What this is all about...



Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Day 9: Sea vegetables

Whenever I think of a sea vegetable, I imagine that crab guy, Sebastian (okay, I had to Wiki the name), from The Little Mermaid tending an underwater garden.  (He's wearing a sunhat and gardening gloves over his claws, and maybe wearing a little apron.)  I also think of the first (and only) time I tried to eat a sea vegetable.  It was my freshman year of college and the girls in the room down the hall from me were super into eating well.  One night they decided we would try seaweed.  Well, I did, and it was revolting.  They all laughed for about ten minutes at the expression on my face.  So, as you can see, I am not too familiar with all the sea veggies Alicia talks about in The Kind Diet.  Nori?  Kombu?  Whaa?  However, since they are supposed to be super healtherrific, I've decided to journey to the Whole Foods and try some out.  But how do I eat it?  I have a feeling that eating it plain will garner about the same reaction from me as it did in college.  (Some people experiment with drugs in college....I experimented with seaweed.  It was an honors dorm.  Go figure.)

If the first third of this challenge was about detoxing from sugar, the second third will be about trying new things and expanding my food horizons.  I have a list of things I want to make--lentil loaf, lentil soup, the mac & "cheese" that Vegan Rocker Girl posted on her blog, kale (thanks for the suggestions, everyone--they sound great!)...the list goes on and my weekend is filling up.

I have also realized that even having botched, stale-tasting treats in the house is a bad thing.  Those crispy peanut butter treats I made tasted so much like peanut butter and chocolate that I started od'ing a little on them.  I will report, however, that while a regular rice crispy treat would give me a massive headache and shaky hands if eaten on an empty stomach, these did not, so the brown rice syrup must be easier on your blood sugar levels.  Next time I will reduce the amount of syrup and actually use crisp rice instead of puffed rice....but I also recognize that the small amount of self-control I have can only handle me making these treats every so often.  They're not good to constantly have in the house.

However....I think I might just be a miracle worker.  Last night my husband and I had a long talk about....of all things....nutrition.  He told me that he would like to find something to do to make himself healthier and is trying to decide what he would like to do.  He even admitted that he has considered the possibility of...wait for it...becoming a vegetarian.  

Pause for jaws to resume position on faces

I was SHOCKED, people.  But I am so excited that my healthier eating has inspired my husband to become healthier as well.  So if anyone has any advice on how to help him re-train his palate to like veggies and "different" food, please advise!   

5 comments:

  1. I need to find some brown rice syrup!! My copy of The Kind Life is coming tomorrow.. YAY! I'm so excited.

    Do you guys have a grill? Grilled veggies are THEE way to go!

    I can't wait to hear about your adventures into sea vegetables.. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I haven't tried sea vegetables either, so I too would like to hear about them. :)

    That's great about your husband...I can't offer any advice, but I can say that I have never liked vegetables and fruit and now I do. Smoothies are a great way to start.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I did say, however, it would never happen. But I have thought about the idea. Just don't know what I would eat instead :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Just that you have thought about it is a miracle! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Can't wait to hear your thoughts on sea veggies!...I have been slightly scared of them as well, as I can't even seem to boil beans correctly...LOL.

    ReplyDelete