menus

I hate health books that promote one way of eating and claim it will fix your entire life. Half of the time the sample menus they provide in the back look both expensive and enough to keep a small yellow finch satisfied. I've found that one particular way of eating is impossible for me to follow (and my husband always finds ways to cheat) Instead, my "diet" consists of taking just the really good stuff from each diet and incorporating it into my daily routine. For example, my menu yesterday:

Breakfast: Oatmeal, walnuts, raspberries covered in maple syrup and almond milk (raw food diet)

Snack: Toasted whole wheat English muffin with soy butter and low sugar strawberry jam (what good health magazine would frown on that?)

Lunch: Sprouted wheat tortilla, avocado, and mixed veggies. Toasted like a pizza. (Idea from Rachel Ray, I just made it with ingredients I actually had in the kitchen)

Snack: Chocolate made-from-scratch ice cream with fresh raspberries on top (you won't find that in any diet book!)

Dinner: Fried ravioli with turkey cutlets (Rachel Ray again, http://rachaelray.com/recipe.php?recipe_id=1147&r=531,1147,1158)

I must admit, I'm someone who likes, no, LOVES to cook, so a recipe from foood network excites, does not discourage, me. There's some healthy elements to the day's food, and there's some unhealthy ones. This menu is after five years of baby steps toward becoming more healthy. It all starts with replacing one food at a time. Instead of cooked oatmeal, raw. Instead of buying Land O Lakes, I bought the soy butter. Instead of buying flour tortillas, I buy sprouted wheat. That way, when I'm following a recipe, I know I'm using healthy ingredients. I'll share more of my substitutions as time goes on.

The other two keys to healthy eating:

1) Don't stock the kitchen with junk food--if it's there, I WILL eat it!

2) Make a menu and grocery list and ONLY buy that.

One step at a time. Baby steps. It's doable and it's yummy!