Look to Food

Think about the current state of eating in America. It used to be that most meals were made at home, or made down the street by someone you knew. Then came the invention of the microwave dinner, the first major processed food. Suddenly, you didn’t have to cook. You could go out and buy pre-made meals and store them in the freezer.

Then fast food and drive-thrus entered the scene. Now you could sit in your car to order food, and sit in your car to eat. Alone. Around the same time came the explosion of ultra-processed foods (“manufactured calories”). “Food,”manufactured calories, became cheap and abundant everywhere. You could eat anywhere, anytime.

And now present day someone delivers your food straight to your door. Without having to talk to anyone or see anyone. 

We keep looking for complex answers to the complex questions: Why are we so divided and why are we so unhealthy? But the answer is simple, and it’s the same for both questions.

Food.

When we broke bread as a family, we were killing two birds with one stone. We were coming together, and we were nourishing our bodies. Now, most of us accomplish neither each day. Most of us are happy to tap a few buttons and have food magically appear before our eyes, and think nothing of it. We’ve made eating into a habit instead of the spiritual practice it used to be.

But food is so much more than a habit or just a means to get calories. It’s so much more important. Food is nature, and when grow our own food, when we cook our own meals, it’s an opportunity to connect with nature and the bounty it provides. Our body gets more than calories and nutrients. It’s nourished by the earth, grounded by the process.

When we gather around the kitchen to cook we connect with our family and our community. When we cook for someone else, when we feed someone else, we’re connecting on the human need to be nourished. To take care of someone else. Whatever our differences might be, they melt in the presence of a meal together. They melt in the offering of a home cooked meal.

When I see food delivery drivers drop a bag of food off and run back to their car before anyone comes to the door, I cringe. It gives me anxiety. Because there is no better evidence of just how disconnected we are.

We don’t see where the ingredients for our food comes from. We don’t see how it’s being prepared. We don’t smell the amazing aromas that fill a kitchen. We don’t know who’s cooking for us. We don’t hear the sizzling or clanging of pans. We don’t know who’s preparing the dish. And we don’t even see who’s serving us anymore. We are 100% removed from the process, and just left with one job.

To eat.

But that’s not the purpose of food, and it never was.

Homemade Granola

My fiancé and I hosted Christmas this year. Most of her family flew in from the east coast to celebrate with us. Her sister and brother-in-law were supposed to come and stay with us. But at the last minute they weren’t able to make the trip. In preparation for their stay we stocked the house with some essentials they like. One of them was granola.

We don’t normally eat granola. Most of it is of pretty poor quality and loaded with added sugar. But if there’s granola in the house you better believe that were going to eat it. And since her brother-in-law never showed up, we went to town chowing down on his granola.

Once it was gone we wanted more, but we didn’t want to buy the packaged stuff. So, we made our own.

Homemade Granola Recipe

My fiancé found this recipe. We’ve now made it twice. It delicious. But we have made a couple of slight modifications.

One, we added chia to ours. Chia is packed with healthy fats and fiber and is therefore a great addition to any baked foods.

Two, we added chopped up dates to ours and omitted the craisins.

Three, on the second go we ran out of maple syrup and used honey instead. I actually think it tastes better with honey.

One other thing we found helpful was to place the walnuts, almonds, coconut, chia, cinnamon, and salt into a food processor for a few pulses before adding it to the mixture. It helps to spread the flavors throughout the granola a little more.

But this recipe has for sure become a staple in our pantry.

Quinoa Sardine Bowl

Most times when I’m putting a dish together I’m really just looking to hit certain macros (fat, carbs, protein, and fiber - although fiber might not technically be a macro). In this case my body was craving healthy fats and healthy carbs.

At the base of the bowl is about 1/2 cup of multi-colored quinoa with chopped white onion. I drained the extra virgin olive oil from the sardines over the quinoa and added 1 tbsp of soy sauce. Soy sauce and quinoa with raw onion is one of my favorite combinations.

1/4 sliced avocado, 1 can of skinless boneless wild caught sardines from Wild Planet, and a few halved cherry tomatoes, sprinkled with a pinch of sea salt.

A totally delicious and nutrient packed bowl for any time of the day.

Almond Pulp Cookies

My fiancé went to hang out with her friend last week. Her friend has an Almond Cow, a machine that makes it really easy to make any type of nut milk or even oat milk you want. Her friend was telling her all of the different types of milks she’s been making and all the different ways she’s been using the left over nut pulp.

A couple of years ago my fiancé and I had been on a similar kick, making almond milk regularly the old fashion way. Soak the almonds overnight. Put them in a blender with a 3:1 ratio of water to almonds. Pour it all into a nut bag and squeeze out the milk.

When we first started doing this we were just tossing the pulp. Such a waste! So I started using it to make all sorts of things. But my two favorites were crackers and cookies.

After my fiancé got back from her friends we decided to make some almond milk (and order an Almond Cow). We maintain a strict diet of no sweets, so I decided to use the almond pulp to make us some cookies and give us a little “healthier” treat.

Banana Almond Pulp Cookies

I followed the recipe almost to a T with a couple of exceptions. One, I added 1 tbsp of chia seeds. Chia is packed with good fat and fiber and is therefore such a good addition to any healthy treats you might want to make. Two, I used dark chocolate chips instead of milk chocolate. Again, dark chocolate, cocoa specifically, is packed with so many more nutrients than milk chocolate, so when I’m indulging in chocolate I always go for dark. Three, which I don’t recommend, I baked the cookies for an additional 2 minutes. Almond pulp cookies are not like normal cookies in that the pulp doesn’t cook the same way flour wood in a normal cookie. When I tested the cookies at 22 minutes they felt kind of wet still. So I left them in for another 2 minutes, but then they got dried out. I think at 22 minutes they might be a little soft and moist still, but I think when it comes to almond pulp cookies that’s what you want.

Salmon with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce

I’ve been getting these amazing wild sockeye whole salmon filets from this company Thunders Catch. I randomly stumbled upon them at a local food coop about an hour away from my house in this little town called Nederland. It was by far the best frozen fish I’d ever made. So I went onto the company’s website and discovered that I could order them in bulk, 25 lbs at a time. I had recently bought a freezer for a 1/4 share cow I purchased, so I went for it and bought the bulk filets.

Normally I bake the salmon with either just olive oil and salt, or sometimes I add a layer of dijon mustard to it. At 350 degrees it takes about 17 - 18 minutes. But I was wanting to try something different, so I searched for some recipes and came across this one.

Pan Seared Salmon with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce

I love butter but I don’t cook with it enough, so I was excited to try this one. Also the only time I’ve ever had garlic, lemon, butter sauce was at a restaurant so I decided it was finally time to try it myself.

I didn’t pan sear the salmon though. Since the salmon I buy comes in big filets, I opted to bake it instead and add the sauce once it came out. I also used vegetable brother instead of chicken broth. For one, I didn’t have any chicken broth handy, and two chicken broth and salmon seemed like an odd pairing although I’m sure it would be delicious.

I paired my salmon with quinoa and mushrooms, and zucchini, red bell pepper, tomato, and garlic, sides that I had made the night prior. The salmon was absolutely delicious. The sweetness of the honey in the sauce brought out the sweetness of the fish that I had never experienced before. Overall a great recipe and a nice dish for dinner.

Ratatouille Stir Fry

Last night I made this stir fry. We had some veggies in the refrigerator that needed to be cooked but I didn’t want to just do the same old thing I normally do, which is either straight sautéed in olive oil and salt, or baked in olive oil and salt. Also, the original plan for the eggplant we bought was to slice it thin, egg wash, bread it, and fry it, but I was feeling like that was going to be too heavy for the night. So, instead I did a search for eggplant, zucchini, pepper recipe, and this is one of the recipes that came up.

Ratatouille Stir-Fry Recipe

I chose this one because I actually had all of the ingredients for it, except for the fresh basil which I wish I had because I know it would have made the dish that much better. But even without it it was really really tasty.

One thing to note, I had to do the eggplant in two batches because when I put it all in at once, half of the pieces were piled on top of other pieces and not getting cooked. So I removed about half, laid the remaining ones flat in the pan, and let them cook. Once cooked I removed them and brought the second half in.

I also didn’t use as much salt as this recipe called for. It felt a little bit excessive so I scaled it back. I rather under salt while cooking and add salt later on my dish.

I paired this recipe with leftover turkey from Christmas that I had frozen. A nice easy dinner for a Sunday night.

First Meal Post Holidays

I was in Japan and Hong Kong for 16 days at the end of November. We got back two days before Thanksgiving. After that, my family came to visit and celebrate my birthday. Less than two weeks after that we celebrated my fiancés birthday. Twice. Once with her friends. And again with her parents who came to visit. A few days later her brother and his family came to visit and celebrate Christmas. We hosted Christmas Eve and Christmas. From the moment we got home from our trip to Asia, up until a couple of days before Christmas, we were both sick on and off. Congestion. Coughing. Headaches. Body aches. Poor sleep. It was basically a month of feeling like shit and eating like shit.

I tried whenever I could to sneak in a healthy homemade meal or a protein shake, but it was impossible to string more than one or two meals together without being interrupted by something out of the scope of my normal diet. But, I tried anyway, knowing that while I couldn’t control all of my meals, if I could manage some of them, that eventually I’d be able to get back on track, and that those few small healthy meals would help offset the impact of the bad ones. So here I am on the day after Christmas trying to get back on track with a lunch filled with quality proteins, fats, fruits, and vegetables. I won’t really be out of the weeds until all of our family has left after the new years, but I’m not going to lose sight of my goal and lose total focus. Even during holidays, times of celebration, and visits from family, I know I can play a role in limiting the damage. 

Post Christmas Salad:

• Mixed greens

• Broccoli sprouts

• Cherry tomatoes

• Avocado

• Blueberries 

• Red onion

• Tuna with homemade mayo/yogurt dressing

• Hamburger with blue cheese, Swiss cheese, bacon

• Dressing: homemade pesto, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt

Big Time Cheat Meal (for me anyways)

Left over pad Thai noodles (this is the third meal I’ve gotten out of one order, and each time I’ve eaten more than I’ve wanted to. It could’ve easily been 4 or 5 meals, but it’s hard not to over indulge pad Thai noodles, which is the reason I typically just stay away).

180 grams of slow cooked whole chicken to make sure I fill out, because noodles don’t fill me.

Two handfuls of broccoli, and 1 handful of raw red cabbage, to make sure that I wash all this down with adequate amounts of fiber.

A Messy Salad

Avocado, raw red onion, raw red cabbage, tomato, blue cheese stuffed olives (3), pickle (1), strawberries (3), rosemary honey cooker beets (1/2), cucumber, spinach.

Two cans of wild, sustainable sardines (36 total gram of protein).

Dressed with dijon mustard, medium spiced locally made salsa, drizzle olive oil, blackberry balsamic vinegar, bourbon balsamic vinegar (both vinegars locally made), and 3 generous pinches of salt

Summer Salad

Sorry it’s posting in the winter.

I went for a challenging trail run this morning. This was the first of many meals I’d eat throughout the day.

In reality, this was the fourth thing I consumed. One, a piece of dark chocolate before my run. Two, an RX bar, dark chocolate chip. Three, a Colorado Palisades peach 🍑 that dripped all over me on the car ride home.

But, this salad:

Arugula, red Russian kale, and radish from our garden

Locally grown tomato, cucumber, carrot, red cabbage, red onion, and celery

Locally raised pastured chicken

Strawberries and almonds

I also used some blackberry and bourbon balsamic vinegar bottled here locally by a chef

Tasty, tasty dish, dressed with generous amounts of salt, olive oil, balsamic glaze, mustard, and locally bottle salsa

Yum yum yum

Sundays are for BBQing

This past Sunday we did the BBQ thing. Red peppers and zucchini tossed in olive oil and salt and charred on the grill. Grilled white onion. And homemade beef burgers, mixed with spices and blue cheese. Almost everything on our dishes was local (except for the cheese and sauces). The sourdough bread we used as buns is from a local bakery an hour or so from our house.

Everything tastes better when it comes from somewhere close and is made in small batches. Less processing, less ingredients, more flavor, more nutrients.

I love a good burger BBQ day.

The Big Salad

Mixed greens

Black rice

Roasted chickpeas

Avocado

Raw carrot

Celery

Tomato

Olives

Raw red onion

Sardines (1 can)

Olive juice

Olive oil

Lunch: Salmon and a side salad

Wild sockeye salmon (bought frozen and thawed), pan fried for 3 minutes per side on medium heat. Simple seasoning, olive oil and salt

Side salad: mixed greens, apple, olives, grated Parmesan, roasted romanesco, oil, vinegar, and salt

Bowl of yogurt

Strauss European Style yogurt is my favorite. My mom and I discovered it on a trip in Wyoming at a cool little breakfast spot. Luckily my local grocer, Natural Grocers, sells it.

6 spoonfuls of yogurt

Almonds, walnuts, pecans, Brazil nuts

1 date, 2 prunes

1/2 tangerine

Sprinkle of chia seeds

Splash of homemade almond milk

Perfect way, to start the day.

Fruit and Veggie Pulp Chips

My girlfriend has been juicing a lot recently, which extracts a lot of the fruit or veggies nutrients and leaves behind excess pulp (fiber) that usually goes to waste.

We’re always looking for ways to reduce waste, so this week she used the pulp and made these veggie chips.

She added spices, soy sauce, and ground flax seed to the pulp, and then formed it in to chip shapes, and placed them in the dehydrator for 12 hours.

We woke up to these healthy, tasty, and crispy chips.

A light healthy snack: Apple, Nuts, Nut Butter Drizzle

Long day today after a long week. I didn’t get to workout until 5 pm. I finished at 6, did some other chores, and before I knew it it was 6:45.

I wanted a snack before a late dinner, so this is what I had.

3/4 sliced apple. Pecans, almonds, walnuts, Brazil nuts. Drizzle of Nutzo Keto Nut Butter.

Glass of soy milk.

I love nut butter, and I’ve been eating a ton of it recently, but in reality is is a processed food. In this case that means, to me at least, that I’m not getting the digestive benefits of having to chew and digest a nut. So, I cut back the nut butter and added more nuts.

I have no idea how much of a difference it makes, if any, but I think there has to be some logic to it.

Anyway, this is a nice healthy snack that’s okay to indulge in.

Cheers

Big Boy Breakfast Because It’s Almost Lunch

I went to bed hungry, which means I woke up hungry. I woke up at 6 am. Worked out from 9 - 10:30 am. I finally sat down to eat at 11 am. I was hungry, so I started with this.

Crock pot chicken, crock pot beets, sautéed mushrooms, avocado, boiled broccoli, chopped red onion, and chopped red cabbage. I put on a dressing made of olive oil, fig balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, sriracha, dijon mustard, pickle juice, and salt.

But after finishing it I was still hungry and I knew I had a long day of packing ahead of me, so I had this.

Overnight chia (2 tbsp of whole milk yogurt, 2 tbsp of chia, 1/2 cup soy milk), coconut flakes, ground flaxseed, frozen blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, brazil nuts, walnuts, almonds, pecans.

I’ve recently been thinking about the advice of “eat a big breakfast, and taper the rest of your meals throughout the day.” I think this is bad advice for the majority of people. Most people nowadays sit behind a desk for their work. And, most people fail to get the daily recommended amount of exercise each day (which still wouldn’t be enough to justify a big breakfast). Between those two factors, desk jobs and not exercising, I think it’s foolish for most people to eat a big breakfast.

Big breakfasts are reserved for people who perform manual labor, or who are professional athletes. In other words, people who need and are going to use the fuel. For the rest of us, eat a normal sized breakfast. Today was an exception for me, but on most days I go for 3 equal sized meals, and minimal snacking on fruit and nuts.

Cheers to your practice.

Side Dish: Sautéed Mushrooms

One package of organic white mushrooms and one package of organic baby bellas. Cut the mushrooms In half and put them in a bowl.

Chop two slices of red onion and chop two cloves of garlic. Add them to the bowl.

Melt 1 tbsp of butter in a separate bowl and add 2 tbsp of olive oil, 1 tsp of salt, 1 tsp of chili powder. Mix it all together.

Add the butter, oil, and slices to the mushrooms, garlic and onion, and toss until coated.

Bring a pan to medium heat. Add the mushroom mixture, 2 tbsp of water, and cover. Cook for 5 minutes.

Uncover and toss. Let cook for another 4 minutes uncovered.

Dinner: Empty the refrigerator

Left, going clockwise:

Mix of leftover vegetables: roasted pepper, boiled broccoli, roasted potatoes with cheese and bacon jowl, roasted chickpeas.

Wild cod marinated in olive oil, butter, salt, chili pepper, chipotle pepper, coated with coconut flour, and pan fried. Topped with homemade tomato sauce: chopped red and white onion that we’re going bad, chopped garlic, leftover tomato paste from soup, chopped fresh tomato, olive oil, salt, parsley, water.

Spinach and arugula salad with olive oil, salt, fig balsamic vinegar, lemon squeeze.

Why it’s important to have food ready to go

I got back from a bike ride at 11:05 am. I saw I had an email from a Craigslist seller I was trying to buy dumbbells from. He said he’d be available until noon.

His house was 35 mins away, and I still needed to stop for cash. But I was hungry. I hadn’t eaten yet, and I had just finished my longest bike ride in months.

So I opened the fridge and through this tupperware together.

Ground beef burger. Roasted pepper. Chopped asparagus. Sliced tomatoes. Olives. Olive oil, salt, red wine vinegar, and apple cider vinegar.

It’s moments like these that show why preparing food ahead of time, having leftovers, is so important. If I didn’t have anything to eat I’d either skipped the meal, or grabbed something like a bar. Both not great choices when you’re hungry after a workout.