Practice Makes Perfect

Check this out- this is the pic of my very first try at baking bread (the rye loaf):

And this is the result of my second attempt at rye (after 2 rounds of wheat bread between them):

So much bigger and fluffier!  I learned that yes, loaf #1's dough was way too wet, and that I could work with the extra stickiness of rye dough by lightly greasing my hands before kneading.

So what's the point?  For those of you who are hesitant to try fresh bread at home, let this be a reminder that anyone can do it!  And even though I didn't quite get the first loaf right, it was edible- and more importantly, tasty- anyway.

Bon Apetit!

Cruncy Wasabi Salmon with Lime**RECIPE ALERT**

Per the request of a loyal reader, below is the wasabi salmon recipe.  We tried to add spice by adhering the peas to the salmon with wasabi paste, and personally I think the more lime zest in the dish and fresh lime afterwards, the better.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup wasabi peas (about 3 ounces)
• 4 (8-ounce) salmon fillets with skin (each about 1 inch to 1 1/4 inches thick)
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lime peel
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

• 6 cups thinly sliced red cabbage (about 1/2 large head)
• 1 (8-ounce) package trimmed sugar snap peas

• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• Lime wedges

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F. Blend wasabi peas in processor until ground but with some coarsely crushed pieces. Lightly oil rimmed baking sheet. Arrange salmon fillets, skin side down, on prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle fish with salt. Press ground wasabi peas onto tops of salmon fillets to adhere, covering tops completely. Sprinkle grated lime peel over salmon; drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil. Roast salmon just until opaque in center, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add cabbage and sugar snap peas; sauté until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer 1 salmon fillet to each of 4 plates. Drizzle with lime juice. Mound cabbage-snap pea mixture alongside. Garnish with lime wedges and serve.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Crunchy-Wasabi-Salmon-with-Lime-237322#ixzz1I6s6DPR3

Discouraged, Part II: Encouraged!

The cooking I've done since I got back from that fateful (fateful? A bit dramatic, but we'll go with it) trip to Philly has been encouraging, Au Naturale, and most importantly: delicious.  Yesterday I was commenting that I feel like I do nothing but clean up my kitchen over and over again.  I realized as I was saying it, though, that that is probably a good thing.  It means I'm cooking galore.  For this post I'm not going to list recipes, but if there is a dish below that you are interested in, please make a comment here and I will dedicate a post "post haste" to that recipe.  Now, come, follow me on a tour of some of my culinary delights throughout the week (all veggies below are organic wherever possible):

The Ultimate Au Naturale Dinner

Last Monday my boyfriend and I were apparently still high off the FamilyFarmed Expo buzz because we rocked an amazing yet simple 100% Au Naturale dinner.  What you see above is his homemade vegetable soup, quite possibly the tastiest veggie soup I've ever had (and I swear I'm not just saying that because the chef is my boyfriend).  Assorted veggies, broth, and quinoa seasoned to perfection.  For a little extra kick, mainly because we're slaves to spice, we threw in a few drops of the Co-op Sauce hot sauce he picked up at the expo-- the one made by the folks who run the West Side community garden. (Please patronize them, they do amazing things in the community.) Fantastico!  We served the soup with a side of our homemade wheat bread (batch #2) and homemade-- yes, homemade-- beer.  The beer is a bit cut off in the picture above: the better picture did not have a flash and couldn't do this spread justice.  (Dammit, Jim, I'm a blogger, not a photographer!)  But in terms of the meal: does it get any better?

Dilly Beans

While waiting for the above soup to heat up, the expo-buzzing bf worked on canning some dilly beans- otherwise known as marinated spicy green beans. Seriously, I should have skipped that session on canning and just watched him do this instead.  What you see above are jars filled with green beans, jalapenos, garlic, and dill (before they were filled with liquid and sealed).  Should they be a raving success, which I expect they will, I'll post the steps.

Spice-Rubbed Pork Chops

I picked up these flavorful pork chops from Black Earth Meats at my farmer's market.  Black Earth is a ranch up in Wisconsin that specializes in organic, free range beef and pork.  The rub is a combo sweet/spicy mix (the brown above is the brown sugar) with a side of tomatoes, spinach, and something else I can't think of right now, sauteed with just a touch of oil.  I also have Black Earth breakfast sausage in the freezer, just waiting for a lazy Sunday brunch.

Chicken & Chili Wraps

Not fancy at all, this is a light and refreshing wrap that is perfect for making extras, wrapping in foil, and bringing to work with you the next day (which is why you see this one sitting atop a foil bed).  Free range chicken, roasted chili pepper, avocado, spinach (of course you can use lettuce), and a dill mustard sauce leftover from a different recipe make up the inside of this wrap.  The wrap itself is actually a wheat berry tortilla, from Tiny Greens Farm in downstate Illinois, also sold at the farmer's market.  Literally made of nothing else but pressed wheat berries, these delicate tortillas pack a flavorful punch.  Their only fault is that they are a bit crumbly so it makes it hard to wrap the wrap tightly without it falling apart a bit.  Eh, I'll live.

Wasabi Pea-Encrusted Salmon Fillet with Miso Soup

For no particular reason, we decided to end the week with a Japanese meal-themed weekend. (While the Tsunami did not trigger the theme, we nevertheless raised our sake glasses to the health and safety of the fine people of Japan.)  Friday night's main course consisted of two things I would have never have thought to put together on my own: wasabi green peas and salmon.  Fear not, spice-adverse readers: while the peas were coarsely chopped and adhered to the top of the sustainable salmon fillet by gobs of wasabi paste, there was absolutely no spice in the dish whatsoever.  We were shocked.  I don't know if cooking wasabi somehow eliminates the spice factor or what. However, the texture combination of the crunchy peas with the flaky fish was fantastic.  We served it over a bed of sauteed purple cabbage and sugar snap peas.  Who's loving the color combo here, eh?  The meal was supplemented by organic miso broth with tofu and seaweed.  And, of course, a big bottle of sake.

Saturday night was make your own sushi night with striped bass, squid and halibut that we picked up from Dirk's Fish Market, the local sustainable fish monger.  While delicious, it once again became obvious why sushi chefs spend years apprenticing.  Our rolls were not so pretty and therefore did not warrant any photos.

Chicken with Dill Mustard Sauce

I saved this photo for last because the sauce in photograph form just looks nasty, even though it is quite tasty.  I should have spooned it on with an artistic squiggly line or something.  My apologies.  This is the same sauce used on the chicken & chili wraps above, and was actually originally from a different salmon dish.  But sour cream, all natural spicy mustard from Boetje's, a local Illinois purveyor (with some interesting sales stats- look at the homepage of his site), dill and lemon is an easy and refreshing sauce that works on so many things.  Think of it like a fancy tartar- and I'm not a tartar fan.  Here, I just did a simple grilled chicken atop sauteed heirloom tomatoes, spinach, and quinoa.

You may be noting that I didn't mention any of my breakfasts or lunches.  Because I can often be a creature of habit, for breakfast all week I stuck to my current favorite of rye bread, almond butter, and banana.  Lunch generally hops back and forth between a mixed salad with tofu and olive oil/vinegar dressing, and a roasted mediterranean veggie flatbread sandwich I discovered in the cafeteria and to which I have subsequently become addicted. Granted, I'm not entirely confident in the origins of the flatbread itself and the feta inside (as paranoia strikes again), but I'm sure I'll be sick of it soon and go back to just the salads.

I feel like I should be aiming for these kinds of meals on the road but most are complex (complex meaning multi-ingredient, not difficult) enough that I wouldn't trust them in packaged form. However, I know if I think simple, as in simple veggies, simple sauces, as little as possible out of a bag or box, I should be fine... remember, keep it simple, stupid.  And marching on I go.

Discouraged, Part I

I knew that when I started this journey I would have some ups and downs.  Well, loyal readers, I was very recently feeling quite frustrated.

I've oft said that I wasn't going to get everything perfect, and that some things I would just have to take on faith as they might be out of my control (such as how organic is something labeled as such, and do I know that the cow who made the milk that made that cheese was grazing on grass instead of corn), but "perfect" is truly the ultimate goal.  You all, in the supportive comments you've made, have also encouraged me to be patient and focus on the journey.  But a week ago I found myself wondering if all my efforts are, in fact, quite futile.

In the most recent round of business travel I spent 3 days in Philadelphia for a conference.  Conference travel, while still exhausting, is better for the Au Naturale lifestyle than my typical running around the countryside from school to school.  I'm in one hotel the whole time and actually have time to go to a restaurant and eat a decent meal.  Philly was no different, and the most I had to travel each day was from my hotel to the convention center a block away and back.

Situated in between these two locations is Reading Terminal, an old train depot converted into a market.  Up and down the aisles you can find purveyors of everything from chinese food, crepes, and philly cheesestakes to seafood, fresh produce, and crafts.  Members of the local Amish population have stands here, too, selling meat and eggs and baked goods of all sorts.  When I was told about this depot of goodness, I thought I had found a local and convenient way of maintaining my Au Naturale focus (because what is more Au Naturale than Amish-farmed foods?).  But, as always, nothing works out as perfectly as it seems.  My only day to simply wander around was Sunday, so all the Amish stands were closed.  The produce market had things like tomatoes and bananas, which you know none of were grown in early March in Pennsylvania (not to mention that the bananas looked like hell).  I waited in the world's longest line for a crepe and while watching the crepe masters expertly assemble those things in record time, I wondered if they sourced their fillings locally or shipped them in from god-knows-where.  Add this to the pre-wrapped sandwich I got earlier at O'Hare which didn't even an ingredient label, and it was enough to drive an Au Naturale girl crazy. How do I know where these things are from? Do I just go ahead and assume that the milk in my morning latte was probably from a corn-eating cow who can stare at a pasture but can't access it?

At first part of me said- once again- "okay, you slipped a little but you were on the road! You did have dinner one night at an organic/local-focused restaurant.  You'll be good as new as soon as you're back home."  But let's be honest: I am always on the road, or meeting someone at a restaurant, or eating at someone's home.  This is not an anomoly in my schedule-- this is regular life.

And so my dispair began: What is wrong with this picture? Are all my efforts in vain? I don't want my food choices to be complicated- is that too much to ask?  I just want to eat basic and whole foods. Am I not looking hard enough for alternatives in places like O'Hare or is it truly a whole foods desert? Why is it easier for our society to succumb to the processed items than the natural foods that are already there and ready for us to eat? Do I give up? Do I stop eating at restaurants?  I don't want to revise my expectations.  Or, am I thinking too hard and having too little faith in what is good out there?

Before you all stop reading this post because it's so whiney (or maybe you already have), please know something: I started writing this post over a week ago, during the height of my despair.  I came home, read up a little in "The Omnivore's Dilemma" (which could have been contributing to my paranoia and dispair, perhaps), and decided that maybe I just needed to take a good, long look at my mission, vision, and actions.  Perhaps I had gone into autopilot?

And then I thought of the old tried and true axiom: Keep it Simple, Stupid.  Think basic. Think things that say organic, small farm, and local- and if not available, things that are just one or two ingredients.  Eat things that are not in a package so you don't have to overanalyze. If stuck, just nosh on a piece of fruit or something- the simplest item around. And if you do end up eating a little that is processed, trust that the mechanisms in your body are advanced enough to know how to clear out the junk.

And then I started to cook and eat. And with each step I felt a little bit better.  So what kinds of foods helped to ease my blues?....

FamilyFarmed Expo

I do apologize for the delay in this promised post, oh loyal 3 or 4 readers.  My life has been a whirlwind, always spinning, spinning, spinning...

I would also like to welcome my newest reader from Iran!  Welcome!  With such an international contingency signing on these past few weeks, I feel like I should be trying more Au Naturale ethnic foods, no?

Anyhoo, in my last post I promised to go to the FamilyFarmed Expo and blog about it.  To the expo I went, and blogging I am.

For those who missed the earlier preview of this post, the FamilyFarmed Expo down at the UIC Forum this past weekend was hosted by FamilyFarmed.org, whose mission is to expand the production, marketing and distribution of locally grown and responsibly produced food, in order to enhance the social, economic and environmental health of our communities.  Pretty Au Naturale, right?

The expo was the public portion of a week-long FamilyFarmed tradeshow, filled with exhibits and seminars on topics ranging from how to eat organic on a budget to raising backyard chickens.  From 11am to 6pm, my lovely boyfriend and I jumped around the exhibit hall and the seminars.

I was encouraged and enthused by the number of people who attended the expo overall.  In fact, we tried making a loop around the exhibit hall with all the local vendors (kind of like a massive farmers market but with less produce) early on but it was so crowded we had to flee and make a second attempt later in the day.  Once we did go through we were greeted by some of the vendors I was very familiar with from my shopping at both the summer and winter's farmers market, as well as advocacy organizations, info on getting into CSA shares, baby chicks for the kids to pet, and more.  After inhaling a vegan wrap sandwich we picked up pickeled mushrooms, homemade bloody mary mix, hot sauce (made by an organization that uses produce from their own community garden in Chicago in the sauces and benefits children's programs), cheese, and a ton of information.  I couldn't make it to my farmer's market the next day, so it made me feel like I was at least a little productive.

I will admit, however, that I was not as enthused by the seminars we attended- which is too bad, because I had such high hopes.  While Rich attended an urban beekeeping seminar, I jumped into one on canning, pickling, and drying.  I thought that would be a great learning experience for what to do with the excess of produce I plan on growing and buying during the summer and how to make all of that last during the winter.  You know, so I don't have to feel guilty about buying gassed tomatoes from Mexico in January.  Sadly, other than learning that a vacuum sealer might be a worthwhile investment, the entire panel was somewhat worthless.  I learned what is good to store in a root cellar (uh, I live in a 3-flat condo in the city- no root cellar for me), heard a restauranteur tell a rambling story about how he almost got shut down because someone sabotaged a jar of pickled something, and a third panelist discussed how he just slices things and freezes them with the help of the aforementioned vacuum sealer.  Nothing useful.  The beekeeping one wasn't much better, apparently.

We did attend an excellent seminar on vertical farming and the operations that are already going on in the city of Chicago, such as a vertical aquaponic operation that reuses pretty much everything in order to power itself and eliminate waste.  Fascinating stuff.  The "small space farming" seminar was decent, too.  However, I excitedly went to a Cheesemaking At Home seminar that, like the canning one, taught me nothing about making cheese at home (except a few websites where I can buy the materials) while Rich attended a vegetarian seminar that had one of the panelists begin her panel by saying that we should all be vegetarians because there is nothing in nature that naturally eats dead animals.

(Uh... as I've said before, I won't judge you if you decide that you want to be vegetarian or vegan.  But don't blatantly lie to back up your reasoning.  We had a fun time on the bus ride home listing all of the known carnivores in the universe.)

In any case, when we finally left after 6, we were tired, filled with (some) knowledge, and carrying a heavy bag full of delicious goodies.  I was definitely glad I went and consider it a good addition to my Au Naturale quest for knowledge.  I encourage you all to check out FamilyFarmed.org to see if they are doing anything in  your area.

I finished up the weekend by making another loaf of rye, which turned out waaay better than my first attempt.  Practice makes perfect, right?

Jordana 2, Evil Bar of Doom 0

Someone put two bags of Garrett's popcorn on the Evil Bar of Doom today: one cheese, one caramel.  Those of you who live in Chicago or have visited and smelled Garrett's wafting down Michigan Avenue know how irresistable that stuff is.

And I didn't eat a bite.  I reached for it, I admit, but then just simply walked away.

That is all.

Thai Roasted Tofu with Chili and Basil **RECIPE ALERT**

I haven't posted a recipe in a while- my apologies.  I realized after my last post that I spoke of making jambalaya but didn't list the recipe.  I'm not trying to tease you, loyal readers!  The recipe called for waaaaaay too much salt and was almost inedible, sadly. (Shame on you, Emeril!) We will give it a second go with some adjustments, and then I will share it with all of you.  Promise!

Last night I had a good friend over for dinner, just the two of us to catch up on some girl talk, and there was a request for no meat in our meal.  I found a great tofu-based recipe and then threw in some shrimp for good measure, for no other reason that shrimp is tasty.  The below recipe is neither fancy nor the most amazing thing I've ever made, but yummy, filling, healthy, and easy.  We all need some of those recipes in our lives, right?

First, a few notes on the below:
1) I have to admit this isn't 100% Au Naturale.  I used traditional Kikkomon soy sauce and teriyaki which does include trace amounts of preservatives.  Must... make... homemade... condiments!! Okay, that's two posts in a row about that.  On the calendar for next weekend.

2) The recipe calls for 1/2 cup of shitake mushrooms.  I love shitake and don't use it all that often, so I put in a full cup.  My friend's reaction when I mentioned this to her: "There were mushrooms in here?"  I couldn't agree more.  Next time, probably closer to 2 cups of shitake will go in.

3) The shrimp!  In a separate pan, I threw together some olive oil and a touch each of minced garlic and grated ginger (from what I had already prepared) and lightly cooked 6 peeled and deveined (sustainably caught) raw shrimp. If you do decide to use shrimp, be careful not to overcook them because they're going in the master pan with everything else and will cook a bit more in there.  Oh, and 6 was an arbitrary number.  I didn't want to overdo it with all the tofu.  The recipe made enough for two servings of leftovers for us today at work, but without any shrimp.  Do with that information as you will.

Thai Roasted Tofu with Chili and Basil
(makes 4 servings)

Ingredients:
1 pound(s) extra firm tofu, sliced into six 1/2-inch slices   
2 spray(s) cooking spray   
3 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce   
2 tsp olive oil   
2 Tbsp ginger root, fresh, minced   
2 tsp minced garlic, about 1 large clove   
1 oz green hot chili peppers, or red, Thai-variety, thinly sliced (use 1 small pepper)   
1/2 cup(s) shiitake mushroom(s), thinly sliced   
1 small sweet red pepper(s), sliced into 1/4-inch pieces   
1 cup(s) uncooked string beans, trimmed and cut in half   
2 Tbsp teriyaki sauce   
1/4 cup(s) basil, Thai or Italian, fresh, torn (plus a few leaves whole for garnish)   
2 Tbsp scallion(s), thinly sliced on diagonal (for garnish)   
2 cup(s) cooked brown rice, kept hot   

Instructions:

·                          Preheat oven to 425°F. Place tofu slices on several layers of paper towels. Cover with more paper towels and top with a cookie sheet. Place several heavy objects (like a can or heavy pots or pans) on cookie sheet to press out water from tofu for 30 minutes.

·                          Coat cookie sheet with cooking spray. Cut tofu into cubes to yield 9 cubes per slice. Place on cookie sheet and brush with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. Coat tofu with cooking spray and place in oven. Roast for 25 minutes, remove from oven and set aside.

·                          Heat oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add ginger, garlic and chili; cook until fragrant, about 10 to 15 seconds. Add mushrooms, cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add peppers and string beans; increase heat to high and cook until vegetables are cooked but still crisp, about 5 minutes.

Add remaining tablespoon of soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, basil and roasted tofu. Cook to warm through, about 1 minute. Garnish with scallions and basil. Serve with rice. Yields about 1 3/4 cups of tofu mixture and 1/2 cup of rice per serving

Xantham Gum?

First of all, because I am either vain or just love the positive reinforcement, I check my blog stats & page views regularly.  How thrilled was I when I saw I now have readers in Canada and China!  Welcome, international friends!  Please feel free to comment with your perspective from a non-American view.

BTW- does that make me stalker-y? Or normal? Or both?

But on to the quandry of the day.  For Fat Tuesday, my boyfriend and I decided to commemorate the holiday by dining on jambalaya.  Beyond the insane number of spices that eventually brought tears to my eyes-- and I am someone who can handle spice-- one of the ingredients required was Worcestershire Sauce.

Worchestershire sauce is just simply delicious, in my opinion, and while at Whole Foods picking up the fresh made andouille sausage, sustainably raised shrimp and other ingredients, we suddenly couldn't remember if I had any or not.  My lovely boyfriend insisted that we killed the bottle in the last recipe that called for it, so we decided to be safe and pick up a new one.  And of course, this being Whole Foods, we found not the traditional Lea & Perrins bottle but the all-natural, organic, etc. bottle of Worcestershire.

Back home I opened up the fridge to find a large, mostly full bottle of Lea & Perrins in the door.  Whoops.  However, I remembered that technically the bottle belonged on my no-no list, due to the existence of, among other things, HFCS.  Who wants to bet that the Lea & Perrins ingredient list across the pond contains HFCS? Any takers?  Yeah, probably not.

Unfortunately, when I stopped to look at the ingredient list of our new Au Naturale bottle, I found a very different set of ingredients that went beyond the lack of HFCS.  One of the items that caught my eye was xantham gum.

I don't know about you, but I see xantham gum and I immediately fear it.  Sorry, I have apparently have a form of food xenophobia.  I think it's the letter "x".  Something about that seems unnatural.  So I did what any responsible au naturale blogger would do: I went to the internets.

It's actually not as scary as one would think.  Xantham gum is a thickener, like corn starch, and also like corn starch it is made from corn- most often from GMO corn, though, which I'm not a fan of. Xantham gum is a great substitute for wheat gluten for those who are gluten intolerant, is used as a binding agent in sauces and ice cream, and is added to gas pumps to improve viscosity of gasoline.  Mmmm... ice cream and gas....

(On a side note- my goodness, will we all turn into large ears of corn? It seems like that stuff is everywhere!  I'm currently reading "The Ominvores Dilemma" so I now have corn on the brain.  But I digress.)

Sadly for me on this quest, questions tend to lead to more questions rather than answers.  Xantham gum is a product of corn, so it's not totally artificial.  But Splenda is supposedly "made from sugar" (nobody has yet been able to explain that to me) and I think that stuff is scary crap.  And both were developed in food labs.  Why do we need to eat things developed in a lab?  Is it necessary? A convenience? An answer to an unknown problem?  It may not do any harm, but I don't know if it's something I want in my body.  I would prefer that I put things in my body that are grown from the earth as-is and not manipulated in a lab.  Amazing how nowadays that seems like a novel concept.

I don't know the answers to those questions, and don't expect anyone else to answer them for me.  It does remind me that my to-do list includes making a big batch of homemade condiments, which I may do in a few weeks when I'm not traveling on weekends for work. For the record, the organic worcestershire sauce wasn't that good so that's definitely at the top of my list.  It also reminds me that I should start delving even more into an exploration of how food labels are created and the regulations that go into them: "natural flavors", anyone?  But again, I digress.

On a happier tangent, though... I just bought tickets to the Family Farmed EXPO in a few weeks... I have a giddy feeling like I just bought concert tickets!  Local farms, booths, cooking demonstrations, workshops from everything on how to make your own cheese to urban farming to raising chickens (no, I don't plan on doing that).  So excited!  Check it out at http://www.familyfarmedexpo.com/ and if you're in Chicago, let me know if you plan to go!  I'm sure I will be blogging fast and furiously after the day is over.

This Post is for the Ladies

I'm not kidding.  Guys, if you're reading this, you may want to stop now.

Ladies: (imagine sexy background music in this infomercial) Don't you get sick of the symptoms of PMS? Want to eat anything and everything that resembles chocolate, even if it's just a piece of brown construction paper? Have mood swings that make your man say sarcastically, "What, is it that time of the month?" which causes you to want to beat the living daylights out of him even though it may be true? Feel so bloated that Goodyear might as well paint their logo on you and fly you over a football stadium somewhere?

Yeah, it sucks.

Truthfully, I don't suffer much from PMS.  Sure, I have the sugar/chocolate/grease cravings, but beyond that the only thing that really bothers me is that I tend to suffer from that Goodyear scenario mentioned above.  In fact, I've done experiments, and at my worst I weigh an extra 5 pounds from the week before my cycle starts to the week after.  Otherwise known as, I am feeling gross and nasty for half the month.

"Um, thanks JC," you say.  "This is way more information than I ever wanted to know about you."

And if you're a guy who is still reading after my warning above... you have no one to blame but yourself.  Stop reading now.  Meh, it's too late, you might as well continue.

But, as always, there is a point to this post.  I've discovered that since January, when I started the Au Naturale lifestyle, the Goodyear scenario doesn't seem to exist or, if it does, not to the extent that it did before.  At first I thought it was a fluke, but now I think it's a pattern. I fully credit the switch to the Au Naturale diet, but even beyond that I think this example truly shines a light on all the hidden things we tend to put in our bodies on a daily basis without realizing it.  All the extra sodium, fat, and who-knows-what-else in processed food may very well be reacting with our bodies in a way that we always assumed was natural, but truly isn't.  I mean, who says we have to suffer every 28 days?  Do we know for a fact that ladies farming back in the 1800s went through the same discomfort we do now?

Granted, I am eating healthier overall, but I still tend to partake in some extra "crap" in my diet as always during that time of the month, such as the buffalo/bacon/gruyer burger I had last weekend (boy, that was good) and candy and chocolate.  However, I'm becoming convinced that choosing items like the range-raised, grass-fed buffalo instead of pen-raised, corn-fed beef, and an actual piece of chocolate instead of a HFCS-loaded candy bar is having a positive effect on my body. Specifically, one I never counted on when I started the Au Naturale journey: deflating the blimp.  Hurray for unintended consequences!

Oh, loyal 3 or 4 female readers: what do you think? Are my conclusions accurate or a placebo effect (please note that I never said "I hope my Au Naturale diet helps with PMS."  I noticed this after the fact)?  For those that follow the Au Naturale lifestyle themselves, have you noticed any other positive effects like this? And for those that may want to try being Au Naturale for a month... let me know what happens (or doesn't) to you.

Saved By Fruit

A number of years ago, I went through a bad eating spell.  As it's been many years removed, I don't remember the cause- if I was just drinking too much, or eating too many rich foods for no good reason, or stress eating- and at this point it no longer matters.  All I know is that in a matter of weeks I had put on 10 pounds and couldn't fit into any of my pants.  I had muffin tops the size of which would rival your favorite baker's.

I immediately went back to my (mostly) healthy ways, and while the weight gain stopped I couldn't lose anything.  Growing up I never really had weight issues so I wasn't quite sure how to manage this change. While I, like everyone, could gain and lose a few pounds here and there, I had never gone through such a severe weight gain all at once.  I realized that I needed to go on a diet, and after some thought and research I decided that the South Beach Diet was the way to go.

At the time, South Beach was all the rage.  I had known some people who had done it and raved about how well it worked and how easy it was.  Also, I had rationalized that as my love of carbs was probably a big culprit in the weight gain (when I am absolutely starving I always want nothing more than a big, steaming bowl of pad thai), getting that vice under control would probably be good for me in the long run.

Long story short, South Beach did work. I lost the 10 pounds quickly and managed to keep them off.... for the most part.  Hindsight is of course 20/20, and while I tried to adhere to the basic (but not the strict) tenents of a low-carb diet on an ongoing basis, I eventually learned that prohibiting a carb lover from eating most carbs was an inevitable path to failure. 

My experience with South Beach did change some of my eating habits for the better, though.  For example, it not only cured me of my addiction to vanilla lattes (a calorie trap if there ever was one) but cured me of putting any sort of sweetener in my coffee at all.  I avoid refined grains like the plague and no longer stuff my face with a ton of rice and pasta at any chance I get.  But, like most people who have done South Beach or Atkins or any of the like, I developed some bad habits, too.  One of which is an unnatural fear of fruit. 

That was always a problem for me on that diet- fruit is filled with so many great vitamins and goodness I could never understand why it was vilified so.  (Well, actually, I do know: it's because of the high sugar content.  But... fruit!  I mean, c'mon.)  So every time I wanted a banana or a piece of watermelon, two of the highest sugar-containing fruits, I felt like I might as well pull out the spanx right then and there because my muffin-top wouldn't be so far behind.  And for the longest time I would still eat fruit, but I would limit my intake severely and feel this tug of guilt in the back of my mind, like I just ate a carrot-cake-stuffed-piece-of-poundcake-filled-devil's-food-cake.

I know that this is head-slappingly absurd.  And you are probably thinking, "Jordana! You idiot!  You run screaming from fruit but are apparently okay noshing on jelly bellies from the Evil Bar of Doom? Do you not see the folly???"  Yes, yes I do.  I don't claim to be the worlds smartest, most rational human being.  But my point is-- and yes, I have a point after all this storytelling-- is that I am proud to report that I have kicked my fear of fruit.  Really, is there anything more Au Naturale?  I go organic whenever possible, of course, but I now keep a ready supply of apples, bananas, oranges and clementines by my desk.  When the 3pm hunger hits, they are easy to reach for. I used to try to convince myself that they were the better snack option, but  the "ugh, I just don't feel like fruit right now" excuse would win out every time. Now, it is easier to convince myself to go for the fruit over something like, say, jelly bellies, because they have the Au Naturale excuse.  I can control my temptations, as I mentioned in my one-month reflection, because needing and wanting to eat Au Naturale instead is an easier argument to win than just "don't eat those because you shouldn't!"  For the record, in the past two weeks I haven't even noticed if the jelly belly container is filled.

I know I have probably bored you with this post by stating the obvious: a three-pager extoling the virtues of fruit like it's new information.  Let's just call this one of the food-diary-journaling entry days.  I'm happy that I've realized that a way to quench my 3pm cravings was simply sitting in front of me this whole time and easier to implement than I thought it would be.  Now that I have gotten that out of my way, let's see what we will learn this weekend, shall we?  Stay tuned...