Food Rules: The Edible Experiment, Weeks Twelve/Thirteen

(I'm combining this two weeks since one of them was Thanksgiving and we were off :)

Journal Entry
Week Twelve
November 12, 2010

The first rule I have been working on is as follows:
Rule 49 “Eat slowly” and "Put your fork down between bites"

While "eating slowly" has been a challenge, I have been more successful with putting my fork down between bites! Growing up, I had a friend who always put her fork down between eating. She was thin as a rail and I always wanted to be like her because I equated putting your fork down while eating to "staying skinny!" (Ok so we were like 7 but still, that's what was going through my 7-year-old brain). I always had a hard time doing that, though, because my mom was a terribly fast eater and so a typical family "dinner" would last about 10 minutes on average, maybe 15 minutes on Sunday.
Yet over the years I do think I have learned to eat at a more reasonable pace, and since practicing this rule, I've actually noticed myself putting down my fork inadvertently now! Progress!!


Journal Entry
Week Thirteen
November 12, 2010

SO! Thanksgiving has come and gone! Can we say Food Hangover?? My family enjoyed the following: Filet Mignon, Garlic Barbequed Shrimp, Grilled Rosemary Asparagus w/ Hollandaise, Baked Sweet potatoes, Eggplant and Shrimp Casserole, Green Salad, and Sweet Tea... Ok so we're Un-traditional. But that's how we do it in the Morris Family ;) Yeaaah Thanksgiving!!

Reflecting on what I ate for Thanksgiving, I was estatic to realize that everything, (EVERYTHING!) complied with Pollan's Food Rules that I have been following this semester!

Filet Mignon/Shrimp - The rule about 4 legs, 2 legs, and no legs :)
Asparagus - Of course, a vegegable! Seasoned not with salt, but with pepper and rosemary, tossed in a little bit of olive oil, and grilled over an open flame. Delicious!
Hollandaise sauce - I don't particularly care for this sauce so I didn't eat it, but my family was still in line, Lol - egg yolk, REAL butter, and fresh lemon
Sweet Potatoes - a healthy starch (and one of my favorites!!)
Eggplant and Shrimp casserole - It is what it says! Perhaps a few breadcrumbs were thrown in the mix, and maybe some eggs to hold it all together.
Green Salad - pretty self explanatory :)

Even the dessert which normally would follow the rule to "break the rules once in a while" pretty much complied with the Food Rules book! My dad is a HUGE fan of Lemon Meringue Pie, which consists of Fresh Lemon juice, condensed milk, egg yolk, and whipped egg whites. That's it! Put it in a pie crust (flour and butter - maybe lard - but hey that might be the only rule we broke) and you've got yourself a Food Rules friendly dessert.

Needless to say I was extremely full and pretty stoked that we actually had a delicious, healthy, Thanksgiving dinner!