SLOW FOOD FRIDAY

S L O W   F O O D   

F R I D A Y

Wow. Has it been that long? Don't think I fell off the face of the earth due to my increased weight (although the weight did increase, I am still on planet earth). I AM BACK!!! HI!!!

And guess what? My birthday was on Monday. A FULL DAY OF CELEBRATING. But all in a good way -- I chose, intentionally, to eat to live. I had a caesar salad for lunch (mahalo to child #4) and a crab salad for dinner (thank you to husband #1). Add a couple bites of a yummy birthday dessert to please my dining friends and I was good to go. I made a conscious decision to make this new revolution around the sun a well-being one. I figured out that spending an entire year (which seems like a lifetime when you're like 18 but it is a flash when you're 58) focusing on my well-being is but a drop in the bucket if it is going to make the rest of my life (and who knows how long that is) brighter, lighter, and funner (I know thats not a word but I like it). If I have more energy because I am making better food choices and I am exercising regularly then the years will be even fuller because I will be able to fit more in! No fatigue during the day, no achy bones to keep me on the couch. Yeah. All of that.

So let's get on with it. I have so much to say but I will try to do it in small bites. lol.

Guess what Friday is...go on. Guess...

It is SLOW FOOD FRIDAY, a.k.a. F*ck Fast Food Friday, which was its original name for like two hours. And then someone came up with a kinder name and I took it. Because that's how I roll. If a friend has a better idea than me, I have no problem adjusting (so props to Kika, my daughterfriend. Who knows, it may change again. This is a new thing. And what happens with all new products? Eventually, it becomes NEW and IMPROVED.

The goal of of things to come (STAY TUNED FOR MORE) is to make changes in what you're currently doing in order to improve your quality of life. And if you're reading this, food is a big part of your life. So let's make some food changes, okay? Okay.

The idea for  SLOW FOOD FRIDAY came about because fast food kills. It does. Sorry if you eat it. I ate it. I was famous for going through the drive thru for a happy meal for each kid for dinner once or twice a week. Or stopping at the convenience store for the requisite hot dog since $1 is $1. But it kills. You know it from watching documentaries like Super Size Me. And The Weight of the Nation. And you know it because you have seen, read, heard that obesity in our nation is an epidemic. And you look around you, at the fast food restaurants and drive ins. We is BIG. Ugh. It hurts to even type it. So let's move on.

So on Friday (my tomorrow) help me celebrate  SLOW FOOD FRIDAY.

slow food

noun

1. food that is produced or prepared in accordance with local culinary traditions, typically using high-quality locally sourced ingredients.

Take a minute to re-read that.

Local culinary traditions. That might include cooking in an imu (now THAT is slow food). But it could also mean using your crock pot or even your pressure cooker (way faster but still considered slow). The more important part is "using high-quality locally sourced ingredients".  For me, that is the ʻulu my friend gave me. Or the Chinese cabbages that are so affordable at the farmer's markets. Or maybe it is just a regular cabbage stir fried with some smoked meat or kalua pig you have in the freezer. That was created SLOWLY. In your home. With your loving hands. Taking your time because why rush?

Whatever you choose to do, do it in your kitchen, with the music or a podcast playing, trying your best to create good food (with or without the help of youtube or the many recipes, blogs, Facebook and Pinterest posts.

You are not choosing:

fast food

ˈˌfas(t) ˈˌfo͞od/

noun

1. food that can be prepared quickly and easily and is sold in restaurants and snack bars as a quick meal or to be taken out.

   "a fast-food restaurant"

   
   

   To me, processed food is fast food. It doesn't fit into the definition above but we consume processed foods because they are fast. We choose to buy a random bag of whatever because it is fast and thoughtless. Just run into the store, grab and go, rip it open and regret it later on. If it has five or more ingredients listed OR if you can't pronounce an ingredient or your great grandma wouldn't know what it was, then it is processed.

   
   

   Okay so are you on board? Will you join me? 

   Be sure to join our Facebook page and post your SLOW FOOD photos!

   
   

   I am so excited. GO GET READY!! What do you have in your fridge? What do you need to buy or pick or gather? Or who can you join up with? 

   
   

   ʻAʻohe ʻulu e loaʻa i ka pōkole o ka lou

   You can't get the breadfruit if your picking stick is too short.

   Plan for success, people. What will you do on  SLOW FOOD FRIDAY   for breakfast, lunch and dinner? And all your snacks in between?