Sunday, May 15, 2011

The would be vegetarian who doesn’t like to eat vegetables

I’ve always said that I’d like to be a vegetarian if only I actually liked to eat vegetables!  That throws a bit of a spanner in the works!  To say that I was a picky eater as a child is putting it mildly.  Just ask my mother.   You are talking about someone who avoided yellow foods until the age of nine (just on the off chance that it was an egg).   No joke.  Good thing that yellow foods don’t make up the bulk of a healthy diet.  And no, I am still not fond of eggs.  But, banana yogurt, corn and mango have now found their way into my diet. 


I would have avoided these foods at all costs as a child!    





It took me years before I would eat a Cadbury cream egg.  I loved them for a while, until I choked on one once and had to have the Heimlich maneuver done on me.  Now they just make me shudder. 



I’m not nearly as picky now as I once was, but even to this day I still find my mother trying to sneak non-preferred foods into my diet.  It’s not so much that I don’t like the taste; I just have some really odd food texture issues.  I should have had occupational therapy as a child!  But instead I’m trying to get over some of my picky issues without professional help!  And thus, the girl who doesn’t like to eat vegetables decides to go on a plant based food kick…



My Mum used to feed me and my brother “rainbow potatoes” (aka mashed potatoes with a generous sprinkling of colorful mashed up veggies).  I saw them being prepared once when I was about five and then refused to eat them ever again!



I’ve been pondering switching to more of a vegetarian/ vegan-ish diet for a while now.  I say “vegan-ish” because the thought of going without dairy makes me want to cry a little.  A life without cheese?!?!  No more fro-yo?!?!  Goodbye ice cream?!?!  Oh hell no!!!  I mean I know that they make the non-dairy equivalents, but in the words of U2 – “ain’t nothing better than the real thing”.   So hence the “vegan-ish” which is limited dairy versus none at all. 



I like the thought of eating a whole foods plant based diet.  In theory I think it sounds fabulous that if you eat all these wonderful wholesome foods then you will live longer, be healthier, and generally have oodles more energy.  But in order to gain the benefits, you first have to eat the healthy foods.  I’m the girl with a 30+ year aversion to foods that are green and leafy.  But I am up for a challenge, so here goes!!



Day 1 of the healthy food kick: 
Okay, well technically today can’t really count as day one, as I went to Souplantation for lunch.  But in my defense, I ate a big salad and only had four slices of delicious cheese sticks.  This afternoon I went to see Forks Over Knives and that has really spurred my healthy food kick.  After the movie I was highly motivated to go shopping in Trader Joes and purchase lots of healthy veggies.  Jon just watched with a bemused expression and commented “you’re really going to do this aren’t you?”  Meanwhile I was zipping around the store like a little energizer bunny stocking up on all things healthy and wholesome (so, ironically purchasing the equivalent of rabbit food…) 




For those of you who have not heard of this movie, Forks Over Knives is a documentary that explores all the reasons that people should switch to a whole foods plant based diet.  I’d highly recommend that you take the time to go see it. 



Dinner number 1:  A vegetarian garden salad with a pesto-balsamic homemade dressing and a side a hummus and flatbread.  It was good!  I was pleasantly surprised.  Maybe I can actually do this eating greens thing.  We shall see…  So far I’ve got so say I have way more energy than is usual for this time of the evening, and I feel good!  I wonder if that will carry over to getting me through an entire busy Monday…??? 




Who knew that rabbit food could taste so good? 

To be continued…. Wish me luck!!!