Pretty Food
Article by Diet Bites
Pretty Plate, Satisfied Dieter
It has been said many times that 'we eat with our eyes'. With that said, it certainly is true to a degree. When our meal plate looks attractive, the food seems to taste much better.
As I'm writing this article my mind takes me back to another time when one of my sons was celebrating his sixth birthday. He was fond of Oscar the Grouch and used to attempt to mimic him.
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So, we thought it fitting to purchase him a Grouch birthday cake for the celebration. And it was very cute - basically green Oscar coming out of a trash can. The cake was quite a creation and at the time, put a dent in the family's paltry budget.
We didn't get to purchase desserts often in our house, so we were excited to dive into the cake.
But oh my - we cut the cake and all took a bite and it was the most horrible cake I'd ever tasted. To this day I keep wondering why we didn't return it for a refund - but back then, I was rather shy and easily frightened. The stress of returning things - even to this day outweighs most refunds.
So while attractive foods can titillate the eye - there is never a guarantee that they will taste as lovely as they appear.
Bland Foods While Dieting Taste Better When they are Pretty
On that note, when one is dieting it's important to make the food look as pretty as possible. Fact is, most foods that are contained in the common restricted diet plan are bland in flavor. These include boiled eggs, tuna, saltine crackers, lettuce and other greens, celery, cucumbers, carrots and rice cakes.
Fooling the Brain to Trick the Taste Buds
For example, a boiled egg sitting beside a mound of tuna and saltine crackers and resting on a white plate isn't going to be as pleasing to the eyes as if the same foods were resting on a blue or red plate. Colors which compliment the foods add beauty. We can actually food our brain into thinking that the foods on our plate are a lot tastier than they actually are....most of the time.
Along these lines, when we're eating less to lose weight - we can further trick the brain into thinking that we're eating more food by placing it onto a smaller plate than we normally use. Smaller glasses also work well in tricking the brain. And when dieting - the ability to enjoy more food and drink is always a good thing. While we aren't actually enjoying MORE - we can trick the brain.
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Sometimes Ugly Food Can Taste Best
I have another personal story that I'd like to leave you with. My mother was a master cake baker; her family always went gaga over her cakes - as did my father before he discovered he'd been suffering from diabetes [probably due in part from eating all those tasty cakes mom made].
Many times amid her baking, the cake would 'fall flat' in the pans while baking - often the result of my brother and myself running in and out of the house and 'accidentally slamming the screen door. I must say that my brother was more adept in this area than myself.
Nonetheless, those flat cakes always seemed to taste better than those that turned out looking like they belonged at a special event.
So while we can strive to make our meal plate vivid with color and make it as attractive as possible, we must also keep in mind that flavor is always king while texture is queen.
Keeping this in mind, before we sit that boiled egg on our small blue or red plate, we might take time to slice it into thin layers.
We can also shake on a bit of salt and black pepper - perhaps a few parsley flakes or ground paprika. As to the tuna, we can liven it up with other foods which contain minimal calories - such as finely chopped onion and celery.
We can add a few slices of black or green olives - and a spoon or two of Mayo. When we add the saltines,we can arrange them so that they are fanned - thus adding a pretty look to the plate.
As to the beverage, 100% fruit or vegetable juice will look very pretty in that smaller clear glass.
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