Nutrition... has nothing to do with the holidays

Alright, so we're finally through all of the history/business/health parts of the book, and we've arrived at Nutrition and Healthy Cooking. I'm encouraged by the fact that it has the word cooking in the name, but I'm fairly convinced that there will be very little actual cooking involved. 

In any case, CFRN will be a little more active in the next few weeks. I'm getting impatient, and want to get my hands "dirty" (but… you know… not actually. We did just go through a whole chapter on cleanliness). So instead of writing on Fridays, I'll be writing when I have time during the week as well as Friday. As we get closer to Christmas, my voice students are going on vacation and such anyway, so I have a little extra time. Let's see if we can get to some real chiffon' by New Years!

I think the most entertaining part of this blog isn't actually the reading, although I do find the reading surprisingly fun considering it's a 1,200-ish page tome of a textbook. No, I'm actually having fun meeting people at this coffee shop. Everyone's studying for the most part, it is the season of finals and such, but at the same time it's not a totally silent, focused vibe. Now, I am by nature a social butterfly, but usually that means that I like to go out with friends rather than go alone. Here, I've found myself going out alone, and seating myself at a table with other people. Not intrusively of course, I always politely ask if I can join first, usually to be at a larger table near a power outlet. I've yet to be turned down, and people tend to be fairly sociable. And the ones who aren't terribly social are VERY interesting. Not that I eavesdrop, but I'm currently sitting at a table with three girls on the end, and one is truly fascinating. She has established that she doesn't drink, nor smoke, but she seems to be analyzing "how many grams you can snort before your body shuts down." This has been followed closely by "I mean, God kept me alive, so it was part of his plan." There are some characters here indeed.

Two cop cars just pulled up in front of the cafe, presumably something is happening next door. Seems like a party to me. Anyway.

Chapter 3: Nutrition and Healthy Cooking

Oops and now a firetruck is here too.

When looking at nutrition, we should first start with the USDA's Food Guide Pyramid. Now there have been a lot of different food pyramids, but everyone remembers the old school one:

It's funny looking at this one now, considering the aftermath of the Atkins diet. According to this picture, eat lots of Cheerios and saltine crackers, and stay away from tiny triangles (seriously, triangles? I mean, they're supposed to be sugar. If they were cubes, that would at least make some sense). 

Hm, I've never seen cops share handi wipes before. Well, they're heading out now so that's good. Don't worry, it's still very interesting here. Now we have a worship band in the coffee shop. Not that I dislike religious music. I'm Jewish, but I'm also a musician. I mean, arguably the best music in history was written for/in the name of God. I've just never been a fan of any song that only has one verse and a chorus, and just repeats for 4 and a half minutes. Also some people have joined in singing along at the table behind me. Picked up the words pretty quick, hell even I know them by now. 

Scratch that, repeats for *6 and a half minutes. *Sigh* moving on. 

So the USDA has since adopted a plate instead of a pyramid. Less structurally impressive, but easier to look at. 

Here, the difference appears to be that grains and veggies are roughly equal, as are fruits and protein. We also appear to have a glass of blue milk. Apparently this meal is served on Tatooine. 

Nerd tidbit: If you're a Star Wars fan, you're probably aware of the blue milk Luke's family shares on Tatooine in Episode IV. Now, did you know that it's actually bantha milk? Yeah, I know, I was weirded out the first time I heard it too. When you watch the movie you just write it off thinking, "huh. Blue milk, that's funny. It's space." But think about someone actually milking one of those terrifying things. I mean, whose job is that? Yech. 

Anyway, the plate is also different because you'll notice it has no mention of oils or sugars. It also gives us an fork. That's nice of them. 

Neither the pyramid nor the plate show any kind of alcohol. Not a big deal, but others do. For example, the Mediterranean food pyramid not only lists wine in moderation, but also water, and even puts being active as the all-important base of the structure. Plus it says to "Enjoy meals with others." Isn't that a nice thought? 

The rest of the first pages of this chapter go over how it's important to maintain a healthy weight, reduce total calories, eat your fruits and veggies, and "keep alcohol consumption at moderate levels (for instance, 1 to 2 glasses of wine a day for men, 1 per day for women)." So in college I actually wasn't that bad, if I had 14 drinks on a Saturday night, that averages out to 2 a day. That's how that works right?

Now we've got the ever-evolving list of "-tarians."

• Vegetarians: no meat, but eggs and dairy and such are cool
• Vegans: no meat, and also nothing the meat could have produced, i.e. no eggs, dairy, note even honey!
• Fruitarians: I'm not sure the difference here, but I think fruitarians are basically vegans who like fruit a lot. 
• Ovo-vegetarians: Vegans, but eggs are ok. NOT DAIRY THOUGH. That'd be crazy.
• Ovo/Lacto-vegetarians: you guessed it, ovo-vegetarians who got over the "no dairy" thing.
• Pesco-vegetarian: also known/spelled as pescetarians, they're vegetarians who eat fish too
• Semi-vegetarian: This is actually how I grew up, although I didn't know there was an actual name for it. So you eat everything except beef, veal, pork, lamb, and game. You can eat fish and chicken and such though. I grew up like this because my mother didn't want to "kill any cute animals." So I guess since fish and chicken aren't cute, they're suddenly edible.  

Since this book was published, there have been quite a few additions to this list. Now we have…

• Raw vegans: Raw vegans are vegans who eat only unprocessed foods that have not been heated above 115°F, which is the temperature at which nutrients begin to break down. So they're really healthy, but boring.
• Flexitarian: As opposed to semi-vegetarian, flexitarians eat everything, but they just don't do it that often. They're vegetarians who need a damn steak now and then because it's delicious. They tend to be very health conscious too.
• Macrobiotic: I… don't really get this one. It's basically pescetarian, however they don't eat fish very often, and they're very into asian veggies such as daikon, and sea veggies such as seaweed. From what I've read online, they just sound preachy. 

And the most interesting ones I've found

• Kangatarian: also lovingly called "vegeroos," (AWESOME!) kangatarians are basically vegetarian, but they also eat… you guessed it… kangaroo meat. The funny part is the "why." According to some Australian newspapers, it's ok (according to kangatarians) to consume kangaroo meat because wild kangaroos require no extra land/water for farming, and they don't fart a bunch like cows. Seriously, cows fart a bunch, look it up. Wild kangaroos also eat organic (… duh). 
• Cameltarianism: thank you Australia for making this fun. Just like kangatarianism, but with Austrailian feral camels. Sounds awesome. 

"From now on, you and I are in grave danger"

OH MY GOD HOW LONG IS THIS SONG? WE'RE JUST CROSSING THE 9 MINUTE MARK. THERE ARE ONLY TWO VERSES AND A CHORUS, AND THERE ARE ONLY FOUR CHORDS!!! 

Ok I'm getting out. Brb.

So my leaving the coffee shop was intended to result in my relocation to another, but it is finals time so all of the places open late in downtown Fullerton were PACKED. Thus I called it a night, and I'm starting new today. Let's see where were we? Ah yes.

The Language of Nutrition

Ok here's how we break down our nutritional terms. We have:

Calories

Pretty simple, a calorie is a unit of measure referring to the potential energy value of a food or beverage (although it could refer to anything, not just food). Diets usually revolve around calorie intake, which makes some sense. If you eat more calories than you expend through your natural metabolism and daily activities and such, then you'll gain weight. So eat fewer. Of course it's not that easy, there are lots of other factors beside energy in weight loss. The term "empty calories" basically means something with a lot of calories and little to no nutritional value. Like, how a big mac has no nutritional value, no vitamins/minerals/fiber or anything. We won't talk about alcohol. Let's not ruin that. 

Carbohydrates

The topic of carbohydrates can be a little complex… or it could be fairly simple. Hehehe a little nutritional humor. Basically carbs are your body's favored source of energy. While the Atkins diet would have you believe that carbs are bad, in fact, carbs are essential. It's a matter of WHICH carbs you consume. 

Complex carbohydrates consist of whole grains, cereals, starchy veggies, and dried legumes. They have tons of fiber, proteins, vitamins and minerals. What you want to watch out for is how they're refined. Some refined foods are ok, like cracked grains. But if you have over-refined foods, you end up with very little nutritional value. For example, we talked about potatoes having lots of nutrients in the skins. In fact, potatoes are very high in vitamin C, copper, potassium, manganese, dietary fiber, and their phytochemicals rival those in broccoli! Now, if you buy instant mashed potatoes… don't expect to cure what ails ya. 

Simple Carbohydrates, ofter referred to as "simple sugars" are in fruits, veggies and milk. Since these carbs are in fruits and veggies, they also come with lots of nutritional hootdedoo, so that's good. 

Refined sugars are honey, maple syrup, molasses, white and brown sugar, corn syrups and the like. They're… not very good for you, at least not nearly as beneficial as simple sugars. 

Fiber is good for a number of things. It has been shown to aid in reducing cholesterol for example. Also it gets your poop out. Don't laugh, it definitely beats the alternative. 

Proteins

Protein isn't really a difficulty when it comes to Americans. Our problem is that we usually choose the FATTIEST of proteins, namely red meats and such. In any case proteins are made of amino acids. There are 20 different kinds, and our body can manufacture something like half of them. So we need to consume the other half. Pretty simple. Now, when we think protein we usually think something bloody, but in fact lots of plants are high in protein as well. Beans and lentils are super high in protein, as are spinach, broccoli, and soy beans. As far as the chef is concerned, the problem is that it's relatively easy to get protein in the diet. So a 6-8oz piece of meat is plenty, but it doesn't really look like much. So you've got to dress it up to make it seem like a lot of food. 

Fats and Oils

Ok here it's a little confusing. BASICALLY

You've got cholesterol, which is bad. It's found in animal foods such as egg yolks and organ meats, so watch it on those. To measure your cholesterol, the doc looks at your low-density lipoproteins or LDLs (they're super bad and lead to arteriosclerosis), and your high-density lipoproteins or HDLs, which remove LDLs from your body. So how do we get more HDLs? Well first we avoid saturated fats, like butter, lard, etc. (with some exceptions in moderation: coconut oils are actually alright). Next we eat more monounsaturated fats, like nuts, avocados, and olives. We can also have polyunsaturated fats, though they're not as good for you. These include corn, safflower and vegetable oils. 

Cholesterol, LDLs, saturated fat = bad

HDLs, monounsaturated fats = good

Polyunsaturated fats = ok

Rapeseed is canola oil. You'll never forget now.

Vitamins and Minerals

Short and sweet

• Phytochemicals: found in plants, they're good for you
• Beta-Carotene: orange and red veggies, leafy greens and members of the cabbage family. Good for your hair, eyes, teeth, skin and nails, among other things
• Anti-Oxidants: vitamins C and E among others. They're like a Rocky training montage for your immune system
• Major minerals: Calcium, potassium and sodium are a big deal in the body. They maintain the fluid balance in your body as well as the acid/base balance. Of course, watch it on things like sodium, because if you have too much it can be rule bad. 

Also, you need to drink a lot of water. 

The Seven Guidelines for Nutritional Cooking

1. Cook all foods to retain their nutritional value in addition to their flavor, texture and appeal. Basically, don't add extra fat if you don't need to, cook things fresh right before they're served, and generally try and keep in the nutrients. Also, little known fact: a lot of the flavor in food comes from the nutrients it retains. More nutrients=more flavor.
2. Include lots of grains, legumes, veggies and fruits
3. Serve appropriate portions. People don't need 72 oz steaks, even if they're willing to pay $250 for it. 
4. Try and keep everything local. The farther the food has to travel to you, the fewer nutrients it has, and therefore the less tasty it'll be. Try and keep the processed foods out as much as possible.
5. Go for monounsaturated cooking fats and oils over saturated fats. Try not to use SO much butter, even if it is delicious.
6. Use calorie dense foods such as eggs, cream, butter, cheese etc moderately. Even if they are delicious. I'm sensing a pattern here.
7. Learn a lot of different ways of seasoning so you don't have to rely on salt. Salt isn't bad, but it's easy to go overboard, and sodium is even more plentiful in foods than protein. Just don't overdo it. 

So what have we learned? Well, not a ton really. Basically eat your fruits and veggies, and don't overdo it with fats and oils. Pretty straightforward. Here are a few more pro tips for retaining the nutrients in food though.

• Boiling isn't the best for veggies, as most of the nutrients are lost into the water. Hence why the water turns orange when you boil carrots. 
• Color and flavor are directly related to the nutritional value of food. If you've got some less-than bright veggies, might want to reconsider your purveyor. 
• I know I've said it before, but try to keep the skins on if possible. Most of the nutrients in fruits and veggies are in/right under the skin. Peel it off, and you're losing out. Remember Grandma Helen and eat your potato skins!

If you'd like to learn more about health and nutritional value in different ingredients, check out www.whfoods.com. It's a pretty decent database that goes into detail about the nutrients and health benefits of different fruits, veggies and etc. 

Well, that wasn't so bad. Pretty straightforward chapter. Thanks for stickin' around, (since... we still haven't hit cooking things). Next up, we've got… KNIVES!

Cheers