Healthy Eating - A Foodie Thread

[Verve]

I love food.

Are you a foodie? Is your spouse a foodie?

Thunder isn't as much of a foodie as I am. He is a "food has to be eaten or I die" person...

Do you cook together?

Have any recent photos of good food you want to share?

Any recipes you want to try out?

 

[Hetta]

Is a 'foodie' all about exotic foods?

 

[ValleyGal]

*Off topic* How come some threads don't fit on the page and I have to scroll sideways to read the whole thing?

*Back on* We like food....too much! Unfortunately, neither of us are chefs. I really would love to take a course on how to use spices.

 

[Audiomechanic]

Healthy eating: can't go wrong (in most cases) with the Paleo lifestyle.

 

[mkgal1]

I agree with you about the Paleo lifestyle.......that's what our whole family has adopted. My husband was the last one to enlist......and, I think that was only due to gall bladder issues. He's never had any trouble with his weight, but......he did have a terrible cookie addiction.

This is my solution for that (once in a while):

Chewy Grain-Free Cookies (dairy/gluten/egg-free)
Makes about 12 cookies


INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup raw honey
1/2 TBSP pure vanilla extract
1 – 1 1/4 cups almond meal* (See note below!)
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg



DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350F, and line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2.Melt oil and honey together in a small sauce pan.
3. Meanwhile, combine all dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
4. Remove oil and honey from the heat and stir in vanilla extract.
5. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Dough will be more the consistency of brownie or cake batter than cookie dough, but that’s just fine.
6. Drop dough by rounded tablespoon onto parchment paper. I literally use a TBSP measuring spoon for this step. Especially if making the thin variety, don’t place more than 6 cookies per sheet because they spread out a LOT!
7. Bake one sheet at a time on middle rack for about 8 minutes, until edges just begin to brown. Watch carefully in the final couple minutes, as ovens vary and these turn quickly from “done” to “burnt”!
8. Slide cookies (w/ parchment) onto a cooling rack. Enjoy warm or allow to cool completely for about 20 minutes, and enjoy!
*Almond meal note:
For thicker cookies (shown in the photo above on the left), use 1 1/4 cups. For thinner cookies (shown in the photo above on the right), use just 1 cup almond meal. Both varieties are equally chewy and delicious, but we prefer the thinner ones!! Also, I’ve only tried these with Trader Joe’s brand almond meal, not almond flour, so I’m not sure how these would work otherwise.

 

[Hetta]

*Off topic* How come some threads don't fit on the page and I have to scroll sideways to read the whole thing?

I think it may be because of TinV's lengthy "user title" with all the &ampampamp's.

 

[Niffer]

We were going GF for a while when we thought Remi might have an intolerance. (still haven't ruled it out..)

My family is all farmers, so I get amazing quality meat for free, and home grown veggies from my own garden (and the parents') farm all summer and fall.
Same with eggs.

I don't buy any pre-package food, mostly out of aversion to MSG, which gives me restless leg syndrome.
Every dinner consists of a protein (meat/fish), starch/grain (potatoes/quinoa&kasha/rice) and a veg (steamed.)

I used to LOVE to bake and did it often, but I really have a hardcore sugar addiction, so I'm trying to curb it.

~ Niffer

 

[mkgal1]

I should correct my earlier post. After reading Niffer's post, I realized that our family is actually doing the "primal eating" thing.....because, we do eat eggs (from a friend that has free-roaming chickens that don't eat chicken meal). We also eat a little bit of cheese.

 

[Hetta]

No dairy, no soy, no gluten, no corn, no artificial sweetners, no eggs, no peanuts - very few nuts at all. That's the way I roll.

 

[JCLover779]

My husband is a "foodie". I benefit from it. He would love a life being a chef, although I think that might suck the passion out of him. He would (and does) cook to the detriment of other home responsibilities (like yard work), so I have to remember all the yummy food I get to eat when I drive home and see three foot tall weeds.

I am a foodie of a different sort. I am a "food is fuel" person, so most of what I eat has to have a purpose. But I just got home from McDonald's with the kids and several other moms. I do have to live life, so from time to time we eat junk food and don't worry about it.

I love "skinnytaste.com". It balances healthy, easy, kid friendly, and yummy.

 

[Verve]

I keep falling off the "healthy eating" wagon.

The whole idea of a cheat meal or a YOLO meal doesn't work for me.
The next thing I'm craving carbs or meat and I get stuck in social situations where I lose the willpower to turn away from it.

I'm really horrible with diet soda. I was raised on it and love the taste of artificial sweeteners. I might actually have to quit coffee so I can keep myself from adding in splenda.

 

[JCLover779]

I see your subtitle "Cheese and crackers. Going vegan...again." And that you are craving meat.

LOL.

How often are these social situations popping up? Can those be your "cheat" meals?

 

[mkgal1]

I think the best way to stay "on the wagon" is to have accepted alternative choices. For the craving of soda (with sweeteners)......maybe iced tea? Stash has some excellent flavors (like Morrocan mint/green tea....for example).

Are you eating enough protein, TIV? I wonder if that's a reason for your cravings?

 

[Verve]

I think the best way to stay "on the wagon" is to have accepted alternative choices. For the craving of soda (with sweeteners)......maybe iced tea? Stash has some excellent flavors (like Morrocan mint/green tea....for example).

Are you eating enough protein, TIV? I wonder if that's a reason for your cravings?

I've tried to "substitute" but so far tea just leads me back to coffee and eventually I cave on soda. I think I'm just going to have to cold turkey it.

When I use My Fitness Pal it actually says I eat too much protein and I need to eat more greens.

Just came across this article. It totally makes sense. I sort of have a spinach obsession. If I vary up my greens my cravings might die down a bit.

Why (And How) You Should Rotate Your Leafy Greens | Incredible Smoothies

 

[Inkachu]

My hubby and I are both huuuuge foodies (hence our waistlines lol). He has a culinary degree, has worked as a chef for Four Seasons, and is a creative genius in the kitchen. I have zero cooking skills, but I love to eat My food horizons have exploded since meeting him, I've had more new food and flavor experiences in the past two years than in my entire pre-Don life!

While we both struggle with his penchant for southern cooking (he was born and raised in Texas, aka Chubby Central), he does know how to make extremely healthy dishes. He even did something only God could foresee... he turned me onto vegetables. One of my new favorites is his sausage & peppers... SO flippin good!!! We use local meats and veggies, I don't know WHERE he gets the flavors he puts in there, but it is divine!

We also bake breads for our local farmer's market (June-October), everything is all natural, no preservatives, tons of herbs and intense flavors. You can find more about that on Facebook under Smyrna Breads

We're both very passionate about getting away from processed, prepackaged, or mass-produced foods. We try to stick with local meats, fruits, and veggies, and homemade breads, as much as we can. However, I have a "no food is entirely off-limits" policy, because I never want to feel like I'm controlled by food (or avoiding a certain food) or any of the come-and-go fads that are constantly circulating around.

 

[Verve]

Inka- I can totally agree with Texas being Chubby Central...I've gained so much weight since I moved here from my home state where vegetarian foods and organics are much more popular.

Though I also had never tried chicken fried steak before either....

 

[Inkachu]

Thankful - yup! When we visited Texas this year, I had SO much fun going through all the southern states (we drove), cause everywhere we stopped to eat, the people were 1) NORMAL SIZED (not toothpicks) and 2) casually dressed! It was awesome and I felt so comfy The northeast is just wayyyyyy too uptight.

 

[Verve]

Thankful - yup! When we visited Texas this year, I had SO much fun going through all the southern states (we drove), cause everywhere we stopped to eat, the people were 1) NORMAL SIZED (not toothpicks) and 2) casually dressed! It was awesome and I felt so comfy The northeast is just wayyyyyy too uptight.

I guess that is a perspective thing.
Here I am trying to get in more greens because my body just doesn't feel as good on southern cooking.


I also miss good cheese. I haven't found any good cheese in Texas.
Most of it has been over-processed bleh. I also haven't had any good local ice cream. I ate so much cheese last week.

 

[Inkachu]

I can always pass on foodie questions to Don, since he lived there all his life and knows all the cuisines and where to find things I know he adores Blue Bell ice cream. He's distraught because we don't have it up here.

I agree that southern cooking isn't necessarily the healthiest (in the stereotypical sense, I'm sure there are healthy Southern dishes). It was just nice to see people in jeans and tshirts eating ribs and cornbread, and most of them were normal-sized. Up here, everyone is obsessed with being thin (or trying to be thinner) and being all fashionable and stuff. It was just a really nice break to be down there with people who didn't care what I was wearing OR eating

 

[Verve]

I can always pass on foodie questions to Don, since he lived there all his life and knows all the cuisines and where to find things I know he adores Blue Bell ice cream. He's distraught because we don't have it up here.

I agree that southern cooking isn't necessarily the healthiest (in the stereotypical sense, I'm sure there are healthy Southern dishes). It was just nice to see people in jeans and tshirts eating ribs and cornbread, and most of them were normal-sized. Up here, everyone is obsessed with being thin (or trying to be thinner) and being all fashionable and stuff. It was just a really nice break to be down there with people who didn't care what I was wearing OR eating

Okay. That must be the region you are from. For people when I was growing up it was about local produce, eating fresh, and living more naturally. It was less about eating to be thin or wearing the right clothes. It was more about eating what would fuel your body well. We grew up eating local meats and dairy.

I grew up knowing people who used Dr. Bronner's Soap, or something like it, for everything they could. Didn't wear makeup. Didn't have cable. I even knew people who lived in cabins with solar power, including their shower. People with well water instead of town water. People who had outhouses or composting toilets. We recycled and composted.

Not everyone was this way, but I can tell you that my mom only gave me whole grain and natural bread as a small child. Once they tried to feed me
white bread with creamy peanut butter at daycare, I was inconsolable. I was four years old and had never touched the stuff. The texture was just so unnatural.

The only reason I'm actually trying to go vegan right now is to sort of detox and reset everything after all of the processed things I've been eating down here. I plan to eventually add moderate amounts of local cheeses and meats back in.