Not-So-Sweet Music to my Ears

Recently, I attended a music recital where most performers were young children.  My piano teacher (yes, I take piano lessons) asked us all to bring a treat to enjoy after the recital. I could not resist taking a picture of the table full of “treats.”. These treats may taste good, but they are usually packed with hydrogenated fats, salt, preservatives, MSG and artificial colouring and flavouring. We need to find an alternative because it is dangerous to associate treats with junk food–especially with children.

If I had not been in diet rehab, I wonder what I might have brought to the recital for the kids to munch on? Asking myself this question led me to think about my history with food. So, when a friend of mine started asking questions about the kind of foods I ate as a kid, I thought it was a topic that I should explore.

My friend wanted to know the type of foods that I grew up on, whether or not my parents involved me and my siblings in preparing meals and what I ate prior to rehab.

I grew up in a farming community so my mum fed us a lot of fresh veggies and fruit and I would describe my childhood diet as healthy.  My mum is not a fan of baking so cakes, pies and cookies are saved for holidays and special occasions.  As family, I would say that we much prefer the entree to dessert. I think I was raised with a healthy attitude towards food.  Both of my parents like cooking, trying new things and appreciate quality food. They are not fast-food junkies and there is rarely junk food at our house.

So where did I go so wrong that I had to detox and enter rehab?

I hesitate to say that I ever went ‘wrong’, but I certainly made some poor choices. I think it started after I left home; I stayed up late, I partied and I became good friends with the LCBO.  After I left home, I sort of rebelled against the structure of my childhood.  I no longer observed a  ‘bed’ time and I was responsible for grocery shopping. I never went crazy at the store, but I tried sugared cereals like Life and Frosted Flakes. I had a lot more toast (with butter, peanut butter, nutella) because it was quick and easy.  I ate pasta a couple of times a week and consumed less fresh fruit and vegetables than I had at home. I started eating out more, had late night snacks and always went for food after a night out.

[For those of you familiar with Kingston, Ontario, there is a lovely (dirty) little diner called Bubba's. I will not go into too much detail, but I will say that I enjoyed their poutine on more than one occasion...it was delicious].

I could have done worse things, but I know now that I didn’t always make the best decisions when it came to food and nutrition. I think the  biggest mistake I made was that I associated ‘treats’ and ‘comfort’ with food.  Unfortunately, thousands of Canadians are making the same association.

I remember the first meal I ate at home after I finished my first year at university.   My mum and I celebrated with a fantastic meal: poached salmon with a lemon, leek and mushroom sauce, fresh potatoes, fresh asparagus, a salad and fresly picked strawberries for dessert. It might sound a bit chees-y, but it was such a treat to enjoy a great meal made at home full of fresh food…especially after months of my high-fat, carbohydrate-filled cafeteria meal plan.

The pic of the treat table is above is mine–can you guess what I brought?
Ps. I’m looking for something really tasty to do with SPELT–any suggestions? Please comment!