Confessions of an ex-junk food junkie: stop food boredom

by Shelley Frances Deegan

y client told me, quite bluntly, "I'm bored with food." I could relate to her. After being diagnosed with allergies to wheat, gluten, yeast, sugar, and dairy, I had to change the way I nourished my body. I also had Chronic Fatigue and bad stomach problems. It's no wonder, since I had often eaten Oreos for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Growing up, I rarely ate vegetables or salad, I lived on the basic American diet of fast food! But now that I eat vegetables daily and never let an Oreo past my lips, I still get bored with these "good foods."

If you are looking for new ideas, try the following "taste bud tricks."

Breakfast ideas

Put yogurt on your pancakes or waffles instead of syrup. Less calories. Have higher energy throughout the day. For ideas on dairy-free products, call for my article, "Dodging Dairy." Add raisins, and raw, organic nuts.
Sprinkle raw, organic almonds or walnuts on your cereal, plus some yogurt.
Try almond or cashew nut butter on toast instead of jelly or peanut butter. Peanuts mold quickly and cause stomach upset for many people, often without them knowing the cause. I like nut butters on Van's brand wheat free/gluten free waffles.
One of my clients has this suggestion which she serves her three year old: hot steamed brown rice with cinnamon and a teaspoon of honey or rice syrup.

Exciting lunch and dinner ideas

To bring new life to your vegetables, make your own salad dressing in minutes. Why bother? 1. It's less expensive. 2. It's fresh and tastier. 3. Only the ingredients that you choose go into it. Try different oils. Walnut and sesame create an entirely different flavor. Remember, oils need to be refrigerated immediately after opening and stay in the refrigerator. Oil becomes rancid when it is not refrigerated. Stomach problems can be caused by rancid oils.

Deli and restaurant foods

Try that Indian freezer section entree or deli tofu egg salad and keep the list of ingredients from the package, or ask what cookbook the restaurant uses to make their dishes and recreate the dish at home. I did this with the delicious corn bread from Kung Food, a local vegetarian restaurant. They use sesame seeds and buttermilk in their recipe. I omitted the buttermilk, added flax seeds, sesame seeds, and some amaranth flour for a hearty, stick-to-your-ribs cornbread.

Desserts

Pour rice syrup (I like Lundberg Farms brand) on your ice cream with raisins.
Popcorn with 'Spike' brand seasoning on it.
The gluten-free pecan short bread cookies by Pamela's Products.
Fresh organic fruit.
Dried fruit.
Almond butter on rice cakes. For kids, make a face with raisins.
White Wave brand soy yogurt comes in six delicious flavors.
Rice Dream ice cream (dairy-free; I like the carob chip).

Other ideas to stop food boredom

Corn tortillas with chilis cooked into them. (Check the refrigerator section of your health food store.)
Re-fried black and pinto beans with chips. Jalapeño soy cheese. Try Tofu Rella brand Feta cheese to spice up a salad or vegetables. Fresh garlic. Fennel In a salad or on steamed vegetables. Sea salt instead of regular salt.
Fresh ground pepper. Invest in a pepper mill. Nothing tastes like fresh ground pepper.
Try tofu if you haven't already
Take a cooking class. Only eat when hungry. No T.V. while eating. RELAX

Waking up your taste buds to new flavors and experimenting with new products is fun and takes time, so be patient with yourself and enjoy getting out of "Food Boredom."

Recipe of the Month: Salad Dressing

This month's recipe for a delicious and nutritious salad dressing is from friend and Earth Times subscriber, Francelle Reynolds. In addition to salads, try this on vegetables or steamed red potatoes. Experiment by adding your favorite spices.

Ingredients

1/4 cup flax seed oil (from the refrigerator section in the health food store)
3/4 cup water or yogurt
1 lemon juiced
1/3 cup raw unpasteurized apple cider vinegar (omit if you are allergic)
2 tablespoons Dr. Bronner's Balanced Mineral Seasonings (green label)
2 - 4 cloves of garlic depending on your taste for garlic
1/4 cup chopped red onion or leek
1/4 bunch of parsley

Preparation

In a food processor or blender, blend garlic, onion, parsley, lemon, vinegar and seasonings for 2 minutes.
Slowly add the oil; this thickens the dressing.
Add yogurt or water. Blend and pour into bottle.

Shelley Frances Deegan is founder of "Solutions to Food Allergies." They offer informational health food store tours several times per month and "Food Police" services to support you in restocking your kitchen with healthy foods. Individual consultations available. For more information, please call (619) 543-0334.