It may seem daunting at first to give up gluten. Our society seems to practically revolve around bread! But once you get used to it, it’s really easy. Particularly if you experience the health benefits that many people do.
Here are a few ideas to help get you started. This list is far from exhaustive.
Eventually we hope to have all of our food experiences mapped out here. We now eat mostly whole, minimally processed, nutrient dense foods. We eat organic when we can. We try to eat local and seasonal as much as possible. We attempt to give our bodies what they need, realizing that needs change sometimes. This, however, has been a process. It’s taken us years to get here and we’re still far from perfect.
We frequently have friends asking where to start. That is such a hard question to answer. Truth is, we’re not sure where YOU should start, because one of the most important parts of beginning on a whole nutrition pathway is finding out what works for you. It has to be something that you can live with, build upon, and something that gives you big bang for your buck.
There are some simple facts that we’ve found out along the way:
1.) Eating whole food can take more time in the kitchen
2.) Eating whole food (particularly organic) can cost more money
3.) Eating whole food is not as convenient and takes planning
It’s a commitment. A labor of love. And like many things in life, you get out of it what you put into it. And it does get easy and natural with time.
If you want to start where we started, cut out gluten. Do it today. Do it cold turkey. Why start here? Because cutting out gluten automatically cuts out a TON of junk and nutrient void food. We’re not saying to go out and buy a bunch of gluten free products either. We’re saying that anything you would eat that naturally contains gluten, avoid it. With gluten being a protein found in wheat, barley and rye, this eliminates a lot of what we call “filler” foods such as hamburger buns, pizza crusts and pasta.
We will be putting up a post soon on some meal ideas that only incorporate this first step. Stay tuned.
People ask us, “OK, so you don’t eat out and you don’t eat X or Y, so what do you eat?
This probably isn’t authentic in any way, but it’s close enough to cure our cravings and prevent a fast food stop. And it’s super easy, inexpensive, relatively healthful, and a perfect last minute dish.
We all need some quick meal ideas from time to time, but that doesn’t mean that we should grab fast food. Just because we’re short on time doesn’t mean that we can’t make healthier choices.
This is a perfect dish to make if you have just a little leftovers but not enough for a full meal. It takes about 45 minutes from start to finish, it uses up what’s left in your fridge so it’s frugal, it’s super easy, and it’s delicious.
While it’s cooking, dump a bag of salad greens in a bowl, throw on a handful of chopped onion and add a splash of balsamic vinegar as a quick side salad and you have a full, healthful meal.
What’s not to love?
We’ve got to stop the mindset that healthy food is something to suffer through to achieve a goal. Healthy can and should be delicious.
We love a good superbowl snack as much as the next person. This year we decided on a 7-layer dip.
Oh, and this was as easy as it was delicious. It got rave reviews from both family and friends.
A reminder here to read your labels! There is no reason for us to tolerate all the junk that is put in our foods.
Vote with your dollar at the grocery store. Purchase the product that only has ingredients that are acceptable to you.
We made a cleanish version of 7-layer dip for the superbowl yesterday. The recipe called for taco seasoning. Please, please don’t purchase those over priced little packets. Stock your pantry with good quality, pure spices and mix your own. This took us about 3 minutes to throw together and we didn’t get all the nasties and fillers (and even sugar!) that come in some pre-mixed packets.
Plus, it’s very customizable. If you like more garlic and pepper flavor, just add more. Lots of recipes call for additives such as corn starch. We’ve found that it works perfectly fine without it. YMMV.
The finished product got rave reviews btw.
Even though the weather has been pretty nice here in Southern TN for the last few days, winter definitely still has it’s dark, cold grip on us. And while visions of warming soups, stews and steaming chili’s comfort the mind and body, let’s not forget greens.
We may not typically think of salads and greens at this time of year, but we should. Many hearty greens are plentiful locally and just bursting with nutrition and deliciousness.
