Defining Real Food

Transitioning from American convenience foods to real foods can be difficult for some, my family included. We are still working on it. If you find a sudden switch too hard, make smaller, gradual changes that will help you to stay on track. Unlike many fad "diets", we are aiming to change our eating habits and dietary choices for life.

To begin with, we need to define what "real food" is. The most basic definition is this: anything that you can grow in a garden, or pick off a tree; food that is closest to it's original state. Processed food is food that is a product of refining or made in a lab. The nutrients have been removed while processing and may be later added back in, but in an altered state. A good tip when deciding if it is real food is would your great-grandparent's recognize it as food or could you possibly make it at home?

Below is a more thorough list of real food, as put together by Lisa Leake of 100 Days of Real Food. Another great resource on real food is The Unconventional Kitchen.

Whole Grain Banana Bread

What's better than a nice, warm, homemade loaf of banana bread? A whole grain one! And this one is kid-approved!

This is whole grain bread as we are using two different grains, wheat and oatmeal. Do not use the instant oatmeal packets.

Make sure you use a yogurt that is free of junk. I use Dannon All-Natural Plain yogurt. Be sure and read that label! You will be surprised to find out what is in your yogurt.

You can also add some chopped nuts to the batter to add a yummy health boost. Walnuts are full of healthy Omega Fatty acids!