If you have seen me anywhere recently, you would likely witness me soaking up each and every minute of the changing scenery, and letting the smell of decaying leaves fill my lungs. Why?!? I am trying to taste, smell, and feel fall. I also may be trying to see if I can smell the snow…which in Colorado, could come any day now. But back to my body’s attempt to totally absorb the feelings of fall… To me, fall brings the greatest feelings of change. It is back-to-school, back to routine, and time to reassess the direction we are heading in the coming year. I personally love change. In fact, I thrive off of it. So for me, this is a time of personal growth. I feel so refreshed when I tackle a project around the house and try to get our lives more organized, but I also love the feeling of looking for new foods to entice my interests.
We love going to restaurants, and living in a city like Denver, we have become spoiled. “Fast food” restaurants have been replaced by foods with fresh, local, ingredients. The menus are often seasonal, as they present fruits and vegetables that are, get this…grown in season! There is so much “Colorado pride,” and with that is pride in the food grown here, supporting local farmers and our home economy.
I am not going to preach anything about GMO’s, organic, or make anyone feel guilty if they just cringe at the site of a vegetable (Hey, if you ate a fruit or vegetable today, and drank a good amount of water, way to go). What I have found through the years is that everyone needs to change how they appreciate food. Food should be an experience. Each bite should entice the senses. If you are consuming something without flavor or substance…it is probably not real and lacks nutrition! Why monotonously consume a bag of chips while you sit in front of the television. If you are craving something like that, have a few, enjoy them, appreciate it for what it is, and move on. Find foods that bring flavor and interest to your palate. That doesn’t mean it needs to be full of spices, sauces, or additives, it merely needs to be full of foods! Every meal I make, I throw in as many grains and vegetables I can. In fact, most of my cooking revolves around healthy oils, some flavor packed spices, and himalayan pink salt…simple as that.
I have taught my girls to see, taste, and recognize what is in their meals, instead of try to mask or hide it. They get flavors from the actual ingredients. Believe me, they don’t love everything, and my two-year-old may spit out a thing or two. But my five-year-old asks for her sandwiches in her lunch to have tomato and spinach on them. Her favorites “sides” right now are fresh cucumber, and she even loves salad. This took a lot of time, but eventually her palate formed into something open and welcoming to new tastes and flavors. It took a lot of effort and persistence, by giving her everything and anything, but it was worth it. To me this is proof that if a child can learn to love “healthy” and fresh foods, an adult can too.
So my challenge now is not to present an idea that you need to go out and buy every weird fruit and vegetable in the grocery store. It is to take a meal you enjoy, and fill it with good things. I am definitely not a Martha Stewart, or a domesticated goddess. If you came to my house, I would not be baking, nor making homemade holiday decorations. I will not open a page that includes ‘Pinterest.com’ in the web address. I never know what I am making for dinner until 5pm, and it is a rush to the pantry for ideas. I just stock my fridge and pantry with GOOD food. Real food. My reasoning behind gravitating towards natural and preferably organic items is that I like fresh food, and I want my food to taste like it should. For example, we eat frozen pizza often, and I am proud of it. Many meals of my week include various formulations of veggie burgers and french fries, pasta, and quinoa. However, I take those meals and add lots of healthy fillers. I basically prefer my meals to have the basis of someone who is a vegetarian or vegan, but every once in awhile, I throw in some meat (In fact, some of my favorite restaurants are vegetarian or vegan). My gluten free frozen pizza night, includes throwing toppings of fresh avocado, and spinach or kale on top. Then we eat it with our hands like a pizza sandwich. It is so delicious and more filling. My veggie burgers are topped with any vegetable I have left in the fridge. Either fresh, or sautéed on the stove with oil. I often prepare my french fries fresh from potatoes, mixed with olive oil and an assortment of spices (Almost all taste great. So don’t shy away! Paprika and turmeric add a great kick), and pink himalayan salt. When the fries are fresh out of the oven, I often toss them with fresh parmesan cheese. The pasta I commonly make is created with a base of many variations of vegetables. If the girl’s don’t like it, at least they tasted it, and in the future may grow to love it. Additionally, I am always roasting vegetables. It is difficult and often expensive to constantly be running to the grocery store to stock up on fresh vegetables, so I keep many variations of frozen ingredients in our freezer. As I walk down the grocery aisle, I fill my cart with frozen veggies of every shape and color, so no matter what I make, I probably have something that will work. It is also cheaper than the produce aisle, and the vegetables are frozen at the peak of freshness and maturity, therefore maintaining the nutrition and flavor. Often times I just toss them with oil and salt, and put them in the oven until crispy. It is delicious, and makes any vegetable taste more appetizing…most of the time…
This simple change is just to create awareness with what you are eating. Make it an unforgettable experience. Fill it with color, tastes, and flavors. Love food. Enjoy it. Make it about living. Smell that air?!?! It is time to make a change.
Strong mind. Strong heart. Strong body.
Val