Food fads that need to away.

Oh, gosh, yes!  

I don't understand this.   At home?  Or at a restaurant?

Because we make meatless gravy all the time and it's marvelous.    But unless it was an actual vegetarian/vegan restaurant, I wouldn't trust "meatless" gravy, and even some fries could be problematic.

We went to a new burger restaurant recently and i kid you not, 80% of the menu had bacon on it. Since i sadly can no.longer eat bacon, it was disappointing.

    As most of you know I've been a vegan now for well, come next month it'll be two years. I'm not doing it to be trendy and I certainly don't do it only when it's convenient. It's part of my life, every single day. There is nothing in my medical history that is forcing me to be a vegan. Before I chose to change from being a meat and dairy eater to this style of eating my blood pressure was just fine as was everything else. The only thing wrong with me was that I was overweight by 60 pounds-so I don't "have" to follow this whole foods, plant based diet.  I do it because I want to. I chose to after watching "Forks over Knives" on Netflix and educating myself.

I can't remember the last time I had french fries because I gave up fast food 3 years ago. I don't eat gravy. The reason I'm a vegan is-well there are several, and it has nothing to do with being trendy. I am the LAST person on earth to be bothered with following trends. I drive a 1999 Honda. I don't have an Iphone, my cell phone is so ancient it doesn't text or take photos, and I like it that way. I don't have an e-reader and have no desire to get one. I'm a vegan because I believe it is the healthiest diet to follow-the whole foods, plant based diet.  I don't like the thought that an animal has to die and suffer just so I can eat, when a plant can nourish me not only just as well, but better. Eating this way greatly reduces my chances of getting heart disease (the number one killer in the USA), cancer, and many other diseases that plague our nation.

I'm thrilled to be the size I should be in my petite body of 5 foot 3 inches-it feels amazing and I'm not even trying. I eat as much as I want to eat every day, never counting calories or bothering with exercise-although I know that is very important and I plan to start in the Spring as soon as my shoulder heals. Trendy? Not me. That's the last thing you'd call this traditionalist.

Debbie in MD.

Yep, that would be Chobani's Sriracha Mango Flip. It's weird. We tried it at work as soon as it came in (I work in the dairy department of a grocery store).

I keep raising an eyebrow at food packaging that declares that a food that NEVER had gluten in it is now GLUTEN FREE!!!! When did fresh packed salad ever have gluten? There are definitely some packaged food that needs the GLUTEN FREE label because it is possible for there to be gluten hiding in some of the ingredients. 

I just think some companies are using the craze for gluten free as a marketing technique. I worry that this sort of marketing can lead people to think that all people that eat gluten free are doing it to be trendy. 

It's like how many people think that allergies aren't serious because so many people just claim to have allergies because they don't like a certain ingredient. There are also people that get seriously ill when they eat gluten, and whenever something becomes trendy, people don't take it as seriously. 

I also agree about the Pumpkin Spice craze. I like cinnamon and clove spiced items and put cinnamon syrup in my lattes and mochas. I just think pumpkin in the spice is so thick and sweet. The Starbuck pumpkin spice latte is good although it's quite thick and sweet. 

I just don't get the craze. 

The worst for me is kale. I can't digest leafy greens, especially the dark ones like collards and kale. It's so frustrating that so many vegetables in restaurants and blends in the frozen vegetable section contain kale! I wind up eating a lot of broccoli. I love the Green Giant single serve broccoli with low fat cheese sauce and broccoli cheese rice. Elove also has great broccoli with parmesan cheese and nitrate free ham cups. 

Oh, and brussel sprouts. I don't care if you roast them in bacon or sugar coat them. They're so bitter. Either you love them or hate them. I think the way that they're roasted is delicious, but they're still too bitter for me. I'm a super taster, though. I really hate that people keep insisting that I'll just *love* this recipe. I.don't.like.them. leave me alone!

The worst is the food police. It's so frustrating to have "well meaning" people insist that all my medical problems will be miraculously healed if I eat a certain food (yogurt was a big one--even though most contain pectin to which I have a deathly allergy so there are only a couple of types I can eat--I can only eat the vanilla Stoneyfield--the french vanilla has pectin!) I also get pressured to take certain supplements or essential oils or stop eating something. Just.stop. 

I don't have a problem with people who suggest I check something out. I'm an adult, and if I decide that something won't work for me, leave it alone. 

My fil keeps pushing chiropractors on me. My doctors at the Mayo clinic said absolutely not because the risk is too high. Just shut up.

Both. I have inlaws that try to convince me that their gravy is okay because there's no meat in it and I don't eat meat. I have restaurants try to tell me that their soups/gravies whatever are meat free until I question what kind of stock is used... generally chicken. Last time I checked, chickens are not vegetables. I make a wonderful mushroom gravy and have found some packets of vegetarian gravy powder that I can bring with me for family dinners, but I rarely trust a gravy made in a restaurant to be vegetarian just because I know how gravy is made in restaurants. 

I also have the trendy twits who call themselves vegetarian or vegan but still go out and order things at restaurants that are obviously meat based... the vegetarian that orders fish... the vegan who gets cheese on their veggie burger... the vegetarian who orders gravy with their fries... but tries to convince everyone around them and maybe themselves that they are actual vegans or vegetarians because it looks good because it's trendy. They're doing it wrong and making life harder for those of us who are actually eating vegetarian or vegan. You can always tell when a "vegan" or a "vegetarian" is doing it to be trendy.... they are generally super obnoxious ones.

So yeah, I find the trendy twits obnoxious. This has nothing to do with people who actually do it for health reasons. 

I am forever laughing when my friends say 'oh, anxious, she is a vegetarian.' Um, no, she isn't. I did the vegetarian thing for years, right up until I got pregnant with my first and started craving chicken. These days I do eat poultry and fish/shellfish. So no, I am not a vegetarian, but people love to slap labels on others and apparently that is what fits. So in my case, it is almost like they are trying to convince ME that I am a vegetarian. 

Now, I will ask about ingredients from time to time, but that really is because it does sort of come to health issues these days. Usually I can taste the red meat/pork, but every once in a while I can't and it causes some serious digestive upset.

Have you tried making your own yogurt at home in the crock pot? It's quite easy, and much cheaper than buying ready-made (unless your milk is really expensive- I make it when milk is on sale for $1.99/gallon, which is often).

I need to get out more! I haven't seen any of these. I have also never seen the soda machine with all of the choices. Where have I been while the world was passing me by? 

I agree.




Where are you eating? I've never seen this and now I almost want to.

I love to eat out and most things don't bother me. I even enjoy the fussy plating and over-the-top descriptions (although I did bust out laughing when a waiter explained earnestly how the cows from which came the steak my husband was considering were "hand fed with grass and massaged twice a day.")

I do agree about the Kale though, there's nothing wrong with it but geez it's EVERYWHERE, enough!

I always giggle just a teeny bit about the kale. Coming up, kale kit in the 'greens' category (like collards) and completely eschewed by everyone outside of the south-or by those in higher socio-economic demographics. When people started paying attention to 'soul food' there was a bit of interest, but for the most part, greens just weren't all that popular. 

I'm a pretty adventurous eater and I concur with the Kale comments. I've tried liking it and I just don't. For dark greens, I'll stick with spinach.

Pumpkin Spice drinks - sorry, I only want to eat my pumpkin, I don't want to drink it...gross. This year that flavor was in EVERYTHING. I think I even saw a meme about pumpkin spice vaginal wash....LOL