All posts filed under: Bites

Label Lessons…learned the hard way!

Last week I was on vacation.  I wrote this on the plane.  Heading to Nashville, I was already planning how to sample but not succumb to the southern cuisine of fried chicken, grits and mashed potatoes, but it turns out I had to worry closer to home! Here’s my entry: So, today I’m traveling.  Not my favorite day as far as staying on my food plan, but usually the Minneapolis airport has some great selections.  French Meadow Bakery, sushi, salads.  But Nooooooooo…… Today, the security lines were long, so we went to the Skyway security checkpoint, which basically cost me my healthy lunch, as it bypassed said healthy options. Near the gate, we were confronted with three choices:  hummus with pretzels (really?  you can’t put a veggie in it?), veggies, with dip (dip?  yes, I’d like to eat healthy and serve it with a side of chemicals and fat), un-appetizing ham and cheese on bread, or the “Fresh Attractions”  turkey pesto, roasted peppers and cheese on a brioche.  Ok, I’ll take the turkey and remove …

HFCS a.k.a. The Devil

What is the worst thing the food industry has come up with in the last 30 years?  Well, that list is long, but topping the list is High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). Why is it so bad?  Let’s see… High Fructose Corn Syrup is made from starches like corn, wheat, and rice. High fructose syrup contains nearly equal amounts of glucose and fructose, a composition nearly identical to good ‘ol table sugar (sucrose).   The reason high fructose corn syrup is so abundant in our processed food is simple-it’s cheaper than sugar. Because we highly subsidize corn and place tariffs on sugar imports, high fructose corn syrup is much less expensive.  BINGO.  It saves the food giants MONEY, which they trade for YOUR HEALTH. Most of the corn in this country is genetically modified.  HFCS is no different.  The corn industry doesn’t want the food giants to stop using HFCS.  There have even been extremely misleading commercials about how “good and natural” it is.  Puhleeaze.  What boat do they think we just got off of?  You …