Richness of Food

[moonrambler]

After reading so many posts here in the debate on healthy foods, I found myself becoming more and more irritated and confused. I had to ask why the conversation was becoming so annoying to me, what that reflected about my own thoughts.

This debate is much more complicated than meat-eaters vs. vegetarians or vegans. It goes into which particular individual food items are unhealthy. I think what has been so bothersome to me is I don't seem to relate to virtually anyone participating in these discussions, except to some extent liamona, which is kind of odd because I don't think she and I follow the same sort of diet at all.

However, what I see in liamona's attitude is an embracing of the richness of food. Now, I'm not at all saying that a big bowl of fresh fruit or raw veggies does not involve a richness of food. It's just that when I think about eating that way as the primary focus of my diet, such as a bowl of fresh fruit for breakfast and a bowl of raw veggies for lunch on a daily basis, it feels very spartan to me.

While there's all this wrangling about whether meat, dairy foods, grain, and starch vegetables are bad or good, I think of when we talk about people eating more natural diets many years ago, and they were eating all these foods in addition to other vegetables and fruit. The main difference is they weren't eating preservatives and additives, bread and ice cream that had a list of 30 ingredients and so on. They relied on local food, included wild game, kept chickens, did a lot of canning and storing food in root cellars.

On another forum awhile back I had mentioned that I have a deep fondness for the original Laurel's Kitchen book because that was my first vegetarian cookbook. And somebody responded that she had loved that book too, but it seems so dated now because people don't eat like that anymore, the foods are all so "heavy." I couldn't comprehend this. People don't eat like that anymore?

I see what she meant though. There's all this emphasis on "Light." You go around a supermarket and there's all these products marked "Light." Or "Something-Free." Light salad dressing, light bread, fat-free crackers, light frozen dinners, fat-free ice cream, lite beer from miller, i can't believe it's not butter.

It all makes me want to run over to Luigi's and have a giant platter of crab and lobster fettuccine alfredo with garlic bread and a glass of Shiraz.

I think I have gotten caught up in all this debating about food (although I haven't participated a whole lot) because I have had some incongruity within my own mind about how I want to eat or *should* eat.

I would like some input about designing a healthy diet that includes richness of food. A diet where I can enjoy a giant platter of crab and lobster fettuccine alfredo with garlic bread and a glass of Shiraz. A diet that includes grilled cheese on rye, scalloped potatoes, veggie burgers, pizza, giant salads with avocado and eggs, and banana pineapple yogurt smoothies. I'm willing to eat seafood, and perhaps poultry, although perhaps not poultry. I'm not big on the idea of including any meat beyond that. I can make my own bread in a bread machine, which I used to do a lot but got out of the habit. I'm not going to eliminate all "processed" foods, but the better-quality commercial brands of ice cream, for instance, only have about seven ingredients.

Is there anybody else here who relates to any of this whatsoever?

[Lakshyayidhi Lakshmihi]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

Is there anybody else here who relates to any of this whatsoever?

Yes!!!! I don't believe in having a restrictive diet.

I had gastropareisis for 3 years. My stomach muscles stopped moving, and I lived off of prescribed nutritional liquids and scrambled eggs. During that time I spent a lot of time in a gastroenterologist's office, and I saw a nutritionist on a regular basis.

My rules of thumb:

-Don't eat anything that didn't come from the ground or have a face at one point.

-Don't eat any premade products from the store that have more than 5 ingredients (haagen dazs has a 5 ingredient ice cream that is deeeelicious)

-cook at home

-eat good oils - olive oil is fine for sauteeing, I use grapeseed oil for high heat like stir fry and frying; your body needs fat to absorb fat soluble nutrients.

-Use cast iron cookware because nonstick coatings are cancer-y and cast iron helps anemia.

- grow your own veggies as much as possible (then you know exactly what is going into your produce) - and COMPOST. If you are throwing non-protein food leftovers away, you are a big waster and you are hurting our planet.

- purchase as much if not all of your food from local producers directly, either at a farmer's markets or through food co-ops.

- eat a wide variety of foods, don't eat the same meals every week. Be creative, even if you restrict your diet by excluding certain items. Try to eat some durian, or starfruit, or yuca, or plantains. Try new foods as often as possible.

[Groundless]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

Is there anybody else here who relates to any of this whatsoever?

Well, I can say that if you keep total carbohydrates under 100g per day it is likely you can eat anything else you desire including heavy cream, lard, butter. These items will add immensely to the richness of your diet. There is evidence that if you keep your total sugar intake under 70lbs per year you will remain in perfect health (yes, I can cite the studies if you request) as per many civilizations studied in the past.

Do eat:
Ribeye
Pork Chops
Crab
Scallops
Salmon
Lard
Tallow
Butter
Heavy cream
coconut oil
(try coconut oil fried pork chops - they are divine)

If you need them to live with the diet vegetables but keep total carbs per day under 100g.

Don't eat:
Anything man-made
Refined sugar products
Seed oils of any kind
Grains

I am sorry for this. I wish I could propose something that matches your hearts desires but the evidence dictates this can not be.

or, do whatever you want.

[Groundless]

Originally Posted by Lakshyayidhi Lakshmihi

-Use cast iron cookware because nonstick coatings are cancer-y and cast iron helps anemia.

Another thought on this is to use a scan pan. It is a ceramic coating instead of teflon. Kinda pricey but it works well.

Amazon.com: Scanpan Classic Ceramic Titanium 9-1/2-Inch Fry/Omelet Pan: Kitchen & Dining

If you eat enough red meat anemia generally is not a problem. Veg*ns always seem to need some kind of supplementation.

[moonrambler]

Lakshyayidhi - I agree with you. One thing -- I do need to jettison my non-stick pans.

Groundless - you didn't relate to what I posted at all, so I'm wondering why you responded. It's very unlikely I'm going to take up eating red meat again, and I am most definitely going to continue eating grain.

I do not want this thread to turn into yet another debate about meat and grain, and whether vegetarians and vegans need iron or B12 supplements and etc.

[Lakshyayidhi Lakshmihi]

Originally Posted by Groundless

If you eat enough red meat anemia generally is not a problem. Veg*ns always seem to need some kind of supplementation.

Well I do eat red meat but I have pernicious anemia. It's genetic.

Thank God I knew this about myself or I might take your nutritional advice seriously and then have to go to the hospital.

Everytime I see your s/name I think "Ground beef" for some reason. The power of suggestion

[Groundless]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

I would like some input about designing a healthy diet that includes richness of food. A diet where I can enjoy a giant platter of crab and lobster fettuccine alfredo with garlic bread and a glass of Shiraz. A diet that includes grilled cheese on rye, scalloped potatoes, veggie burgers, pizza, giant salads with avocado and eggs, and banana pineapple yogurt smoothies. I'm willing to eat seafood, and perhaps poultry, although perhaps not poultry. I'm not big on the idea of including any meat beyond that. I can make my own bread in a bread machine, which I used to do a lot but got out of the habit. I'm not going to eliminate all "processed" foods, but the better-quality commercial brands of ice cream, for instance, only have about seven ingredients.

Is there anybody else here who relates to any of this whatsoever?

I read your message completely. Your problem is one of cognitive dissonance. You can not have a healthy diet and eat all of the foods in combination that you cite and remain healthy. Feel free to keep wishing it so. Your results may not be good, but, I think deep down you kind of know this.

It is quite normal to go through grief stages when giving up foods that are bad for you as well as addictive.

I hope you find the health and happiness you desire however you end up eating. I do mean that btw.

[Lakshyayidhi Lakshmihi]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

Lakshyayidhi - I agree with you. One thing -- I do need to jettison my non-stick pans.

I have two cast iron skillets that belonged to my great grandmother. They last for freaking ever and get better with age, as long as you maintain their seasoning - though nowadays you can buy cast iron that comes pre-seasoned. They can become family heirlooms (like mine)

But you have to use them on gas ranges, I think - electric burners can't handle the heat retention those pans have. But the best friend chicken in the world is fried in cast iron, I think.

I really got into gardening last year. I've had two crops - last fall, this spring. I'm getting the ground ready for another fall garden - broccoli, cauliflower, lettuces, spinach, various kinds of chard, nasturtium (edible flowers!!), peas, carrots, radishes, turnips, beets. They taste even better when you eat them right after you pull it out of the ground!

[Lifeisamazing]

Originally Posted by Groundless

Well, I can say that if you keep total carbohydrates under 100g per day it is likely you can eat anything else you desire including heavy cream, lard, butter. These items will add immensely to the richness of your diet. There is evidence that if you keep your total sugar intake under 70lbs per year you will remain in perfect health (yes, I can cite the studies if you request) as per many civilizations studied in the past.

Do eat:
Ribeye
Pork Chops
Crab
Scallops
Salmon
Lard
Tallow
Butter
Heavy cream
coconut oil
(try coconut oil fried pork chops - they are divine)

If you need them to live with the diet vegetables but keep total carbs per day under 100g.

Don't eat:
Anything man-made
Refined sugar products
Seed oils of any kind
Grains

I am sorry for this. I wish I could propose something that matches your hearts desires but the evidence dictates this can not be.

or, do whatever you want.

Ever heard that if you keep your carbohydrate intake very low (below 100g or so) for prolonged period, your thyroid levels drop, your metabolism slows?

[Lakshyayidhi Lakshmihi]

Originally Posted by Lifeisamazing

Ever heard that if you keep your carbohydrate intake very low (below 100g or so) for prolonged period, your thyroid levels drop, your metabolism slows?

Why did you quote a post from another thread?

[VinceG]

That was this thread. Scroll up if you want to see it.

[moonrambler]

Guys, I have deleted several posts because I'm determined to keep this thread on topic. It's not about raw meat, vegan vs. meat-eaters and so on.

[moonrambler]

Originally Posted by Groundless

I read your message completely. Your problem is one of cognitive dissonance. You can not have a healthy diet and eat all of the foods in combination that you cite and remain healthy. Feel free to keep wishing it so. Your results may not be good, but, I think deep down you kind of know this.

It is quite normal to go through grief stages when giving up foods that are bad for you as well as addictive.

I hope you find the health and happiness you desire however you end up eating. I do mean that btw.

The problem you are going to have in this thread is that you think people should not eat grains, and grains are and will continue to be an integral part of my diet.

I already eat the way I specified in the paragraph you cited, and I am exceptionally healthy.

The reason I started this thread is I wanted to find some other people who can give me some input on a healthy Richness of Food diet, as Lakshyayidhi is doing. This would be more the way people used to eat long ago, without all the boxed, frozen and other processed food. It would perhaps would be most similar to a Mediterranean type of diet, depending on which particular area we're talking about. It will have seafood, pasta, bread, rice, cheese, ice cream, butter, eggs, vegetables, nuts, fruit and other foods; I am not going to try to list everything.

[ssandra]

I believe what you eat is less important then how and why you eat.

For example... if you eat pizza because you are lonely and don't want to cook for yourself and you are watching tv in the mean time, I believe it is not healthy for you.

If you eat pizza because you are watching a great movie with friends and you are having a pizza night... I believe it is healthy.

I also think that how much you eat is more important then what you eat. It doesn't matter if you eat a cookie or 2 a day. Or a bowl of ice cream after Sunday night dinner... It does matter if you eat a pack of cookies a day (or a week) or a liter of ice cream a day.

Also, eating slower (no matter what you eat) to truly enjoy the flavor of what you are eating will give your stomach time to communicate to your brain when you are full.

Not eating and drinking at the same time helps. So.. first empty your mouth before having a drink and really savor the flavor of the drink (even if its water) before taking another bite.

Enjoying every part of the meal is also important I think. For example, not already cutting your next bite while still chewing on the first one.

1. Prepare a bite (cut the meat, put stuff on your fork)
2. Put the food in your mouth
3. Taste the food and chew the food
4. Swallow the food
5. Prepare a bite.

Instead of what lots of people do, which is 1 - (2+3+4+5)

I stay usually out of the "what food to eat" as well lately, because I realize that I just don't agree with what has been said. I don't want to give up meat. I don't want to give up my sometimes McTrash food. I do want to continue eating fruit whenever I feel like it. I don't want to eat any salad in any shape or form....

[Lifeisamazing]

I like your thoughts, ssandra. I pretty much deem the same.

Chewing very slowly makes eating so much more valuable and a better experience in general. I'd also like the food to look pretty, so you eat with your eyes, your nose and mouth.

[moonrambler]

Excellent points, ssandra. I left all that out of my original thoughts here about diet. Meals as a time for socializing and camaraderie . . . and romance. Eating more slowly and enjoying the food, rather than mindlessly stuffing it in and not paying any attention to the flavor.

[Medea33]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

I would like some input about designing a healthy diet that includes richness of food. A diet where I can enjoy a giant platter of crab and lobster fettuccine alfredo with garlic bread and a glass of Shiraz. A diet that includes grilled cheese on rye, scalloped potatoes, veggie burgers, pizza, giant salads with avocado and eggs, and banana pineapple yogurt smoothies. I'm willing to eat seafood, and perhaps poultry, although perhaps not poultry. I'm not big on the idea of including any meat beyond that. I can make my own bread in a bread machine, which I used to do a lot but got out of the habit. I'm not going to eliminate all "processed" foods, but the better-quality commercial brands of ice cream, for instance, only have about seven ingredients.

Is there anybody else here who relates to any of this whatsoever?

Yes, I think I do. My diet is mostly raw, mostly vegan, because of personal issues, but I'm a big fan of abundance within my own framework. That means my dinner table includes a big platter of the freshest, ripest fruit I can find, with lots of different colors and textures. Eating for me is a sensual experience and one where enjoyment is a necessary component.

I don't think there's anything wrong with liking what you like, or with refusing to jump on the ascetics' bandwagon. So long as you're healthy and within a healthy range for weight and body fat percentage, your diet should include all foods you love, because that matters to you.

Maybe just mix up your richness with as many fruits and veggies as possible, as little processed food and as much organic dairy as you can, because a balanced diet is probably a little bit healthier than one that only includes fettucine alfredo, yummy as that dish may be. In any case, I admire your resistance to the food police.

[moonrambler]

I appreciate the emphasis on sensual meals offered by ssandra, Lifeisamazing and Medea33. There's always a lot of talk about how fast food and junk food is not nutritious and bad for health, but it also has a robotic aspect. This is stuff people eat when they're driving or watching football on tv.

[ssandra]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

I appreciate the emphasis on sensual meals offered by ssandra, Lifeisamazing and Medea33. There's always a lot of talk about how fast food and junk food is not nutritious and bad for health, but it also has a robotic aspect. This is stuff people eat when they're driving or watching football on tv.

I think if you would stuff carrots and celery down your throat while driving or watching football on tv, I doubt it would be very healthy either...

I do think that a fast food meal every now and then (less then once a month, my last one now has been more then 4 months ago ) is not unhealthy. It is how much you eat of it and how often that makes a big difference.

[Lifeisamazing]

Originally Posted by ssandra

I think if you would stuff carrots and celery down your throat while driving or watching football on tv, I doubt it would be very healthy either...

I do think that a fast food meal every now and then (less then once a month, my last one now has been more then 4 months ago ) is not unhealthy. It is how much you eat of it and how often that makes a big difference.

I'm one of those people who you see chewing a lot of cabbage while watching TV.

[ssandra]

Originally Posted by Lifeisamazing

I'm one of those people who you see chewing a lot of cabbage while watching TV.

Yeah, but I doubt you are the type of person to just stuff yourself mindlessly while doing whatever...

And that's the difference ( I think). There is nothing wrong with eating as long as you do it mindfully.

[liamona]

Thanks for starting such an interesting thread, moonrambler!

I've bolded the comments that resonated with me:

Originally Posted by moonrambler

However, what I see in liamona's attitude is an embracing of the richness of food. Now, I'm not at all saying that a big bowl of fresh fruit or raw veggies does not involve a richness of food. It's just that when I think about eating that way as the primary focus of my diet, such as a bowl of fresh fruit for breakfast and a bowl of raw veggies for lunch on a daily basis, it feels very spartan to me.

While there's all this wrangling about whether meat, dairy foods, grain, and starch vegetables are bad or good, I think of when we talk about people eating more natural diets many years ago, and they were eating all these foods in addition to other vegetables and fruit. The main difference is they weren't eating preservatives and additives, bread and ice cream that had a list of 30 ingredients and so on. They relied on local food, included wild game, kept chickens, did a lot of canning and storing food in root cellars.

On another forum awhile back I had mentioned that I have a deep fondness for the original Laurel's Kitchen book because that was my first vegetarian cookbook. And somebody responded that she had loved that book too, but it seems so dated now because people don't eat like that anymore, the foods are all so "heavy." I couldn't comprehend this. People don't eat like that anymore?

Not if they're following mainstream dietary advice.

We are being told to ignore our instinct to eat "rich foods" as you put it. Rich not only in fat, but in taste and satiety (and unique nutrients).

Even ice cream is adulterated. How many regular non-health food store brands contain five ingredients or less? Off the top of my head, I can only think of Häagen-Dazs (which reminds me that when I first moved into the town I live in almost 30 years ago, there used to be Häagen-Dazs ice cream shops. Now most places serve low or non-fat yogurt).

If you look at the labels for the non or low-fat ice cream brands, they tend to contain a lot of excess ingredients.

Why? Because they are trying to make up for the rich taste and texture of cream and egg yolk by replacing them with chemicalized ingredients. And falling short! They taste awful if you're used to the real thing.

Rich foods have even become part of our language in non-food ways to describe good things/people:

Crème de la crème
The milk of human kindness
Ride the gravy train
Cream of the crop
The land of milk and honey
Bring home the bacon
A peaches and cream complexion
He's the big cheese
Butter her up
Let's chew the fat

here's all this emphasis on "Light." You go around a supermarket and there's all these products marked "Light."

It all makes me want to run over to Luigi's and have a giant platter of crab and lobster fettuccine alfredo with garlic bread and a glass of Shiraz.

I'll bet! Crab and lobster have fat and cholesterol. Properly made Alfredo sauce contains cream, butter and Parmesan cheese. The best garlic bread is spread with butter.

I think I have gotten caught up in all this debating about food (although I haven't participated a whole lot) because I have had some incongruity within my own mind about how I want to eat or *should* eat.

Me too. I was into the low-fat "light" eating hook, line and sinker.

I would like some input about designing a healthy diet that includes richness of food.

It sounds like you're off to a good start! Just eat foods that taste good and that you enjoy and look forward to eating.

I'm not big on the idea of including any meat beyond that. I can make my own bread in a bread machine, which I used to do a lot but got out of the habit. I'm not going to eliminate all "processed" foods, but the better-quality commercial brands of ice cream, for instance, only have about seven ingredients.

Is there anybody else here who relates to any of this whatsoever?

I think most people do, if they're honest with themselves.

[liamona]

This makes me want to go and get a copy of The Physiology of Taste: Or, Meditiations on Transcendental Gastronomy by Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.

Here's some aphorisms from his book to get you thinking about "transcendental gastronomy":

The destiny of nations depends on the manner in which they are fed. [Uh-oh USA!]

Tell me what kind of food you eat, and I will tell you what kind of man you are.

The Creator, when he obliges man to eat, invites him to do so by appetite, and rewards him by pleasure.

Gourmandise is an act of our judgment, in obedience to which, we grant a preference to things which are agreeable, over those which have not that quality.

The pleasure of the table belongs to all ages, to all conditions, to all countries, and to all eras; it mingles with all other pleasures, and remains at last to console us for their departure.

The discovery of a new dish confers more happiness on humanity, than the discovery of a new star.

A dessert without cheese is like a beautiful woman who has lost an eye.

[moonrambler]

Originally Posted by liamona

Even ice cream is adulterated. How many regular non-health food store brands contain five ingredients or less? Off the top of my head, I can only think of Häagen-Dazs (which reminds me that when I first moved into the town I live in almost 30 years ago, there used to be Häagen-Dazs ice cream shops. Now most places serve low or non-fat yogurt).

Breyers also has some flavors with five ingredients or less. I realized at some point I could buy the natural vanilla flavor and add whatever I wanted, rather than buy the pre-made versions of ice cream like vanilla with brownies or whatever, which usually have a zillion added ingredients.

If you look at the labels for the non or low-fat ice cream brands, they tend to contain a lot of excess ingredients.

Why? Because they are trying to make up for the rich taste and texture of cream and egg yolk by replacing them with chemicalized ingredients. And falling short! They taste awful if you're used to the real thing.

I have an ex-fiance' who got into a low-fat food obsession because his family has a history of cardiovascular issues. I could not believe the crap he was eating in an effort to avoid fatty foods. The *ice cream* he brought home usually had 20 or 30 ingredients, with the first five or so being various forms of sugar, including the ever-popular high-fructose corn syrup, and then regular corn syrup as well.

I'll bet! Crab and lobster have fat and cholesterol. Properly made Alfredo sauce contains cream, butter and Parmesan cheese. The best garlic bread is spread with butter.

When I was telling you once upon a time how much I like your attitude, I was not kidding. Seriously, it brings tears to my eyes at this point to read someone advocating the joys of rich food.

I grew up with parents who were cheap in strange ways, and one of these strange ways was that they only bought margarine and not butter. Except in late summer, they bought butter because my dad had a thing for butter on sweet corn. I was 30 before I had a roommate who disliked margarine and only ate butter. Living with her, I got in the habit of eating butter, and discovered that after you eat butter regularly for awhile, margarine tastes pretty awful. But I always worried that I was eating too much butter. She worried that she was eating too much butter also. We could easily go through a pound of butter a week. It's years later and I was still looking askance at how much butter I go through. Then one day you made that comment about how you'll just eat a stick of butter and it made me so happy

[liamona]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

Breyers also has some flavors with five ingredients or less. I realized at some point I could buy the natural vanilla flavor and add whatever I wanted, rather than buy the pre-made versions of ice cream like vanilla with brownies or whatever, which usually have a zillion added ingredients.

I know, because that's one of my favorites. I love brownies mixed in with vanilla ice cream. It's too bad it's getting cold, because it would be nice to make some. I like brownies made with coconut flour. Talk about rich!

I have an ex-fiance' who got into a low-fat food obsession because his family has a history of cardiovascular issues.

And now even people who don't have this history are worried about their hearts.

I could not believe the crap he was eating in an effort to avoid fatty foods. The *ice cream* he brought home usually had 20 or 30 ingredients, with the first five or so being various forms of sugar, including the ever-popular high-fructose corn syrup, and then regular corn syrup as well.

Let's have some sugar with that sugar!

I wonder if adding extra sweeteners helps mask the taste of chemicals masquerading as cream?

When I was telling you once upon a time how much I like your attitude, I was not kidding. Seriously, it brings tears to my eyes at this point to read someone advocating the joys of rich food.

I know, right? I felt the same way when I first came across this information.

I was 30 before I had a roommate who disliked margarine and only ate butter. Living with her, I got in the habit of eating butter, and discovered that after you eat butter regularly for awhile, margarine tastes pretty awful. But I always worried that I was eating too much butter. She worried that she was eating too much butter also. We could easily go through a pound of butter a week. It's years later and I was still looking askance at how much butter I go through. Then one day you made that comment about how you'll just eat a stick of butter and it made me so happy

I'm glad! I do my best to spread the wonders of butter to a hostile world. LOL.

And look what just popped into my RSS feed folder:

Is Butter Healthy? Part One: Butyric Acid Benefits


So today I want to start by addressing butyric acid (also known as butyrate). Butter is the richest dietary source of butyric acid (3-4%), a short-chain fatty acid which is proving to be highly beneficial.

Butyric Acid and Metabolic Health

A very interesting study demonstrated the benefits of butyric acid in mice. Researchers found that feeding these mice butryic acid could reverse several harmful metabolic affects. The mice who received butyric acid in their diet were leaner and did not have a tendency to overeat. They also had lower cholesterol, triglyceride and fasting insulin levels--all pointing to better metabolic health and a decreased risk of developing metabolic syndrome.

Butyric Acid and Gut Health

The gut actually uses butyric acid as an energy source. Butyric acid has been shown to benefit those with gut disorders like ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. That's because this short-chain fatty acid helps restore the integrity of the gut lining while also reducing inflammation.

Butyric Acid and Cancer

Studies have demonstrated that butyric acid has the ability to cause cancer cells to mature into normal cells. This is a unique property, since most anti-cancer substances either kill the cancer cell or cause it to kill itself. Butyric acid, however, appears to preserve the life of the cell by normalizing its function.

Is Butter Healthy?

In the end, the degree of health-giving properties in any given food is dependent upon an individual's tolerance or dietary needs. In other words, your mileage may vary. But after today's post and as we continue to explore butter's health benefits, I hope that we can end the tyrade on this traditional fat and learn to appreciate what butter has to offer.

References:
Butyrate Improves Insulin Sensitivity and Increases Energy Expenditure in Mice ? Diabetes
Effect of butyrate enemas on the colonic mucosa in... [Gastroenterology. 1992] - PubMed result
Physiological concentrations of short-chain fatty ... [Br J Nutr. 2008] - PubMed result
Ralph Moss on Cancer--Expert Guidance for Crucial Decisions

[Indiana]

I believe in this way of eating too. I eat all sorts of things from raw green smoothies to rich pastas but I think my diet is healthy because I make pretty much all my meals myself. I don't eat red meat or pork but that is more from an ethical aspect (I am not prepared to eat any animal I don't have experience with killing myself) than a health aspect. If I get the chance to kill a lamb and be comfortable with it, that will go back on the menu.

Everything that comes into my house is an ingredient, not a finished food product. I also grow some of my own vegetables, and eat locally and seasonally. I think there is no comparison health-wise between making your own mayonnaise fresh from free-range organic eggs, a lemon from your backyard and local olive oil, and buying a pre-made, low-fat (but high in sugar or sugar substitutes), preservative-laden, factory-farm egg mayonnaise that has been sitting on the supermarket shelf for weeks before you even open it.

[ENTP]

My BMI is 17 and I do just that - follow a HEALTHY but rich diet.

I hate the taste of fat-free foods, watery bland vegetables and fruit, etc.

So my favorite foods: almond butter, coconut butter (HEAVENNNN), thai spiced cashews, butter shortbread cookies, bananas, guacamole, dates, figs, kamala olives, REAL butter and brown bread, REAL cheese, buttery fettucine (made from scratch, not from Kraft mixes), coconut milk ice cream, LAMB burritos...mmmmm.

Eating like this is expensive like whoa, but when I do eat like this, I become so healthy. And nope, I don't get fat. In fact, I tend to actually LOSE more weight. (not good for me)

[LostMyMap]

Originally Posted by liamona

This makes me want to go and get a copy of The Physiology of Taste: Or, Meditiations on Transcendental Gastronomy by Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.

Here's some aphorisms from his book to get you thinking about "transcendental gastronomy":

The destiny of nations depends on the manner in which they are fed. [Uh-oh USA!]

Tell me what kind of food you eat, and I will tell you what kind of man you are.

The Creator, when he obliges man to eat, invites him to do so by appetite, and rewards him by pleasure.

Gourmandise is an act of our judgment, in obedience to which, we grant a preference to things which are agreeable, over those which have not that quality.

The pleasure of the table belongs to all ages, to all conditions, to all countries, and to all eras; it mingles with all other pleasures, and remains at last to console us for their departure.

The discovery of a new dish confers more happiness on humanity, than the discovery of a new star.

A dessert without cheese is like a beautiful woman who has lost an eye.

Wow! This is the first food thread on this forum that I have actually enjoyed reading! Making me hungry even tough I just ate! The quotes are great; the last one is definitely LOL.

I wouldn't say I have it all completely in order, but we do try to eat well. My wife is a great cook and makes most things from scratch. We read labels and try to get natural whenever possible.

My take on cooking is that it is best done on an open fire. That came of course from being a male, when I cook it is usually on the grill. I can do meats and veggies. Wild caught salmon cooked on the grill is so awesome we don't even use any herbs or spices!

I'm totally on board with eating rich, natural foods. And pairing it with a good wine or beer. As long as I can have my chocolate once in awhile!

[liamona]

Originally Posted by ENTP

Eating like this is expensive like whoa, but when I do eat like this, I become so healthy. And nope, I don't get fat. In fact, I tend to actually LOSE more weight. (not good for me)

Yes, rich foods are more expensive, but you don't need to eat very much to feel full and satisfied (and note that just being full of food doesn't necessarily mean you feel satisfied!).

I often find that I eat two big meals and a snack at lunch and that's enough.

In between, I don't think about eating or pine for the next meal. Unless it's right before meal time.