Saturday at The Gorge

The Columbia River Gorge has it all -- majestic views, fruit orchards, wineries, water falls, mountains, clean air, and on this particular Saturday -- warm temperatures and sunshine. Oooo la la.

Cully Farmers Market

 

The next best thing to having a garden of your own, is buying fresh produce from the Farmers Market. The Portland area has an abundance of Farmers Market. Buying from the Farmers Market pretty much guarantees that your buying fresh, local, and organically grown produce. Since, I now call Portland home again, I've decided to make it my mission to visit all the neighborhood markets.

My first trip was to Cully Farmers Market located in NE Portland. It's a small but lively market.  I found a stand (Mt.View Fruit Stand) with the SWEETEST cherries and BEST apricots I've ever eaten. Here's a few photos of the beauty I encountered...

Excerpt from "Bringing Cooking Back"

Tomorrow I will meet with a panel of four to see if we can incorporate my recipe ideas into their new program. It's an exciting opportunity. As I've been preparing for our meeting I've been fumbling through my cookbooks. I thought it would be nice to share with you the introductions from each.

Taken from "Bringing Cooking Back" by Chrisetta Mosley published November 2012

Introduction  

I love food. Good wholesome food. Not so-called food from a box or in a box. But, food, my late grandmother would recognize. Food that grows from the earth, free of preservatives, and will eventually rot. 

I prepare 99 percent of my meals at home. Honestly, I don’t know any other way. Cooking is natural for me. My mother cooked at home. My grandmother did too. I have fond memories of watching my mother in the kitchen lovingly preparing dinner for us. The aroma of freshly baked cornbread, butter beans, and fried chicken for Sunday dinner.

My love for food became a problem though when I ballooned up to 388 pounds. One too many pieces of cornbread, consumption of highly caloric processed food, with no exercise contributed to my progressive weight gain. I’m proud to say, however, I took control. Through conscious food choices, food preparation, and exercise to date, I’ve lost 170 pounds and counting.

A healthy lifestyle for me begins at home in my kitchen. Cooking at home is not only how I was raised, but it allows me to be in control of what I eat. I abused food for a long time by making poor food choices and overeating. Today, I no longer abuse food, I enjoy it to the fullest by eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, and adding zest to my dishes with seasonings.

I prepare, cook, and eat at home because the thought of a complete stranger preparing my food seems impersonal to me. Cooking is a labor of love. Creative, love. I chop, dice, mince, puree, grate, and stir with affection. I’m feeding my body, after all; that calls for the finest ingredients and loving preparation.

I’ve never bought into the fat-free, sugar-free, craze. Frankly, I don’t want to compromise the taste of my food by using substitutes. I use real cream, real butter, and yes, even sugar. My recipes call for these ingredients, I encourage you to use these ingredients too. Maybe some critics will say my meals don’t fall into the “healthy” category, but I’m confident preparing my food at home is much better than the alternative. Besides, I’ve lost 170 pounds -- my way.

I welcome you to make adjustments to my recipes to suit your taste and dietary needs. Perhaps you want to make my to Die For Southwestern Chicken Soup less spicy. Go ahead, omit the cayenne pepper. That’s the beauty of cooking at home. You’re in control. Once you become comfortable in the kitchen you’ll learn to experiment freely.

I’ve strayed away from my mother and grandmother’s recipes a bit, but the art of cooking was taught to me by them and will always stay with me. Today, I follow modern day cooks and add a few of my own twist to come up with good wholesome recipes.

I’m thankful for the women in my life for passing on their love for home cooked meals to me. Undoubtedly, I’m sharing the same love for food with my daughter as well.

What will your children remember from your kitchen? What recipes will you pass down?

My hope is that my recipes will inspire you to cook and enjoy meals at home. Perhaps you’ll allow your kids to join you in the kitchen, dine at the table, and unplug your electronics.

From my kitchen to yours -- healthy, happy eating!

Chrisetta

Oh, goodness!

The other day I visited New Seasons Market to restock my produce. I usually go produce shopping every two to three days. If we had fresh corner markets I would go daily. Fresh corner markets...Wouldn't that be nice? Anyhow, some things I will only eat organic. Apples being one of them. Non-organic apples are sprayed with pesticides and waxed - no thanks. Buying organic, however, means paying considerably more. Organic Jazz apples were $2.49 a lb. Four apples cost $5.28. I used to gripe and complain, but now-a-days I just swipe my debit card with a smile. I want to fuel my body with good wholesome food and it's not cheap. That's typically the case with anything.  I could buy the non-organic apples at a lower price. Or if we look at it folks spend five bucks on a cheap processed McDonald's meal.  Instead, I chose to spend my dollar on four natural sweetened apples. 

As I professed a while ago, I have fallen in love with Kale. However, it is quite spendy too. I bought two bunches of Lacinato Kale to the tune of $4.98. It usually serves as a side for two meals. So that's not too bad when you break it down that way. Or if you look at the bigger picture -- I'm paying for my health and well-being upfront. Filling my body with inexpensive, crappy, processed so-called food would only cost me in the long run. I chose to eat good wholesome food and am willing to pay the price.   

*Disclaimer: I realize that eating organic and healthy comes with a significant price tag and when on a budget it can be nearly impossible to afford. I've been very fortunate to afford good quality food. I'm also fortunate enough to have the knowledge about what's good and what's not so good for me. One of my "Food and Your Health" books posed a very valid question: Is the healthy food movement elitist? Darn right it's elitist. It boils down to socioeconomic status (huge subject maybe in another blog post, maybe). Socioeconomic status is only part of the problem though. I believe for some eating healthy just is not a priority. For me, eating whole fresh food is top of my priority list because the alternative not only is going to cost more in the long run, but eating healthy never tasted so good. I hope that you too can make it a priority and find it in your budget to eat fresh whole food.

"Stewards of Earth"

Will Allen - Growing Power

A journalist by trade, I've always had an inquisitive nature, combined with my Jesuit education -- watch out! I'm always seeking information, questioning everything, and advocating change. Throughout this amazing self-transformation and weight loss journey I've evolved and learned so much about health, fitness, food, and of course myself. I'm bursting at the seams with tons of information about the food industry. I have a nagging desire to share it -- it's my civic duty, the journalist in me. My goal over the next several weeks, months is to pass on what I've been learning, reading, researching to you. We've got a lot of ground to cover, but some of the bigger topics are:

• Sustainability
• Feedlots
• Food deserts
• Organic food 
• Local food
• Milk - The Truth
• Plant based diets

I am forever changed by what I've learned about the food industry, the abuse of animals, raping of the land, and the government's involvement or lack thereof. The food industry is in need of a huge overhaul. It's going to take some work on the part of the people and that's why I feel it's very important I share what I've learned. It's going to take all of us to stand up and say no more.

A few weeks ago, I added two new sections to the blog "Food and Your Health" and "Food and Your Health: Recommended Readings & Films" if you haven't checked these sections out I urge you to do so. Also, check out these farmers who are doing there part in keeping alive the traditional farming practices with the help of some modern technology:

Will Allen - Growing Power
Joel Salatin - Polyface Farms 

"We are stewards of Earth, we are to respect the design of nature." Joel Salatin

Everything Must Change

Organic Chicken Caesar Salad

I follow the 90/10 rule when it comes to my diet and I typically cash in my 10 percent on Saturday's. Well, lately I've been working really, really hard on cleaning up my diet. So yesterday's cheat/treat meal looked completely different than in the past. I just couldn't see myself going too far off path. So for last night's dinner, I prepared a Chicken Caesar Salad. Yes, the dressing can be highly caloric but I went extremely light on the dressing and sprinkled plenty of lemon juice to enhance the flavor. For my after dinner treat (Which, I only have on Saturday's) my signature homemade chocolate chip cookies were calling my name but I didn't cave. Instead, I used the fresh peaches and blueberries I bought at the Farmer's Market to create a delightful little summer parfait. I feel so good about my decisions. I realize that in order to cash in on the ultimate prize, changes are necessary. You can't keep doing the same things and get different results. Everything must change.

Sweet Endings: Blueberries, peaches and a little bit of vanilla yogurt

I'm Worth It, You're Worth It!

There's no price tag on my health, my livelihood. My gym membership dues are a mandatory part of my budget. Working out makes me feel good.  Eating Cage Free 100% Vegetarian Fed Eggs is a must. They just taste better.

Last summer, I wrote a post "I'm Worth It." where I mentioned how my mother complained about me spending nearly $8.00 for asparagus. A similar situation occurred recently.  I had the pleasure of shopping with my friend's mother. I was  introducing her to some healthy items she could have on stock in her pantry and fridge to whip up healthy meals. Well, she was a little reluctant to spend on some of the items. We were shopping at Chuck's Produce  and they are a little upscale. So they will have some sales, but most things are a little spendy. The way I explained it to her was simple -- you're worth it. It's just a couple dollars more and the quality of these items are noticeable.  When you buy organic you can tell the difference. Organic food is better for you and it simply tastes better. She decided to splurge on some items that day that she would have normally not bought. Ha. She even went all out and bought an Organic salad dressing. So next time your conflicted about the price tag of your health - stop -- you're worth it!  

Eating Healthy Never Tasted So Good




Mediterranean lettuce wrap

 

I love the distinctive flavors of Mediterranean cuisine. Lately, I’ve been experimenting with different versions of lettuce wraps. So I thought why not take my taste buds on a trip to Greece. Grilled organic chicken breast seasoned with a unique blend of spices including cinnamon and cumin. Served on crisp, nutrient rich romaine lettuce and topped with cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, Kalamata olives, Feta cheese, and hummus. Oh how, my taste buds were delighted.