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At this point in a long series, I’m guessing the interest is waning slightly. In spite of the great differences in the lives of all these bloggers, many of their answers might sound similar.
Time to rock the boat a little bit.
Here’s just a little sneak preview of what is to come:
A deaf mama. Another man! Two people who can culture just about anything. A yogi. A locavore. A missionary living in Central America. And a famous book author. *tease* That one’s worth waiting for!
Today’s spotlight is on two young moms whose journey to motherhood brought them also to real food, in very different ways. Please read on for a fascinating look into the lives of some holy women!
Visit the Real Food Face-Off Introduction page for a full list of all the participants and the complete list of possible questions. Each week, only a handful of the contenders’ answers will be posted here.
Week 5: Stephanie vs. Carrie
| Stephanie at Keeper of the Home has recently become one of my favorite bloggers after we connected as newbies on Twitter. She hails from Canada, pays $18/gallon for raw milk and is refreshingly transparent about life and its ups and downs. She blogs about food, herbs, gardening, family life, and is currently a wildly popular organization series. | Carrie at Organic and Thrifty likes to hit the hard issues in a timely fashion, and she’s definitely a real food blogger to keep an eye on. Her blog features $5 meals – always timely for real food budget watchers – and her story is inspiring. |
Below are the answers to some real food questions, in the bloggers’ own words:
How do you describe the way you eat when someone asks you to define your food?
| We eat whole foods, prepared in traditional ways. Our foods are simple and you’re more likely to find them at the market or straight from the farm or garden than from the aisles of a grocery store. Foods that haven’t been altered or tampered with, full of old-fashioned fats. Foods that are organic, pastured, local and/or homegrown whenever possible. | I eat a low-starch, grain-free, diet rich in organic veggies, grass-fed/finished meat, and natural fats (coconut oil, nuts, grassfed butter, lard, etc.) We follow the GAPS diet, and you can read more about our journey at Our Healing Journey. |
What was/is your major incentive for living a real food lifestyle? (How did you come to eat the way you do?)
| I was diagnosed with a reproductive, hormonal disorder (PCOS) at the age of 21 and the doctor said there wasn’t anything I could do about it. I decided to prove her wrong (and 8 years later, with 3 beautiful children, I think I have!). These days, what drives me is a desire to carefully steward my body and health (and that of my family) to the glory of God! | It’s definitely been a journey. It really began after my first child was born and I was dealing with all kinds of post-partum difficulties including depression and being overweight for the first time in my life. As I started to change my diet, I not only lost weight, but many of the digestive issues and pains I thought were just “part of life” went away! Here’s my whole journey to real food. |
What food was your favorite that you no longer eat (or shouldn’t eat)?
| Would you believe that I used to be a McDonald’s and coke slurpee addict? Believe it, because I truly was! Now, I can’t stand to touch either! (Because truly, they’re not “foods” at all!) | I really miss Pizzacato pizzas! I am intolerant to wheat and gluten, and have given up traditional pizza. Thankfully, I’ve come up with some ways to still enjoy this favorite: Gluten Free Pizza. |
What was the hardest transition to make to real food?
| Stephanie blogs the very beginning of her transition here. You’ll have to see if she had any bumps in the road! | I think it’s been hardest to find convenient, quick snacks for kids. Fortunately, I started when my kids were pretty young and they didn’t get too attached to goldfish crackers and animal cookies. But now we have an arsenal of nourishing snacks and treats that they love! |
What’s something you remain afraid to try?
| You know, I’ve tried raw meat and fish, fermented veggies, fish eggs, even liver… yet I can’t get over the fact the Nourishing Traditions has recipes for kidneys and brains. I think I’m out of my league. | I really want to try steak tartare (raw ground beef meatballs, essentially), but have been pretty scared! |
What’s next on your list of changes to make?
| I would like to take our grain and natural sweetener consumption down a notch. Yes, we eat whole grains, properly prepared, and wholesome sweeteners, but it’s still possible to depend on those kind of foods too much. I think we do as a family, and we’re even on a temporary grain/starch/sweetener-free diet right now to help us move in that direction. | I’ve been inspired by Lindsay at Passionate Homemaking to wake up earlier and Maximize my Mornings, so I’m going to work on waking up earlier to incorporate exercise, quiet time, and early morning prep! |
List your top 3 baby steps to move from a Standard American Diet to Real Food.
Read more at My Top Three. |
What is the worst food (or “food”) a person could possibly put into their systems?
| Edible oil products (like margarine, fake coffee creamers, etc.). Absolutely nothing redeeming, and so many harmful things I couldn’t even begin to tell! | Refined carbohydrates: white sugars, juices (pasteurized), white flour. |
If you had only $20 to spend in a week on real food, what would you buy and what would you make?
| Pastured eggs, whole grain wheat, sea salt, a bit of raw cheese, some butter and fresh veggies. I would enjoy sourdough breads, fried eggs or omelets, and lightly steamed veggies with butter. | A small amount of high quality ground Italian sausage ($2 worth), 1-2 # of white navy beans for $.50, 1 package of free-range chicken for $3.50, and $6.00 worth of seasonal produce (kale, broccoli, etc). I would buy a dozen free-range eggs for $4.00 and raw goat’s milk for $6.00. I would use these to create an Italian White Bean and Sausage meal one night, then transform it into a soup another night. I would make veggie frittatas another night, and roasted chicken drumsticks with veggies another night. Leftovers would be eaten the rest of the nights. |
Biggest drawback of real food lifestyle?
| It can be hard to stick to my convictions when I’m in social situations. I want to continue to care for my body by eating well, but also want to love the people I’m with who are offering me foods I don’t want to eat, out of a kind and generous spirit. It’s a frequent struggle and I don’t always know the right thing to do. | Planning for when you’re on the go. We now bring food wherever we go! |
When eating out, how do make your menu decision (fav “out” food, anything you avoid)?
| My latest eating out strategy has been to choose fresh, wild fish when it’s available, so I’m not as tempted to eat the other animal offerings of questionable sources. Otherwise, I confess that I will usually just choose something that really appeals and consider it a treat that I would never eat at home! | When we choose to eat out, we choose a type of food that I cannot easily make in the kitchen, which is ethnic food. Thai and Indian are among our favorites! |
Number one tip you tell your blog readers about eating healthy foods:
| Take it step by step and don’t stress out about what you’re not doing yet. Every step in the direction of real, whole foods is valuable and really does make a difference! | Make EVERY calorie count for nutrients, and make every dollar you spend on food be paying for maxium nutrients! |
Follow Stephanie on Twitter @keeperhome. Follow Carrie @organicthrifty.
Now it’s your turn! I’d highly recommend honoring my real food guests with a visit over to their blogs, Stephanie at Keeper of the Home and Carrie at Organic and Thrifty. Stephanie has a great eBook for sale and another on its way to being published (KS will review it here!). Thanks for participating, ladies!
While you’re here, there’s an intriguing conversation going on about this week’s (benign, I thought) Monday Mission, Eat Fewer Grains. I’ve responded here.
Be sure to come back on Thursday for the next installment of the Real Food Face-Off, Virginia at Living the Local Life vs. Kim at Homestead Acres. Sign up for a free email subscription or grab my reader feed to make sure you catch them all. You can also follow me on Twitter.
Special thanks to Jo-Lynne from DCR Design for the fabulous Face-Off logos. Please visit her if you are a blogger looking for design improvements!
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Kitchen Stewardship is dedicated to balancing God’s gifts of time, health, earth and money. If you feel called to such a mission, read more at Mission, Method, and Mary and Martha Moments.
Any links to Amazon are affiliate links, which means I get a small kickback if you purchase by starting here. I appreciate you doing so if you’re buying online anyway, but I’d also recommend trying your local library first! Of course, if you’re going to shop at Amazon, you may as well try Swagbucks. I’m liking the gift cards to Amazon that are rolling in!
Hungry for more? Related posts:
Thank you so much for this face-off, Katie!
Stephanie and I have many common threads, for sure!
I neglected to mention that I also had some ovarian cysts that have totally been resolved through the diet changes!
SO neat to read Steph’s story as well!
In Christ,
Carrie
Organic and Thrifty´s last blog ..Thrifty & Organic Chocolate for Valentine’s Day!
[Reply to this comment]
Emily Reply:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:21 am
Carrie, I have had steak tartar (never made it, though). It was on my list of things I want to have someday and while on vacation in Charleston this past summer, my husband and I were at a fancy restaurant that served it. I started to chicken out and not order it, but my husband convinced me and I’m so glad he did. It was delicious!!!
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This was so encouraging to me. I am battling some really unbalanced hormones (hair falling out, acne, mood swings, crazy pms) and was just starting to lose hope. I have been following the Nourishing Traditions way of eating for 6 months, and was just starting to lose hope.
What do you think the proper balance of grains/meat/dairy/fats/veggies etc should be? What would the WAPF food pyramid look like?
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My interest isn’t waning! I always look forward to the next installment. Good job Katie!
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I have to say that Carrie ROCKS with that $20 menu!!! Now I have to go make up my own and see if I can do the same!
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I wanted to pop in and say I’m also enjoying these! Although I’m still baby-stepping, it’s nice to read about others that weren’t too different from me all that long ago.
Lenetta @ Nettacow´s last blog ..Gratituesday – Our Corn Stove!
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I was thinking of changing my answer for the $20 week… one $18 gallon of raw milk and a carton of organic blueberries. So maybe it’s a bit limited, but it sounds yummy, no?
I’m still loving this series, Katie, and I sent my readers to check it out, too! Thanks for allowing me to be a part of it! Looking forward to the secret guest… hee hee, I love that I already know and believe me, it’s a great secret!!!
Stephanie @ Keeper of the Home´s last blog ..Real Food Bloggers Face-Off
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I am NOT getting tired of this series!!!
And I think this one is my favorite so far. The $20 question was rocked by both and had me cheering!!!
Looking forward to the rest of this series.
I love this series and am learning so much–and the rising number of blogs I am following is a direct result of it!
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i am loving it! and i can’t wait til i read next week’s with one of my favs- kim! thank you for doing this!
Tami Lewis´s last blog ..Let’s Eat!
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Real Food Face-Off 10: ME! Hallee the Homemaker vs. Mare at Just Making Noise | Hallee The Homemaker // Feb 16, 2010 at 5:50 am
[...] Face-off eight: Stephanie at Keeper of the Home vs. Carrie at Organic and Thrifty [...]