As a Registered Dietitian and (slow) marathon runner, I am
always being asked by my friends, family, and even strangers, “What do YOU
eat?”. I decided to write this blog to
discuss my current journey with food and nutrition and answer that mystical
question, at least for today.
People that know me well would describe me as bit “particular”
or maybe even picky with regards to my food at baseline. I think the quote
by Sally Albright in the firm Where Harry Met Sally best sums it
up. “I just like it how I like it”.
I have always been fascinated by the reasons people eat what
they eat and find this to be central to nutritional status, our daily habits
that become our lifestyle, and what will eventually determine our health outcomes. Over the past 3 decades, I have surveyed
groups and individuals in a variety of settings on this topic. The driving factor in their choice (and mine)
is that food must be tasty. As a
Registered Dietitian, I find nutrition quality to also be at the top of the
list. Other factors that are influential
for me is my proximity to food (grocery stores, restaurants, etc..), my
schedule and time availability. Food
sustainability and food waste are also significant factors in my choices.
During the period, which most of the world now refers to as “COVID”
(anytime between March 2020 and March 2022), I decided to give up “traditional
cooking”. I had several reasons for
doing so. I had been married for 20
years, and recently divorced at the time. Newly single and an “empty nester, I was tired of
grocery shopping, preparing and packing lunches, making dinners, and everything
it entailed. I had just moved to Boston
and started a new position at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center during the
middle of a pandemic, which was incredibly intense. In addition, I was in a new city with new
food options, and I wanted to try as many out as possible and explore my new
city. My new rule for cooking was to
only use the microwave and toaster oven.
My beautiful oven and range stayed pristine and were honestly never
used. This blog post is dedicated to my period of
>1 year of no cooking and what I learned.
I like to run early in the morning, and most days I was jogging
through Coolidge Corner in Brookline before 5 am. Besides a few delivery drivers and a couple
that smoked pot on their stoop (for all my Texas friends, it’s legal in
Massachusetts), I was the only one on the road. After my 6-mile run, I would
enjoy a protein shake and some fruit or a yogurt parfait (made with high
protein yogurt, cottage cheese, oatmeal, and fresh fruit) most days. After a long run, my favorite go to was
Bruegger’s bagels egg white on a plain bagel toasted. During my work week, I
brought a Lean Cuisine Cheese Pizza to work literally everyday (even on
Christmas Day!). I have been eating them
for lunch for over 4 years pre-pandemic. I actually like
the taste of the pizza. Besides the
taste, it has 370 calories and most importantly, it came in a box that could
easily be transported in my backpack as I walked a mile to work. In addition to my pizza, I would pack a
yogurt (I prefer Ratio yogurt, for the creamy, rich texture and taste, and also
because of the high protein content). I also
included seasonal fruit like fresh cherries in the summer and apples (that I hand-picked off the tree myself in New England) in the fall.
For dinner, I often had an egg white omelet with vegetable (made in the
microwave), a yogurt parfait, or an Amy’s Black Bean and Rice Burrito, or I would
enjoy some of my favorite offerings in Brookline, such as Fugakyu Sushi,
Otto’s Margherita Pizza, or fresh fish or a lobster roll from Legal Seafood on
occasion. I learned to make butternut squash
in the microwave (very tasty) and even made smores in the toaster oven.
Interestingly, 28% of American adults live alone. This is a record high and is also anticipated to increase. I found that preparing food for one using the microwave was quite economical. I also realized that eating out, when consumed for 2 dinners was more cost effective than the wasted ingredients I would have had if I cooked the meal myself, particularly when only cooking for one. I also was able to prepare the meals for less than $10.00/day, which is less than the average American spends on food.
I learned to be creative.
My RD (Registered Dietitian friends) helped me out with “recipes” when I
was craving a “For One Dessert”. (Shout
out to my colleague Litsa for the Smores idea!).
I learned to re-think meal paradigms and “the way it’s always been
done”. For example, I had traditional
breakfast dishes for dinner (often). I
played with new ingredients (like feta cheese) on eggs and ate lots more raw
fresh fruits and vegetables. I threw the traditional meal “rules” out the window
and made decided to do meals my own way.
I’m often asked what I did with my “spare time”. I
learned to value my time more.
With the extra time that I saved from not cooking, I read lots more for
pleasure, explored places in my new city like art exhibits, concerts, comedy
shows, played in a softball game at Fenway, took lots of side trips to apple
orchids and historical markers, explored other states, enjoyed nature, all
while training and completing my seventh marathon. I also found time to take a Creative Writing
Course at Harvard University. My life
satisfaction became higher because I was doing more of what I wanted to do and
less of what was expected. I had time to
inhale and exhale and had a great time. Further,
my grocery shopping was super quick and there was rarely any food waste. The
moral of the story is that it is possible to eat quick, healthy, and sustainable.
In March 2022, I moved to Austin in order to be closer to my family and to pursue a professional passion of mine to provide healthcare to uninsured and underserved populations in Texas with Central Health. I have added air-frying to my cooking methods because it is easy, quick , and produces a superior finished product. Occasionally, I do get out a pan to make tacos ("recipe" below), but continue to eat simply.
I always felt that I was expected to cook elaborate meals to
be a good wife, mother, woman, and excel in my profession. In fact, the
more elaborate, the better. I have been
a Registered Dietitian for more than 25 years, and when I meet new people, they
often think that I plan meals for a living and must enjoy cooking. I have never done professional meal planning in my entire
career, unless you consider calculating someone’s tube feeding or parental
nutrition as meal planning. Further,
discussing nutrition intakes, assessing the nutritional status of patients, and
dealing with disordered eating has its place for me at work. I fully admit that sometimes, it’s nice to let
go of dealing with food during my personal time. Some people may judge my choices or my
reasons behind them, but I am grateful to live my authentic life and be
grateful to celebrate the version of myself that I choose to be today. I
learned that societal expectations are overrated. Embrace the unorthodox! 😊
#eatrightleslie #LeanCuisinePizza #PremierProtein #RatioYogurt #AmysBurrtos #RegisteredDietitian #Boston #Brookline #CoolidgeCorner #simpleeating #microwave #toasteroven #airfryer #LowCostMeals #CookingForOne #Austin
Full disclosure: I have no associations to report to any of the food companies mentioned in this article.
Prices based on Walmart website published procing, May 2022
My Unorthodox Favorite Meals
Cost Kcal Sodium
Protein Fat
Lean Cuisine Cheese Pizza
Yoplait Ratio Yogurt
Cherries/Blueberries/Oranges/Strawberries
TOTAL $4.62 620 760 37 12
Amys Bean and Rice Burrito
Sliced Cucumbers
TOTAL $3.34 330 615 10 9
Premier Protein
Shredded Wheat
TOTAL $2.15
370 190 35 4.5
Ratio Yogurt
Fat Free Cottage Cheese
Instant Oatmeal
Fruit
TOTAL $2.13 430 625 39 8
Egg White Omelet-Microwave
4 Egg Whites
Spinach
Mushrooms
Feta/Mozzarella Cheese
Sliced cucumbers
Corn tortillas (2)
TOTAL $2.41 333 520 30 7
Other Unorthodox Favorite Meals
Caprese Salad-no cooking
Tomatoes (1 cup)
Fresh Basil (5 leaves)
Spinach/Arugula Mix (1-2 cuos)
Olive oil/lemon Juice (1-2 Tbsp)
Fresh Mozzarella cheese
Combine in a bowl. Serve immediately.
Air- Fried Salmon (5 oz portion)
Lemon Slice
Cook in air fryer until outside brown and crispy. Serve with:
Microwave Jasmine Rice (individual Serving)
Frozen Microwavable Edamame (1 cup)
Fresh Cucumbers (1/2 Cup)
Air Fryer Chicken (3-5 ounce serving)
Air fryer Brussel Sprouts (basted with olive oil and low sodium soy sauce)
Cook until brown and serve with:
Watermelon
96% ground beef
Low Sodium Taco seasoning
Brown ground meat and seasoning per directions. Serve with:
Corn tortillas
Broccoli Slaw
Strawberries
1 graham cracker (4 squares broken into 2)
2 small bars/pieces of a Hershey bar
1 large marshmallow
Toast on broil and top with remaining graham cracker half
No comments:
Post a Comment