What Does It Mean To Be Healthy?

What does it mean to be healthy?
I know, big question. One that we should have asked ourselves a while ago. After all, this is a blog promoting healthy living; so one could have rightly assumed that we knew the answer all along, before even starting our daily ramblings.
In all honesty, I decided to discuss this topic today, because I recently found out that people are quite confused about the meaning of being healthy.

Sesame Chicken Kebabs (Low Carb and Gluten-Free)

I hate long-haul flights.
Just to get this straight, I'm not scared of flying. I am not afraid that the aeroplane I'm on will fly into a mountain or crush into the sea because of pilot error, or explode without warning in flight, or that a psychopath will place a bomb under my seat, or prang into another airplane on the ground.
I don’t find flying frightening at all. Over the years I figured that once you get into the aeroplane, I’m pretty much at the mercy of the pilot and there’s not much point in worrying.
I hate long-haul flights because airplanes are very uncomfortable (unless you travel Business or First, duh!). I’m almost 6’3, and unless I get an emergency exit seat, there’s never enough legroom for me.
After a couple of hours my legs turn numb and my back start aching. So I get up to stretch my legs but guess what, when I do so, it's always turbulence time! Thus, I’m “gently” asked to return to my seat and stay put.
And then there’s the boredom factor. You see, I can’t sleep/nap on airplanes. I so envy those people who, even before take-off, are already sleeping like babies in their seat. I just can’t do it, not even if I pop a sleeping pill. I did it once and instead of sleeping, I got totally mental like if I was on drugs or something (yeah, never again in my life!)
My main goal on long-haul flights is usually to simply pass the time. I watch movies, read a book, play video games and I flip through the pages of all the newspapers and magazine I can lay my hands on.
And that’s how I found this recipe.

Chicken, Bok Choy and Basil Stir-Fry

This recipe was passed to me from my good friend Ratana.
Ratana is a whiz kid, die-hard fashionista, compassionate human being AND awesome cook.
She’s half Thai and half Chinese but 100% American (if you know what I mean...)
Her dinner parties are legendary. When you get an invitation from her, you know you’re up for a real treat.
In my opinion, when you pair passion for cooking with traditional family recipes, greatness comes out. And that’s Ratana's cooking, pure bliss.
There are many dishes Ratana makes that I love (well, probably all) but her chicken bok choy stir-fry has to be my fave. The only adjective that can properly describe it, is mouthwatering. That good.
When I do compliment her about it, she smirks at me and tells me: “If you knew how quick and easy it is to make...”
Because yeah...Ratana is one of those people who doesn’t shares her recipes. I think she sworn to her mum that she would never do it, or something like it. Bummer.

Savory Watercress Berry Salad

I wanted to make a case for watercress. I had one goal in mind, to try to convince you to eat more of this amazing cruciferous veggie. Why? Because watercress is very low calorie and has endless health benefits. Anti-aging, cancer fighting properties, benefits vision...it doesn’t get much healthier than this. You don’t trust me? Then read here you mis-believers!
But then I thought, what if I give you a delicious recipe for watercress instead?
You see, I interviewed a couple of my friends and not a single one was sure what the hell to do with watercress (besides garnishing plates in fancy restaurant). Well, except my friend Guy, but he’s British and over there they use watercress a lot (especially in sandwiches).

What I'm Reading: Cooked, A Natural History Of Transformation

I’ve read every one of Michael Pollan’s books and enjoyed all of them; he’s arguably one of my favorite authors.
His latest book “Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation” did not fail to impress me once again. His ability to take the mundane (in this case cooking) and make it interesting has - in my humble opinion - no match.

Oven-Baked Spiced Sweet Potato Fries

Let’s be completely real here; I wasn’t planning on posting this recipe. I made these Oven-baked Spiced Sweet Potato Fries just for photography styling purposes. I didn’t want the Homemade (Paleo) Ketchup to sit there alone on my kitchen table. So I figured baked sweet potato fries would be the perfect companion. Which was a winning decision tbh.
But since I posted the ketchup recipe, I’ve received tons of requests and comments about the fries. My favorite one was “Forget the catchup the fries look good where's the recipe dude? I'm hungry!”,
which I thought was hilarious.
But there were also other comments that totally made my day (in fact, you guys are pretty amazing: smart, good listeners, responsive and with a healthy amount of sense of humor. I feel privileged to have readers like you: Thanks!)
With all these requests coming at me, I felt cornered, with only one possible way out: posting the recipe.

Homemade (Paleo) Ketchup

Ok guys, I’ll be honest, I've been on a DIY condiments kick lately.
It started with (paleo) Sriracha a couple of weeks ago. I had wayyyy too much fun making it, it was wayyyy too delicious and I enjoyed wayyy too much success. Who knew?
So It was only a matter of time before I would try making another condiment. I picked ketchup, arguably the most popular sauce in the whole world (I mean, duh).

Herbed Hummus

I love hummus for a number of reasons: It’s healthy, low calorie, has a great nutritional value and it's yummy. And for some reason, it's always the right time for hummus.
I love to dunk veggies into a smear of hummus. And I also like it to use as spread in sandwiches. Have you ever tried hummus+oven roasted turkey+tomato+spinach sandwich? Hell yeah!
Grocery stores are packed with several different brands of hummus but, let’s face it, there’s nothing quite like making your own.
Over the years I’ve tried hundreds of different recipes. Even though the ingredients used to make this Middle-Eastern spread are always the same, different processes yield different results.
It starts from the chickpeas you choose and how you cook them. Then there's the tahini (i.e., sesame paste). Using cooking water or not? How much salt? Smooth or chunky? You get it, right? I can go on for hours and never reach a conclusion.
Anyway, the recipe you'll find here is a combination of the hundreds of recipes (and tips) I’ve collected over the years.
I'm quite convinced it's bullet proof, but I'm definitely open to criticism (as long as it's too harsh!)

Dieting? Better Have Someone Hide The Chocolate

Common wisdom tells us that willpower is key in losing weight. That there’s only one way to succeed, you need to set your mind to it and fully commit: clean food, calorie restriction, exercise and healthy lifestyle.
If you don’t have the mental strength to do it, you’re doomed to fail. End of the story.
However, the concept of willpower in diet has been the subject of much criticism. Researchers have long rejected the idea that there’s some innate force that will keep you from resisting bad habits1.
To attribute dieting success or failure just to willpower - researchers say - is a simplification that ignores details of the numerous mechanisms in play behind a successful weight loss program.
Believing that only willpower can do the magic trick entails a further risk. If you assume that it’s just a matter of mental strength, you can feel less in control of your eating habits and conclude that, if it’s not your DNA, there’s nothing you can do about it.
That’s not it though. The success of dieting is made by the sum of several behavioral changes. Willpower is one of them but it’s not the only one. There’s the interaction of brain chemicals, behavioral conditioning, hormones, heredity and the influence of habits. All these factors are part of the diet equation2.

Whole Wheat Rhubarb Strawberry Crumb Bars

Yesterday was totally my binge day. OMG, score!
I’ve decided to allow myself one binge day a month, mostly because I am so good all the time.
I don’t eat this, I don’t drink that and I train/exercise every single day. So I rightfully deserve a binge day once in a while. A much deserved reward.
For the record, my binge day is not really how normal folks would define a binge day. There’s no stuffing my mouth with processed food, fried food, sugary drinks or anything of the sort.
All my friends say that my binging day is the lamest thing ever. That I’m not even binging. I’m just pretending to binge while still eating healthy food.
I dissent.
To me binging is only about enjoying food I don’t usually eat. I would never binge on BigMac, Pringles, KFC, etc. I find no pleasure whatsoever in eating these foods; it would be pure torture.
Mindless, thoughtless eating doesn’t really work out for me. The act of just shoveling something in, without any thought, it’s just not me. Period.