11.15.2010

TH and I have spent some time these past few days talking about the journey to food. Not how many food miles our cabbage and broccoli have endured before they get to our table, but more about how far you are willing to travel for food. Also discussing what makes the journey something you are willing to endure.

Some of the journeys seem insane, some moderately demented and some reasonable.  Everyone has a story and every food has a story. The next few days I am going to share some of them with you.

Unprocessed - A month long challenge

I love the month of October for the fact that it brings a yet again,  a chance for a new year, a fresh start. A fiscal year for those who work on that kind of stuff. This year I am applauding all opportunities I have been granted for a do over. It has been that kind of year.

This month I am part of a challenge put forth by Andrew Wilder.  He challenged all to spend the month of October to try and eat unprocessed foods.  The terminology is a bit strange - does that mean raw food? Nothing in the cuisinart? No, it means eating whole foods-unrefined if you can. High fructose corn syrup or corn sugar as it is now marketed, go out the window, as does anything with an ingredient you can't pronounce nor spell. His take on unprocessed can be found right here.  So far over 200 food bloggers and others have taken up the challenge.

In my case, it means being more mindful about what I put into my body.  It means giving up diet dr. pepper, my now not secret vice.  Halloween candy, forget about it.

Eating unprocessed takes some planning and since I will not be struck down if I snarf down minute bag of chex mix that they throw you with your orange juice on the plane, I think I will make it. You just have to have a plan of attack.

For the most part, we eat close to the "unprocessed" way. We eat mostly whole foods, eat organic foods, whole grains and are mindful. I grew up eating this way - Persian food did not come from the frozen food section of the QFC. My mom spent a goodly amount of time preparing our meals with wholesome ingredients including fresh herbs, vegetables and meats. Every Iranian family had a thing for Kentucky Fried Chicken and I'll admit that more than one bucket was consumed at a family picnic, but for the most part, things were pretty well unprocessed.

For me, the biggest challenge will be travel. This is the biggest challenge for me on a regular basis, to eat healthily and within my calorie needs on the road. Part of my fun of travel be it work or pleasure is seeking out the best "fill in the blank" of my destination, be it bagels in Montreal or fried asparagus in Prosser.  Ditto for plane food, yes, plane food. That is a different subject all together... We'll talk later.

So, here we go. One month. Unprocessed.

Stay tuned, I get to do a guest post on Andrew's blog! I can't wait...