the fat in the fat that makes us fat(ter)

There is fat, and then there is fat.  We all know about the prevalence of good fat (think fish!), but this concept was completely ignored by Moss.  Moreover, as GWU biology professor Dr. Jones once told me, there are different triggers that indicate varying levels of fullness within the body.  One of these is fat.  With this knowledge in mind, some people attempt to trick their body and will put a pat of butter on their tongue before they eat, and they feel fuller faster.  An interesting trick with seemingly ominous results. 
However, the fat that Moss focuses on is the kind found in CheeseWhiz (but who trusts cheese in an aerosol can as nutritious?!) and Bologna (its perfectly circular meat, clearly not a natural state or shape!).  Clearly we accept too many foods we shouldn't and reject too many that we should - but not all fat is bad, and that's an important delineation!

“Et tu, Brutus?”

For all of the 2139 pages of Pollan that we have reviewed this semester, we have heard him repeat his mantra: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants."  Then came the "subtle" proclamations warning us of the big, bag corporations with their large eyes to watch our eating habits and their large ears to hear our cry for more Oreos and their impossibly large teeth waiting to rip our food culture hearts from our very core.  These corporations are truly made of straw with a brick facade that seem impenetrable to our small consumer selves.  But we the people are not powerless, as Pollan rallies us in a call to arms.  America needs YOU to join the real food movement.  By purchasing non-government cheese, we too can aid in the higher cause.  Be a forager is his final claim in The Omnivore's Dilemma.  And noble Pollan sets out with his trusty sidekick(s), Angelo (and co), to hunt his meat and journey to the center of the earth for a precious truffle.  Yet, a Benedict Arnold is in our midst as Pollan ultimately concludes that this worthwhile adventure is not practical.  His final words were, "This is not the way I want to eat every day.  I like to be able to open a can of stock..."  THE FOOD CORPORATIONS HAVE WON EVEN POLLAN TO THEIR COOKIE-LADEN DARK SIDE.  And because of our enjoyment of the convenience of even a can of chicken stock, we must regularly contemplate where our food comes from, because we did not forage for ourselves.  

"Do you want to see me breathe fire?"

Both culinary psychologists and food researchers have looked into why we voluntarily eat food that may elicit pain.  In fact, research suggests that those with an affinity for chili peppers like them for the same "high" effect as adrenaline-junkies.  Thus, the personality connection is that those who love chili peppers, do not feel the pain any less, but are more masochistic and merely enjoy it more.  This factors into personality as well, for those who seek intensity and those who seek novelty.     

The potential connection between spicy foods and personality transforms the whole, “do you want to see me breathe fire” question with all new meaning.

http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2012-12/love-spicy-food-built-your-personality

Abbasi, Jennifer.  "Love of Spicy Food is Built Into Your Personality."  Popular Science (2012):
 6 Dec. 2012.  Web.  11 Nov. 2013

Creole Lady Marmalade

Jambalaya.
Gumbo.
Alligator Kabobs.
Crabcake.
Pork Po'Boy.
Sweet Potato Bread.
Bleu Cheese Bread.
Croissants.
Pralines.
Poached Pear and Duck Confit Salad.
Shrimp Pistolletes.
Andouille Crawfish Eggs Benedict.
Traditional King Cake.
Muffaletas.
Beignets.
Dark Roasted Coffee with Chicory - Au Lait.

Seafood surely isn't just for cocktail parties anymore - though in New Orleans, neither is alcohol.  Have both for breakfast!  Somehow I am surprised I wasn't offered Crawfish Puffs with Vodka one morning.   However, the food experience we had during the nchc in New Orleans was definitely memorable!  Sharing and tasting such a smorgasbord of traditional NOLA foods was one of the many benefits of friends and honors!  Wandering the French Market, meandering our way through French Quarter, brunching in the Arts District - so many memories.  Who would have thought that for all the other things New Orleans is known for, such a variety of flavors and food memories would come flowing forth like the waters of the Mississippi River along which the city thrives.


Here are some links to some of our favorite experiences:

Beignets and chicory coffee:  http://www.cafedumonde.com/history
Creole-inspired good food and the best Gumbo:   http://www.originalpierremasperos.com/menu
The way food should taste: http://www.cafegiovanni.com/menu.htm

I can make your bedrock…

  The bed-rocking ability of the gun that we know prods us at our most vulnerable.  Such a gun isn't hidden, nor is it smoking, as Jeffrey Dunn (former Coca-Cola exec) semi-snarkily told Michael Moss as he remarked, "The gun is right there.  It's not hidden." And that, dear addicts, is how we are ensnared by legal addictive stimulants.  They know that we know.  We know that we know.  Yet, we choose to consume salt, sugar, and fat.  Enough to rock our beds, and not in a good way – with 22 teaspoons of sugar a day and 33 pounds of cheese per year.  As evidence of the horrors, these numbers are truly not appalling, for the very fact that we consume ¾ of a pound of cheese a week when we know we shouldn't  proves how our truths have become distorted.  However, Michael Moss flails his smoking gun at all of his personally identified perpetrators: Coca-Cola, Cheese Whiz, Kraft, Kellogg, Nestle, Cargill, and others.  With the trifecta of psychology, science, and our stomachs, a trap has been laid for the modern American.  However, the fact that Moss' book contains little more than a "food giant" history lesson and health facts that are innate to most, this too is a trap. 

Bottoms Up

Beginning gently with barbecue comparisons, Pollan lulls readers (practically to sleep) with expectations of garnering knowledge (not bias) throughout his book Cooked.  Continuing with the villainization of corn was slightly bombastic, albeit trite and unoriginal - but lines were drawn when bread baked by a machine, in home or otherwise, was enlisted as a daughter of the Industrial Food Revolution.  These tools that ensnare us with their impressively speedy results; and heaven knows that if it comes quickly, someone's going to pay the price somehow.  Now, we are treated to the horrors of pasteurizing away bacteria.  Scientific study means nothing compared to pockets of pop science, where people thrive on fermentation.  At least Pollan did not find appeal in 300 year old breadfruit, but even so, I don't believe flash-frozen foods are quite a detriment.
Moreover, its not bacteria vs. processed foods.  Perhaps neither are the best option.

Move aside, Luddite Pollan.

My post-Pasteurian world thrives not on bacteria and rabies, but on vaccines and processes that exist to protect - within reason and with balance.  But if Pollan wants to give rabies a try, maybe we'll get an interesting book on that experience!  Who knows, maybe food tastes different if its all topped with foam.    

Spotted Dick, Pearl Necklaces and No Regrets

We all have those pleasures, those things we learn to appreciate when they occur, but love them all the more for the missing.  As a friend and I went home for Fall Break, I was once again given the joy of eating food, real food as I know it.  Minestrone, Bourbon Chicken, White Chocolate-Apricot Scones, an adventure making Latkes, Almond-Date Scones, Colonial Bread, Molasses Cookies, Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookes, Homemade Chocolate Layer Cake, Pancakes, Blueberry-Pumpkin Pancakes, all of the food that we could fit into 4 days - and I regret it none.  Moreover, the family bonds that I cherish so dearly, are only strengthened as I remember how much time we spend uniting in our kitchen.  "Sneaking" raw cookie dough before my mother discovers the family thieving, late night coffee and tea tastings, recipe experiments, dueling matches with recyclable materials, all the things that make my family a cohesive unit (with a little sarcasm and commentary thrown to add a little flavor).
 

“‘A loaf of bread,’ the Walrus said, ‘is what we chiefly need...’”

"I am proud to be an American.  Because an American can eat anything on the face of this earth as long as he has two pieces of bread."  ~ Bill Cosby

"How can a nation be great if their bread tastes like kleenex?"  ~ Julia Child

"The Sky is the daily bread of the eyes."  ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

"With bread all sorrows are less"  ~ Sanch Panza, Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

"There are people in the world so hungry, that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread."  ~ Mahatma Gandhi 

“Acorns were good until bread was found.”  ~ Francis Bacon

“Without bread all is misery.”   ~ William Cobbett

     These are just a few sayings, adages, axioms, and quotes about bread.  Clearly there is an abundance - and all seem to illuminate that bread eases sorrows and pain, heightens beauty, and even in accordance with a Russian proverb, can aid in the realization of paradise.  Bread can hold tradition, fulfill a religious custom, and bring people together.  

     It seems that so many varying societies have a "bread" - the "teff" as we experienced at our Ethiopian TSD, "naan" as is customary in Middle-Eastern and some Asian regions, and bread that is widespread throughout Europe and thus America.  Yet, for all the foods we no longer consume (corn pone, obscure pies and puddings, grits merely out of tradition, etc), bread is consistently a food humanity has consumed and enjoys consuming.  
     Perhaps this has something to do with the great diversity afforded by the intricacies of bread and bread-making.  I must admit that the thought of a bread "crumb" so soft it is "practically a custard" is incredibly enticing.  So enticing that I put the book (Tartine Bread) on hold at my home library so I can peruse it over break.  
But not-so-enticing is this concept that bacteria forms the bread.  While this isn't truly a foreign concept, it became much more real when Pollan quoted Chad Robertson's preference to mix the dough by hand so that more bacteria would be added to the dough.  
    I shuddered inside.
Albeit, bacteria is natural, healthy even!  In actuality, bacteria and the fermenting process are a necessity.  Never before had squirrels' hiding of food seemed to have a purpose other than storage.  Elementary school education and songs of a grey squirrel swishing its bushy tail have failed me - never in those fall afternoons of glitter-gluing acorns was I told that the purpose of squirrels burying acorns was to ferment them so as to be edible. 
  Just as these furry creatures know to hide their food so it is edible, so we too should handle our food.  As I think about all the bread I have consumed, there is a definite taste difference in the bread made by hand, the bread made at home in a bread-maker, and the bread that comes from a factory.  
  So I suppose the greatest illustration of our food disconnect is that I somehow still picture the French loaf I purchased from the WalMart bakery to be made in the back by someone in white, with a chef's hat, making this bread.  This is the image I want to have of the bread I consume, and yet, I have to admit that is probably not the reality.  
But regardless of whether I purchase bread or make it - bread isn't going anywhere, so I guess I'm not terribly worried.  It will always be around to chase my sorrows away!

Avoid those who don’t like bread and children. ~ Swiss Proverb

Do you like weed(s)?

The entire concept of hunting, gathering and foraging as Pollan discussed extensively in the final section of The Omnivore's Dilemma: Personal - The Forest, is alluring in daily life.  But as this article does give practical tips for those wanting to implement such into daily routine, it also references this as a trend that has been picked-up by restaurants and chefs.  This struck a chord.  For all the pride and contentment I would have by serving a meal to my family that included a dandelion salad and berries from plants near my residence, I must say I would most likely feel rather indignant to go to an upscale restaurant and be served weeds.   This mentality that foraging for food is acceptable when it makes me a "model citizen" but is unacceptable when I am anticipating a "gourmet" dinner is a little unsettling, and I am not yet sure what it means as far as our connection to food in a real sense, rather than just a sense that placates our conscience for a few moments.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120308153539.htm

TSDs are going around...

This past weekend, I journeyed at the crack of dawn to App State, home of the Apple-Cart and Apple flavored hookah alike.  My purpose was not recreational, but rather to present the opportunities afforded by TSDs (Try Something Different) in Honors programs.  During the presentation, I realized how much more engaged our audience was in our presentation than in others we had seen; and perhaps this was due in part to the fact that my fellow presenters and I were relaxed and enjoyed making jokes.  Or perhaps its due to the fact that food truly does bring people together!  Tomorrow night will be a great example, and I am truly looking forward to our Ethiopian adventure.  American is really quite the melting pot, and tomorrow night, I am going to enjoy my Western diet for all of its diversity!

Come Together

Regardless of whether life imitates art or art imitates life, I know that my life is being influenced by this class.  For while I have always contemplated what I put into my body, I think the fact that I know I will be discussing these choices in theory (and not in an intimidating way as if I was in a Food-aholics Anonymous or WW groupie or some such micromanaging "help group") makes me truly consider making good choices.  This class has led to positive thought-processes and deeper contemplation.
And as Pollan provokes us to eat together, that is something that we Honors students especially push to the wayside.  Not necessarily to our detriment in physical health directly, but perhaps to our emotional distress and stress levels, which will ultimately influence our physical state.  There is something supremely beneficial in sharing food with a friend.  In the midst of insanity and commotion, a friend and I sat and brought our contributions to dinner (the caf was never a consideration), and I realized that this is one of the first meals I have eaten with someone when I didn't have to rush off to somewhere.  And as I reflected on the fact that sharing an avocado and yogurt (there may have been some Reese's Pieces involved in there someone, but even E.T. found those to be a bonding food) and sitting not at a table, but in a quiet place, was one of the healthiest choices one can make at this point in life.  So for all of our adages about flowers and tables - I think the truest rule we need, is that there aren't rules (other than hugs not drugs - thats a legitimate rule), there are merely choices that you need to make in the moment.  And sometimes, it is to eat alone in solace.  Other times, its to sit on a dorm bed piled with pillows and blankets eating some whole foods and some pop-culture foods and just relax.  And I suppose that is my ultimate rule, be reasonable, and do what you need - whether for your physical health, emotional health, mental health, or whatever health you necessitate!

"Better than they should be"

This past Tuesday I had the extreme honor of visiting the Cleveland County Fair.  Our group included a Spaniard, a Frenchwoman, two South Americans, a Northerner, an Arkansan, and one (essentially) North Carolinian native.  To say that we were quite a spectacular conglomeration of cultural diversity would not even explain half of the amusement that came from our group.  I already tend to feel a smidge out of my element in traditionally southern experiences (though fairs in and of themselves are not a new experience, southern fairs are in fact different than northern ones), the TA's with whom we ventured were completely shocked and ecstatic.  They came ready with cash to try all the fried foods (that they later promised to work off in the gym for 3 hours and by not consuming any sweets or fried foods for at least a week in attempts to restore their physical well-being).  Between the four of them, they consumed: fries, cheese fries, hush puppies, chocolate-covered cheesecake on a stick, and 6 fried Oreos.  Their faces upon seeing the enormous turkey legs walking around were priceless (and if I stop to think about how those turkey legs got that big in the first place, my face is probably fairly similar).  But nothing makes one stop and reconsider the foods your culture promotes more than the fact that they are foods 4 differing societies would never contemplate normalizing!  I didn't think twice about splitting an ice cream topped, apple dumpling fried to yummy perfection, fair food.  Or about the sugar in the orangeade I drank.  Consuming these did not stop me from eating sweets in the subsequent days and I certainly did not spend my life in the gym with remorse.  But the TA's did indeed admit that the foods were good and that the Oreos were "better than they should be" and they truly shouldn't be "allowed to be this good" (though the heart-attack that they felt looming over them post-consumption still didn't seem to dampen their enthusiasm).  But the south is quite notorious for deep frying every blessed thing (even Kool-aid) and this fact was not lost on our friends who questioned whether or not "fried water" would appear next year.  Such excitement and fun that comes with watching others consume the foods you are thankful are not a regular part of your diet, until you realize that there are foods far too similar that we do indeed eat with far too much frequency.  C'est la vie, at least here in America!

Above the fruited planes

All we eat is corn, all we should eat is grass.
These pithy phrases are the most concise understanding of Pollan’s beliefs from The Omnivore’s Dilemma Parts I & II (Corn & Grass respectively).  Corn is arguably all we consume in America today, as it is the basis of what the animals we consume, consume themselves – as well as it being a primary ingredient in a vast number of foods we purchase from our supermarkets.  However, Pollan seems to imply in Part II: Grass, that grass should in fact be the foundation of the meats we consume.  Grass tends to nourish the earth, whereas corn is often seen as raping the ground.
 So we should rely on grass, rather than corn?  Well as Joel Salatin also proclaimed, perhaps they are truly "sun farmers."  What about the air, the air is rather crucial for life.  And water, I don't see many crops being grown without water!  Or even the soil, perchance we should try harvesting nourished soil.  But above all of these individual facets of farming, maybe the greatest threat is that of over-simplification.  It seems that focusing on one aspect of anything, especially food, is what has caused such issue for all these years.  Focusing merely on growing corn, or grass, or raising hoards of pigs in one location - has all caused various problems!  With corn, the replanting of the same crop has had damaging ramifications on the very ground necessary for its growth.  Grass has its own set of concerns - undergrazing, overgrazing, variety, and a myriad of other quandaries.  So as much as I love the grub's eye-view of the world, if I am really feeling the urge to look at the life of an ant and grass, I'll just watch "A Bug's Life" and then sit back and consider the entire habitat, not just what comes out of the ground.
In order to truly be sustainable, I think we'll need to consider what goes into the ground, what comes out of it, what goes on around it, and what lives off of it.   To merely contemplate one of these is narrow minded, and more than Pollan may realize, I think that is truly the issue in American and that many may have with his writing!  

I love the way you lie...

"Ah, the bounty of Nature!"
While these may not be the precise phrase that enters one's mind when surrounded by plants and produce when entering the grocery store, it is one of the facets and truths that resonated most whilst reading Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma Part I: Industrial - Corn.  It began a thought-journey as to what tools we use to deceive ourselves and how we use persuasion to subtly affect our mentality.  For its true that one does feel falsely secure in our tie to nature whilst purchasing apples that we also know have been waxed with a tinted chemical to appear as appealing as possible.  And that the strawberries I consume probably shouldn't be the size of my fist, but indeed some are that gargantuan.  But this is just the beginning of our deception.  I began going mentally through the grocery store to consider what things we do to feel better about our consumption.  Wheat Thins packaging boasts pictures of grains, as if to say "this is safe to buy and eat regularly because of the grains" and Veggie Chips/Straws feature images of the "vegetables" we only assume were somehow involved prior to the final product.  Other products tout that they include "real milk" and various vitamins that we should be getting naturally.  How easily we attempt to deceive ourselves in thinking that we are much more closely tied to nature than we really are at present!  And who knew that it all begins with the produce section?    

Bring out the fire

   Baste, marinate, rub, smoke - there are endless methods in which to prepare barbecue.  And as Cooked illuminated, there is rather intense debate in this state as to which is the "correct" method.  Though many here (and I believe Pollan himself) are predisposed to have a specific opinion, I have been given the unique opportunity to have no bias and look at this with completely fresh eyes.  For as we have discussed, in the north, "barbecue" is something that happens around a grill with family and neighbors and burgers.  In fact, I rarely think of pork when I think of "barbecue" - southern barbecue is referred to as "pulled pork" or a meat with barbecue sauce.
   However, one of the most fascinating aspects is how these came to be tradition.  Even the "mythology" surrounding "crackling" is repulsively fascinating!  And there is plenty of varied lore and familial history to explain how techniques were adopted and perfected.
  Interestingly enough, this very weekend I was given the opportunity to go to the mountains with a friend and I was introduced to a myriad of barbecuing methods and personal "regulations."  Some insist on sauce, some believe sauce to be a heresy.  Others have a secret rub they use and it makes it theirs.  Others still (as illustrated in the book) will stay up all night long to ensure that the pork is perfectly smoked.  One of the methods touted to me this weekend was a seasoned rub that supposedly worked a flavorful magic upon the meat, and while it did indeed taste good, I am still unfortunately ambivalent to which method is "best" - but each is unique in its own way!

The Taste of Fat

As I was researching information on gelato for an Italian culture event, I was fascinated by some of the differences mentioned about gelato in comparison to ice cream.  While it seemed intuitive that the ingredients would be slightly varied and the process would be different, I was simultaneously intrigued and disgusted when I learned that gelato in Italy has about 4-5 % butter fat, ice cream has about 15% butter fat, and American gelato has about 10% in order to meet US regulation standards on fat content.
This prodded the thought process on Americans and the fat we mindlessly consume.
  One of the great markers of gelato is its texture and flavor.  Gelato is known for rich, intense flavors - and part of the intensity of the flavor, is that one's mouth has not been coated in fat with the first taste!  Think about the cold foods we Americans consume, and whipped cream is a common topping.  As much as I love whipped cream, I despise that feeling that comes when one's mouth is coated with the fat, but I never truly contemplated that this fat was diminishing the flavor.  Moreover, many tend to eat ice cream with large teaspoons that are overflowing with as much ice cream as can be balanced on that swooped edge.  Shoveling each cool and creamy bite into eager mouths that know the reassuring coolness and hint of flavor as it is passes on to the digestive system.  And repeat process.  And again.  And ag...oh, that sad time when the bowl is empty.  How fast time flew, and it truly did because the ice cream (probably an entire carton) was probably consumed in under 5 minutes.  This is the American method.  With gelato however, there is a small spoon.  Generally these are smaller than that with which we might feed a baby.  But one can savor every taste.
Eating ice cream is a race against the melting point and the constant urge to follow one barely finished bite with the next.  Eating gelato is a process, a social activity - the way eating should be! The small spoons are perhaps something we should adopt - it forces one's brain to become involved with what one is putting into the mouth.  Or perhaps we'll just end up missing the overwhelming taste of fat.

Defiance or Defense

As one who enjoys the rich flavors and textures and combinations that food variety can bring, I truly appreciated Pollan's defense of food appreciators in the section "Beyond the Pleasure Principle."  The unique perspective that America has tried its best to avoid enjoying food, does truly seem to be unsettling in its accuracy.  How many other countries have created "rules" on how and what to eat?  In personal experience, this is something saved for America.  Friends who come from varied origins such as Nepal, Vietnam, Korea, and India, have all indicated that restraint with food is only an issue when they return to America.  However, the lack of restraint needed on their ventures does not seem to reduce the extent to which food is enjoyed, merely the mental ease with which they can eat.
So how might we go about enjoying our food once again?
Perhaps it is more than a matter of quantity and quality.  Perhaps it is merely a matter of our mindset.  What is it that we are defying that has necessitated a defense for food?  Are we defying our desires?  One might say no until we consider the "you can't eat just one" tagline that is associated with most foods we tout in America.  Are we defying our taste-buds?  Well I have apparently "tasted the rainbow," so I suppose that is not lacking either.  Perhaps we are defying intuition and food with our science.  We have defied what is real and natural so long, that we must now defend it.
It seems truly instinctive to defend lettuce and chicken over "yogurt enemas" that were apparently advocated once upon a yesteryear.  I cannot imagine the havoc that such things wrought on the human body versus the supposed detriment of animal protein on the human body.  There truly are times when just letting your spirit guide you is the best choice, and perhaps not even your spirit, I really think all it takes is understanding your pain receptors!
So I am completely prepared to stop defying natural intuition and defend food!  Science has gotten us far, but from what I've seen, nature seems to have lasted quite some time.    

Is there really nothing good to eat?!

On a recent quest through the local Boiling Springs Ingles, a friend and I set out to see if "real food" could be found in this small locale.  While one of the "rules" indicated that "real food" shouldn't be packaged, but considering we could not include the outer circle of the store (which includes all dairy, produce, etc) - packaged food is all that remains.  So aside from conceding on packaging, we merely had to look for foods that had no additives, incomprehensible verbiage, and no health benefit claims.  

The images reveal what I consider to be the successes of this venture... 

Black beans!

The only ingredient is indeed, black beans!

Coconut Butter

While it does state that it is all natural, I don't believe that is a health benefit claim so much as it is a statement.  For the only ingredient was Coconut pulp.

Frozen Green Beans :)

This is one of the few foods that one might actually desire to eat without adding other food (ie: I wouldn't eat straight up coconut butter).  And I feel vindicated that frozen vegetables, a staple in my family, are truly just vegetables with no preservatives (other than the preserving nature of the flash-frozen process).

Unsweet (Baking) Chocolate

The only ingredient is cocoa!  

Baby Food!

Amazingly enough, these are actually what they are supposed to be!  How remarkable (ironic) that we are smart enough to feed babies pure food.

Each of these is just a food or a food plus water.

Sweet potatoes, green beans, peaches, pears, oranges, peas, etc!

As  you can see, food can be found amongst the processed, high-fructose corn syrup, packaged foods we deem so normal.  However, the fact that there this was practically a treasure hunt is disconcerting.  But probably not disconcerting enough to prevent me from buying my sugar-laden peanut butter on my next visit.  C'est la vie. 

Or if I truly want to know what I'm getting, I guess there is always baby food!  That stuff doesn't lie, and from the facial expressions of the babies eating the food, its not worth it!

Five Additional Food Rules

1. Water is a "food" group.  If you want to eat unnecessarily, drink water as a substitute.
2. Put only a small portion on your plate, less than you think you want.
    Chances are, that will be more than enough.
3. Processed food is a poor way to start your day!
    Your body doesn't need sugar-laden foods and a nutrient deficit for breakfast.
4. Never eat meat that can be stored at room temperature
      (ie: if it comes in a box or just needs water to be added)
5. Never eat foods that leave grease/oil stains like a car might.

However, these are merely some that I consider to be in my repertoire of "food rules."  They are a small addendum to the 80+ listed in Michael Pollan's Food Rules.

If you really want more...

Excess is a word that has become far too common in recent years.  We have begun to both overeat and thus over-think what we ingest, and yet the simplest answer was merely to follow intuition.  Whilst reading Michael Pollan's deliciously simple "eater's manual," there were constant tidbits of conversations I have had with my grandmother that would flash into my mind.  As a young child she grew up in the Depression-era, to hard-working parents that both worked and loved their only child - but one of the stories that always stuck out to me was one that illuminated the sacrifices of my great-grandmother.  Meal times were a family event, but unfortunately there was not a surplus of "meal" and my grandmother recalls that her father was given the largest portion because he had to go to work and continue to be the leading provider.  Then my grandmother was given the next largest portion because she needed to be healthy and focus at school, and then my great-grandmother would get what was left, if anything was indeed left.  Growing up, that story always perplexed me.  For I knew factually that food was scarce during the Depression, but how could there not be enough food in my country that my great-grandmother would have to skip meals regularly.  Seven to Eight decades later, the converse is our new dilemma.  Concepts such as needing to eat less, stopping before one is truly full, and many others are things we must think about, consciously.  But we as a generalized society have lost view of natural reality.  The season no longer influences what we eat, how we eat, or how much we eat - it merely affects our schedule.  Perhaps if we were to refocus our eyes on what is in season and which crops were actually plentiful, we would be more mindful of what we consumed.  Being more mindful, that is something that got lost along the way and perhaps has been substituted with over-thinking.  Simplify.  Just think in the first place, not too much, just think!