Taking from where I left last, I simply adore Rujuta Diwekar. I mean I haven’t found many who make as much sense as she does when she talks about food, eating and loving oneself. And she is the one who doesn’t make you feel guilty about weighing so many kilos, having a sweet tooth, loving cheese, having an occasional cheat meal and so on! While I totally buy the fact about eating every 2 to 3 hours, and that we should choose healthy eating options, I have come to realise that finding healthy options can be a very tricky task.
A while ago, I did this webinar by Eric Edmeades of Wildfit. These 40 minutes that I spent listening to him, were an eye opener of sorts. He reiterated some facts that I already knew somewhere deep down, but my mind had not taken conscious cognizance of them and then they just lay there gathering dust and cluttering my mental hard disk. Eric talked about being conscious about what you eat; eat mindfully and your weight will take care of itself and your overall health will improve too.
The biggest enemy of our general ill health and also weight gain is the amount of hidden sugar we consume. Almost all packaged foods contain sugar in varied percentages that we do not account for while measuring our daily quota of sugar intake. Ever since I heard Eric talk, studying the list of ingredients of all packaged food I have purchased has become a favourite activity. And it really is shocking to know the amount of sugar we end up consuming with some of the so called “healthy” packaged food items that we take.
Your favourite malt -chocolate energy supplement you add to kids’ milk every morning that screams extra Vitamins, Extra Protein and what not to make your kid healthy, strong, taller, sharper and smarter; has sugar as the primary ingredient on their list.
How about our kids’ favourite breakfast cereal – chocolate or strawberry flavoured or brownie flavoured? I have shockingly become aware that these contain sugar as one the top three ingredients.
Let’s look at a particular breakfast cereal that promises slimmer waists to women if you have two bowls daily. Now this one, I betted with myself, would definitely not have added sugar. Bummer!!!! Sugar again figured in the top three!! So much for all those love handles you have earned, women!!
Advertisements are going to keep screaming at me and store displays going to keep tempting me. And I might even continue to give in to them once a way. But I am glad that I have woken my mind to become consciously aware of what the reality is. And as I continue to give more importance to my new favourite activity, I am becoming more mindful and aware about the real health quotient of each packaged item I consume and it is automatically making me reduce my intake of these and as a result even their purchase.
Hope my new found mindfulness is going to reap benefits in the long run.
Nothing can replace the goodness of home cooked delicious meals especially because of the love and care that goes into preparing them.
A healthy Risotto recipe is what I tried recently… The Red Risotto… as I call it; let me share my experience with you guys!
To get going we need,
1 cup Risotto rice# (or any short thick grained rice is good)
2 tbsp Olive oil
1 onion chopped
2 tsp Garlic, finely chopped
2 cups of cut veggies (Beetroot, Broccoli, Carrot)
½ cup White wine
2 tsp Basil leaves, chopped
½ tsp dried thyme or 1 tsp of fresh thyme, chopped
½ tsp dried crushed rosemary
2 cups vegetable /chicken stock
1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp pepper
Salt to taste
2-3 Parsley twigs for garnish
Note: Do not wash or soak the rice before using for this dish
Heat olive oil in a pan, add onion and garlic and sauté till light brown. Add the veggies and the herbs (basil, thyme, rosemary) and stir fry for about 2 minutes. Add the rice and stir fry for 2-3 minutes again. Add white wine, simmer for 2-3 minutes then add the stock, pepper and salt. Mix well. Cover the pan with a lid that has a steam outlet. Cook the rice al dente, stirring occasionally. Add parmesan cheese at this stage, mix well and cook for a minute or so.
Garnish with Parsley sprigs and your Risotto is ready to serve. Garlic bread can be a delightful accompaniment to complete a Risotto meal.
You may want to try your Risotto with chicken or shrimps and mushrooms, beans, asparagus, cherry tomatoes, spinach, peas and so on. Try using cheddar or feta with the mushrooms, it turns out delicious.
Go try your version…. And I will see you soon with more!
Yummy Expressions 