Laura415

For me low carb always works for weight loss (<20grams) and moderate carbs to maintain that weight (<100grams)But this year I changed how I approached it by doing a Paleo diet. I cut out all grains (especially wheat) for 30 days (have since let rice and corn back in) and sugar. That's the basic. And you up your fat to as much as 50% of your calories. I only eat fats like butter, olive oil, rendered meat fat and coconut oil (no industrial seed oils) and stick to eggs, meat, vegetables and some fruit. This is such an enjoyable diet. Heavy cream in my coffee, Fatty meat, confit, eggs, buttered vegetables, tubers...It's a savory cooks dream. This is what I had for breakfast today. Duck Confit sauteed with cabbage and two pastured eggs over easy cooked in duck fat. Oh yeah I've lost 12 lbs so far. PS Doc can't believe the healthy numbers at my last check up either. I've almost got her sold.

I'm not sure why anyone would want to use industrially produced oils. (canola is usually one of those) Most of these oils are produced using high heat methods that turn the oil rancid before it ever goes out for sale. It then has to be deodorized to even be salable. People who smell it's "fishiness" probably have sensitive noses. Even if you can't smell it, it likely is rancid. I stick with stable oils like olive, coconut and rendered meat fats: tallow, pork, duck and goose. (higher in omega 3) I will buy cold pressed sunflower oil if I need something neutral and liquid to make a baked good or mayonnaise but only buy as needed because these type of oils (nut and seed) are very unstable and pretty unhealthy eaten regularly.(too high in omega 6)

I don't do a real mise en place unless I'm doing a multi ingredient recipe where I have to chop and prepare a lot of vegetables and herbs for say something like a Thai curry. For most baking i do take the step of setting out my jars of sugar, flour, vanilla, eggs etc. to make sure I don't forget any of the ingredients in my baking project. My most consistent mise en place is my spices which I always have at the ready by the stove. Current favorites include: Smoked paprika, Long pepper, Smoked salt, Kosher salt, regular black pepper in grinder and Turkish Urfa pepper (sweet smokey dried pepper flakes)

My first post had to do with similarity of prices which makes Farmers Market shopping really doable and definitely competitive pricewise for what you get. I also want to add that the article on the myth of Farmers market prices vs Supermarket prices has another facet. This facet is the true cost of goods when compared between the two. If I am reading an article that had it's basis in statistics or numbers I'd know that almost anything can be proven using the right combination of facts. With regard to food, the statistics that need to be taken into account are the costs for supermarkets due to bulk buying and agribusiness subsidies Vs the cost of growing and transporting for smaller farms. With those numbers to back me up then I definitely could make the case that farmers market goods can be considered cheaper than supermarket goods if all things were equal. Which they are not! We need to stop worrying about how cheap we want things to be and focus on how much value they really have in the bigger picture ie. Pollution of the environment, jobs lost to outsourcing, healthcare costs from poor food, self-reliance lost, Corporations controlling our choices. Frankly I grow as much food as I can and save seeds from my urban gardening venture in order to afford the farmers market prices on things I can't grow and to subvert the capitalist marketplace without killing it. I'm reading a fascinating book, Cheap-the high cost of discount culture by Ellen Ruppel Shell. Highly recommended read to understand how we got where we are and why we fall for cheap every time.

I also live and shop at markets in the San Francisco Bay Area. There is a subtle gouge going on with some Farmers market vendors, but I shop around the market and I ask if I can get a deal on quantity. But really for organic seasonal fruit and vegetables the prices are on par either slightly lower or slightly higher than the regular markets. For example: Organic Strawberries: 3.50 per basket at Ferry Plaza FM (Locally grown) 3.50 per basket Bayshore FM but also 3 baskets for 10.00 (locally grown) 3.99 for a slightly larger basket at Trader Joes (Mexico or U.S.) 2.49 per basket at Monterey market.(Locally sourced) Best deal but I have to drive there. This seems on par to me. See below for what I am really paying for when going to the farmers market. There are intangibles however: Supporting farmers and local vs trucked in from afar. Fresh picked food lasts longer, so less waste if I can't eat it right away. A much more pleasant and uplifting shopping experience at the farmers market. I mean the people who work at supermarkets often know next to nothing about the food or how to prepare it. Growers often do. I also love interacting with people who are community oriented. When they love what they do and are working for more than a paycheck I feel I can spend a tiny bit more to get that interaction.

I use orange oil which I hope is less toxic than goo gone. But first I always wash and/or soak the label to see if it will come off easily. I try to reuse all kinds of bottles and jars, but like them to be free from labels so I can see what is in them. I'm always amused when the special organic mayonnaise label is stuck down with what seems like industrial glue and takes several days of soaking and scraping to get partially off, until I'm forced to use a chemical to remove it completely. Almost doesn't seem worth it for the use of the jar.

All these topics on bulk buying are great! As to whether I bring my creepy containers:) to the store is mostly a matter of remembering and of what I'm buying. My coop has so many different types of things available in bulk that I do bring containers for things like oil, honey, liquid soap, lotion or any heavy liquid item that will be stored in a glass jar at home. The reason to do so is that if I put it into one container at the store and transfer it to another at home, there is the inevitable waste clinging to the store container after transfer. So much better to just put it in it's final jar at the store. Plus my store charges for all the new containers in the bulk sections. Why waste product or a new container? As to the weight of the container; Each bulk station has a scale and you just weigh your container empty and note it on the jar. They subtract the tare weight at the checkout. Viola!

I buy all of my spices from the bulk section at my great local coop. The reason I do this is because they are fresher, organic, and I can buy as little or as much as I need for the short time they are at their best. Perhaps I shouldn't call it buying in bulk, but instead buying by weight, which is more economical because there is less waste and it's less expensive.

You are definitely not alone. I ate plenty of standard American breakfast food growing up. Cereal or oatmeal on weekdays and waffles/pancakes/eggs on weekends. However, when I got older, I found that I often felt like leftovers for breakfast and that has led me to eating any savory item in the fridge most mornings. I never eat it cold though. I also like to eat the comfort foods of other countries especially Asian for breakfast or brunch. Have to admit though that breakfast time, for me, can often be later morning edging towards lunchtime.