You are what you eat – or not.

Posted by admin in food, I suck in the kitchen, my childhood, sugar on 03 13th, 2009 | no comments

We are so worried these days what we feed our kids right?  All the crap that is in everything, it’s filled with preservatives and junk, it’s all processed and injected with hormones, or it’s ladened with sugar or some sweet substitute that causes cancer and rots teeth, and then to top it all off all, last week my dear farmer friend informed me that corn syrup is the practically the greatest evil our kids will face in their young lives. Okay maybe, just maybe, I am exaggerating with that one. She didn’t really say it like that.


But you get the point.

I have all kinds of food preparation insecurities.  I’m lazy in the kitchen, albeit well-intentioned.  PB & J sandwiches are too often seen on the dinner table and sometimes even for me and my dude. Shocking I know. And horrifying.  

On the flip side, I desire to improve in the kitchen. I dream of a fabulous dinner party where I can thrill my guests with some sort of delish dish.  And I do have my “healthy” side – a beautiful specimen of organic zucchini that we can drop onto the grill really gets me all fired up.  I crunch into that baby all healthy and yummy and I feel damn good about myself.

But on this Friday morning, I’m thinking WTF? What’s the big friggin’ deal about food? What’s the worst thing that can happen if my kids consume barrels of corn syrup by the time they hit the age of 10?

Case in point:

My mother prepared breakfast for us every single morning of our young lives. Pancakes and waffles made from scratch, eggs, bacon, breakfast sandwiches, oatmeal, homemade hash browns and the like.  

BUT….

…there were also breakfast items that could be considered well, less than healthy.

For example, she would take one of those tubes of Pillsbury dough that you would normally bake into rolls and she would create these little fried donuts.  Puncture a hole in the middle of the dough, plop those babies in the oil, hear them sizzle to a crispy golden tan, and dip ‘em in cinnamon/sugar combo, powdered sugar, or just plain ol’ sugar.  Yuuummmm…..

And then there was the most famous of unhealthy choices in our home….sugar bread.  You know what sugar bread consisted of?  A slice of French bread and white sugar.  

That’s right.  We would slice off a piece of soft white French bread, take a heaping spoonful of crystal white sugar, layer the bread with that sugar, and crunch right in. Aaahhhhhh……I can still feel the sugary tingle on my teeth as the sweetness coated my pearly whites.

When my mom would rattle off our breakfast options and “sugar bread” was on the list, you can bet we jumped at the chance to head off to school with some sugar bread in our bellies.

And you know what?  I think I turned out okay.  No cavities. Good student. Athlete. Got my college degree.  Went on to make a living, got married and am currently raising a family. 

So what’s the point of this ramble?

I’m not sure except it all makes me feel just a little bit better about how lame I am in the kitchen.

Sugar bread anyone?

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