Pizza Fixin's

No gluten? No problem!

Amy's makes a gluten free, rice crust cheese pizza that- after a bit of doctoring up- is just as good, if not better, as your run of the mill frozen pizza. Right off the bat, the texture of the crust might seem a tad off but after the first slice it's barely noticeable.



Now the fun part! Toppings. For my pizza I chose to add some:

• pesto
• kalamata olive tapenade
• goat cheese
• chicken

The best part about frozen pizzas are the endless topping possibilities. When I am home for breaks, my dad and I enjoy digging through the fridge to find as many toppings as we can and try out weird combos; relish, sriracha and crunchy peanut butter have all had their close ups during our weird pie escapades. ...but seriously. the options are endless. 

• mushrooms
• shrimp
• tomatoes
• potato chips
• peppers
• peperoncinis
• prosciutto
• onions 

You get the idea. 

Here are the results of my simple but delicious dinner:

Nom. 

Just a fair warning, I have also tried Udi's gluten free frozen pizza....don't even bother. It's terrible compared to Amy's. However, Amy's gluten free DAIRY free frozen pizza is depressing. Don't bother with that either, no bueno. 

Happy pizza-ing!

-A

The Virgin Diet

   
Introduction: Over my past 3 years in college, I have noticed my stomach continuously rebelling against he food I have been eating. It was only until this January that I decided to do something about it: The Virgin Diet. Named after its creator- J.J. Virgin, this diet instructs the reader to cut out the following 7 items out of their diets for 21 days and then re-introduce each one at a time, for one week, and then eliminating it again. This is simply to test your body and find out which foods you are more sensitive to.

1. Gluten
2. Dairy
3. Added Sugar
4. Corn
5. Soy
6. Peanuts
7. Eggs

Preparation:

I went through my stash of food and got rid of everything that did not coincide with my new guidelines.  My next grocery trip was the most difficult, time consuming trip I have ever made. It shocked me how many of these 7 ingredients were in almost everything I would purchase normally- especially soy, so is EVERYWHERE.

During:

I returned with a bounty of mainly whole fruits and vegetables, chicken, rice, hummus and some gluten/dairy free almond crackers. Seems easy, but then next week was full of withdraws- which are warned about in the book- and weird energy swings- also warned about.

Within a few days I noticed a definite reduction in water retention and a gradual overall weight loss. Over the first week I lost around 5 pounds and around the beginning of the second week, my energy levels evened out. The cravings started to subside and it became fairly easy to stick to.

Reintroduction:

Gluten: Of course, the first thing I could not wait to eat again was pasta. I made a large pot and scarfed it down. About a half hour later my stomach was yelling at me and gurgling up a storm.

Dairy/Eggs : I was relieved to find that dairy and I still get along.

Sugar: Although sugar did not upset my stomach when re introduced, I have chosen to limit my intake and stick to low glycemic sweeteners to avoid blood sugar spikes.

Corn: Corn was tolerable in terms of "stomach storms".

Peanuts: Another favorite of mine: peanut butter is now unfortunately out of my life permanently. R.I.P.

Soy: No bueno. Never again.


Results:

While I can definitely say I was disappointed to find out tat gluten and peanuts would be cut from my diet for a long long time, I have come to find that finding alternatives is not a difficult task- if you are open minded. Thankfully, my issue with gluten is only an intolerance and not Celiac. I have welcomed corn tortillas and rice pasta into my life and have had very little problems adjusting.

The Virgin Diet is not just recommended for people who are trying to pin point their intolerances. It is also viewed as a cleanse of sorts and is recommended at least once a year even if you are intolerance free. I suggest giving it a go!

Here is the link to the book:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Virgin-Diet-Foods-Pounds/dp/0373892713/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1367295595&sr=8-1&keywords=the+virgin+diet


Good Luck!

-A




   

4:2:13

Paper Topic Responses:

     Megan's topic is about food international taboos. She is choosing to focus more specifically on African, Indian and other Asian delicacies that we in America might view as inedible or "gross". I think it's a good topic to choose due to the fact that it lends itself to researching how what we are taught while we are growing up effects our future mentality. I would be interested to hear what sort of things we eat that other countries find disgusting. Additionally I would be interested to hear about which delicacies are eaten on a daily basis and which were saved for special occasions and why.


     Carrie's paper will be focused on salmon farming. The benefits, the drawbacks and what has and will be changed. I am particularly interested in this subject because my family and I eat a good amount of salmon and other fish. We try to buy wild caught but when that is not available, it would be nice to know more about what we are putting into our bodies. I know that recently farmers have begun feeding their fish corn...which fish aren't meant to digest...and would be interested in how it affects the fish in terms of the nutrients we get out of it.

William's paper will discuss the Michelin Star System and Guide. His presentation on the subject was very intriguing and since I had never even heard of this restaurant rating system I found myself wanting to know more and more about it. I was glad to hear that while his paper is focused around this system, he didn't choose to praise it, he chose to introduce the rather recent counter culture that refuses to be defined by three star confinement. It would be cool if William actually chose to go to a three star restaurant as well as a "rebellion" restaurant and have him do a mini critique and comparison.

2:27:13

I have been thinking about what topic I want to research for my food research paper and these are the topics I have come up with as possibilities so far:

1. Lunch programs in public schools. How have they evolved? What changes will they undergo in the near future? What has changed in the way of nutritional value? How many schools prepare fresh lunch vs pre packaged? Does that change based on the region of the US? Why? What programs exist that are focused on changing school lunch programs for the better? Are child obesity rates higher in regions that refuse to prepare fresh lunches for their kids? What kind of programs exist in the case where a child cannot afford to buy lunch but is in line to get lunch? Is it cheaper for a parent to buy lunch tickets (or what ever sort of program set up is available) than it is to buy healthy foods to pack for their child lunch?

2. Food allergies. How are they developed over time? Which ones are most likely genetically passed down? Is there a way to prevent them? How does acupuncture work to resolve said allergies? Are there foods that we should remove from our diets permanently regardless if we are allergic or not? Does cutting gout gluten prevent you from getting sick? If you are not allergic to gluten is cutting it out of your diet harmful or does it have a neutral affect? At what rate have reported cases of food allergies been rising or declining?

3. Dairy. Why do we still drink milk? Is it actually beneficial to us? What are the fallacies in the drink milk message? Why are we they only mammal species that consumes milk after the nursing period? what are the negative affects of milk? what are the positive? can we get the same nutrition from other sources? why are we still able to digest it?

So far I am leaning towards the first two but they are all of interest to me.

2:19:13

A response to the documentary: The Future Of Food :

I was enraged.
I felt betrayed.


I honestly had zero idea that the industrial farming industry has become far more corrupt and warped than I had already had knowledge of. It disgusts me that something as essential and seemingly basic as our food is now mainly run by down right greedy corporations. While the facades of small town farmers are plastered everywhere in a super market from the store's logo to the egg cartons, to the strawberry containers aren't fooling anyone, I still had hope. This documentary brought to light the fact that the community and trading aspect of farming is nearly gone. Despite the smaller counter revolutions of farmer's markets and local weekly produce membership clubs, those who do not have access to such a privilege are sucked into the industrial trap.

The ending fades out with the narrators voice stating that "It's up to you" and then leaves you with the documentary's website for more information. I sat there with a blank look on my face and spoke out loud to the screen "But what do I have to do to get involved?! You can just leave me with a prophecy and then fade to black!" Once I took the liberty to actually go to their website and check it out, I found an entire page of organizations who are fighting for the preservation of food in its original genetic state.

The least I am planning on doing is signing some sort of petition if not get involved in a more hands on way. While slightly corny at times- excuse the pun- I found that this film was effective, eye opening and persuading. It wasn't the most visually pleasing but it definitely had a lot of valuable information to present.

2.12.13

A response to the third section of Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilema:



I found this last section of the book to be the most compelling. It's what I have been waiting for. The application of the omnivore's dilemma into Michael Pollan's life. I am always fascinated to hear about peoples' journeys with diet choices they aren't familiar with. I feel like there is a lot of self re-evaluating and cultural re-evaluating that takes place.

I was most drawn into the chapter about hunting. The way he ends up describing it even turns myself on to the idea. His writing romanticizes the process and turns it into an almost sexy experience. He catches himself doing this and even laughs at himself for doing so with out any irony, but I definitely understood what he meant by "hunter porn". The experience forces you to engage all five of your senses and reduces you down to your primitive roots as well as connects you with the energy of your surroundings and the earth you're kneeling on. Of course, as nice as it would be to be able to go out and hunt for dinner each week, if we all indulged, there wouldn't be any game left to hunt.

Now don't get me wrong, I am, as Pollan put it, one of those "animal people" but I think that hunting with the intention of fully utilizing the animal is a beautiful thing. We are after all predators and a part of a food chain....Maybe, instead of feed lot animals being put on a conveyor belt for slaughter, we should put them in a pasture where the public can come and "hunt" their dinner, take it home or ...to a cleaning station..and proceed to take it home and eat it.   .....is that sick and twisted? Somehow I'm cringing while writing this. I suppose it would be difficult manning an animal 3 times the size of you trying to haul it home in your suburban... but the idea is similar to that of a stocked lake. Fish are dumped into the lake for fishermen to catch. They dock their boats, take them to a cleaning station and return home with tonight's dinner.

I digress. Pollan's mushroom gathering seemed like more work than it was worth. The constant looking at the ground and "screen saver" image burnt into your mind while you try to sleep just seems nauseating. I am sure the redemption must feel great but I would far rather pay someone to do it for me.

The most meaningful quote in this book is at the very end of the book. Naturally, it sums up his thesis, but its simplicity was key. It reads, " ...we eat by the grace of nature, not industry, and what we're eating is never anything more or less than the body of the world." ( 411).

His final chapter goes through the cooking of his completely scavenged meal. It brings to light the essence of living. While it is not practical to live or eat the way this dish came to be, I think it would be a beneficial thing for everyone to do at some point in their life to help them connect with the earth and ground them as a human being. He indicates that his guests spoke to each other about food, yes, but not about restaurants. They spoke of animals and species and gardening. I found this interesting. By scouring forest floors for mushrooms, hunting for dinner and capturing yeast in the wild, these people- obviously- are so much more grateful for the food that they eat and appreciate it.  Eating is fundamentally so much more than sticking your hand into a bag of Cheetos for an afternoon snack.

1:29:13

A response to the first section of Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma: 

This first section of this book focuses on corn.

Its history,
the industry that surrounds it,
its place in our lives.

While reading this section, I found myself temporarily tranced, relating to the draw of corn through its strange versatility and even stranger genetic possibilities. We have manipulated it to serve us, and to a certain extent I think it has become too much of a good thing and we have slowly started to use it against us...but when a plant is so willingly malleable to our every need, why not take advantage of it, right?

It is sad to me that something that was once so sacred and bowed down upon has been engulfed into a storm of modern genetic voodoo that has caused this cash crop to become more of a monster than a god.

This portion of the book also goes into the feeding of livestock, which reenforced my already existent philosophy about the amount of meat America consumes.

I, myself have been what I like to call a "flexatarian" for several years now. This means that 95% of the year I stick to a fish and plant based diet and venture into the meat realm a select few dates in the year.

Being half Greek, it is difficult to resist the call of a rack of lamb when you are home for the holidays.

Originally, becoming a flexatarian was a lifestyle choice I made to be a little healthier and seeing as high cholesterol runs in my family, I just thought it would be a good idea. I found myself slipping in and out of this diet because the motive was not strong enough of a backing for me. I was unmotivated and quickly forgot why I even started this silly diet.

 A few more documentaries and a couple hours of self reflection later, I came to the conclusion that the unbearable treatment of modern livestock was a far more powerful reminder of why I choose to eat the way I do rather than my previous excuses:

"Oh, it's healthy"
"Oh, my friends are doing it."

Americans now take the massive quantities of meat available EVERYWHERE for granted. It is too easily accessible and must become something that is a little more sought after through taking the time to choose a cut of meat at a real butcher counter, not handed to you in 2 minutes flat at a drive through window.

It would make a drastic difference in Americans health wise if meat was a little bit more of a delicacy or reserved for holidays and special occasions, Sunday dinner, that sort of thing...but Sunday dinner hardly exists anymore. Our culture is so focused on

fast
cheap
tasty
value meals

that

family time,
skilled farmers,
and valued meals
are completely lost.




-A