On My Plate - UrbanMoms

Recently I wrote about my diagnosis of an auto immune disease that leaves some of my joints swollen and painful. I have been frustrated with traditional medicine and its limited results so I decided to do some more research on my own. What I found out was incredibly alarming but also gave me hope for the first time in years. What I found was that there are strong indications that the chemicals and additives in our foods could very well be contributing if not causing my health issues. Wow.

So, I spent some time trying to understand how food is grown, processed, and put on my plate. I read all of Michael Pollan‘s books, I watched Food Inc., I borrowed Tosca Reno‘s cookbook and I…wait for it…STARTED COOKING. I hate cooking and shopping and anything to do with mealtime except the eating part so this is huge for me and my family. But I made a decision, I turn 40 on my next birthday and I want to be healthy and conscious of what I am putting into my body. I want to do something about the aches and pains. Plus, I want my healthy, active children to understand food because I never really did.

Here’s my husband picking up some organic Ontario apples.

So, as a start, my family and I spent a few hours down at The St. Lawrence Market in Toronto this weekend. The market has been around since 1803 and it is an amazingly dynamic place to educate yourself about food. Plus, we purchased some beautiful local and organic fruits and vegetables, organic cheese from Chris’ Cheese-Mongers, chips and guacamole from Manotas Organics and fine foods, organic beef from Beretta Farms (also at Loblaws), and explored the market for hours.

My cheese-loving boy after our purchases at Chris’ Cheese-Mongers.

Then, we went home and cooked. We had organic grass-fed steak (my picky girl had scrambled free-range eggs), local organic green beans (OMG. Who knew beans could taste so good?!), and local corn. Then I made mixed berry smoothies for dessert. We were all amazed at how delicious it all was. Plus, my picky-I-won’t-eat-ANYTHING girl ate this:

A fresh Ontario peach!

I know it doesn’t seem like a huge deal but the only fresh fruits or veg this kid eats are corn and oranges/clementines. Everything else has to be pureed. It’s a texture thing. She’ll eat almost anything pureed. But now, we can add peaches to our list of fresh fruit!

We’re just starting out but so far it is going really well. We threw out almost all of our packaged foods and are really starting to read ingredient lists. This is not to say that a chip or fast food french fry will never pass my lips again. A life without movie popcorn is just not worth living! But I am determined to have a positive impact and educate myself and my kids on what we are really putting into our bodies.

Any tips, tricks or recipes are much appreciated!