food as medicine.

The doctor of the future will give no medicine but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet and in the cause and prevention of disease.

– Thomas Edison

food is powerful.

THE FORK IS YOUR MOST POWERFUL TOOL TO CHANGE YOUR HEALTH AND THE PLANET;  FOOD IS THE MOST POWERFUL MEDICINE TO HEAL CHRONIC ILLNESS.

– DR. MARK HYMAN

oh crap, what’s for dinner?

May 19, 2012

i love to cook, i love to try new recipes and create new dishes, but let’s be honest…i am a busy self-employed mom.  i don’t sit around all day and dream of the meal i am creating that evening.  more often than not, i will be busily working away editing photos or designing something (my kids afternoon naps are my main office time) and i will realize that it is approaching 4:30 and i don’t have a clue what we are having for dinner and that’s my daily “oh, crap” moment.  we have been facing this even more in the last 2 weeks (and can foresee it getting worse for a bit) as we just randomly sold our house (which we had taken off the market 6 month ago) and don’t have a clue at the moment where we are moving to.  three years ago, when we faced busy (or busier) waves in our lives, we would simply grab a pizza or fast food, so how do we avoid that now?  how do i keep healthy, wholesome meals in my kids when i don’t have time to spend in the kitchen?

my simple rule: don’t keep junk in the pantry or house or it is way to tempting when you are on the go.  instead, i make sure my freezer is stocked with grass-fed beef, free-range chickens and a supply of wild caught fish.  i always have a variety of organic frozen veggies and every weekend we stock up on fresh veggies/fruit for the week.

here is a typical last minute dinner in our house:

  • grass-fed burgers topped with tomatoes (we typically lettuce wrap them, but of course i was out of lettuce)
  • frozen organic broccoli (lightly steamed and topped with coconut oil and sea salt)
  • grilled zucchini spears (drizzled with olive or coconut oil, sea salt & pepper)
  • and dessert? well that was a jar of unsweetened applesauce that we canned last fall (we were a bit ambitious with our canning) and applesauce makes a frequent appearance at dinner

all of this was prepared in less than 15 minutes, (quicker than a drive-thru run) and easily for less than $10 for our entire family.  yes, it  is not a culinary masterpiece, or an amazing and unique combination of flavors, but it is simple, fast and still delicious.