How do I eat healthy when...

[tankgirl73]

How can I eat healthy when I don't like so many foods? I'm a horribly fussy eater. I've been trying so hard the last couple years to improve my diet, and it's come enormously far. But I still have limitations.

I don't like most fruits. At least not 'naked'. Apples, I can tolerate once in awhile. If it's the right variety, I find it very tasty and enjoyable -- but get tired of them very quickly and they're hard to eat (I have TMJ, it hurts to chew hard things too much!). The 'wrong' variety though is just icky.

I don't like most oranges, just Minneolas, and they're in season for such a short time. Can't stand grapefruit GROSS, grapes are squicky -- love the taste of Concords but can't get past the texture. Pears are bleah. Peaches are slippery or hairy. Bananas make me gag. Melons are wretched.

Fresh pineapple is great, I could eat it by the tonne. But, it's expensive. And once in awhile you get one that's not fully ripe or something and is tough and bitter, and that puts me off them for a long time.

I love strawberries and will eat them by the bushel. But... short season, and I won't eat imports, they don't taste good anyway.

I'll eat many fruits in pies and in jams and in crisps. Cooked apples are fine. Blueberries are my heart's delight - cooked. But... that's normally combined with sugar and fats and carbs and stuff.

And that's just the fruits! Don't get me STARTED on vegetables.

Actually, vegetables are where I've made the most progress. I've learned that I'll eat just about anything if it's curried! My favourite veggie meal is potatoes, carrots, broccoli, spinach, peas, green and yellow beans, throw in a rutabaga or some eggplant or some zucchini, whatever is in the house... curried in a charchari recipe that's just divine.

Other than that, though? Um... well, I love potatoes. And corn. And I'll eat a carrot when pressured too. Raw, not cooked. Cooked carrots are icky. And, um, that's about it.

Salad? Bitter. And hard to chew. I really don't understand the appeal. And oh, how I have tried! Different greens. Different dressings. Different accoutrements. But the only salad salvation for me is Caesar. With lots of bacon and oil and stuff... sigh.

I think I have texture issues. We were part of a CSA for a couple summers and I had to learn to deal with many types of veggies I would never have bought for myself. Often that just meant I cooked them and DH ate them... But I did TRY. I baked a squash with brown sugar. I actually really, really liked it. For about 3 bites. Then the texture of it started making me gag. SIGH.

Plus I'm a 'supertaster' and green veggies are just horribly bitter to me.

It's so frustrating to see all the recommendations of "just eat more fruit and veggies" when they are just so yucky. It's not just a matter of "you'll get used to it", either. It's always been this way for me.

And don't get me started on smoothies... *gag*.... *sigh*

Thanks for letting me rant!!!

[CathToria]

I say eat what you do like. Once you find "your" apple, keep buying them and est them every day. even if it's teh same thing every day, it's better for you than alternating between Ho-ho's and twinkies every other day, KWIM? Also, FWIU, eating the imports woudl be better than not eating any fruits/veggies at all. And keep trying to taste new fruits/veggies... or find ways.

For salads.. I just have to say that toasted almonds, a little red onion, cheddar cheese, and some dried cranberries (and maybe soem leftover chicken) on a big green salad with Annie's goddess dressing is soooooo yummy to me.

[zh97]

To a degree, I can agree with you on many texture issues. One of the things that helps us here is pureed soups. There are so many vegetables that can be "hidden" in a pureed soup. I know you said no to smoothies, but the warmth of the soup may be different. Also, another thing that helps my pallet(sp?) is pairing "oddly" tasting things with a grain. I don't "love greens like swiss chard on its own, but a bed of rice really helps me to get it down. Do you like cheese? This is also a great unifier. My kids like when I make quesidillas with finely chopped peppers, corn, tomatoes, etc.

As for fruit, I can't handle the tanginess of it. Sometimes, I will juice one orange and fill the rest of the glass with water. The taste is very diluted that way.

Do you eat meat? We don't, but my friend just came by today with a salad that had a lot of meat in it. I can handle salads with a lot of parm cheese. These types of things help to eliminate the "bitterness" of the lettuce. Have you ever just sauted vegetables in olive oil or butter? (or coconut oil?) This simple preparation of brocolli or onions and bell peppers, or asparagus can really taste subtle.

A few ideas maybe? Textures are such a challenge. Maybe thinking about what it is in curry that you like and going from there. The curried meal you described sounds FULL of veg! Maybe try different but similar sauces?

Good luck!

[zoebird]

if you like cooked fruits, then continue to cook them. instead of using sugar or whatever to sweeten them, just use more fruit juice of that fruit.

also, go ahead and juice what you won't eat--this is particularly good if you are having texture issues. you get the nutrients (and calories) without having to chew. but be mindful with juicing, as we can often have more juice calories than we need!

i bake a lot of fruit just for kicks. they make great desserts. for example, i love fresh figs. talk about a short season! anyway, i go ahead and get fresh figs, bake them in a pan with a bit of apple juice poured over (or white grape), and then put blue or gorgonzola cheese on them once they're out of the oven. it's divine.

i also bake apples and pears, just sprinkle with cinnamon and bake with apple juice. i like to serve it with granola and yogurt OR with nuts, raisins, and yogurt. it's really quite good.

i have a friend who basically lives on "salad drinks" as her main way to get her greens. she prefers to chew starchy veg, and doesn't like salads or salad veggies--but she can tolerate them as juice or smoothies. so, she has one salad drink a day as basically a meal, and then has her regular meals around that.

so, it might work for you. good luck!

[spughy]

There are a couple of good ways to eliminate bitterness in veggies. You can blanch them before cooking them another way (like in a stir-fry or sautée, for example). You can cook them with fat and salt, like traditional southern greens. This works best with brassicas like cabbage, kale and brussel sprouts - fry up a little bacon in a saucepan (like, 2 slices for veg to feed 4 people), add the veggies plus a little liquid (apple juice is great for adding a touch of flavour and sweetness), cover and steam on med-high for 5 minutes then remove the lid and let the liquid boil off, then cook a bit longer for some nice carmelization.

You can also add vinegar and butter to many greens, like kale, swiss chard, beet greens or turnip greens. Boil lightly, drain, add a splash of balsamic vinegar and a good thump of butter. If it still tastes bitter to you, add some maple syrup.

But if all else fails, I see nothing wrong with eating a whole lotta curries

[GouGou]

I, too, am pretty picky. Don't like lettuces. Don't like sour or unripe fruits. Cannot tolerate citrus fruits.

But here are some healthy irresistables for me:

Bosc pears, cut in half, seeds scooped out. Place cut side down in roasting dish. Roast at 400 F for about 20-30 minutes until fork tender. Excellent with a little blue cheese or cheddar and some toasted pecans. Yummmmm!

Fuji apples cut up into 1" chunks (peeled or unpeeled), topped with plain or vanilla yogurt and sprinkled generously with walnut pieces. In a pinch, this makes a great breakfast or lunch.

And, finally, the world's best way to prepare cauliflower:

Pre-heat oven to 400.

One large head of cauliflower, cut up into medium-sized florets.
One or two red bell peppers, cut into 1" strips.

Sauce:
-Juice of 1-2 lemons
-1 tbsp. whole cumin seeds
-1 tbsp ground cumin seed
-1/4 cup olive oil
-1/2 cup MIS sweet or hot pepper paste (Can be found at http://www.turkishcorner.com/Product...tCode=FCP00005)
-Enough water to bring the mixture to a spaghetti-sauce-like consistency.
-Salt to taste, black pepper

Place cut-up cauliflower and red bell pepper into a large roasting pan. Pour sauce over vegetables. Roast for 15 minutes. Remove, toss, and put back in oven for another 15 minutes. Remove and toss again. Do this about 4 times for a total of about an hour. The vegetables should be fork-tender and slightly browned. Cauliflower becomes very succulent and sweet when allowed to roast and caramelize.

I make this at least once a week, sometimes twice because it is an easy accompaniment to many dishes, particularly meats and curries, and even over rice. It's good hot out of the oven, but I almost prefer it the next day when the flavors have had a chance to mingle and marry. No one who has tried this cauliflower has disliked it. In fact, people are disappointed if it is absent from my party menu.

[wendyland]

I would take a lot of spirulina and chlorella and forget about making yourself eat what you don't like. You'd be pretty well covered. I'd also add in grey sea salt for minerals.

You can download a free book about spirulina and chlorella here, which will tell you how much to take. I usually take about 15 tablets of spirulina a day and half as much chlorella. http://www.chlorellafactor.com/