It's not always just a matter of what you eat that makes a difference, but also how you eat. Whether you have spent time in the kitchen making yourself our your family something delicious to eat, or picked up something delicious from a favorite restaurant, you owe it to yourself to sit down and actually enjoy your food. Saying grace before your meal can be done in so many different ways, it can be expressing gratitude for the food you have to eat, it can be thanking the food for nourishing your body, being grateful that you can buy healthy food to serve your family, thanking those that work hard to produce the food you are eating... Whatever is true to what you are feeling before you eat, take time to feel it, know it, acknowledge it and express it.
Make sure your environment is conducive to eating and enjoying your food in a comfortable and relaxed manner. Do not eat standing in the kitchen or anywhere for that matter, no eating in the car (it can be really messy) and not good for digestion. If you can, try not to eat at your desk at work, find a place you can go and enjoy some peace and quiet, and relax. Make a little ritual out of your mealtime, be conscious of how you feel, what you are eating, how you are eating and where you are eating.
Take your time, chew your food, take time between bites, lay your fork down between each bite. Let your body feel it going down, not just the flavors on your tongue, but the swallowing, where it is going and what it is doing for you. We can all recognize that feeling in our bellies when we are full, but think about the trip from your mouth to your belly, let each bite settle before the next.
Sometimes we eat big and other times we might choose to eat small, listen to you body, eat when you are hungry, and eat what sounds good to YOU. Maybe a charcuterie board for dinner sounds good, or a bowl of granola and fruit for lunch, veggies and hummus might do the trick for a meal. Listen to what your body wants or needs, sometimes you are starving and other times not so much, make your mealtime work for you. Even if you are preparing a meal for the family, you can still eat what you want. Or they might surprise you and be craving something easy and light, mind you I am not saying to be a short order cook for them, trust me I have been there. I can be fun to change things up, and make mealtime an adventure for all. Try to make your time in the kitchen enjoyable for you, most important your mealtime.
Hummus
Ingredients:
2 can chickpeas drained
4-5 cloves garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp salt
Juice of ½ to 1 lemon
½ cup water
Directions:
Warm the oil in a saucepan over low heat, place the garlic in the pan and let simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the chickpeas, olive oil garlic mixture, cumin salt and lemon into a food processor. Pulse until chickpeas are coarsely chopped. Then add the water little at a time blending at full power.
When the hummus gets to a creamy consistency, taste and adjust seasoning and lemon to your preferences.
* From this basic easy yummy hummus recipe you can add to it to change up the flavors. Scoop some out a portion and drizzle some chalula and mix to make it spicy, add some olive oil dill and lemon to change up the flavor, stir in some garlic powder and olive or lemon or both, add salsa...Use hummus for salad dressing. There are alot of different options, experiment, a little at a time to suit your taste buds.
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