eating well

Let's talk about food.

The internet drives me crazy 9 days out of 10. One day is it praising the health benefits of "_____", the next day it's telling you how that very same "_____" will make you die a slow and painful death.
And then we panic because "_____" was our new favorite health food.

You want to know what I think? I think people worry too much. We have so much information and knowledge at our fingertips, but somethings I think it's tooooo much. 

You can find something bad about everything you eat these days.

So what do WE do about it, here in our house? 

Let me tell you our secret.....we just eat food. A little of this, a little of that. 

All of it in moderation--well balanced.

Whole, real, foods, MOST of the time.....with a little wiggle room (for things like baking of course.)

I don't buy processed meals and snacks, we don't eat fast food. 

We are lucky enough to get our beef and milk from right down the road.

We had the worst gardening year ever in the history of gardening, but we strive to someday have a garden large enough, and a small greenhouse, so we can live more sustainably (this will take a while.....but the goal is there, so that counts, right?)
We love fruits and vegetables in all shapes and forms.

I have been teaching my kids about nutrition labels and ingredient lists. Our rule? If you can't pronounce one of the ingredients, we don't buy it.
We don't follow special diets, or programs, or plans......we just eat food.

I could write pages and pages on this.

But what it comes down to for me, is eat what YOU want, and then ignore everyone else.

Because we are exposed to so many (too many) dietary options on the internet, we start to feel guilty that WE don't eat the way THEY eat.

She's off dairy. 

He doesn't do wheat.

He's Paleo every day except on the weekends. 

She only eats raw foods every day except Monday.

They are vegan.

She juices 27x a day. 

He doesn't eat carbs. 

No one ever eats a cookie. 

It leaves my head spinning......so I just eat.

Moderate means "balance", so for ME, that means a little of everything.
Maybe for YOU it means something different. 

(we also try to LIVE in moderation. our spending, our activities, our overall lifestyle.....but that's another post)

It is also important to me that my kids grow up having a good relationship with food. They know that sugar isn't good for our bodies--but they know it's ok to have from time to time. It's ok to ENJOY food. They know that even though a big salad full of every kind of  organic homegrown vegetable is GOOD for our bodies--it still wouldn't be good to eat that same salad every day. We need variety in life.

I asked on Instagram what moderation means to YOU, and loved the answers I got. So many of you said that you find it important to "listen to your body". YES! Your body knows what it wants and needs. It also knows when it has had too much of something it doesn't need.
When I am running lots of miles, I crave protein--usually fish and beef, and complex carbs. I actually crave less sugar when I am running more. I make sure to always listen, and fuel my body with what it wants, instead of eating what the internet wants me to eat.

Let's talk a little more about sugar.

Sugar isn't good for you, for me, for anyone. We all know that. But guess what? I could spend all day every day eating a perfectly clean diet--it would be hard, but I could do it. But when I'm on my deathbed at 114 (I think I could live that long on a perfectly clean diet) I guarantee I would wish I'd enjoyed my food a little more. Ate a piece of cake with friends. Had cookies waiting when my kids came home from school. Dunked a piece of crusty sourdough into my soup.

For me, so much about eating is about the EXPERIENCE of food. I love to bake--and I love to share those baked goods with people around me. A few weeks ago we went out to dinner with our good friends. We passed our plates around the table to share, and the conversation lasted for hours. We took the kids to ice cream last weekend--there's just something wonderful about eating an icecream cone with your favorite little people.
I love the experience of food.

So could I eat a little better? Yes. But.....I am fully enjoying my life by trying to keep a balance, and trying to keep my nose out of everyone else's business.

We eat well, we are blessed and happy.

“We ate well and cheaply and drank well and cheaply and slept well and warm together and loved each other.” 

 ― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

So because I believe in moderation, I believe in cookies in the fall, and here is my favorite cookie recipe for you to eat and share with friends.

My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup butter, at room temp 

1/2 c white sugar 

1 3/4 c brown sugar 

1/8 cup molasses

2 eggs 

2 tsp pure vanilla 

3 c all purpose flour 

1 1/2 tsp baking soda 

1 tsp salt 

1 tsp cinnamon

2 cups chocolate chips

Cream the butter, sugars, and molasses until light. Scrape down the side of the bowl.  Continue mixing while adding the eggs one at time. Make sure each egg is incorporated before adding the next. Beat for a few minutes. Add the vanilla and mix well. Scrape down the bowl with a spatula. Combine the flour, soda, cinnamon and salt in another bowl. With a whisk, stir to combine. With the machine on low, slowly add the flour mixture and chocolate chips. Mix until just combined, taking care not to over mix. Drop by spoonful onto parchment lined cookie sheet. Give a little sprinkle of sea salt before you pop them in the oven if you like.

 Bake at 350° for 11-13 minutes. 

They should be lightly golden on the outside but still soft in the middle. 

and don't eat all of them......since we just talked about moderation.

or do ....and don't tell anyone. 

What does moderation mean to you?

Happy Weekend!