Recipe of the Moment: Carrot and Orange Soup

I've never heard of this combination before I found it in Mireille Guiliano's The French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook, and I was a little suspicious. Generally, I think it's pretty great. And unlike most soups, I actually prefer this one cold. It's very refreshing!

Good Wine is a Necessity of Life

I used to pride myself on my ability to hold my liquor. I wouldn't get into drinking contests or anything like that, but everyone, especially guys, admired that I could drink whiskey (or vodka or bourbon) straight and have no problems. Beer leaves much to be desired. I've never craved anything as dull as beer, and the amount of calories in a beer is ridiculous compared to the level of alcohol in it. Wine is nice, but it always seemed impractical as well as a bit pretentious. It still does to an extent, but wine has now become my alcohol of choice.

An Ode to Yogurt

I've always been highly opposed to yogurt. Always. Every few years I would get mildly interested and try it, only to be repulsed. So when I read Michael Pollan's Food Rules, I skipped over the section that mentioned yogurt. In Mireille's book, I skipped over the first few times she mentioned it as well. Then she dedicated a small section to it, and I decided to read it, and maybe even give yogurt another try.

My New Idea of Dessert: Fruit

I've always been very suspicious of eating foods that I'm not already familiar with. I couldn't be sure if I would like it... What if I hated it? I certainly didn't want to spend any money on something that I knew I would hate. And I probably would hate it. Especially the texture.

I believe they refer to people like me as picky eaters.

Spices and Seasonings: Kind of Important

I've never really been into herbs and spices. The closest I ever came to actually seasoning something was when I put oregano on my pasta. I just didn't understand the point, and I hated having to floss when the damn herbs got caught in my teeth.

Farmers Markets > Supermarkets

There were no strawberries at the first Thanksgiving. Wild New England cranberries, perhaps. Strawberries, no. The Pilgrims naturally worked with local produce and what was in season. So did our grandparents and more remote ancestors. Tomatoes in December? Try South America. Canning and mass global distribution of produce have conditioned us to expect food all year round. I myself have been beguiled by the engineered good looks of off-season produce, but one taste of cardboard is enough to send me reaching for my napkin to expel the offending counterfeit. Nothing is more flavorless than a supermarket tomato in winter, but a true vine-ripened specimen in summer is nothing short of divine.

If there's one thing that's become apparent, either through Mireille Guiliano or Michael Pollan, it's that shopping in supermarkets simply won't suffice. Which is unfortunate since our cities and suburbs are designed for everyone to drive to their giant grocery store in their giant SUVs and buy enough processed foods to last for a month.

"If washing an extra plate seems a bother, how does it compare with getting fat?"

I've already discussed how difficult it was for me to eat less. Mireille also has her sections on how you should eat less and stick to three meals a day. She also introduced the idea of courses to me.

I generally only think of courses as things in fancy restaurants. Sometimes I would groan because I wasn't sure how I could manage to eat a salad with heavy dressing, a giant pasta dish, and then a chocolate dessert. But even though I was worried about my stomach exploding, I always managed to eat everything and enjoy it. This was not the same thing.

The French word menu not only means "bill of fare," for which la carte is the more common term in France, but also "little"; and by its use in relation to food, we mean to suggest our sense of small offerings. The essence of French gastronomy is to have a little of several things rather than a lot of one or two.

Let us consider the French plate. It's strange for us to have a whole meal on one dish, stranger still to see any plate covered with food. The arrangement of a course in the center of a plate is part of French enjoyment. Changing plates not only compels you to concentrate on what you are enjoying at that moment, it slows the meal down, improving digestion and promoting contentment. The faster you eat, the more you'll need. If washing an extra plate seems a bother, how does it compare with getting fat?

Don't forget: 8 Glasses Each Day!

Whoever said that drinking a glass of water before a meal (or whenever you're hungry) will ease the hunger pains lied. I tried it, and drinking a full glass quickly just makes me feel bloated.

I started drinking a lot of water though. I had a full glass in the morning (since sleeping dehydrates you), and I would attempt to drink one full glass, about the size of a Silo cup, every hour. It wasn't that I planned to drink one every hour, it was that when I started drinking more water, I started getting really thirsty. Not sure why.

And yes, this meant I had to go to the bathroom almost once an hour. But I found that I didn't mind that much because it was good to get up and walk around instead of sitting at my desk.

"Round Up the Usual Suspects"

During my fast, I was supposed to meditate on all the reasons I was unhealthy and figure out why I wanted to change. I didn't think too long. I knew I wasn't doing it for someone or something (like the black dress I bought over Christmas), I was doing it for me. I was tired of being unhealthy, it's as simple as that. (Plus, I was slightly horrified by what was happening to my food.)

My Version of a Fast.

So a big part of French Women Don't Get Fat are stories from Mireille Guiliano's childhood, as well as stories about her friends. She starts off explaining how she came to America to study as a student (and again when she studied in Paris) and became overweight. I'm sure her story is one that many people can relate to: a love affair with chocolate and pastries. She has this wonderful doctor (whom she refers to as Dr. Miracle) who gives her all sorts of advice about what to do. He also sounds a bit like a psychologist... I'm pretty sure my doctor would just tell me to go on a diet and move on to the next room. Maybe prescribe some diet pills, I don't know.

Opting in to the French Paradox.

So after Michael Pollan told me everything I've ever eaten was wrong, I decided I needed to start over, adopt a French grandmother and learn to cook.

I researched quite a few French cookbooks before deciding on Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking.* Apparently the woman knows what she's talking about.