Friday, May 13, 2022

The Unorthodox Dietitian

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.


 Salmon Dinner-Fry and Fly

     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)


 Chicken and Sprouts-Fry and Fly

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


Texas Tacos -1 Pan Plan

    96% ground beef

    Low Sodium Taco seasoning

Brown ground meat and seasoning per directions.  Serve with:

    Corn tortillas

    Broccoli Slaw

    Strawberries


Toaster Smores

    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



 

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