"The Vegetannual" by Richard A. HouserI would love to tweak our eating habits around here, but it's tough going when it's not just my own palette to please. We've been thinking about joining a meat CSA (yep, you read that right) because we have an insistent carnivore here whose face pales at the mere mention of cutting back on meat in the house. I on the other hand could survive happily on black beans and brown rice, fruits of all kinds, veggies (especially roasted - all veggies are delicious when roasted), and a few other non-meat articles thrown in. I do admit to appreciating some homemade bbq chicken and really do like prosciutto on my pizza. And dairy products are somewhat hard to imagine life without (though Mbird doesn't seem to handle dairy so well so I've cut back) - but I love thick organic plain yogurt, cow and sheep milk cheeses, and of course (real) ice cream.
The problem I see is how do we eat more responsibly for the earth and still meet our cravings/enjoy eating? And how do I keep Jared from having a hissy when I bring up eating less, but better quality, red meat? He gets that it's an important concept but thinks I'm being a little one sided. If he has to cut back on meat products, what am I going to cut back on? Good question! I'm not sure where to start with this one...it suggests I don't have perfect eating habits ;o)
Anyway, this is a neat snippet (sort of related) that I read this morning. Some great thoughts on food, and wonderful ideas about dealing with food pickyness! Good stuff.
"What’s the magic trick? Lie. Like a rug. Lie to yourself. Lie to your kids (but don’t do in an obvious way - kids are really not stupid). Explore your acting talent. You are going to convince yourself to not only like X hated food (one at a time), you are going to enjoy it. So the first step is to tell yourself you will like it, and to eat a little. Trust me, it won’t kill you. Try the kindergarten method - three bites. And then keep putting it on your plate. Smile at it. Think friendly thoughts. Think how wonderful it is to try something new. Think how lucky you are to have it. Find something you like about the taste."
And for the rest of the article go here. Named Casaubon's Book - Sharon Astyk’s Ruminations on an Ambiguous Future - I like her blog quite a bit.
One thing I should note is that we do grow some of our own food (wait'll you see our gigantic watermelon photos) and we buy mostly organic - I just feel like there's more to it than that. We also try hard to eat seasonally. It's been pretty tough to give up eating bananas year round, but we've begun to appreciate what's ready and ripe now (melons! figs! apples!). Bananas aren't so tempting when I have figs within arms reach of Mbird's window. One of my biggest inspirations on seasonal eating was Barbara Kingsolver's book, "Animal Vegetable Miracle". Very much recommend it - she's a terrific writer.
But I still don't know what's for dinner tonight! Any ideas? I'm looking at my trusty black beans and rice :o) Sorry Jared! Maybe I'll figure out how to finagle some egg in there, or maybe some bacon - you'd love that wouldn't you?
xo, devon
1 comment:
This is a tough one. I think we all end up having different tastes and preferences when it comes to food. The real heart of the argument boils down to cost. Organic grass fed meats are expensive - so is organic milk, fruit, eggs etc. When this was first brought up it started with "man our grocery bills are getting out of hand, I wonder how we can cut back... I know buy less meat!" Yes I had a hissy, because the first and only option mentioned was to cut back on meat. The best thing would have been to look at the costs objectively and highlight some of the less necessary and extravagant expenses from a receipt and vow not to buy them again. Neither of us did that though so an "intense conversation" ensued.
Am I opposed to eating less meat - not necessarily, but it means there has to be a more conscious effort to make meals that taste good. You have to admit, tossing chicken on a grill and BBQing them is quick, easy and tasty. It's harder to make a veggie meal as good as fast (in my opinion). Also its harder for me to make the dinner myself which I can do when grilling is involved, or I'm making my trusty chili recipe. See the cook loves to cook what the cook loves to eat. I don't think anyone's preference is right or wrong but if you ask someone to eat outside there preference something has to give. Maybe that something is more thorough preparation of the meal so it appeals to everyone.
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