Four Simple Rules

Eating habits and preferences are way too complex to really pare down into simple rules, but here are four that I've liked lately:

1. Eat something raw every day.

2. Eat your fruits and veggies first.

3. Eat regular meals.

4. Make your fat count.

Of course I'll have to explain a little, though. "Raw" isn't always what you think it is. (Though I certainly don't have any great desires to eliminate all cooked food!) If it's ever been subjected to high heat and/or pressure, it's not raw -- so for example, cold cereal with milk and a glass of orange juice has nothing raw. Everything there has been pasteurized or cooked in some way, unless you bought the juice oranges and squeezed them yourself. Even raw almonds, apparently, have been pasteurized in our food system. What you're aiming for with raw is not necessarily nutrients, but enzymes. They're not really measuring them yet, but it's a good bet you want them in your body, and they're all knocked out of the picture by heat/pressure. So fresh, obviously, and also dried counts. Get at least a little every day.

Eating fruits and veggies first sounds simple, but it's hard not to rationalize skipping straight to the richer main dish when your stomach is growling. But let me tell you: the difference just in portion allotment when I do or don't follow this rule is amazing. I never regret forcing myself to eat the crunchy stuff first.

Eat regular meals. Assumed: pretty much all at home. I don't really believe in the culture of convenience food, including snacking. And despite headlines about eating little bitty meals all day, there are some data that back me up. Not that I don't snack, but there are no exceptions to eating regular meals at my house.

Fat has been dragged in all sorts of directions in the past few decades, from the biggest evil on the planet to "good" and "bad" fats, to Atkins, you name it. It turns out that the worst fats may be trans fats, and after them, a lot of the polyunsaturated oils. Yup, sunflower oil, etc. They're too long, your body doesn't actually know how to digest them, and so they float around in your lymph system (seriously) until getting spewed back into a vein and then ending up...wherever your body can stash them because it can't use them very well. Sort of like that junk closet/junk drawer/junk desk in your house, you know the one. (I have a secret theory that the increasing prevalence of muffin-top waists on otherwise skinny, fit people is due to this.) OK. So what do you do? If there's anything that you think is good for you (from fish oil to green beans), I understand that good old-fashioned butter makes it all go down easier. Not just to your taste buds, but to your body. They've shown that you don't really get anything out of fish oil unless it's accompanied by saturated fat. And the same goes for a majority of vitamins and minerals, even the water-soluble ones. SO. Don't indulge in ice cream and doughnuts unless for a special occasion, but buy cream and put it on your oatmeal. Buy butter and put it on your brussels sprouts and fish. Put Parmesan and olive oil and butter and cream ALL in your homemade minestrone -- it's the best food ever, my heirloom recipe is in the sidebar.

And, for this week's meals:

Homemade pork n' beans, frozen mixed vegetables, whole wheat biscuits (with our first raw honey ever -- we're not quite sure if we like it).

Chicken cacciatore, salad.

Curried veggies and rice.

Flounder, filled with bread crumb stuffing, broccoli, baked potatoes.

Pizza, salad.

Leftovers.

Sourdough pancakes, bacon, applesauce.