Monday, April 28th
Healthful eating is not an easy task. Nor is losing weight. Even harder is maintaining weight loss.
I know I am not saying anything that you haven't heard before. But some things can stand repeating. I make the above remarks from experience. I consider myself a near expert on weight loss and an expert on weight gain. I can blame my genes, or my metabolism or all the delicious food that there is in this world - but I have no one to blame myself.
I know, it is Monday morning and I am depressing you. Also you might be thinking, "Oh its Monday," and "here is another person talking about starting another diet. How original". Wait. Wait. Before you write me off as another nut - I want to say that I have been on this particular weight loss journey since early January of this year. That makes it almost 4 months since I have been on this weight loss track. A pleasant bonus of this particular weight loss journey has been the ability for me to quit smoking. All this is very exciting to me.
As I look back over these 4 months I am trying to figure out what was different this time. Why will it stick this time? How can I make sure that things will stick this time?
In the coming weeks, months, and who knows ... years, I would like to document my triumphs and roadblocks to weight loss and ultimately healthful living.
Have you ever tried to lose weight? What was most helpful to you and conversely - what was most challenging?
Until I eat again!
April 28, 2008
April 25, 2008
April 25th, 2008
I have always been skeptical of people who wake up every morning and eat breakfast. No muss no fuss. No thinking what exactly they should have. They don't think that they should save all their calories for the rest of the day. They just wake up and eat fruit, or a piece of toast, oatmeal, or an egg - and go about their day.
Well, I think I now understand what these 'breakfast eating' people are up to. I too have been trying to eat breakfast every day. What it has done for me is set a tone for the rest of the day. In my mind, I have started the new day with the intention of eating mindfully all day. Scientists or nutritionists may say that by eating breakfast I have just kick started my metabolic machine for the day. That may be true. All I know is that when I eat breakfast I tend to make better choices about what I eat for the rest of the day.
What do you think of the importance of breakfast? Do you eat it reluctantly, or feel that it is an important meal of your day? And what do you like to eat for breakfast?
Since I am new to this breakfast game, I usually have 1 toasted piece of bread with some peanut butter, or cereal with a banana. Occasionally, I will have an egg or oatmeal.
Until we eat again!
I have always been skeptical of people who wake up every morning and eat breakfast. No muss no fuss. No thinking what exactly they should have. They don't think that they should save all their calories for the rest of the day. They just wake up and eat fruit, or a piece of toast, oatmeal, or an egg - and go about their day.
Well, I think I now understand what these 'breakfast eating' people are up to. I too have been trying to eat breakfast every day. What it has done for me is set a tone for the rest of the day. In my mind, I have started the new day with the intention of eating mindfully all day. Scientists or nutritionists may say that by eating breakfast I have just kick started my metabolic machine for the day. That may be true. All I know is that when I eat breakfast I tend to make better choices about what I eat for the rest of the day.
What do you think of the importance of breakfast? Do you eat it reluctantly, or feel that it is an important meal of your day? And what do you like to eat for breakfast?
Since I am new to this breakfast game, I usually have 1 toasted piece of bread with some peanut butter, or cereal with a banana. Occasionally, I will have an egg or oatmeal.
Until we eat again!
April 24, 2008
Thursday, April 24th
Yesterday I found myself in desperate need for lunch. I needed somewhere quiet to sit down after shopping. I needed something cheap, quick and remotely healthful. So I decided upon Cosi on 6th Avenue and 22nd street. I was scanning the sandwiches menu and saw 2 rows of numbers. One row had numbers mostly like 7.50 and 8.25 and the other row had numbers like 508, 710 and 1120. Upon closer inspection I realized that one row were the prices and the other was the calorie count of each item. I rushed the scanning/deciding process while the person behind the counter kept calling out to help the next guest. I settled on the light pesto chicken wrap at 508 calories I believe. I was then asked if I wanted carrot sticks or kettle fried potato chips. I picked the chips feeling somewhat virtuous having picked the 508 calorie sandwich.
I will not comment on the sandwich here - my lunch was pretty close to what I was looking for. Quick, relatively affordable and I had a quiet and cool place to sit down for about 30 minutes before I had to go out in the craziness that can be 6th Avenue. I appreciated knowing that I ate approximately 750 calories for lunch. What I do with that information is up to me.
I know there is controversy about the calorie listing on menus right now-I am sure both sides of the argument has its merits. Upon not too much thought... I am all in favor of it.
Watch me change my mind very soon...OR not.
What are your feelings towards calorie postings in fast food joints? What has been your experience with it? Please do tell.
Until we eat again.
Yesterday I found myself in desperate need for lunch. I needed somewhere quiet to sit down after shopping. I needed something cheap, quick and remotely healthful. So I decided upon Cosi on 6th Avenue and 22nd street. I was scanning the sandwiches menu and saw 2 rows of numbers. One row had numbers mostly like 7.50 and 8.25 and the other row had numbers like 508, 710 and 1120. Upon closer inspection I realized that one row were the prices and the other was the calorie count of each item. I rushed the scanning/deciding process while the person behind the counter kept calling out to help the next guest. I settled on the light pesto chicken wrap at 508 calories I believe. I was then asked if I wanted carrot sticks or kettle fried potato chips. I picked the chips feeling somewhat virtuous having picked the 508 calorie sandwich.
I will not comment on the sandwich here - my lunch was pretty close to what I was looking for. Quick, relatively affordable and I had a quiet and cool place to sit down for about 30 minutes before I had to go out in the craziness that can be 6th Avenue. I appreciated knowing that I ate approximately 750 calories for lunch. What I do with that information is up to me.
I know there is controversy about the calorie listing on menus right now-I am sure both sides of the argument has its merits. Upon not too much thought... I am all in favor of it.
Watch me change my mind very soon...OR not.
What are your feelings towards calorie postings in fast food joints? What has been your experience with it? Please do tell.
Until we eat again.
April 22, 2008
I attended a talk at the Rubin Museum of Art last Wednesday (April 16th, 2008). It was a book launch for Raghavan Iyer's new book: 660 Curries. He was joined by Professor Stuart Firestein of Columbia University. He is a professor of neurobiology in the Department of Biological Sciences. The evening was part of a program called Brainwave which asks how art, music, and meditation affect the brain.
It was an interesting evening. Raghavan was knowledgeable about his subject. There were many things he said during his talk that were almost identical to what I say in my classes. At times I questioned myself if I had stolen things from him...But I couldn’t have – since I never met him or heard him speak before. It must just be that those things are true. For instance, I have always said in each and every cooking class I teach, that no self respecting Indian household will ever have curry powder in their home. I usually add that it is the British who messed things up in that area. But Raghavan had a far more gentler way of saying things. He said it is the genius of British marketing that so many people in the west know about curry powder today.
Stuart Firestein was very entertaining too. I enjoyed his take on things - since I am a cook and not a scientist - things that he had to say were fascinating.
Raghavan started the talk by saying curries are:
1.Saucy 2. Simple 3. Sensational 4. Spicy
Raghavan said that spices are the backbone of Indian food and I fully agree. Whenever people say to me that they don't like Indian food because it is too spicy - I tell them that Indian food CAN be hot, but doesn't have to be. Indian food is very 'spiced' but doesn't have to necessarily be hot.
We tasted 3 things during the evening. The first was a Potato and Red Kidney Bean curry.
He had broken down a curry into the various flavor elements of taste like bitter, sweet, salty, sour, pungent, astringent and umami.
Stuart Firestein told us that flavor is the most complex and powerful of all our senses... most multi-modal.
Flavor has a deep emotional connection.
Flavor has a very strong ethnic component.
Taste and smell memory... don’t know why they are so emotionally laden.
At this point Raghavan related a story about when he was very young and got extremely ill. His mother crushed his pills and mixed them with honey – and so, to this day he cannot enjoy honey.
Firestein talked about the Proust effect - we all have it. But, he joked that we may not write as many as 6 volumes, as Proust ended up writing after eating a Madeleine.
Then Raghavan went on to say that in the world of curries, it’s all about balance.
A member of the audience asked about Vindaloo. While I rolled my eyes (just a little) – he very patiently answered the question. He said that the origin of the word is Portuguese. The word denotes vinegar and garlic – as opposed to just crazy spicy - which is what most people think of when they hear Vindaloo.
When asked a question about potatoes that were in the first curry we tasted, he said that he was a potato-holic. Joked that someone could wake him up and feed him potatoes in the middle of the night - and he would be happy. I felt a kinship to him because I too have used that line. Only, I talk about coffee - but on second thought, potatoes would be a nice thing to wake up to also. He said he loved kettle-fried potato chips and then added, “dipped in chocolate.” I’m not sure if he said it but salty and sweet – talking about balance - all tied up with the balance in spices when making a curry.
Then they discussed Umami. It is what most of us know most commonly as MSG (mono sodium glucomate). According to professor Firestein it gives the flavor of succulence, it coats our tongue- gives us the satisfaction sensation. Firestien said that scientifically, nothing points to the fact that MSG is harmful to humans. And then he joked that all of those in the audience who have the allergic reactions of headaches, etc. to MSG – they are essentially unfounded.
Also in response to a question about how the idea started that MSG was harmful to our health - Firestein replied that it was probably a food chauvinist thing or isolationist in nature. I agree – makes perfect sense.
The professor then talked about what people call the “Margarita Effect.” The salt at the rim of a margarita glass is to create the perfect balance of salty and sour in one sip. Salt and sour use the same pathway on the tongue to the brain.
Raghavan added, “that is why it is said to add salt to taste. Salt balances everything else out, it is a catalyst of taste.”
The second taste we had was the Smoky Eggplant with Garlic and Red Chilies (p492). It was a puree and Raghavan said that different varieties of eggplants will result in a different tasting dish. In India we tended to use the big globe eggplant for dishes that are pureed and we never salt our eggplant because we like the bitter flavor. I have had students ask me if I salt my eggplants before cooking them. I always questioned in my mind – when students brought up the biiterness of eggplant why I really hadn't ever met an eggplant that I found too salty. Raghavan said that bitterness is sought out in Indian cuisine. He is right - we love bitter gourds. Also, the only time I would salt an eggplant is if I was looking not textural variance. Salting draws out the moisture and leaves the eggplant more chewy and toothsome.
Someone asked how to get the eggplant so smooth. He said he used a masher and held up his hands. Everyone laughed and I nodded my head because in many of my classes I see an occasional student showing some disapproval when I use my hands. Most of the time I am able to joke and explain my self away. And Raghavan used humor too. He said that Indians eat with their hands and “for us, eating with silverware is like making love with an interpreter.” He also told a story that his mother visited him in the United States at the age of 75. She saw Raghavan’s kitchen equipped with with food processors, blenders and every other gadget known to mankind. His mother simply asked, “What’s wrong with your hands?” Everyone laughed. I enjoyed that very much.
Back to the Smoky Eggplant – Firestein talked about mouth feel and the perception of creaminess. He said that we feel creaminess on our tongues when all the particles are the same size – like a guiness beer. So we can make something taste creamy without adding cream to it. Just like this eggplant puree.
Someone asked about why Avial was eaten with Jaggery. Raghavan answered that was not the way his family ate it but he made an educated guess to explain it. I liked that because that’s how I do it too in my classes. I have noticed that many people think that ethnic food has to be exactly alike or that all of us should know everything or if something happens to one Indian then it must happen to us all. If they stopped to think for a minute that if 10 Americans were asked to make a hamburger or a meatloaf – we would have 10 different specimens of burgers and meatloaf.
Back to the question – Raghavan explained what jaggery is (unprocessed palm sugar) and Avial is a spicy wedding stew. His guess was that because Avial is so spicy – the jaggery must balance things out.
He demonstrated very well how all Indians might not eat the same way but what the reasoning behind it would be. I would have added – if you like it – eat Jaggery with Avial and if you don’t – then don’t. Food is so personal and subjective.
Something very interesting that I learned from Firestein was that it is speculated that humans might have the ability to speak because we cook our food. Cooking our food, he said makes it soft and so our jaw muscles are not so developed due to the reduced gnawing – and so that might leave room for our vocal chords to grow.
Raghavan talked about the 8 flavors of any given spice depending on how you treat it. He listed them:
Raw Whole, Raw Ground, Roasted Whole, Roasted Ground, Fried whole in oil, Whole soaked in a liquid like vinegar and Crushed soaked in a liquid (the 8th flavor escapes me right now).
Firestein joked that he found it more complicated than many of his experiments in the lab.
I was fascinated by his list and I guess I teach it too in my classes. By watching the same spices being treated in different ways to achieve different flavors; or watching 2 or 3 dishes being cooked with the same spices but tasting totally different is a good way for students to see the above concept come alive. Spices will taste differently according to the way you treat them.
The 3rd thing we had was the raisins with the mustard seeds
- cloyingly sweet for me personally (but then I am not partial to sweet things). He talked about how he would use it as desert or serve it with coffee ice cream. Raghavan used this opportunity again to talk about balance, and here it was hot and cold – and also hot as in spicy and sweet.
Before the program started Raghavan was sitting by himself at the front of the room and I introduced myself as an admirer of his cookbooks (I own his Betty Crocker's Indian home cooking and have thumbed through Turmeric Trails), and a fellow cooking teacher and caterer. He was very gracious and polite. He signed my copy of his book and invited me to e-mail him.
I am lucky I decided to get the book signed when I did because the line after the talk was long and I wouldn't have been home in time to watch my favorite TV show du jour.
Were any of you at the Rubin Museum?
Do any of you know about Raghavan Iyer's books?
I liked recipes from his previous book - I will test out a few from this latest book and report back.
It was an interesting evening. Raghavan was knowledgeable about his subject. There were many things he said during his talk that were almost identical to what I say in my classes. At times I questioned myself if I had stolen things from him...But I couldn’t have – since I never met him or heard him speak before. It must just be that those things are true. For instance, I have always said in each and every cooking class I teach, that no self respecting Indian household will ever have curry powder in their home. I usually add that it is the British who messed things up in that area. But Raghavan had a far more gentler way of saying things. He said it is the genius of British marketing that so many people in the west know about curry powder today.
Stuart Firestein was very entertaining too. I enjoyed his take on things - since I am a cook and not a scientist - things that he had to say were fascinating.
Raghavan started the talk by saying curries are:
1.Saucy 2. Simple 3. Sensational 4. Spicy
Raghavan said that spices are the backbone of Indian food and I fully agree. Whenever people say to me that they don't like Indian food because it is too spicy - I tell them that Indian food CAN be hot, but doesn't have to be. Indian food is very 'spiced' but doesn't have to necessarily be hot.
We tasted 3 things during the evening. The first was a Potato and Red Kidney Bean curry.
He had broken down a curry into the various flavor elements of taste like bitter, sweet, salty, sour, pungent, astringent and umami.
Stuart Firestein told us that flavor is the most complex and powerful of all our senses... most multi-modal.
Flavor has a deep emotional connection.
Flavor has a very strong ethnic component.
Taste and smell memory... don’t know why they are so emotionally laden.
At this point Raghavan related a story about when he was very young and got extremely ill. His mother crushed his pills and mixed them with honey – and so, to this day he cannot enjoy honey.
Firestein talked about the Proust effect - we all have it. But, he joked that we may not write as many as 6 volumes, as Proust ended up writing after eating a Madeleine.
Then Raghavan went on to say that in the world of curries, it’s all about balance.
A member of the audience asked about Vindaloo. While I rolled my eyes (just a little) – he very patiently answered the question. He said that the origin of the word is Portuguese. The word denotes vinegar and garlic – as opposed to just crazy spicy - which is what most people think of when they hear Vindaloo.
When asked a question about potatoes that were in the first curry we tasted, he said that he was a potato-holic. Joked that someone could wake him up and feed him potatoes in the middle of the night - and he would be happy. I felt a kinship to him because I too have used that line. Only, I talk about coffee - but on second thought, potatoes would be a nice thing to wake up to also. He said he loved kettle-fried potato chips and then added, “dipped in chocolate.” I’m not sure if he said it but salty and sweet – talking about balance - all tied up with the balance in spices when making a curry.
Then they discussed Umami. It is what most of us know most commonly as MSG (mono sodium glucomate). According to professor Firestein it gives the flavor of succulence, it coats our tongue- gives us the satisfaction sensation. Firestien said that scientifically, nothing points to the fact that MSG is harmful to humans. And then he joked that all of those in the audience who have the allergic reactions of headaches, etc. to MSG – they are essentially unfounded.
Also in response to a question about how the idea started that MSG was harmful to our health - Firestein replied that it was probably a food chauvinist thing or isolationist in nature. I agree – makes perfect sense.
The professor then talked about what people call the “Margarita Effect.” The salt at the rim of a margarita glass is to create the perfect balance of salty and sour in one sip. Salt and sour use the same pathway on the tongue to the brain.
Raghavan added, “that is why it is said to add salt to taste. Salt balances everything else out, it is a catalyst of taste.”
The second taste we had was the Smoky Eggplant with Garlic and Red Chilies (p492). It was a puree and Raghavan said that different varieties of eggplants will result in a different tasting dish. In India we tended to use the big globe eggplant for dishes that are pureed and we never salt our eggplant because we like the bitter flavor. I have had students ask me if I salt my eggplants before cooking them. I always questioned in my mind – when students brought up the biiterness of eggplant why I really hadn't ever met an eggplant that I found too salty. Raghavan said that bitterness is sought out in Indian cuisine. He is right - we love bitter gourds. Also, the only time I would salt an eggplant is if I was looking not textural variance. Salting draws out the moisture and leaves the eggplant more chewy and toothsome.
Someone asked how to get the eggplant so smooth. He said he used a masher and held up his hands. Everyone laughed and I nodded my head because in many of my classes I see an occasional student showing some disapproval when I use my hands. Most of the time I am able to joke and explain my self away. And Raghavan used humor too. He said that Indians eat with their hands and “for us, eating with silverware is like making love with an interpreter.” He also told a story that his mother visited him in the United States at the age of 75. She saw Raghavan’s kitchen equipped with with food processors, blenders and every other gadget known to mankind. His mother simply asked, “What’s wrong with your hands?” Everyone laughed. I enjoyed that very much.
Back to the Smoky Eggplant – Firestein talked about mouth feel and the perception of creaminess. He said that we feel creaminess on our tongues when all the particles are the same size – like a guiness beer. So we can make something taste creamy without adding cream to it. Just like this eggplant puree.
Someone asked about why Avial was eaten with Jaggery. Raghavan answered that was not the way his family ate it but he made an educated guess to explain it. I liked that because that’s how I do it too in my classes. I have noticed that many people think that ethnic food has to be exactly alike or that all of us should know everything or if something happens to one Indian then it must happen to us all. If they stopped to think for a minute that if 10 Americans were asked to make a hamburger or a meatloaf – we would have 10 different specimens of burgers and meatloaf.
Back to the question – Raghavan explained what jaggery is (unprocessed palm sugar) and Avial is a spicy wedding stew. His guess was that because Avial is so spicy – the jaggery must balance things out.
He demonstrated very well how all Indians might not eat the same way but what the reasoning behind it would be. I would have added – if you like it – eat Jaggery with Avial and if you don’t – then don’t. Food is so personal and subjective.
Something very interesting that I learned from Firestein was that it is speculated that humans might have the ability to speak because we cook our food. Cooking our food, he said makes it soft and so our jaw muscles are not so developed due to the reduced gnawing – and so that might leave room for our vocal chords to grow.
Raghavan talked about the 8 flavors of any given spice depending on how you treat it. He listed them:
Raw Whole, Raw Ground, Roasted Whole, Roasted Ground, Fried whole in oil, Whole soaked in a liquid like vinegar and Crushed soaked in a liquid (the 8th flavor escapes me right now).
Firestein joked that he found it more complicated than many of his experiments in the lab.
I was fascinated by his list and I guess I teach it too in my classes. By watching the same spices being treated in different ways to achieve different flavors; or watching 2 or 3 dishes being cooked with the same spices but tasting totally different is a good way for students to see the above concept come alive. Spices will taste differently according to the way you treat them.
The 3rd thing we had was the raisins with the mustard seeds
- cloyingly sweet for me personally (but then I am not partial to sweet things). He talked about how he would use it as desert or serve it with coffee ice cream. Raghavan used this opportunity again to talk about balance, and here it was hot and cold – and also hot as in spicy and sweet.
Before the program started Raghavan was sitting by himself at the front of the room and I introduced myself as an admirer of his cookbooks (I own his Betty Crocker's Indian home cooking and have thumbed through Turmeric Trails), and a fellow cooking teacher and caterer. He was very gracious and polite. He signed my copy of his book and invited me to e-mail him.
I am lucky I decided to get the book signed when I did because the line after the talk was long and I wouldn't have been home in time to watch my favorite TV show du jour.
Were any of you at the Rubin Museum?
Do any of you know about Raghavan Iyer's books?
I liked recipes from his previous book - I will test out a few from this latest book and report back.
April 22nd, 2008
Today is Earth Day everybody.
We have just one Earth - just like we have just one life - so lets take care of both.
I was born in India but the United States of America has been my home for over 20 years. I grew up very differently than how I live my life today. One thing that is very different is how much waste we create in this country- all the paper towels and the plastic covered this, that and the other. I think because of the nature of my formative years - I never really used paper products and plastic water bottles with abandon - like many people I know do. I just never understood the concept of drinking from disposeable cups when in your own home. But I have added my share to the All American Garbage Dump.
I am so happy that finally we are talking about conserving and trying to be less wasteful as a society. I am confident that in the very near future it will once again be chic to use cloth napkins and turn off the lights in the room that you are not sitting in.
This is my wish for us.
What are you doing to help our Earth - our only home?
Until we eat again!
Today is Earth Day everybody.
We have just one Earth - just like we have just one life - so lets take care of both.
I was born in India but the United States of America has been my home for over 20 years. I grew up very differently than how I live my life today. One thing that is very different is how much waste we create in this country- all the paper towels and the plastic covered this, that and the other. I think because of the nature of my formative years - I never really used paper products and plastic water bottles with abandon - like many people I know do. I just never understood the concept of drinking from disposeable cups when in your own home. But I have added my share to the All American Garbage Dump.
I am so happy that finally we are talking about conserving and trying to be less wasteful as a society. I am confident that in the very near future it will once again be chic to use cloth napkins and turn off the lights in the room that you are not sitting in.
This is my wish for us.
What are you doing to help our Earth - our only home?
Until we eat again!
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