lot of calories. No mention of natural, organic, healthy things. After all, they have to make money selling their brand of processed crap to us desperate people. And I was exhausted and grumpy almost all the time.
After ending a long, unhappy phase of my life, I had sort of an epiphany about my health. I was raised to think I am fat, and have been taught that all that matters about me was my weight. What if I just released that and focused on nourishing my body and finding what foods make me feel great and energetic? Would the earth continue to spin? Would the planets stay aligned? It turns out, the answer is yes. AND, as an added bonus, I would find a deep contentment and happiness and joy in living that I probably would have said was impossible if you had asked me 20 years ago...or even 5 years ago. AND, people still love and respect me even though I'm not skinny. Mind blowing, right?!
So, I'm just a regular mom who has never been in a cooking class and doesn't have any certifications or official titles. But I love food and nutrition and cooking and natural health, and I spend a lot of my time thinking about it and practicing it...so I might as well share it with whoever wants to hear it. Those who know me can see that I'm not a skinny-vegan-yoga-guru-macrobiotic-raw-food-marathon runner superhero who follows all the health rules. But I think my experience is real and relatable, and hopefully humorous. And people have told me that it's inspiring--I swear, I am not making that up--to hear about my experiences.
It's a little scary to put all this out there for the world to see and judge, and it's a little weird to be focusing so much on ME. But we could all probably stand to focus on ourselves a little more.
Oh, and I have the awesomest husband and kids you could possibly imagine.
Thanks for reading!
When I was young (young being a relative term...like 20 years younger than I am now), I basically had no idea how to take care of myself. I went through phases when I ate almost nothing, when I ate almost everything, when I was a strict vegan, and when I was a vegetarian who subsisted on cheese and bread. I have always had major digestive issues, and ended up having emergency gall bladder surgery on my 18th birthday.
Then I got really, really heavy. Like so heavy that the guy doing the home study for our first adoption mentioned how physically taxing child care is and my OB-GYN said I was too heavy to safely get pregnant. So heavy that walking 10 minutes around my neighborhood pushing the stroller was a workout, and vacuuming left me with a backache and needing a nap. I remember literally scoffing at my mom when she would offer me a piece of fruit, and when I went grocery shopping I didn't even pause in the produce section (unless I needed apples to make apple pie). And, of course, I felt like crap almost 100% of the time. I could not make it through the day without a nap (at my desk or in my car), and my back hurt so much that it was affecting my ability to take care of my baby.
So, then I went on a really rigid diet and lost a lot of weight, and discovered running at the same time. But I had this nagging feeling that I still wasn't taking care of myself the way I should. And, of course, as soon as I went off the diet, I gained back a bunch of weight and felt like crap again. The focus of the diet was losing weight, so all that mattered was that the food I ate didn't have a lot of calories. No mention of natural, organic, healthy things. After all, they have to make money selling their brand of processed crap to us desperate people. And I was exhausted and grumpy almost all the time.
After ending a long, unhappy phase of my life, I had sort of an epiphany about my health. I was raised to think I am fat, and have been taught that all that matters about me was my weight. What if I just released that and focused on nourishing my body and finding what foods make me feel great and energetic? Would the earth continue to spin? Would the planets stay aligned? It turns out, the answer is yes. AND, as an added bonus, I would find a deep contentment and happiness and joy in living that I probably would have said was impossible if you had asked me 20 years ago...or even 5 years ago. AND, people still love and respect me even though I'm not skinny. Mind blowing, right?!
So, I'm just a regular mom who has never been in a cooking class and doesn't have any certifications or official titles. But I love food and nutrition and cooking and natural health, and I spend a lot of my time thinking about it and practicing it...so I might as well share it with whoever wants to hear it. Those who know me can see that I'm not a skinny-vegan-yoga-guru-macrobiotic-raw-food-marathon runner superhero who follows all the health rules. But I think my experience is real and relatable, and hopefully humorous. And people have told me that it's inspiring--I swear, I am not making that up--to hear about my experiences.
It's a little scary to put all this out there for the world to see and judge, and it's a little weird to be focusing so much on ME. But we could all probably stand to focus on ourselves a little more.
Oh, and I have the awesomest husband and kids you could possibly imagine.
Thanks for reading!
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