recipe and smart eating tips

song of the day: "Complicated" Avril Lavigne
mood: need a coffee IV


The "trendy" weight loss thing is to eat clean. Everyone is eating clean and there are now diet books on how to do it.  I call bullshit on it.  In order to eat "clean" you eat smart. Shop the exterior of the grocery store and buy real whole foods.  Fruits, veggies, nuts, milk, local meat (if you can get it) and assorted dairy. IF IT HAS AN EXPIRAION date... that is what you eat.  Avoid pre-packaged foods and GMO foods if possible.. Buy cheese that has to be cut or grated and not individual slices.  It really is not clean eating... it is smart eating.  Clean eating is just a money making scam.


I like to get the lotus food rice.  They are high in minerals that we lack in our diet.  Some are grown in volcanic areas.


Forbidden Rice (black rice) is an interesting character to add to your diet.  Looks like rat shit when you cook it. If you can get over the visual the texture is amazing. It feels like rice in your mouth but when you bite and chew it; you will find it as hardy as the texture of meat.  It can also be used as a meat replacement (vegans and vegetarians).


I cook one cup of rice (yields four servings cooked) according to the package instructions. Yes, this takes longer than regular rice to cook. Plan ahead.


in a frying pan dice one small white onion, grate one clove of garlic, grate one slice of crystalized ginger or fresh ginger root, and two tablespoons of organic butter.  I use salt free butter but I season with that pink salt... ugh... I can't remember what it is called. I need to run get some. sigh.  Anyway, season with salt and pepper to taste. Sauté the above ingredients and if you like (which I do) add some diced meat that is left over (Pork/beef/shrimp/chicken.. whatever) and I like to add snow peas that are fresh (in season... you want to wok like fry the snow peas in the mixture because you want them to be crunchy). Also, add a tablespoon of soy sauce. When the rice is cooked just dump the skillet into the rice and mix well. Serve hot.  It is also fun to add bullion powder to the rice water before it cooks. Season with a flavor that you like. Sometimes I just add whatever spices sound good to me... I just toss and pray it comes out good and usually it does.  I don't recommend Italian mix spices as they give it an odd taste.


Left over rice? Cool.  Over cook some white rice so it is like a mush.  Add it to (you have to eyeball this) the black rice mix and make a patty. I make mine oblong.  Anyway, put your patty in some hot coconut oil (enough to coat bottom of pan) and fry you a rice burger.  Wrap the rice burger in some long leafy lettuce and don't forget to garnish with shaved almonds before you roll it up. Makes a great lunch. I like it hot but I know people that like it cold. Weirdo's.  You can also use left over black rice in your sushi recipes.  It goes fantastic with fish.


you can make from scratch just about anything you buy packaged. Want to have a cheese spread? melt some grated cheese with condensed sweetened milk and pour into containers. Perfect and simple. It also goes further than cheese spreads and you can smart them up with diced tomatoes and onions or homemade salsa or mushrooms or whatever you want. I like to add guacamole mix powder and chunks of avocado to mine with a small diced onion. That is me. I grew up eating tex-mex so I like to make things of that nature.


when you cook... avoid as much store bought bread as possible. get you a bread machine and make it from scratch. It taste better, you can add what you want, it is more eye pretty, it smells better (duh... fresh), and it is a fun thing to do with the kids. If you buy a more expensive bread machine you can also make jellies and jams in it and have the best of both worlds.


pie is evil.
it is?
is it?


It really don't have to be.  Find a recipe for a tart crust.  Ohhhhhh... you see where I am going? Yea. Tart's are a NY and New England thing. Make your tart crust.  Poke a few holes.  Cover it about 1/4 inch thick with your homemade jelly. Add fresh sliced fruit (I try to make it look as pretty as possible) and spray some lemon juice on top. Bake according to the tart directions. Yes it will have calories in it but they are smart calories. Instead of white sugar use unrefined sugar or agave or honey in the tart recipe. Instead of flour use Spelt or rice flour or anything of that nature.


If you play in the kitchen, cooking is not a mundane chore.  It becomes fun.  You learn a lot about yourself and a lot about what you really like and don't like.


Example. Nobody in this house likes spinach (except me). Dumbasses.  Do you know HOW much spinach they eat? I dice it and add it to burgers. I juice it and add it to juices. I use the pulp from juicing to add to baked goods.  My family has about two servings of spinach or kale a day.  Sneaky bitch me.


Don't be afraid to add the kitchen sink.  Honest. We used to call it "Shit in a Pan" but now I have kids I just call it a casserole  ... just start adding leftovers to the crock pot with some broth or water and have a soup or stew.  Plenty of veggies too! Or add pasta and bake in the oven.


Use your stainless steel sink to your advantage.


in a clean sink add about a gallon of water and a cup of vinegar and a few squirts of fresh lemon (I just squeeze an entire lemon in my mix. Add to it dirty fruit (all fruit is dirty TBH). let your fresh fruit soak about fifteen minutes. Rinse it well.  You will honestly be grossed out at the residue you see floating in the water.  That is why I say a clean sink.  Fruit and veggies are gross and should be handled like it came from a hospital that has an MSRA infection running rampant.  Think about it.  People touch the fruit to see what is ripe. They smell it. They sneeze on it. Lot's of people do this with dirty hands or hands that were not washed after smoking or going to the bathroom.  THINK about it. WASH your fresh fruit and veggies.  I even wash fruit I know I am going to peel. WHY? because when you peel it you are pushing the peel down into the fruit and thus contaminating the meat inside. Except bananas.  I don't wash them. That is my only exception.


The point is to be smart. At first it will take time.  At first you will feel it is so expensive and complicated.  Guess what? When you quit buying the shit on the other 12 isles... it really is not expensive. When you use a food processor or a bread machine or Crock pot... what time? Those things basically are a god send.  Yes it will seem complicated... But your first science project was complicated too, amiright?  Matching your clothes and running a house is complicated.  Navigating traffic is complicated.  This really is not.  You just have to do like the other things and train your mind.  You are training your body to build muscle too... right?  You have not given up on the GYM have you?