Until I was 25 years old I felt intimidated by the produce section in the grocery store. There were so many different types of vegetables and I knew nothing about how to prepare them. New York City is where I learned how delicious vegetables could be, what they were, and how to prepare them – broccoli rabe, brussels sprouts, kale, spinach, squash, peppers.
At the Happy Dog in Cleveland with Emily
My love for veggies didn’t come naturally, it took exposure and consistency. Once I opened my mind to trying new types of vegetables and started to brave the produce section discovered I actually liked some vegetables, and could make most others taste good with the right recipe
(this book helped me along, thanks for the gift Emily).
I visited the local West Side Market on Broadway and 110th Street in Manhattan several times a week so that I could try different combinations in my salads to find out what I liked and what I didn’t like. I knew I had the right combination when I sat on a bench in Riverside Park to enjoy my creation:
- Baby Spinach OR Mesclun Greens
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Peppers
- Carrots
- Artichoke Hearts
- Sunflower Seeds
- Walnuts
- Dried Cranberries
- Mozzarella Cheese
- Light Balsamic Vinaigrette
I ate this instead of fast food (the cost was usually $8 at the grocery store salad bar, about the same as a meal at McDonald’s). For those of you who are victims of fast food cravings like I was, find foods that are nutritious that you can stand, start mixing things up and experimenting, and find a way to replace fast food with cooking or ordering fresh produce. It’s a big change, but the health benefits are endless, and after all it was the father of westernized medicine that said:
“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” – Hippocrates
Isn’t it amazing that healthy choices can be so tasty and satisfying? I look forward to reading more about your insights into healthy living.