I’m convinced that when you cook with fresh, whole foods and high quality ingredients, you need less to satisfy you. 

Case in point, last night we made a healthy dinner that was absolutely delicious — lime cilantro chicken (I made a simple marinade of lime juice, olive oil, cilantro, salt and pepper) with mango salsa, a summer saute of fresh corn, zucchini and tomatoes and quinoa tabouli — but the focus was on eating small amounts of each.  In fact, the pieces of chicken we had were small, probably about 3 ounces total, so the focus was really on the other parts of the meal — fresh vegetables and fruit, and whole grains.

Eating in this simple way — clean, whole foods that aren’t processed and not eating to feel overstuffed, just to satisfaction — says everything about creating a healthy lifestyle.  The idea that less is more.  And when you use such simple foods, meal planning is easy.

It also helped that the summer saute was full of fresh vegetables (I’ll post the recipe soon) I had picked at the farmers’ market the day before. The corn was so amazingly fresh and sweet that you couldn’t help but savor every mouthful.

To me, half the pleasure of eating comes from using fresh ingredients, making appealing meals and then slowly enjoying them.  If you can eat with family and friends, even better.  In this case, my mom came over as well as our dear friend Marjorie. We have a little routine where my mom often picks up Marjorie (who’s 77 and doesn’t drive) and they come over for dinner. It’s a Sunday tradition for us, every other week.

What’s your theory about small portions? Does it help you eat less? What strategies do you use to keep it small and simple yet feel totally satisfied?

Filed under: Farmers' market, Healthy Meals, Locally Grown Food, Meal Planning, Vegetables, clean eating