{"id":14062,"date":"2011-02-07T09:03:52","date_gmt":"2011-02-07T14:03:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/asweetlife.org\/?p=14062"},"modified":"2016-01-05T06:08:45","modified_gmt":"2016-01-05T11:08:45","slug":"the-eat-local-experiment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/asweetlife.org\/?p=14062","title":{"rendered":"The Eat Local Experiment"},"content":{"rendered":"

A healthy diet for diabetes and delicious food can go hand-in-hand.\u00a0 ASweetLife’s culinary contributor, Chef Missy Lieser, has proven this over and over again.\u00a0 Some of our most popular recipes, like Bacon Wrapped Shiitake Mushrooms<\/a>, Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings<\/a>, and Grilled Lamb Chops<\/a> are straight out of Missy’s kitchen.\u00a0 I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Missy over the last year as she’s worked on perfecting sugarless, low-carb and easy-to-prepare recipes for us. Missy doesn’t have diabetes, but like people with diabetes, she’s very aware of what she eats.\u00a0 Last month Missy began a project, The Eat Local Experiment, with the goal of spending an entire year eating only foods grown within 250 miles of her home.\u00a0 Missy is blogging about her experience here, but I have to warn you that reading her blog will make you very hungry!\u00a0 Here is an interview with Missy about her project:<\/p>\n

Please tell us about your culinary education, background, and experience.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve always enjoyed cooking, but never really thought about it being a profession until well after I had finished my undergrad studies in Family Economics.<\/p>\n

I first began culinary school at Kendall College in Chicago.\u00a0 My husband was transferred to Raleigh, NC before I was able to finish.\u00a0 There I took a position at a catering company, where I learned a lot, most importantly that I loved cooking for a living.<\/p>\n

We then moved to New York City.\u00a0 Once there, it wasn\u2019t hard to decide on the French Culinary Institute.\u00a0 It ranks amongst the top 5 culinary schools in the country and has an amazing restaurant where you spend one-third of your school time cooking.<\/p>\n

Since graduation, in addition to being a stay home mom to my 2 children (ages 8 months and 2 \u00bd years) I have worked as a personal chef \u2013 planning and preparing dinner parties as well as cooking meals for families.<\/p>\n

\n\"\"<\/a>Have you always focused on healthy eating?\u00a0 Are you more aware of what you eat since becoming a mother?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

I think that I have always been aware of the food that I put in my body, though I have definitely become much more conscious through two pregnancies, a combined 3 years (and counting) of breastfeeding, and feeding two growing children.\u00a0 I feed my children \u201creal\u201d food.\u00a0 It is very important to me that they consume healthy foods and are taught about the importance of eating healthy.<\/p>\n

As simple as it is, I\u2019ve always bought into the \u201cyou are what you eat\u201d phrase.\u00a0 I\u2019m a firm believer that all of the things we ingest have an impact on our health and how we feel.<\/p>\n


\nI know you’ve learned a lot about diabetes since you became a culinary contributor to ASweetLife.\u00a0 Do you worry about the growing diabetes epidemic? <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The opportunity to become a contributor at ASweetLife has absolutely made me aware of the growing diabetes epidemic.\u00a0 I try to read as much information as possible regarding health and diets and I am appalled and saddened by the number of people who are being diagnosed with diabetes.<\/p>\n


\nWhen did you come up with the idea of the eat local experiment?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

About five years go, I read a story about a woman who decided to consume only local foods for a year and thought that it would be something that I might enjoy trying.\u00a0 I added it to my life\u2019s to-do list and kind of forgot about it until we moved to California last year.\u00a0 What better place to try to tackle a challenge like that?\u00a0 After talking it out with my husband and trying to figure out how it would all work, he pushed me to start it in 2011.\u00a0 I\u2019m very lucky \u2013 he\u2019s incredibly supportive of all of my ideas no matter how crazy they may seem sometimes!<\/p>\n

I guess the bottom line is this is just something I wanted to do for myself and for my family.\u00a0 I\u2019m not making some grand stand or trying to sound preachy or anything like that.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s important to create individual goals and to practice self-discipline, and this is my attempt at that for the year.\u00a0 I think when it\u2019s all over, there will be things that we continue to do.\u00a0 Some things, however, like dark chocolate will return to my diet.\u00a0 I know I\u2019ll really enjoy that first piece of dark chocolate that I have after a year without any!<\/p>\n


\nTell us about the experiment!\u00a0 What are your rules?\u00a0 What are the biggest challenges?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The rule that I created for myself is that for one year I’ll consume only foods grown within 250 miles of my home (which includes all of the ingredients that go into those foods).\u00a0 I have a couple of exceptions that I have listed on my website, such as coffee (I couldn\u2019t make it a year without coffee), pepper, baking powder\/yeast\u2026 Other than those things, everything else has to be local.<\/p>\n


\nYou’re only a little over a month into the experiment.\u00a0 How is it going so far?\u00a0 Are you finding it difficult?\u00a0 Is there any food that you really miss?\u00a0 Is it harder or easier than you expected?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

So far, the experiment is going really well, almost easier than I expected it to be.\u00a0 Dinner and breakfasts are the easiest.\u00a0 I feel like we kind of get into a rut with lunches, and snacks are challenging.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t so much figuring out what to have, but there are nights when you are in front of the television and you want to snack on some chips. \u00a0Instead of opening a bag during a commercial, you have to slice the potatoes and make them yourself.\u00a0 It\u2019s just a matter of planning, but with two kids under the age of three, sometimes carving out the time to do it is a challenge.<\/p>\n

The one really ongoing challenge is the amount of time that has to be committed to the project.\u00a0 Meals definitely take longer to prepare than before, grocery shopping takes longer and has to be done much more frequently, though I\u2019m finding that each week the planning and shopping is taking less and less time.<\/p>\n

There are definitely moments that are difficult.\u00a0 Prior to the start of the experiment, we did take out\/delivery one night a week.\u00a0 After spending every day running after two kids, I really miss my one night off from the kitchen.\u00a0 Outside of that, the only thing I really miss is dark chocolate.<\/p>\n

I will say it has all been worth it.\u00a0 I feel healthier and more in control of what I consume than I ever have, which is a very satisfying feeling.<\/p>\n

\n

Who are your culinary influences?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I have a number of chefs that I admire.\u00a0 Alice Waters is at the top of that list.\u00a0 She is not only a very accomplished chef, but she has been instrumental in the slow food movement for years.\u00a0 I cannot wait to visit her restaurant in Berkeley this spring!<\/p>\n

\n

What ingredients are essential to you?\u00a0 What do you always have at home?\u00a0 Your basics?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I did a lot of preparing last fall for the start of my project.\u00a0 I froze tomatoes (pureed and whole) and made a number of stocks (chicken, vegetable and beef).\u00a0 We also purchased a half a cow, so we have a freezer full of local beef.<\/p>\n

In terms of basics that we always have, I\u2019d say whole wheat flour (we consume a lot of pastas, so we go through a lot of that), cheese and eggs.\u00a0 Beyond that, I make several trips to farmers’ markets every week, and whatever they are selling that looks delicious becomes what I plan our recipes around for the week.<\/p>\n


\nWhat are your favorite places to shop? <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The vast majority of our food right now (and even before the experiment began) comes from the local farmers’ markets or directly from a farm.\u00a0 Food bought directly from the farmer is by far the freshest food you can find outside of growing it yourself.\u00a0 I also love knowing that I\u2019m supporting a family farm by purchasing their products.<\/p>\n

The remainder of my food shopping is done at Whole Foods.\u00a0 I find that they work hard to support local farms and label local products throughout their store.\u00a0 As a grocery chain, they are making great strides for local products.<\/p>\n

\n

Any tips for people who want to try to eat local?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The tips I would give are just are to go to your local Farmers’ Market, get to know the people, fall in love with the process and get your family involved.\u00a0 Food is such a major part of our lives that we should enjoy it!\u00a0 Occasionally, make the whole process an event.\u00a0 Make homemade pasta with your significant other while you share a bottle of wine.\u00a0 Have your children pick out fresh foods for a chef salad.\u00a0 Have the whole family sit down for dinner.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t have to be fancy, but once in a while, really try to enjoy the whole process.<\/p>\n

What do you hope to achieve at the end of this experiment?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Outside of the obvious goal of eating only local foods for the full year, I\u2019m hoping that when all is said and done I will have discovered what works for my family, what I can do or make myself and what I can\u2019t.<\/p>\n

For more visit The Eat Local Experiment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I did a lot of preparing last fall for the start of my project. I froze tomatoes and made a number of stocks. 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