The key to any eating habit (aka diet - but here without the connotation of fads and restrictions for the sake of losing weight) is diversity. It's important to not get settled into only a handful of dishes at the beginning; boredom always sets in and one strays to a diversified pallet after a short while. Once a week at least, experiment with something new, something never tasted before, something that stretches the limits of what 'food' means (for our society, this often means something that is less processed and packaged, and more actual, living, fresh food).
There will always be those things one clings to for comfort food - the best thing to do is to modify those things to meet a new standard. My two are mac 'n cheese and chips and salsa:
- For me, even though I'm not vegan or vegetarian, I do refrain from eating high starch and boxed products. In more recent years I've also stopped ingesting milk because it started causing me to have cystic acne (I know this because if I refrain from eating dairy I stop getting acne). But, cheese is another matter... I love cheese, and I love kefir. So, the two part to this is that I've had to find a pasta base (rice or whole wheat) that doesn't affect me as much as semolina, AND I've had to find properly cultured cheeses that have broken down the casein protein and fats in dairy that causes my acne (for instance, Cabot's white cheddar). So, to fully enjoy mac 'n cheese without adverse effects, I make my alternative pasta, make a béchamelle from scratch using irish butter, coconut milk and Cabot's or other aged cheddar. which is neither difficult or time consuming.
- Though there are usually no additives in canned salsa from the store, the veggies have all been cooked, and therefore will cause the stomach to react to it as though it were a foreign substance. Additionally, all tortilla chips are made out of corn, at least until recently. And based on my previous experiences with corn, the hindrance to the digestive system is not limited to whole corn kernels, but also translates into corn meal and flour. So, the easy part was to transition to bean/rice-based tortilla chips that are now available, which are very tasty and don't leave you with that feeling of bloaty fullness. The slightly more involved step was making fresh, home-made salsa -- my first batch was a failure, then I remembered that putting tomatoes in a food processor in general is a no-no because it releases all the water and loses its flavor. Subsequent batches (thanks to my friend making some from an old-style recipe) turned out absolutely flavorful and awesome. The key was to not give up. Another part of my chips 'n salsa binging was the use of sour cream and it's creamy sweet goodness... This I've amended in using avocados splashed with lime juice to top my fresh salsa instead.
