At this rate, Netflix may have to go! Yesterday Vince had worked really hard and was exhausted fairly early so we made our nest on the sofa and as always, Vince was in charge of the remote. Actually, I don’t have a clue how to make Netflix or anything work on the TV any more and that’s fine with me. The first show he chose for us to watch was Farmageddon. Once that was done, Vince got us on another movie . . Forks Over Knives. I have not done any independent research to know if what we saw was 100% accurate or not but like so many of the “documentary” type shows, it made me think . . and it may be the kind of thinking that never stops. We both sat there thinking . . we have to make some changes. I’m not saying you should watch these shows . . I’m just saying we watched them and it will be real hard to continue eating the foods we’ve been eating.
Have you seen either of these shows? If so, what did you think? There are several other type shows we’ve watched . . something about being sick and nearly dead was one of them . . and we made a few changes for a brief time. Maybe we’ll make longer term changes this time.
By the time the second show was over, we were both on the computer researching recipes and searching for sources for more whole grains. This is one site that I found that has some good info on grains.
Are we becoming vegetarians? No! I do think we’ll put more effort into finding a source for locally grown beef . . someone we trust had fed it a healthy diet. Finding total grass fed beef locally may not be possible since there’s not much grass to be found in central Texas. We will have more meatless dishes though. It didn’t make me feel any better that I had spent a couple of hours working on a menu for the entire month during Preparedness Pro’s Challenge and now I felt the need to make at least a few changes in that menu.
Menu
There may be more changes. It’s about 10 days til the challenge starts.
On the menu for this morning was Migas. Last night I asked Vince if that’s still what he wanted for today and he said yes. I struggled through it. Once I read the ingredient list on chorizo in the grocery store and I have had a hard time eating it since then and the movies last night didn’t help. The chorizo I had this morning came from a meat market I pass on my way home from MO. I’m not sure it had an ingredient list but if it did, I was not about to read it.
One thing I’m very thankful for . . Vince watched it with me and he’s really wanting to make a change. This morning, he said “We’re going to buy some new groceries!” He’s always been a bit unhappy with me for paying more to get raw milk but that’s all I’ll drink. I think now he’ll be happy to drink raw milk with me.
Dinner tonight: Tofu Tacos
Angela @ Cottage Magpie says
I haven’t seen Farmaggedon, but I have seen Forks Over Knives. We haven’t chosen to be completely vegetarian, but we are definitely emphasizing the veggies and de-emphasizing the meats and starches in our meals! I feel much better. We also try not to use processed food or refined sugar in general and it’s taken a couple of years to phase all that out but again, I feel so much better!! My arthritis is better and my weight is better, and I feel better knowing I’m supporting local farmers. If you’re interested in this kind of thing, I highly recommend also “King Corn”‘ which is a great documentary about the state of food and farming in America. I’m pretty sure it’s on Netflix streaming… that’s where I watched it, though it was quite some time ago. Have fun with all the new recipes! ~Angela~
Helen says
Judy, after watching Forks over Knives and doing a lot of research, my older daughter…with her degree in nutrition and a cancer survivor…has turned vegan.
I’ve watched it, I have done some research, and I think it’s a wonderfully healthy lifestyle. At this time, my sweet husband isn’t willing to try it. (He has not watched the movie…that might sway him.)
Good luck on the life-style change.
Dora, the quilter says
I did watch Forks Over Knives, and I am trying to figure out a way to make better buying of groceries work for us–with no possibility of a garden here in the desert and a smaller income, I haven’t worked it out yet. (Since I grew up on a farm, I do appreciate meat that’s raised in a healthy way and wish I had better access to it.)
Vivian Oaks says
I haven’t watched any of them, but I know the additives and all that go into our food supply now is ridiculous. My problem is that my husband wouldn’t eat a meatless meal if his life depended on it. He hates almost ALL vegetables. He’d be happy with meat and potatoes every day…. I could easily be a vegetarian without much effort at all….
Melissa says
Judy,
If you are looking for extremely clean grass fed beef there’s a guy pretty close to you. His website is paidom.com. The guys name Alan and he’s extremely nice. I think the meat tastes a little gamey but its better than a lot of people who sell it around here.
Connie in Louisiana says
Have watched forks over knives, but I live south of New Orleans in Cajun country; it is difficult [but not a good excuse]. My family look at like I’m from outer space. They say vegetables are what their food eat. Have started to clean up a lot of what I eat. I began gardening and I am finding more ways to eat more vegetables.
Susan says
Have you tried quinoa, Judy? It’s a pretty versatile grain, though it isn’t really a grain. More a seed.
Janna says
I struggled through the book Forks Over Knives and it does make you stop and think. We have significantly reduced our beef consumption (Mike has gout) and enjoy 2-3 meatless meals per week.
Marion Morgan says
Assume you must know from your research that lettuce is the number one cause of E. coli, not meat. It is out in a field, it has a huge “surface area” and can grow trouble as it travels to the point of sale. If not thoroughly washed, it can cause all sorts of problems.
Debbie says
I have not seen these documentaries (might be afraid to watch now) but I thought that you were okay with your farm raised meat. I’m struggling to make changes in our eating style. I was a vegetarian for several years and truthfully, it was the healthiest I’ve ever been. I love a good steak, though! 🙂
Marion Morgan says
Grass fed beef is gamier that grain fed so that is what you’ll get in Texas.
Quiltinggranna says
Have never eaten chorizo and don’t ever plan to. My husband asked me to get some for something he was making and when I read the ingredient list in the store I absolutely refused. If he wanted it, he had to go buy it himself. Think he did but that has been the last time and it was a number of years ago.
Sandra Neel Hutchins says
We buy our grass fed beef from the Mennonites, the Amish make sausage for us from our venison. I would never , ever buy commercial sausage, on my, the stuff that goes into it. We try to eat foods that are still as close to nature as possible. That means many of the vegges are raw or steamed, the meat just cooked, not made into dishes with lots of sauces or other high calorie additives. We feel very lucky to live close enough to a Mennonite and Amish area where we can buy our meats, etc.
Linda in NE says
I haven’t seen either of those shows, but I’ve read some books such as Seeds of Deception that have made me think. For instance, I always thought canola oil was one of the good fats…that is until I found out that all canola has had something done to it to make it non-toxic and most of it is GMO any more. I’d really like to get GMO foods out of our diet but it’s hard since corn & soy in some form is in almost everything. Not to mention sugar beets and a bunch of others Monsanto would like to ruin as well. Whole grains are great as long as you know they are not GMO.
If baby calves or cats are fed a diet of pasteurized, homogenized milk they will die. How could it possibly be good for humans? I think people my age who grew up on mixed agriculture farms are as healthy as we are because we grew up on raw milk, home grown meat & veggies, and before all the rBGH, antibiotics, preservatives and additives in everything.
I think if we look back at the history of food and what’s been done to it we will see that the epidemic of obesity, diabetes, ADHD, autism. behavior problems, heart disease and others got started about the time all of the above started happening…with the full blessing of the FDA and the United States government.
Carol in SW MO says
I have become much more aware of lables after my 5 yo great-great nephew was diagnosed with several food allergies, soy is one of them. Soy is in just about everything! I have been trying to eat more fresh vegetables. I know it is much healthier and they sure taste better than any processed or canned food! Cheers to you for all you are doing!
Lynne in Hawaii says
Judy, there is a program (on BYU TV) call Fusion Grain Cooking that combines a lot of different grains and beans and such. It is not all vegetarian but VERY nutritionous receipes. So go to the BYUTV website or go to ChefBrad.com for all kinds of receipes. He uses grains and beans in salads, breads and everywhere he can sneak it in foods to increase nutrition. He calls it ‘stealth’ cooking to get it by his children.
Rita Schiavone says
Haven’t seen either show, but grass fed beef is better than to me than what you get in the stores. Found a place semi-close to you (about 30 minutes) that sells it:
http://gourmetgarlicgardens.com/mcclatchy/buybeef.htm
Rita
Missy says
I love raw milk too! We’ve been trying to change the way we eat also.
Linda enneking says
Using more grains and a little less meat should help lower your cholesterol.
Adrienne says
I haven’t seen either film but I can imagine knowing what I do about factory farming…..it”s all about the bottom line. You are already ahead of 99% of North Americans by growing your own organic vegetables, eggs and chickens. You are trying to carefully scource your meat also. Give yourself credit where it’s due and yes, we should all eat more meatless meals but you do seem to already emphasise the veggie consumption.
Download a copy of Barbara Kingsolver’s “Animal, vegetable, miracle”…..very educational and hugely entertaining at the same time!
Regards, Adrienne
Cindy B says
We buy beef from a local small rancher 1/2 cow at a time. I can’t eat supermarket beef any more. I don’t even buy it if it’s on a super sale. I buy fresh dressed chickens from a local egg seller. Fresh fish from a local fish market and that’s it for meat. Sometimes pork but usually a ham for the holidays. I quit buying processed foods some years ago. . I don’t spend a lot of time cooking which everyone thinks I do when they see my grocery cart. DH and I haven’t been to the Dr. for anything but physicals in the last dozen years and we are not spring chickens. I firmly believe to buy the best fresh food you can afford, have a hobby you are passionate about, volunteer in your community and get plenty of sunshine and never pass up the opportunity to chat with a child.
Sophie says
You might be pleasantly surprised if you go looking for grass fed beef. I have found it at the farmers’ markets in both Dallas and Austin. As for chorizo … Trader Joe’s makes a soy choriso that actually tastes quite a lot like the real thing.
Terri says
Before you add too much chicken to your diet look up “superbug”. Lotta thoughts there on antibiotics and our food.
SarahB says
The name of the movie was, “Fat, Sick and nearly Dead.” It’s the movie that started me on a raw veggie and fruit diet. But, like everyone else, I have my own opinions of what’s healthy. I would never go completely vegetarian because our forefathers were hunter-gatherers so I believe we need some complete proteins. I just don’t think you can eat enough veggies to compete with some animal meat. BUT, I think our complete protein needs are much, much smaller than a typical american eats. My husband is a meat-and-potatoes kind of guy and I am slowly transitioning him to a more plant based diet with just 3 oz. of meat instead of the 8 oz. steak with a small salad. I remember once I saw a plate with 2/3rds with veggies and 1/3 was grains and animal meat… that’s what I aim for. P.S. My husband isn’t on board for the Preppers challenge but I am going to do it!! I should learn a lot about my personal spending… :o)
Diane says
Our daughter and her wife saw “Forks Over Knives” 3 months ago and became vegans overnight. Their weight, health and psyche did a 180 and they feel and look wonderful. However, as a mother whose job it is to feed their children, I feel I either have to give up that job or ‘go back to school’. It’s so difficult to add recipes to my ‘do-it-in-my-sleep’ repertoire that don’t have cheese, eggs, meat or anything that comes from “anything with a face”. I get what they’re thinking but I don’t have to like it. . . .
Norma V says
what the do to food is unbelievable…we raise cattle and then they are sent to some feedlots that feed ractomine and it is also fed to pigs and turkeys…it makes more muscle and the animal has to be slaughtered no longer after 45 days after it is started on this garbage because i think the muscle starts breaking down…when the pink slime news was made public i wrote to the beef council and can you believe they defended the practice? all you have to do is follow the money…makes me sick…
Mary says
Was raised on grass fed beef and prefer it. My brothers still raise it and have it butchered for the family. They grain it for 100 to 120 days before slaughter to get rid of the gamey flavor although the native grasses we have here in N. Colorado are less gamey than in other parts of the country. I too think it is necessary to have complete proteins in our diet. That being said I have a question for you to think about. The meat, beef, pork, chicken, farm grown fish, etc. are all fed steroids to bulk them up and make them grow bigger faster. Deep down we all know that residue is in the meat that is sold in the stores, used in fast food, served on our nations tables, etc. My question is this: What effect does that have in fostering the obesity problem in the country and the increasing incidence of autoimmune diseases??
Sally H says
Another movie you might check out is “Food, Inc” It tells the story of three farmers who do things very differently than Ag institutions recommend.
We raise most of our own meat. I was going to say we are lucky enough to do so, but it’s not luck but a conscious life choice that has allowed us to grow our own food. Even though the rest of both of our families kind of pat us on the head and call us cute for doing so. I do my very best to make sure my animals are happy during their lifetimes. They get good food, fresh air, green grass, and a chance to participate in those behaviors that make them happy. Then I take them to a butcher I trust, (for the poultry that person is me) who is careful to treat them well right up until the moment they die. I do all this not because it saves me money, but because it provides my family with the best food I can make available. And taking care of my family is my most important job.
Linda Steller says
I’ve not always made the best choices for my diet, but the digestive issues I’ve had over the past few years have really affected the way I eat. Lately, I too have cut back on meat. I’m using whole grains in combination to make whole proteins so that I don’t have blood sugar crashes. Actually, I downloaded the ebook copies of Frances Moore Lappe’s Diet for a Small Planet and Recipes for a Small Planet that I used when I was cooking for myself back in college. You know – I was rather skinny back then! I make it a habit never to eat anything that comes in a package — I’ve been aware for a long time of the poisonous chemicals that are mixed into our food supply. I do my best to buy organic and I basically shop the outside of the grocery store. Good luck to you and Vince. As we get older, we have to take care of ourselves if we want to live without illness and without our bodies falling apart. It’s important!