Quick & Easy

Hope you had a great August, a nice Labor Day and have begun to enjoy a slight cooling of the weather as I have. My apologies for such a gaping hole on my blog, for, eh, the entire month of August. I travelled abroad for work and while I've been home for well over a month, it's taken me this long to get back to my blog. But alas, I'm here, so let's dig in.

Somehow, since I last wrote in July, our kitchen has been taken over by "Quick & Easy" recipes like chicken noodle casserole, pizza casserole, broiled chicken and how do I make this sound better??? cheeseburger pasta (don't knock it 'til you try it).

Real food supporter that I am, and fresh, local ingredients lover that I am, I just wasn't able to keep every single ball in my life afloat this summer. So the ball that seemed easiest and most necessary to drop was the restaurant-quality-weeknight-dinners-at-home-that-will-inspire-healthy-eating-habits-for-life-in-my-daughter ball. Just like that, I let it go. 

Not surprisingly, my meal-planning stress diminished dramatically (though so did the quality of my recipes). Sure, I still daydream about the next batch of chicken picatta I'll make or the strawberry scones I've been wanting to bake since I did many months ago.  But for now, I've surrendered to the "Quick & Easy" recipes nestled on the back of inspiring things such as Ketchup (don't ask how this happened because I don't know). 

In the time it's taken me to embrace "Quick & Easy" recipes, draft a blog post about it and move on, my schedule has calmed down a bit. It's given me a chance to catch my breath and somehow I've actually found myself puttering around in the kitchen with a smile on my face during my daughter's naps. Since this foodie side of me is re-emerging, I definitely considered keeping this Cheeseburger Pasta post very far away from this blog, but that didn't seem honest. The space on this blog is about opening up my kitchen cabinets and showing you what it means to eat normally. No diets, no gimmicks, no pretending to be someone I'm not. And this summer, sushi class and all, I was not the inspired cook I once was. My weight, energy level and overall well-being were not shattered. Just an image of "blog-worthy" meals. Whatever that means.

But back to our beloved "Cheeseburger Pasta."  The first time I cooked it, I was quite certain that I might not be able to stomach the dish myself, but decided to give it a go simply because I didn't have the energy to cook anything else. Simply out of curiosity, I scooped up a tiny bite out of the pan. "OMG! It's actually kind of good," I think I said out loud. Not gourmet, mind you. But A-OK and oddly satisfying.

Since my last post back in June, I'm embarrassed to say that we've made Cheeseburger Pasta at least three or four times. It's certainly not the most inspired or noteworthy meal in our recipe box, but let's take a look: we use multigrain pasta, which provides a nice amount of fiber, plus we're getting protein from the turkey and calcium from the cheese, plus a big pile of fresh veggies on the side. 

So there you have it. Eat when you're hungry. Cook what you have the energy to cook. And stop beating yourself up about it.  I promise to have more inspired posts coming soon.  

Hugs and happy cooking.

**My cooking photos took a back-seat this summer too, so rather than include an image that logically relates to this post (because I don't have one), I'm sharing a picture of pad thai noodles that I enjoyed during my trip abroad**

**If you're curious about this Cheeseburger Pasta, here is the recipe. Our modifications are: use ground turkey instead of beef, and shredded cheddar cheese instead of "processed cheese spread." I don't even know what that is.**

Give Up Illusion of Perfection

I was talking to someone about Wheat Thins recently, and mentioned that I ate way too many of them one time and got a horrible stomach ache. He said, “But aren’t you supposed to be an expert in intuitive eating (i.e., not “overdo it” on things like that)?”
 
I immediately felt defensive inside until I stepped back and realized this was excellent material for a blog post.

One of my favorite treats (tin was empty by the time I thought to take a picture)Yes, I am an expert in intuitive eating given that I’m a certified intuitive eating counselor and a certified wellness coach. That doesn’t mean I’m perfect. It means that, for the most part, I am very in tune with my body and know how to respond to the hunger and fullness signals I get on a regular basis. It also means I am fairly well-versed in working with people who are not currently intuitive eaters but want to be. But – I’ll say it again – I’m not perfect.
 
I think it’s very easy for experts to fall into the illusion of perfection. Child development experts know how to communicate effectively with toddlers, so certainly they’ve never lost their patience with their own children, right? Psychotherapists know the inner workings of the human psyche so when they find themselves in emotionally turbulent situations they respond gracefully, right?  And intuitive eating counselors certainly stop eating at the perfect moment of satisfaction – not too hungry, but not too full – at every meal, right? Wrong!
 
If I’ve become an expert at one thing throughout my own journey to become an intuitive eater – and counselor – it’s been to learn how to give up the illusion of perfection.  For the most part, I do listen to my body.  I eat when I’m hungry, and I stop when I’m satisfied.  I also have come to realize how certain foods make my body feel and keep that in mind when preparing meals (or ordering them at restaurants).  That said, I’m human. 
 
As you know, the speed of my eating increased exponentially when I had my daughter because a) I was ravenous all the time, and b) there’s only so much time you have to eat when you’ve got a newborn in your lap about ready to eat again, herself (or need a diaper change).  Once my appetite evened out and I had a bit more time to enjoy my meals, I had to take a time out and re-tune in to a more mindful way of eating.
 
Similarly, when I’m stressed I’ve found that my eating changes somewhat.  Often it involves more processed foods, and yes, sometimes it means noshing on something salty that comes in a bag that, when eaten beyond a certain point, gives me a stomach-ache!  But let’s see, what other food “confessions” can I make: at Passover seder this year, I had to taste each of the desserts despite the fact that I was pleasantly full from the main meal. When my mom baked me lemon-rosemary scones a few weeks ago, I ate two of them (they were big!) after a full week-day lunch because they were so good. And she dropped them off at my office. And they were fresh. And yummy!
 
The funny thing is, I think a few un-intuitive experiences now and then are actually….entirely intuitive!  I think they are all a part of normal eating.  To splurge now and then because we want to is OK.  When my daughter is old enough to bake me chocolate chip cookies for mother’s day, you better believe I will eat one (or three) even if I’m not officially hungry for them just to show her how much I appreciate the gesture (and because they’ll likely be fresh from the oven, which you can’t recreate the next day when you’re finally hungry for said cookies).  For me, these experiences are all part of being mindful and free with food.  To be any other way makes me feel trapped and unable to listen to my body when I want to. 
 
Keep in mind that there are many a treat in the office that I turn down because I’m just not hungry for them.  There are times when my husband wants dessert and I don’t (and vice versa).  And there are times when my last meal ended at such a pleasantly satisfying moment, that I can’t ruin it with even a taste of anything until my body is ready to eat again.  I listen to my body in those instances, and on a daily basis, I’m very in tune with my hunger and fullness signals – I honor both. 
 
But, I’m not perfect.  I enjoy being not-perfect.  It’s just so much more interesting.