Who doesn’t like a good love story that ends well… give me the red ribbon ending and I’m happy every time! Well, here’s a story that has all of the elements for a great love affair but that is doomed to fail, right from the start.
I’m talking of course about the love story between people and food. First of all, there is a physical attraction that cannot be denied. Food looks good, it’s as simple as that! A lot of us actually refuse to eat the stuff that looks bad. I for one, never use to eat anything GREEN. I was convinced that it could not taste good, a notion that came undoubtedly from my childhood memory of the taste and smell of green beans coming out of a can! Yuk! So we like foods that look good… ever notice that bakers make the best looking foods? You can pile those bright coloured veggies in a beautiful, symmetrical, aesthetically pleasing display… it can’t compete with a cake even if the icing is not fancy!
Second, there is the rush. Not just the sugar rush… people who like pasta and bread and chips get the rush too! It’s a lot like the way you feel when you first fall in love! Remember after a first date that really went well, that carried all the hope of a “forever after”? You can’t wait to talk to or see the person again… Are you starting the get the picture?
Finally, the one that sucker punches us every time… is the notion of bad! How attractive is that! You know what I mean, we have all been attracted to someone in our lives that we knew were the bad boys or girls! When we were with them, we felt like we were living on the edge, we even looked better and got noticed more in their company. There is also something irresistible about the thought that with us, they would not be bad, that love would conquer all and they would see themselves in a new light and become good. Heck, millions of dollars in movies and book sales have created that notion for us and those are the best stories! But this is where the story turns sour.
Yes my friends, I am sorry to say that this love affair doesn’t have the same ending as in the book, which in fact is where a lot of problems stem from. Our story evolves like this… we love these foods and give them an almost life like persona, then when the doctor gives us the “reality-check” or we tip the “Toledos” at a new record high, we feel as though we have to take a “break” from the relationship. But after a few months of being away, we feel bad for having abandoned our love and we pay them a “visit”… and then, if we are not careful, we fall in love all over again! They haven’t changed and the attraction is still there. We sometimes even try to make up for our time away by giving more attention than we use to.
The reality is that food will not change. The bad will stay bad and the good will stay good. What we have to do is change the perception that we have that the bad food is somehow more attractive.
There is another kind of love story that I really like… it’s the story of the ugly duckling, the story of the ordinary looking becoming stunningly beautiful… the story of the goodie-two-shoes Sandy in “Grease” who becomes the hot and sexy, curly haired goddess at the end of the movie! Can you imagine your ordinary good food changing into the most amazing stuff you have ever eaten? Can you imagine not being able to stay away from it? Can you imagine giving into such foods without guilt or restraint? I can! Start Google’ing my friends, there is an entire world of fancy, sexy, tasty, looks-bad-but-it’s-good foods out there and it’s waiting for us to dig right in. Here are a few web site and recipes to get you started…
http://allrecipes.com/recipes/healthy-recipes/main.aspx (diet section – low glycemic impact)
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Roasted-Garlic-Lemon-Broccoli/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/broccoli-with-roasted-red-peppers/detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/broccoli-in-roast-chicken-drippings/detail.aspx
http://www.cookingnook.com/ ( Diet & Lifestyle section for healthy recipies)
http://www.cookingnook.com/cauliflower-salad.html (substitute White-Wine vinegar and honey)
http://www.cookingnook.com/mushroom-recipe.html
Thinking of you as always!
Lise
www.foodwisewl.ca