This year I decided that it was time, once and for all, for me to learn to knit. I took some knitting books out of the library and began to page through. One of the books said you should make your projects with the best yarn you can afford; the results will be better, and you’ll be more pleased with the finished product. I liked that. It’s exactly what I say about food.
When you cook, the results are only going to be as good as the raw materials. If you start with the best ingredients, even simple recipes are likely to be extraordinarily delicious and satisfying. Buying the best you can afford is one way of being good to yourself.
Cook slowly. Don’t hurry. Use high-quality ingredients. This past Friday afternoon, I measured 1 heaping cup of dry white navy beans into a deep casserole dish. I added 1 large onion (chopped), 4 carrots (sliced in small rounds), 3 tablespoons of my son’s favorite hot sauce, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon of salt. That’s all. Then I added about 4 cups of water, enough to cover the beans and other ingredients by two or three inches. I covered the bean pot, put it into a 250 degree oven, and turned it down to 200 degrees before I went to bed. When we woke up Saturday morning, the aroma was amazing. I lifted the lid to check, and saw that the top was drying out a little. So I added more water, just enough to cover the beans, and then cooked them for a few more hours. Their rich, nourishing, and satisfying flavor added a lot to our otherwise simple lunch. There is something so unbelievably good about slow cooking.
It does not take more time to eat well, but it does take more planning. This dish took 10 minutes to prepare, and 2 minutes to check while it cooked. I had to prepare it 18 hours before serving it. I had to remember to buy navy beans at the grocery store. But I bought enough to make it twice. Next time I think I’ll add a can of tomato sauce, and see how that turns out.
Eating well is all about being kind to yourself, and that’s especially important to remember at this time of year. Around the holidays, when expectations and stress levels go straight up, it’s even more important to make time for yourself. Ask yourself what gives you joy? How can you be kinder to yourself? What do you love to do most? What do you love to do, but only get around to doing rarely, when you’re on top of your game? It’s different for everyone, but those are the things you must do. Consider it a holiday gift to yourself.
A friend recently told me that she was stressed out about my four recommendations. She knew that she had some pretty lousy eating habits, but she felt unable to deal with them all at the same time. So I told her not to try to tackle all four recommendations all at once. Just pick one. Want my opinion? In my opinion, the most important recommendation of all is the first. Do your very best to eat a high protein breakfast. What’s the hardest part of eating a high-protein breakfast? Believe it or not, it isn’t eating breakfast. It’s remembering to buy what you need at the grocery store. The hardest part of eating a high-protein breakfast is being prepared, so you have what you need when you need it.
Which recommendation is next most important? That depends on you. If you look down the list of recommendations, which one jumps out? Do you drink juice every morning? Do you drink a can of soda/pop at lunch every day? Or a liter or two of soda/pop every day (that’s what I would call a serious soda habit)? How much margarine and coffee whitener are in your refrigerator? Is your kitchen filled with all kinds of low-fat products? You’ll know which recommendation is next most important. It will be the next one that speaks to you.
Now what? Now be kind to yourself. Don’t stop drinking soda. Just stop drinking it for breakfast. Or set a daily limit of one liter instead of two, or two cans instead of six. Be honest with yourself about what you can manage. Then try.
As you use up the “candy-cereals” in your house, slowly replace them with whole grains. Spend an hour making a bucket of homemade trail mix, and dividing it up into individual servings using small plastic bags. Store them, along with the leftover, unused nuts and seeds, in the refrigerator or freezer in glass jars to increase their shelf life. When you use up the poptarts and cereal bars, now you’ll have some wonderful trail mix to eat instead. Remember to buy the best quality nuts, seeds and dried fruit you can afford. Hearty appetite!
Happy holidays, and best wishes to all of you for a happy and healthy new year.