Mantras on Food
I’m big on reading about food. I think it began after Martin and I got married, and I realized that if we were going to be a vegetarian household, I seriously needed to figure out what I was doing in the kitchen. Plus I had to justify our decision to our worried families. ”Are you getting enough protein?” ”Do you have enough energy?” ”What’s that funny plant in your fridge? Is it food?”
This morning, I stumbled on some great bits from Michael Pollan’s upcoming book, Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual.
You’ve probably heard of him or his books like In Defense of Food. You might even know his most famous mantra: ”Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
For his new book, Pollan has been gathering a collection of rules of thumb we rely on for good diets. We’re talking ideas like “an apple a day…”, and Pollan seems like just the guy to do it. He has such great philosophies on food. These two bits from a sample of the future book on the New York Times have especially got me thinking, so I just had to share with all of you:
What do you think? Read any of Pollan’s books or have some mantras of your own about food? One of mine is to avoid buying foods with more than five ingredients.
October 13th, 2009 at 5:28 am
I’ve read “The omnivores Dilemma” and “In defense of food” as well as “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” by Barbara Kingsolver (And would highly recommend). Basically what I’ve gleaned from these books and applied to my own life is that the more processed a food is, the worse it is for you and the more hidden ingredients you will find in it. I love the quote about “If you’re not hungry enough to eat an apple, you’re not hungry”. I tell my kids a variation of that all the time when they say they’re hungry but they’re not hungry for healthy snacks like cheese, fruit, or crackers, but Oreo’s fit the bill! :)
Also, I can’t wait for Food, inc. to come out on video. It’s a documentary about the food lobby/industry and it’s practices and it looks amazing.
October 13th, 2009 at 6:52 am
I love your dedication to your decision to eat vegetarian, and I love both of these quotes. And you do inspire me when I’m in the grocery. Remember last year I told you I threw out a lot of processed food – we still do look and buy more organic and less ingredients! You’re an inspiration yourself Katie!
October 13th, 2009 at 4:07 pm
I love Michael Pollan, I was a huge fan of his book “The Omnivore’s Dilemma”.
My rule of thumb, which I don’t follow religiously but I’m getting better at, is to buy foods where the basic ingredients are easily recognizable. You know, like fruits, veggies, eggs, that sort of thing. Not so much anything that comes in ‘nugget’ form or neon colours. Because that doesn’t look so much like actual food.
October 14th, 2009 at 2:36 am
We’re eager (nervous!) to see Food, Inc, too.
And you’re so sweet, Christy.
Your rule of thumb is perfect, Amber. Of course, it’s probably easier said than always done with little kids in the house. Huge applause to you!
Katie
October 14th, 2009 at 11:02 am
no recipes that involve more than 3 ingredients that I don’t already have on hand. and, in general, no recipes with huge lists of ingredients. They always end up frustrating me and turning me off to cooking for awhile, and then I’m tempted to go for processed or restaurant food that costs more financially and health-wise! I’ve learned my lessons!
October 14th, 2009 at 7:19 pm
Hi Katie! I am curious about this book, for some reason I’ve heard about it several times lately. I also recently saw “Clean Food” in the bookstore, and I’m trying to get into the habit of cooking foods from plants (using the local farmer’s market more) and getting away from processed foods. Teri – I would like to read “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” too!
November 10th, 2009 at 6:52 am
I’m a huge fan of Michael Pollan, too. “Omnivore’s Dilemna” might be my favorite. A favorite quote of his went something like this, “If your grandmother wouldn’t recognize it as food, then don’t eat it!”