Most people eat 3 meals a day from a paper bag or box.

[Gary350]

The majority of the population eat, breakfast, lunch, dinner out of a bag or box. I tell family and friends we have a garden and eat lots of vegetables, they act like we are both crazy, then comments like, WHY?

People go through the drive thru every morning for, sausage biscuit & coffee. Lunch drive thru is fast food in a paper bag. Dinner is frozen food in the microwave. None of my relatives on 1 side of the family cook. My relatives on the other side of the family still live on a farm their garden has gotten small and lots of food comes from the microwave and drive thru.

We cook breakfast and dinner at home every day. We like to eat out for lunch just for fun, we like to eat healthy. Yesterday we had Oriental from the local Vietnam restaurant real food not fast food. Some times we eat at Farmers it is all vegetables, meats, fruit, bread. We eat, Greek, Cracker Barrel, Kleer Vue, BBQ, Chicken, Pork, Mexican, Asian, we try to avoid fast food.

Sometimes we eat fast food too, we both like McDonalds crispy Chicken sandwich & Popeye's 2 piece Chicken Lunch with coleslaw and mash potatoes. We are not perfect either but we try very hard not to eat much fast food and factory made food.

[pepperhead212]

Most people eat to live, while some of us live to eat! I'm one of those that lives to eat, and love those fresh veggies and herbs I grow. I eat at restaurants so seldom, that I don't even know where people are talking about when they are talking about "where they went out to eat", unless it's on the main roads in the towns I deliver mail in. And when people make comments like "I thought sure you could tell me about a good Mexican or Thai restaurant", I tell them that those are the ones I NEVER go to, unless maybe on vacation.

As for fast food, one place I go to a couple times a year, and I say I'm glad there's not one near home, is Church's chicken. Fried chicken, and fried okra - two things I don't make at home, but once in a while have to have some! And when I am in a restaurant, I try to get things I don't make - sounds pretentious, but things I make myself, I have tweaked to my own taste, and there's no sense trying them in restaurants, unless it is a really fine restaurant, where I may find figure out some interesting secrets they use!

And people think I'm crazy when I tell them that I haven't bought a loaf of bread since sometime in '76. Once you get hooked, there is nothing like homemade bread, though I still can't master SF sourdough bread.

[rainbowgardener]

I don't eat in restaurants a whole lot nor frozen foods, but I do rely on some of those when life gets too hectic -- meetings at 5PM or 6PM make it difficult to cook a from scratch dinner. Or today I had a committee meeting from 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM. Since I'm not much of a breakfast eater and I had "homework" to do for the meeting, I didn't manage to eat anything before hand. When we were finished it was already lunch time and I was at least 20 min from home, so I got fast food on the way home, because I was too hungry to wait. Also we just made a trip back to Cincinnati, 6 hr on the road each way. So we had some road food on the trip. And some of the groups I am part of like to try out different restaurants. I do like a good Thai/ Indian/ Mexican restaurant and don't think my home versions of them are very authentic. And I occasionally bake bread, but I do not have the knack of making bread that turns out as good as what we buy from the farmer's market. So I'm definitely not "pure" on any of these.

But I'm sure I eat way less restaurant/fast food/ frozen-boxed food than many Americans and cook garden veggies and from scratch dinners way more. I do think it is sad, lots of people have big fancy kitchens and hardly use them for anything but microwaving...

[imafan26]

I am afraid I am guilty of eating out on most days. Not because I want to so much as because I am usually out all day and I only eat breakfast at home. Not today, I had breakfast on the way to my first stop at McDonalds. Except for breakfast, I have only cooked a few meals in the last couple of months since I broke my arm and it was hard to do things like cooking. I could not lift the pot. Now, I just don't seem to have a lot of time. I have some marinating meat in the frig that I still have to cook and I bought it pre marinated. To tell the truth, my marinade is not very good, the store bought one is better.

I did finish the last of the hamburgers I made for dinner tonight. I still have a little cucumber from the garden left to eat. I also have sushi and a plate lunch in the frig for another day.

[thanrose]

There are a few fast food items that I've enjoyed to an extent. Nothing will taste as good as the small hot fudge sundae from DQ we'd get as little kids out in a drive in mom's convertible. Or the 3AM diner visit for coffee and Western omelet after a night of barhopping with friends. Ooooh, the carhops with the rootbeer and hotdogs before we went to view the fireworks?

Chick-fil-a had a Caesar salad that I liked. Chicken and sunflower seeds. I'd be racing back to work after tending my animals at midday.

But these are all memorable because they were unusual. I hate drive through windows, and don't like shuffling along in line inside or out, trying to read the menu.

It's true that right now I am not growing much to eat, and not doing any foraging for wild foods, or fermenting my own stuff, but I still cook daily whether for myself or for company. Grocery store rotisserie chicken is so cheap I haven't roasted my own chicken in a while, and it's hard to find hens for stewing.

My frozen burritos are homemade, but my nephews prefer the store brand, although fast food menu will always win. When the next generation visits, I can't plan for meals they will eat, only for what they may eat, or that I'll eat all by myself. So no more lasagna or beef stroganoff or paella for company.

I was always an adventurous eater. My sister won't even eat the luscious mulberries in her back yard because they didn't come wrapped in cellophane. Both brothers did a lot of wilderness camping but are way more picky now than then. Fast food and boxed prepared food and restaurant food are always better bets for them even when I cater to their quirks.

Even forty years ago, I made cakes for birthday parties at work and people my age and younger were turned off because they weren't box cakes, and weren't store cakes. And I am a pretty damn good home baker. All the people who tried my cakes loved them, but it was always disheartening to hear the kvetching from a few. hehe, I made an antipasti platter for a Christmas work feast, and some of the folks (office girls, snarky to begin with) complained that we were supposed to make something ourselves. Because I had a bed of whole small lettuces layered with crudité in fancy shapes, and a cheese ball I made myself (probably a Liptauer, if you know that general recipe), and olives, sopressata, cubed cheese, marinated mushrooms, spiced nuts, probably more: the snarky girls thought I paid for a party platter. Man o man, if I could have bought a party platter as nice as what I made, I would have. (Okay, I probably wouldn't have, since I obviously could make it myself!)

Enough of my complaining. It's nice to see that some people really do relish home cooking and home growing and DIY food prep. I tell my sister that she will never survive the zombie apocalypse if she won't even try to eat dark meat chicken. Or mulberries.

[ID jit]

Long story short....

Changed workplaces about 6 years ago...
Used to get a good natured hard time about what I brought in for lunch...
"What? to lazy to make a sandwich with that?"

One day a new coworker pointed out that what I brought in for lunch was smoked trout, freshly baked bread, garden veggies, and a chunk of chedder, and than most people don't even know what real food looks like. Arguement ensued about "No! you CANNOT smoke your own trout!"

Spring before last, the two guys the were giving me a good natured hard time... Both on "diets" for obesity, cholesterol, heart issues and/or diabetes, (and eating rabbit food now.)

Sad thing is neither of them can get past veggies = salad, and "I can't have real food anymore!"

[gumbo2176]

I rarely eat out and hardly ever eat fast food. I love to cook, and being retired makes that an easy task. Even on days when I don't feel like cooking, it is nothing more than a walk to the freezer and pull out something I've cooked and frozen in quart bags to set out to defrost and have for dinner.

When I do cook, I usually cook in bulk, so there are lots of leftovers to freeze for later use. When I cook red beans, I'll always cook no less than 2 lbs. of kidney beans, but often cook as much as 4 lbs. at a time. Same with meatballs/Italian sausage and red gravy. I'll make 50-60 meatballs and use 3-4 lbs. of Italian sausage out of the casing and rolled into mini-meatballs to go with the 3-4 gallons of red gravy. Everything I cook in bulk freezes well with the exception of some soups where the potatoes, turnips and some other veggies tend to get a bit soft once frozen.

[imafan26]

I usually cook for several days when I do cook, but it also takes having about 3 hours of time to do it. I don't really freeze anything, I just eat it for 4 or 5 days. I prefer things I can eat cold because sometimes I am too tired to even heat it up. At work I sometimes bring sandwiches. I don't like sandwiches, I only eat them when I am out or at work because they require no utensils and I can eat them hot, cold and in between.
I can't seem to get lettuce in the garden to cooperate. I have too much when I don't need it and none when I do. So, I actually like getting the costco caesar salad since it is enough for me for a couple of meals and I don't have a whole bag or head of lettuce I cannot finish up before it goes bad. I prefer cooked vegetables to raw so I don't eat a lot of raw salad.
Because I spend a lot of my time out, I actually prefer the drive thru because I am in and out faster (most of the time).
Idjit it sounds like you had yourself a healthy gourmet meal. I have to admit, what I eat is usually a cholesterol fix. I don't like fish but I do like baked potatoes and burgers. If I have the time to eat, I will get a side salad and put that inside my burger for the veggies. I used to bake a lot more, but I haven't done as much of that recently, I just don't have the time and I really don't like some of the features of my new stove. I wish I could bake bread. I have tried a few times. I am getting better, I'm just not there yet.

[ElizabethB]

We rarely eat out. When we do eat out it's the good stuff. My favorite Italian restaurant, Café Bella. just thinking about it. I have never been a big fan of Mexican. There is a fairly new restaurant in town that I like, Blue Apache. They make a chicken enchilada with a white sauce covered with melted white cheese. It is served with Spanish rice and black bean soup. I am not a fan of rice so they are good enough to substitute a salad. For special occasions either Mazzans's and Café Vermillion Ville - both in the "fine dining" category. Fast food is rare. I like sundaes and blizzards from DQ and chicken strips from Cane's. I love their sauce and they have great homemade lemonade. A couple of times a year I get deep seated craving for a big, old-fashioned, greasy, hamburger with grilled onions, thick sliced bacon and melted American cheese. from Morvant's, a hole-in-the wall joint in Youngsville - 10 minutes from home.

I do like to cook and have become a fairly good home cook. Unfortunately I like sauces with butter, cream, cheese - all of which are no longer on our eating plan.

George is a concern. When he returns to work he will be eating out 3 meals a day. Breakfast isn't that much of a problem. The hotels he stays in have a full breakfast buffet. He can get his protein from a plain omelet or fresh scrambled eggs and turkey bacon or turkey sausage. There is always a large selection of fruit.

Lunch will be his biggest issue. He brings clients to lunch.

Portion control will slay him. We grew up in the days of "Clean your plate! There are starving children in China!". That kind of indoctrination and life long habit is hard to reverse. He is on his first of 2 weeks of full liquids. Then he has 2 weeks of pureed foods. After that he is on a regular diet with serious portion limits and major restrictions on carbs from bread, rice, pasta and starchy vegetables (potatoes). When he gets back on "real" food I plan to deliberately serve him more than he is supposed to have so he can practice leaving food on his plate. I know - I can be but it is for his good.

I usually don't pay much attention to commercials but I have become very aware of food commercials. Every thing is "all you can eat", "super size", "double stack", "buy one get one". OMG No wonder obesity is such an issue in our society.

Got to go. I have to heat up George's noon meal - 8 oz. chicken broth (home made) with SF Jello on the side.

[rainbowgardener]

RE: "Portion control will slay him. We grew up in the days of "Clean your plate! There are starving children in China!". That kind of indoctrination and life long habit is hard to reverse. "

I grew up then too. A combination of guilt tripping and coercion: clean your plate or you will sit there until you do!

It has been a very hard habit to reverse. (And I never did it to my son. I always told him "eat what you want, don't eat what you don't want." I also brought him up with no sugar or sweets and he still has no sweet tooth. He is now middle aged and still slender.) After I got conscious of these issues, for a long time in restaurants, I put a napkin over what was left on my plate. Covering it up was the only way I could leave it there. These days I more often ask for a box and take it home with me. Now I usually get two meals for the price of one from restaurants. At home, I am careful how much I put on a plate. When I finish, I make it a rule to wait for ten or fifteen minutes, for my stomach to "catch up." If I am still hungry after that, I have a little bit more.

One thing that helped me change that was when I finally had an epiphany. I was brought up not to waste food, but it finally occurred to me that eating too much is wasting food also. You can waste food inside your body as well as outside. Also composting helps. Nothing organic in our household is wasted. If nothing else it goes to feed the chickens or the compost pile.

[ElizabethB]

RBG - the thought never occurred to me that over eating = wasting food. Thank you for the enlightenment. Is that a real word or did I just make it up?

[rainbowgardener]

Enlightenment is a real word. And yes, for some reason, suddenly understanding that was powerful for me and really helped with the clean-your-plate/over-eating stuff.

Parents: Teaching your child to clean their plate IS teaching them not to pay attention to the signals from their body when they have had enough, etc. Not a good thing. Small children need very small amounts of food, less than we think, since we are used to adult portions. It is better to serve them tiny amounts, just a tablespoon or two of this and that and let them ask for more if they want it.

[thanrose]

Years ago I was sent to a work conference at a fantastic corporate estate a long way from home. All of the top sales people had been there, and all save one gained weight each time they went. The only reason my conference (design) was there was because all those same top sales people would be on a Caribbean cruise and the estate with it's wonderful staff would be available. Anyhow, fabulous meals three times a day, multiple desserts, ice cream or pizza at midnight, and most evenings had a cocktail party with substantial hors d'oeuvres.

That one salesperson who did not gain weight told me to always leave 1/4 of every item on my plate while on the estate. Just make it a rule. That way the staff didn't seek to give me another serving, and I didn't overindulge. She also worked in a run every morning while the others were sleeping off the excesses of the night before. I took a long walk once only, did not eat after dinner, left 1/4 of everything at every meal and included a small bite of dessert. After a week, I hadn't gained, but some of the others clearly did. I know the food was lavish, but I really don't remember any at all save cocktail party potstickers.

I admit I felt conflicted about wasting food, and still do. I like RBG's thoughts on this.

And Idjit, I have also had the coworkers question my non sandwich lunch choices: "Are you eating green beans from a bag!? Is that a hard-cooked egg? What's with the handful of nuts?" Damn it, at least I didn't bring in leftover squid. lol

[ID jit]

I wish I could bake bread. I have tried a few times. I am getting better, I'm just not there yet.

If you can track one down, find the moosewood cookbook enchanted broccoli forest.... bread instructions in there are kind of fool proof.... sort of a how to guide with a basic recipe and how to modify it.

[ID jit]

I wish I could bake bread. I have tried a few times. I am getting better, I'm just not there yet.

If you can track one down, find the moosewood cookbook enchanted broccoli forest.... bread instructions in there are kind of fool proof.... sort of a how to guide with a basic recipe and how to modify it.

And Idjit, I have also had the coworkers question my non sandwich lunch choices: "Are you eating green beans from a bag!? Is that a hard-cooked egg? What's with the handful of nuts?" Damn it, at least I didn't bring in leftover squid. lol

Brought in a couple small rotisserie birds on day.... everything was fine until someone figured out they weren't little chickens. Note to self: don't ever mention pigeon as tasty to a city dweller, especially if you leave out the part about driving 2 hours west to a farm at the other (clean) end of the state.
-----
I grew up eating differently than most people I know. I grew up with subsistence gardening, hunting and fishing, some livestock rearing. I grew up on home baked bread, often baked in single serving loaves. I have spent a large part of my life outside, working, back packing, ect. To me it is normal for a vacation to be dropped of on a river with a light pack and a fly rod and getting picked up so many days later at a specified place upstream or downstream.

The idea of packing lunch or food for several days is all about the carb to protein balance with some fruits/veggies and a little bit of lipids. Kind of amuses me now that co-workers, etc look at me a little funny for the way that I eat and what I eat. It is more amusing when they ask how I stay in shape without dieting and going to the gym. At 53, I weight about 20lbs less than I did when I was a senior in high school on a lifting / eating program for wrestling and football and landscaping in the off seasons.

Only conclusion I have been able to draw is that most of the people I encounter have no idea what real food is nor how to interact with it and suffer the consequences form their ignorance.

[ElizabethB]

A major eating/drinking thing that I don't get is artificial sweeteners I can't stand artificial sweeteners. Since George is on such a strict diet I decided now is a good time to get rid of my 15 lbs. of excess. His morning shake is mixed with pureed fruit. For a boost and to mask the artificial sweetener I add strong black coffee to mine. He has a plain shake mid-morning I add pureed fruit to mine. I like a raspberry/strawberry combination. The tartness is what I am after. Lunch is not a problem - he eats broth and I eat soup - homemade of course. I am eating more fruit. at least 2 each day. I have either soup or yogurt with pureed fruit for dinner or scrambled eggs. I really like eggs and I finally learned how to scramble them properly. I am not really being THAT good. I still have either wine or a martini in the evenings.

I have lost 4 lbs.

In the past I have only been fair at drinking enough water. Since I started making infused water my consumption has sky rocketed.

[imafan26]

I googled the moosewood cookbook it is available on line
https://moosewoodcooks.com/all-recipes/

[ID jit]

The first The enchanted broccoli forest is better than the following NEW The enchanted broccoli forest.

its veggie food full on carnivores wont object to
... cream of onion soup layered over sliced potatoes, layer after layer in a buttered ceramic dish baked low until potatoes are soft and topped with super sharp grated cheddar at the end.

[Gary350]

We were poor people when I was growing up, if it had not been for the garden we would have all starved to death. I was always told, WE do not waste food, Don't take it if your not going to eat it. If you put it on your plate your not leaving the table until you eat every bite. I learned not to put much on my plate, if it was a food I never saw before never try more than 1/2 a bite until I know if I like it. If I wanted more I could always put more on my plate.

Grand kids and family come for dinner we cook real food and they refuse to eat it. I cooked Chinese stir fry they picked out the chicken pieces and refused to eat the vegetables. I told them, next time you come for dinner bring food you like don't expect us to eat any of it.

I love to cook. I have learned a lot of short cuts. Today I made a pot of garden chili I put meat, onion, garlic in the skillet to cook. Tomatoes went into the blender. Hit the garlic and onion with a cast iron skillet skin falls right off then chop it with a knife. Throw in the spices. It took 20 minutes to make chili. Everything but the meat came from the garden. Green beans are a good substitute for red beans.

Wife baked a chicken we ate some then turned it all into chicken salad for sandwiches that makes a great sandwich for lunch or dinner.

Relatives live on fast food and frozen food. Frozen burritos are their favorite they buy burritos by the case of 24. There are breakfast burritos, lunch burritos, dinner burritos, snack burritos, burritos for every occasion, that is 95% of what they eat, plus pizza and fast food.

I have to leave the table when I get full. If there is food in front of me I can not set there and look at the food without eating more.

I went to the doctor yesterday had a good check up, blood pressure 120/70, oxygen 95, pulse good, gained 8 lbs, everything looks good, taking no medication except Aleve for back pain. Doctor said, how much exercise do you get. I ride my bicycle 20 to 30 miles almost every day if we are not camping, we go camping every Tuesday for 3 days, I have a vegetable garden. Doctor said, how much caffeine and alcohol do you drink? I drink 1 cup Decaf coffee for breakfast, sometimes ice tea or Coke for lunch, glass of red wine before bed. Doctor said, pretty good for 67 year old fossil.