Mission: REAL FOOD

I don’t claim to be a fancy-schmancy kitchen pro, but I do love to eat. More than eating, I love feeding everyone I know. If you’ve been to my house, I have fed you. And I have fed you what I call: REAL FOOD!

Before I start sharing all of my easy (seriously simple, but impressive-looking & delicious) recipes with you, I’ll give you the backstory on how eating REAL FOOD, as well as feeding my friends & family REAL FOOD, turned into one of my many passions.

Being a lover of food, I have struggled with my weight my entire life – until I changed ONE, yes, just ONE THING!! I went organic, yep, that is my secret. I cook at home, using primarily unprocessed, and organic ingredients. I eat when I’m hungry, and stop when I’m satisfied. Best of all, I still drink wine, and don’t deprive myself of dessert.

After years of counting calories, living on egg whites, greens, and cardboard tasting “diet food,” I got desperate. Like, juice fast desperate. Hang with me here, friends, I’m not suggesting we all get together and forget how to use our teeth! I am suggesting that we consider where our food comes from. For me, juicing was the catalyst.

While juicing, I began shopping at our local Farmers Market. SBM (Sexy Bald Man, aka my husband) and I packed up our reusable bags, and spent our Saturday exploring. We began learning about where our food comes from, met the people who grow it, and asked them a million questions.

We heard a lot about sustainable farming, eating local, and learned about the difference between organic and conventional farming practices. I was in Information Heaven! All of this new info really got me thinking about how we had been eating.

Food is fuel. You are what you eat.

I have been hearing those statements my entire life. But this time, something clicked for me.

I decided that we were going to start being nicer to our bodies, and fueling them with what I call: REAL FOOD. We were going organic. More than just eating organic, we were on a mission to put the JOY back in eating!

SBM wasn’t so sure about this. He was knee-deep in a lifelong love affair with diet soda and frozen pizza. I convinced him by sharing a few choice facts about diet soda (it SLOWS down your metabolism, makes you crave sugar, and has been rumored to cause cancer), as well as promising I would take over all food-related-chores, including braving the grocery store without blowing our budget (future post on this, it is easier & cheaper than you think).

With SBM on board, I took drastic action (as I’m prone to do). I got rid of 90% of the food in our pantry and freezer.

Next, I started asking questions and researching:

  • What do our bodies need to function well?
  • What types of food are available to us (living in the US)?
  • What do all of these confusing labels even mean?
  • What is a GMO?
  • What is rBGH & what is rBST?
  • How do I handle protein? Does it really matter if my meat had a happy life?
  • YES, I learned it does matter! Stress affects how meat tastes. Who knew?

Ultimately, I set some general food & recipe guidelines for myself. First and foremost, I’m not going to beat myself up if I occasionally break one of these guidelines. My goal is to be nice to my body, not to add stress to my life.

Thoughts on food:

  • Prepare your own food
  • Start with good ingredients (use REAL FOOD as much as possible)
  • Sit down while you enjoy your food, preferably with others
  • Eating “healthy” doesn’t mean depriving yourself (have your cake, just use organic cane sugar & organic flour to make it)

My Recipe Mission:

  • Eat what I enjoy
  • Start with REAL FOOD / healthy ingredients (NO GMOs)
  • Recipes should have very few ingredients (I shoot for under 7)
  • I should be able to pronounce all of the ingredients in my recipe, and find them easily at the grocery store

My general grocery store guidelines:

  • NO GMOs
  • Produce: Organic
  • Eggs & Poultry: Cage-free or free-range, vegetarian fed (organic)
  • Beef: Grass-fed, no hormones (specifically NO rBGH or rBST), no antibiotics (organic)
  • Milk Products: No hormones, no antibiotics (specifically NO rBGH or rBST grass fed if possible) (organic)
  • Pork: No hormones, no antibiotics

Since implementing these guidelines, I ENJOY eating so much more. Call me crazy, but I cannot only taste the difference when I eat non-organic food, but I can feel it! Seriously.

When I start sharing my recipes with you next week, you’ll know what to expect!

I am so passionate about food, and I want to know what your guidelines are! What are your favorite recipes? What have you learned about what you put in your body?

Knowledge is power; I want you to share yours too!

Love,

Jennah