YES, CHEF!

Recently, the boyfriend and I had our weekly "cheat meal" at a local soul-food homestyle restaurant.  We had been looking forward to this the entire week and especially towards the Macaroni and Cheese that we knew would make an appearance at our table.  Gluttonous desires took hold as we downed chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, fried pork chops, candied yams, mustard greens, creamed spinach, and of course -- Mac'n'Cheese.  Nothing even remotely Paleo grazed our table.  Afterward, we satisfied the sweet tooth with Tres Leches cake and chocolate covered honeycomb.  Finding ourselves truly fat and sassy, we wandered home in a daze.  The cumulative effect of this dinner sent us both into blood sugar orbit, and while he had made some other plans for the evening, we wound up hitting the hay early; flat on our backs to aid in the digestion of our feast.  I'm serious.  We didn't even snuggle.

Laying nearly comatose, we began to question why we looked forward to the "cheat day" if it made us feel so poorly. Upon reflection, our meals from the past week had been of better quality, better ingredients, and left us with zero side-effects.  Each meal we prepared together was Paleo, and each was so thoroughly enjoyable that we took photographs and savored every bite.  Neither of us have been to culinary school, but that's okay because we have an amazing teacher:  Gordon Ramsay.

St. Gordon: Pray for Us

If you are only vaguely aware of Chef Ramsay, you are probably only familiar with his expletive-spewing, table slamming, pan throwing television personality.  I'm here to tell you that, despite his rough exterior, this man knows what he's talking about.  Boyfriend and I have watched a lot of his shows (and there are many: Kitchen Nightmares, Hell's Kitchen, Hotel Hell, Master Chef) but our favorite is BBC's The F Word - "F" here meaning Food, of course.  We have learned so much from watching this show it's uncanny.  Listening to Chef Ramsay has helped to stretch our creativity in the kitchen and has certainly done a lot for the presentation of our dishes.  It's so pleasing to create something from the (often sparse) contents of my fridge and pantry, then look at it in awe.  Often, when we've compared the homemade dishes to restaurants, we find we like ours better -- or at least that they have a chance in a competition!  Most importantly though, Chef Ramsay has inspired us to care more about our food.  If you're paying attention, you'll find that he really only gets upset and angry at Chefs that are careless.  If you're careless in your preparation, or in your cleanliness, or in your presentation -- the food and the experience ultimately suffers.  Frankly, that's also true for life!  So, Boyfriend and I have started caring a whole lot more, and it shows.  Check out our recent menu items:

Appetizer: Tomato Basil Avocado Soup

Roasted Chicken drumsticks on a bed of pine nuts, sweet potatoes, capers, olives, tomatoes, and celery.

The left overs proved a marvelous addition to our (very fluffy!) omelet the next morning.

Dessert: Bananas Foster with coconut on a coconut meal quick bread.  Flames were involved with a  cointreu glaze, and while I have a photograph of Boyfriend's singed hair, I think I'll leave him his dignity here.  Be careful with fire, kids!

Appetizer: Scallops on a bed of leeks, onions, and garlic; served with a dijon vinaigrette reduction.  And can I just say, MAD PROPS to the boyfriend for this phenomenal dish.  I am *still* thinking about this dish!

Beef Tar tar with egg, steamed kale, and homemade sweet potato fries

Dessert of Triple Yum: a base level of coconut milk ice cream, topped with mangoes and strawberries, drizzled with local honey, with a homemade coconut meringue nesting on top.  We also set this thing ablaze with some cointreu and a lighter.  No singed hair this time...

So there you have it!  Delicious, home cooked meals that are Paleo friendly.  And the best part?  It got Boyfriend and I in the kitchen creating something together.  Food is more appetizing when you take the time to make it beautiful both inside and out.  And you know what?  I think food even tastes better when you have someone with which to share of your meal.   More on that later.

Love!

Paleo Living

Beginnings

If I am to approach the topic of food from a place of inquiry, than I must begin in earnest by talking about myself and my own personal relationship with food.  When I think about food these days, I think more about something that needs to happen during my day to ensure my survival.  It's like that old saying, "Live to eat, or Eat to live;" I'm firmly placed in that latter category.  It wasn't always this way.  Like many things, my relationship with food has been consistently evolving since I was born and undoubtedly will continue.  Like all people, I have specific tastes:  I love anything briney or vinegary, I love both salt and sweet yet when combined it's nuclear happy for me, I hate cilantro, and I recently found out I'm allergic to a great number of common fruits and nuts.  It was a bright day the day I discovered why I felt horrible after eating oranges or walnuts -- I literally thought it was just a "tough medicine" to eat those healthy things.  Turns out, my body thought otherwise.  Anyway, my food journey started in my mother's decidedly southern kitchen, took a tragic nosedive into eating disorder territory in my teen years, then gained some serious levity in my early adulthood in learning about all sorts of foods through my "Hello Bite" policy, then I hung around with some serious foodies for a while and learned a lot, and came out here where I am today -- healthy at age 26 and Paleo-ish in my eating habits.  By "Paleo-ish," I mean that I generally abstain from wheat, dairy, and sugar but on occasion I love me some Cheetos and a Coke.  At the moment, I'm in a 30-day "hard core" Paleo challenge where I'm eating strictly by the rules -- so, sadly(?), no Cheetos or Coke on the horizon -- but more on that later.

So how did I get here?  Well, many of you may have known me a few years ago, hell, even A YEAR ago when I was heavier than I am now.  How much heavier?  27 pounds heavier to be exact.  On a small framed person like myself, that's a heavy load to carry.  At my heaviest, in Spring of 2010, I weighed 145 pounds.  Here's a picture of me then:

I apologize for the image quality, but I had to cut the photo to protect the innocent.  

I sometimes find that people are shocked when I tell them that I was a vegetarian when this photo was taken.  You know that imagery of the frail, weak, boney vegetarian?  I certainly was not that girl.  Let me put it this way -- I was really good at being a vegetarian, I just wasn't good at actually eating lots of fruits and veggies.  My diet consisted of carbohydrates (BREAD, pasta), dairy (all forms), and free reign of sugar.  If you really think about it, bread with butter on it is just cake minus the sweetener.  And while I did a lot of yoga in this time, to quote a friend, "you can't out exercise a bad diet."

So here's me now at 118 pounds:

Life is different for sure!  Not only do I look better, but more importantly I FEEL better!  I am outdoors constantly, exercising daily, and eating a diet that is balanced, healthy, and doesn't leave me feeling hungry or deprived.  Sure, I still indulge in the un-healthy brethren of Cheetos and Coke, but not frequently, and only for a treat.

Yes, I did lose 27 pounds, but it didn't happen quickly -- it took three years of small changes that moved at a glacier's pace.  I didn't do any crash diets, or have any surgeries.  I didn't order pills from the internet or down gallons of maple syrup-cayenne-lemon water.  I just ate less, ate better, and moved more.  When I started eating Paleo-ish last year, it was like the final cog in my wheel.  It was easy to do and, more importantly, it helps me to feel amazing in my body every day.

Paleo-riffic!

In his "Live at the Beacon" performance, comedian Louis C.K. plays out a scenario where God visits Earth to find it trashed by human kind for money.  Louis's God asks humanity why they needed money, and the human says, "To buy food."  And God says, "Why the fuck do you need to BUY FOOD? I left it here for you ALL OVER THE GROUND!  Pick it up and EAT IT!"  This really boils down the Paleo theory.    

Paleo takes its name from the Paleolithic era of over 2,000,000 years ago.  During this time, peoples of the Earth were migratory nomads.  As a result, they ate what food they could gather or kill and spent an awful lot of time moving.  In Paleo eating, nearly all fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, lean meats, and some oils are fair game.  Legumes (which includes peanuts!), white potatoes, wheat or white flour products, dairy, and refined sugar are off limits. Paleolithic peoples survived without the convenience of super markets, cars, or the internet -- a feat that would ultimately make them our ancestors.  The fact that people have a melt down when the WiFi is shoddy at Starbucks is proof that our Paleolithic grandparents would kick our modern ass at anything.  These people harnessed FIRE without lighters while we can't even explain how our convection oven works.  The point is that these Paleo persons were healthier because they ate a diet of the stuff on the ground-- like God intended -- and walked it all off before their next meal.  I don't think "foodies" existed in the Paleo day, but you never know . . .

The first Yelp: "We had the deer here, but it was too gamey..."

Fairly recently, Dr. Loren Cordain began publishing on the inherently obvious fact that eating and living as our ancestors did was the healthy and best way to live.  He is considered the founder of the Paleo Diet movement, and you can read about him, his work, and his books at The Paleo Diet website.  

My own experience with Paleo began last year when a friend started to eliminate things from her diet due to what she called "inflammation."  According to this friend, whenever she ate things like wheat,  dairy, or sugar,  it would cause her body to become inflamed and in pain.  Friend and I are both massage therapists, and our job is very physically demanding.  Therapists work on their feet, contorting their bodies awkwardly, and heaving their body into dead weight for often hours on end.  Friend was really feeling her work at the end of the day.  But once she started eliminating these foods she felt better.  Feeling a lot of pain and discomfort in my own body,  I felt I should give it a shot as an experiment.  At the same time, I started dating someone who ate Paleo-ish and before long I was in that rhythm, too.

I want to stress to people that I don't like the word "diet" applied to Paleo in the way that we are accustomed toward using it today.  I associate the word with fads like "Southbeach Diet," or the "SlimFast Diet," or the "Cayenne Pepper Maple Syrup Water Diet."  "Diet," when used that way, sounds like something that you do for a little while before you go back to doing whatever it was you were doing before, thus requiring another Diet!  "Diet" means temporary and results-driven, with brief flourishes of commitment.

Then there's "Diet" as in the natural or medical terminology  -- as in a Koala consists on a diet of bamboo shoots and bugs.  Koalas don't go on crash diets.  Koalas just have a diet, period.  And that's how I think of Paleo -- it's a lifestyle, and a new way of thinking.  And because of that, in the very beginning it's hard to do. It certainly takes a lot of work and mental jockeying, but after a while it just becomes natural -- because it is natural.  In the end, you will find yourself happily munching on that bamboo shoot just as a Koala does, without a care in the world.

Just look at this happy guy!

Paleo vs. Paleo-ish

 I am going to borrow a graphic from Dr. Cordain's website  to demonstrate what pure Paleo looks like:

It is very clear in its outline and it's easy to follow; I love that about Paleo.  It's easy to weed out foods into "eat" or "don't eat."  I don't spend hours reading labels, counting calories, or worrying about serving sizes.  I just eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full.  

When I'm eating Paleo-ish, I let myself have some other things I want during the day.  Maybe someone brings cupcakes into my office.  I'll eat a cupcake but won't eat sugar the rest of the day, or the next day.  Maybe I go to the movies and eat some popcorn and pop.  I'll enjoy my movie treats and then eat very clean the next few days.  A Paleo-ish diet is LARGELY paleo with indulgences here and there.  This is how I have been eating and managing to keep the weight off. 

Then there's strict Paleo as documented above, which is, well, strict.

Last week, the Boyf and I ate poorly.  Like, epically poor.  In our defense, it was a birthday weekend and lots of fun and festive foods were had.  But by the weekend's end we looked at each other and acknowledged how awful we felt.  Then I had an idea -- let's challenge each other to 30 days of strict Paleo!  We both agreed and started Monday morning.  There are some terms and conditions, such as we still allow ourselves to eat salt (thank God!) and we allow ourselves one cheat meal a week.  BUT -- the cheat meal has to be enjoyed together at a sit-down restaurant and we aren't allowed to take leftovers.  

It's certainly been hard.  I broke down and ate some mini-snickers last night.  I'm not proud of it, but it goes to show how hard it is to get away from sugar, and dairy, and wheat.  If you really think about it -- and I challenge you to really think about it -- I would be willing to bet that one of your favorite foods has one or all of those three ingredients.  

And there's a reason that we love those things!  Because even though our body is still running 2 million year old software, our surroundings and circumstances of living have changed drastically.  The fat that our ancestors used to chase across the grassland now comes to us in prepackaged individually sized units; easy to purchase and easy to access.  

In the next blogs, I'll start looking at why we love those foods so much.  I'll also share with you my trip to the grocery store for a Paleo lifestyle, to show how our modern food access is unnaturally structured.  I'll even through in a Paleo recipe or two!  

So stay tuned, and wish me luck on this hard core Paleo journey!    

Beginnings

Dear Friend,

When I look at my life, I am often astounded by how fortunate I am.  I was fortunate enough to be born in the United States, to middle class parents, and raised in a safe, suburban home.  I was fortunate enough to be cared for by a village of people who loved me and sincerely wished for my success.  I was fortunate enough to attend a private school from kindergarten through grade twelve; a school that overly prepared me for college academically, and through which I developed lifelong friendships.  I was fortunate enough to obtain both trade and undergraduate degrees, in a prestigious school and (not-so-prestigious-but-great) university.  After I graduated, I was fortunate enough to start my career at a company that quickly promoted and valued me.  

I find myself now, age 26, completely self-sufficient and functional in this world.  My days begin and end with a roof over my head.  I work tirelessly at two jobs (same company) that bring me a happiness near indescribable.  I eat regularly.  I drink, bathe in, and flush with clean, running water.  I sleep soundly.  I am in absence of addiction.  I am surrounded in love by friends and companions. I get to do cool stuff like yoga and trapeze.  It would be easy for me to stop here and think, “I’ve accomplished the American dream.  I win.”  Within me, though, is this burning; a feeling I’ve oft described as a ‘hole in my heart.’  You see, I don’t believe that “winning” at this life excuses me from helping others to win.  In fact, I believe it is my responsibility - a deep, resonating and near-Godly calling - to help others feel the satisfaction and gratefulness that I feel in my life.  For years I’ve been thinking about a large scale dedicated service project -- how to implement it, how to orchestrate it, how to explain it to others.  There has always been something in the way, like finishing school, or getting established in my career, etc.  Now there is nothing in the way.  Now is the time to start.  Thus, the birth of Food/Water/Shelter/Space/Love.

When I was in fourth grade, a park ranger told me that all creatures on earth needed four things to survive: food, water, shelter, and space; and that is true.  However, the thing missing we mammals need - especially we of the homo sapien sapiens varietal - is love.  Harlowe’s monkeys taught us that love and affection trumps nourishment when it comes to preference of comfort.  Therefore, I add the fifth elemental necessity for survival on this earth -- indeed, the most important, simple, and wonderful of all -- Love.  As I thought about what kind of service project I would create, those words kept percolating to the surface, until one day it occurred to me that I had a skeleton structure;  a framework by which to create my endeavor.   For an indefinite amount of time, I commit to three service projects under each heading -- Food.  Water.  Shelter.  Space.  Love.

As time progressed, I mulled some more, and determined that this project should be shared with others in hopes that it educates and inspires those around me -- thus, the the birth of this Blog. Here you will find information regarding the topics in question and documentation of my service projects.  My goal for this Blog is 1/2 experiential journal and 1/2 investigative journalism.  Like all things, that might change in time, so let’s all be willing to roll with it!  I hope you choose to keep reading and following me on this journey.  Like in all great journeys, I have no idea what will come of it, whom I will meet, or how I will be changed in the end.  All I know is that I must do it -- it is a directive from a higher power that speaks directly to my heart; a flame within me never to extinguish but to burn brightly, stoked by gratefulness and compassion for this life and those who share it.   

With Love and Light  to You,  

Danielle