Food Apologetics: Why I Love Whole Milk

Alright. I have something I'd like to discuss. It's about food, and you are going to think I've gone crazy. I've repeatedly asked My Dear Husband if he thinks I've gone crazy. He says no. Obsessed maybe, but not crazy. Well, the only thing I see fit to be obsessed over is Jesus, so I confess my obsession and admit I am praying for a healthy, balanced approach to changing how we eat in our home. 

I have done the lowfat thing - I wish I had a dollar for every low fat Snackwell's chocolate marshmallow cookie I ate when I was 16. I have done the WeighDown thing, and although it enlightened me to the principle of moderation, I took the liberty of eating whatever I wanted, and did lose weight eating chocolate and pizza. And I have done the Weight Watchers thing, and I lost weight very quickly after I had Nancy, which was great because I didn't have to buy a new "transition" wardrobe, but I was exhausted by the points counting, and couldn't enjoy the foods I really liked (brown rice, eggs, butter and olive oil) without feeling guilty. Although I was thin, I still felt like I was not nourishing my body with good foods, and there was a world of foods out there beyond oatmeal, chicken breasts, and lowfat yogurt.

I was not in search of something new. I just happened on a book, In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, at the library, and was fascinated. I wanted to know more about how to shorten my food chain. My mom bought veggies at the farmers market when it wasn't cool yet to shop farmer's markets. And when Ryan and I were newlyweds, I knew the market was a place to get inexpensive produce, and since we lived just a few miles from it, I went every weekend. The price is what lured me, but the benefits of supporting local farms and knowing where my food comes from was what kept me going. In addition, seasonal produce is just that, seasonal, picked at the peak of freshness and contains the maximum amount of nutrients and vitamins. Plus, for me, it is so relaxing, and a very simple indulgence to wander with a cup of coffee and look at what the vendors have available for the week, and I love how each week is different.

On returning In Defense of Food to the library, I found on the shelf nearby Real Food, by Nina Planck. (click on the book at the top of the post to learn more about her and her book) I pulled it off the shelf because the cover was pretty, and after reading the subtitle "what to eat and why", I hoped it was going to tell me I could eat good whole foods, and as much as I wanted, without feeling guilty.  Sort of. Planck, a woman who started the London Farmer's Market when she was just 29 and grew up on a farm in Virginia, explains that not all food is equal. Meaning beef from the supermarket is not the same as beef raised on grass, pastured and free to roam. Eggs from chickens free to roam and scratch and peck at bugs contain more Vitamin E, Omega-3s and beta-carotene than eggs from chickens in cages. (I can see the difference here - I have a friend who keeps chickens, and their egg yolks are bright orange, a sign of the presence of beta-carotene) Milk from cows fed grass is full of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a cancer-fighting Omega-6 fat that also aids in weight loss and builds lean muscle. I think most of you are sick of me talking about our love for all things Happy Cow Creamery.

If I let myself think about it, I get really mad at how difficult it is to find "real food" and super mad when I see how expensive it is! We are trying to find the balance of being wise with what God has given us and be good stewards of our money, but also being wise in how and what we eat and especially what we feed our children. Usually I am an all or nothing kind of person - if I can't do it all the way, right the first time, then it's not worth doing. But I feel like any small changes we can make will be a benefit to our family and the...yes, I'm going to say it...environment around us. Not to mention, it's really fun knowing my friend Jenny collected the eggs she brings us on Sundays with her girls, and Kate gets excited to see our friends Chad and Amy Bishop from Greenbrier Farms and what they have in their big white coolers for the week. I mean, she got excited about radishes and spring onions! And ate them!

So what do you think? Do you like butter? Does the fact that we down 2 gallons of whole milk a week make you shudder? Are you satisfied with the "middle aisles" of corn and soy products in the grocery store? I'll tell you, my husband loves Pop Tarts, and I will continue to buy them, and I don't think we could survive with preschoolers without prepackaged snacks and crackers. I am just learning more about the world beyond Ritz and Coffeemate. I am really excited that it wasn't that hard to find places closeby that offer healthier options of the things we love, that are better for the animals and the environment, that let me get my hands a little muddy in the garden, and that support our friends and neighbors in their livelihoods or hobbies. 

I have some links on the blog to a few things I am interested in, but am planning on adding a few more. This month it's food and gardening. Next month, I'll probably be nose deep in some fiction (it's almost summer, you know), and by August I'll be picking up all those parenting books and learning all I can about school aged children and how to deal with the changes that come with entering the public school world. If you have read all of this, you must be one of my close friends!  So thanks for humoring me, and hopefully posting about my current interest will quell the tendency I would normally have to talk your ear off about it. Consider this post a warning - don't ask me unless you really, really want to know!