On February 26, 2013 and then again on June 18, 2013, Dr. Oz aired a show called The Big Food Cover-Up. The show featured Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times investigative reporter, Michael Moss, who exposed the dangers of contaminated meat which had penetrated the United States marketplace. Moss then spent 2 1/2 years permeating the food industry and then authored the book Salt, Sugar, Fat to recount his findings.
Salt, Sugar, Fat endeavors to explain why as a nation we eat:
- 6 pounds salt/year
- 33 pounds cheese/year
- 70 pounds of sugar/year
According to Moss, the companies create food, not where you would think they would; instead of making food in a kitchen, companies design food in a science lab, to make you addicted. He interviewed scientists who worked the inner circles of the food industry, and he studied 81,000,000 (yes, eighty one million) pages of information including government documents and information from industry insiders.
Moss found that with the right combinations of salt, sugar, and fat, food becomes addictive. Big companies capitalize on this information, knowingly risking the health of society. Salt, sugar, and fat are needed for processed foods, making these foods irresistible, which ultimately brings in the profit for these processed food companies.
Interestingly, Dr. Oz. compared the brain scans of a cocaine addict with someone on salt, sugar, and fat. When the two different brains were exposed to something calm, and unexciting, a mountain scene and a family tree, there was minimal brain activity. But when these the two different brains were exposed to a picture of their cravings (drugs in the first case, and processed food in the second), the two brains were both stimulated and looked almost identical in dopamine (a precursor of adrenaline) levels, demonstrating the highly addictive effects salt, sugar, and fat can have.
Sounds like an interesting book, and I have it on reserve at the library now to dig a little deeper.
And now for our two week menu (this is a little late, so I’ve already made some of these things after a marathon baking time in the kitchen yesterday).
Meal Ideas:
BREAKFAST:
- Cinnamon Rolls-Joshua’s birthday is at the end of June, so I’ll be making him some birthday cinnamon rolls. I will make it in the form of his name and not one big cinnamon roll.
- Scrambled Eggs
- Granola Cereal/packaged cereal
- Steel Cut Oats
- Smoothies or Sorbets
- Sourdough Waffles with Easy 3 Ingredient No Cook Strawberry Blender Jam
LUNCH:
- Nacho Salad, can serve with No-cheese Cheese or Raw Milk Cheese, with Salsa (still my first go-to lunch if we don’t have leftovers)
- Leftovers from dinner like Soups
- PB Sandwiches with Easy 3 Ingredient No Cook Strawberry Blender Jam
- Bean Burritos
- Fruit
- Crock-pot Yogurt
- Scrambled Eggs with lots of Sauteed Veggies
- Tuna Lettuce Wraps-my friend made me some lettuce wraps with deli meat and guacamole for my birthday lunch a couple of weeks ago YUM! Thanks Jolie!!
DINNER:
- Bean Burritos with Guacamole (We had a ton of these when the girls and JSarr were away for 4 days helping his parents).
- Homemade $0.61 Sourdough Bread-I am crock-potting it this afternoon.
- Salad
- Lemony Vinaigrette Recipe with a Kale Salad
- Healthier Crock-Pot Meatballs
- Bruschetta Spaghetti-Easy and quick meal for a night when you don’t know what to do!
- Crock-Pot Chicken Taco Salad
- Strawberry Spinach Chia Seed Salad, G-F, D-F
- Crock-Pot Pork Roast Recipe
- Baked Sweet Potato Fries, G-F, V
- “Baked” Potatoes in the Crock-Pot
- Cook up black beans for Quinoa Black Bean Burgers, Egg-Free, G-F, Vegan, Crock-Pot Chili Recipe and No Flour (Black Bean) Brownies
- Leftovers
SNACKS & DESSERT:
- Healthified Crazy Fast Cake & Macadamia Nut Frosting– I made this yesterday with a cashew nut frosting instead of macadamia nut since they are more frugal for Joshua’s birthday (my little guy is 4 now).
- No Bake Cookie Bars, Dairy-Free-I still can’t get over these!
- Apples with Nut Butter
- 4 ingredients peanut butter granola bars and 4 ingredient almond butter granola bars ALWAYS!
- Bananas with Nut Butter and Chocolate Chips
- Double Chocolate Energy Bars-No bake!
- No Flour (Black Bean) Brownies-I am working on the cooking time now, since I tried them on Father’s Day with mint extract and no eggs using a flax seed replacement. It was gooey greatness, but I had to put them back in the oven twice after baking it the first time.
- Homemade KIND Inspired Bars Recipe-It’s been months since I have made these bad boys.
Do you menu plan? What are you planning to make in the next couple of weeks? I’d love to hear!! See other menu plans here. Do you need some other culinary inspiration? Go here for the complete list of recipes.
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Such great ideas! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, plans and so many great links! Hope you have a great week!
Thanks so much! Hope you have a great week, too!
Your menu plan sounds wonderful and healthy.
Thanks, Rona, and thanks for visiting!