Author: The Galavanting Gastronome

Love writing about food and travel (www.thegalavantinggastronome.com) and my conversations with God (https://gitanjali.yoga). Born and raised in India. Sailor's daughter. Travel is in my DNA. Married to a scientist, who is a chemist professionally and in every other culinary way. Food, coffee, cocktails, BBQ, smoked meats, rubs, sauces...he experiments with it all - with way more wins than misses. We love the outdoors. Hiking, kayaking and camping make us happy. We are equal opportunity foodies. We love hole-in-the-wall little mom and pop places, and multi-coursed Michelin star meals as well. And, we love talking about what we love about the food, drink, coffee and anything else we get to try.

Your kids are people too

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Family

One of the things I’ve noticed as a mom of a kindergartener is that when I go pick her up I will find parents picking up their kid(s) but they’re on the phone completely ignoring their little one walking alongside them. One mom a few days ago was so offensive that after she picked up her child (couldn’t have been more than 6 years) she started to walk back to the car completely ignoring her daughter who walked alongside her only to tell her ‘what’s wrong with you, where’s your bag?’ So the poor kid runs back to the after school classroom to get her stuff while mom keeps marching on all while announcing to whomever she was in conversation with on the phone ‘I’m leaving, whether she’s coming or not.’ Which the little girl obviously heard as evidenced by the look of terror on her face and the worry with which she juggled all her many belongings. My heart went out to her.

We would never dream of carrying on a conversation when walking with a friend or colleague – that’s plain rude– so why is it ok when you’ve left your kid at after school till nearly 6pm with an 8am start to your day?

Lately I’ve seen so many parents completely engrossed with their iDevices that their kids are being completely ignored! I see it in parka, playgrounds and even at recitals. When did Facebook take precedence over quality time with one’s family?

I’ve heard it said that you only have 18 summers with your children and from parents of teenagers I’m hearing that they don’t see much of their kids because they’re spending time cloistered in their bedrooms FaceBooking or texting with friends– so don’t set the precedent that you will come to regret!

If you wouldn’t text/tweet/post in the middle of a business meeting, why would you during time spent with your family?

Do You Pay It Forward?

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Inspiration

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This morning I took the kids to our local farmer’s market. We do a circuit of the place, always hitting the same vendors for the past many years. My daughter loves Tabouli so we made our way over to our favorite Mediterranean food vendor and I was just about to tell him what I wanted, when a very animated older man who was obviously on a mission to buy out the store, turned to me and said to the shop owner…”and I’m buying her’s too.” I was so taken aback that I didn’t know what else to say except “Why?” and he replied…”because I can and I want to.” I shook his hand, thanked him after I asked his name (Joe). He says – “so get whatever you want, as much as you want…it’s on me” I got what I had planned to, two things of Tabouli, and one of the Greek pita bread for a total of $10. Joe paid him the $10 even though he himself had a stack of about 20 different things that he was getting. I asked him if he owned a restaurant or was having a party, and he said no. So I asked him why he was getting so much stuff, and he said he felt like he had to keep this guy in business. He liked his food so much, he didn’t want him to go out of business! Wow – talk about a patron! As I was about to walk away, I decided to buy a box of the pita chips – and made to pay for it, not expecting Joe to have to pick up that tab too…but he did. He insisted in fact. He told me to have a glorious day and you know what – it actually was a glorious day!

I mentioned to him as I walked away with my wares that I would have to pay it forward next week when I shopped here again. He said, don’t do it because you have to, be sure to do it only if you want to…because there’s no one telling you that you have to. So I re-phrased my sentence and said – “I plan to pay it forward next week – nothing will give me more pleasure.” And I meant it!

Whether it’s buying coffee for the person behind you at Starbucks or paying for someone’s Tabouli habit at your farmer’s market – it’s not so much the cost that matters, it’s the gesture. I can’t tell you how lighthearted I felt all day today – not because I thought all day of Joe and his kind gesture toward me in the morning…but just because I know that it was because of Joe and his kind gesture!

Go ahead, make someone’s day and watch how it makes yours!

Stop and Taste the Coffee

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Health, Nutrition

Today I was fortunate enough to spend the day at a leadership retreat in the company of some incredible emerging leaders. We heard from some incredible facilitators, coaches and speakers. Since it was an all day retreat we were provided breakfast pastries with coffee and yummy lunch by Freebirds in Isla Vista. The interesting dilemma for me was that I LOVE having a hot beverage in the morning – it doesn’t have to be caffeinated, but I do need that ritual to be fulfilled. I had run out of the house and hadn’t had a chance to brew my own decaf coffee and looked forward to a cup. So, I decided that I would allow myself my very first experience with caffeine in over 6 months. Now, since I’ve been doing the 30 day fit kit, I had to eliminated caffeine, alcohol, peanut butter, dairy, gluten, soy and processed sugar. Most of these were easy enough to eliminate – but for me my Sunday morning staple breakfast usually is baguette and French Brie – that was hard to give up – as was the occasional glass of wine or Belgian beer! Caffeine was an easy one for me…so when I partook in the caffeine this morning, even though it was just about 8oz – I ‘felt’ it. My head actually felt fuzzy, I almost felt like I had had too much alcohol the night before and I was paying the price. It was the oddest most uncomfortable feeling. It made me realize that now, as I re-introduce gluten, dairy (just for the baguette and brie), and soy (LOVE edamame) I should really watch for the effect on my body. This program is a natural detoxification that allows you to reset your metabolic thermostat and eliminate allergenic (peanut butter, soy), addictive (caffeine, alcohol) and acidic (gluten, dairy) foods from your diet. Now as I re-introduce them just one at a time, I get to see the true effect these foods have on me and whether or not I should stay away from them for the long haul.

We are so busy in our lives that we never stop to smell the coffee, let alone analyze the affect that it has on our body. Lately, I have become a huge proponent of mindful eating; it’s a great way to get full sooner – that is, you end up eating a lot less than you should/would. We are such an instant gratification society – we want food here and now and we want it when we want it. We get impatient at a restaurant when the waiter takes longer than usual to bring out our food – they’re as impatient to get you out so they can turn the table over to a new set of diners, as you are to eat and get out of there. Even when we’re taking the time to have a night out…we’re in a hurry to eat and run. Maybe that’s because as parents of young ‘uns we don’t really get to sit down a lot. In my house, we all eat at the breakfast bar in the kitchen that only has 3 chairs and so I always end up standing and eating – especially since I’m feeding the little one simultaneously in the high chair, to the point where these days even when I don’t have to feed him – I end up standing and eating my meals because it’s such a habit…one that I am committed to breaking!

All of this to say – that if you can take a few minutes to sit down with your meal in front of you – look at your plate and absorb with your eyes what you see in front of you; after all we eat with all our senses, not just our taste buds. When was the last time you spooned glop into your mouth even if you were promised it was as tasty as lobster? It needs to look, smell AND taste good! If it doesn’t we won’t even take a bite of it! My daughter is proof of this hypothesis – I offered her something that I knew she would like – an Indian lentil, a different one than what she usually likes and because it looked different and not too appealing, she refused to try it. She wouldn’t even smell it!

After you’ve appreciated the aesthetics of the food, THEN taste it; and when you taste the first bite…savor it. Try and isolate flavors – pick out spices, enjoy the textures, chew slowly and a lot. My grandfather always said – chew your food as many times as you have teeth!

And you’re thinking – is the woman mad? I don’t have time to do this every day for three or more meals a day! What if I told you that if you did this for every meal for a week you would lose 10lb (you won’t)? Or what if I promised you that if you did that, I would send you a check for $1,000! (I won’t) – but my point is, you would find the time, and make a way to do it. So do it for yourself! Do it because it will make you healthier in the long term, because it will help you eat less and feel full for longer, because you will develop a new appreciation for food apart from it being a source of nourishment. Do it because it will cause you to slow down just a tic. In our fast paced life- where we barely even take the time to eat lunch, or we eat at our desk while working- if this is the only thing that slows you down, then how can that be a bad thing?

To borrow from Nike…Just Do It!

Bon Appetit

The underside of 130 and why I swear by Arbonne!

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Inspiration

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So we all know we aren’t supposed to step on the scale daily and yet we do…including yours truly! And there are others of us who don’t own a scale because of how scary it might be to step on it. So much is tied up in the identity of this number, be it in pounds or kilos! I for one have been trying to get to the underside of 130 for the longest time! The last time I saw a 2 in the 10s position of my weight was at my wedding over 8 years ago! (yep, I trained hard to fit into that dress!). And almost every day of this 30 day challenge – the one where I am now at nearly the end (yep, that margarita has my name on it!) I have been tempted to step on the scale. I didn’t manage to do it only the requisite once per week – rather I tried to wean myself slowly and stepped on just every other day instead of daily – and then every third day, and finally now it’s been more than a week since I last stepped on the scale. 

What’s most interesting is not the fact that I own two scales, nor is it interesting that I chose to weigh myself on both scales each time, rather the fact that each of them would tell me a different number. Naturally I favored the one where I was lighter by 2lbs always! And naturally I favored the one which showed me consistently dropping weight instead of the one where I would fluctuate the normal 5lb difference on a regular basis. (Yes your body weight can have that margin of error by at least 5lb on a daily basis – so don’t freak out if one day you’re 130 – and the next 135. What’s more important is where are you consistently…week after week. 

So I’ve posted a few links to this amazing program, and I thought I would spend a little more time talking about the different products that make up the program…and why today? Well for the first time since my wedding day I saw a 2 in the 10s position of my weight! Yep – I dropped below 130 – not by a whole pound – but how excited do you think I was to see 129.8? VERY!

Remember, I am not a doctor  – this is just my personal, incredibly exciting experience with these awesome products! And yes, I do have some pretty darn happy clients!

  • Arbonne Chocolate Protein Powder: I have loved this protein powder for the past 4 years. It has been my breakfast for the better part of 2 years now. 20g of vegan protein with no soy, whey, gluten or dairy, less than 10g of sugar (stevia) it packs a powerful punch and is a great way to start the day. I’ve blogged before about my favorite recipe…unsweetened almond milk, almond butter, organic baby spinach, flaxseed meal, frozen berries all in a blender or magic bullet (I have the one by Bella Cucina) and it is absolutely delicious! Add a scoop of the Daily Fiber Booster and you’re getting 1/2 your recommended daily allowance of fiber! 
  • Herbal Detox Tea – Because I’m Indian, I’m a snob about tea. For me, herbal tea is something I am forced to drink when I am sick…’real’ tea is made with milk, sugar, spices like cardamom, cloves and even ginger…but since I’m doing this program, caffeine is a no no – therefore my beloved loose leaf Tetley is off-limits at the moment. Luckily this one has a really yummy flavor even without sugar. The added benefit is milk thistle which helps support your liver function and ‘unclogs’ your pipes!
  • Lemon Fit Chews – I could eat the whole bag (not recommended…defeats the purpose of the detox). These taffy-like chews are awesome for staving off mid morning hunger pangs (mainly due to lack of H20 intake). They keep my energy levels high and balanced and really take my mind of food. I’m convinced that because you need to chew them well – your mouth is so done moving after you swallow!
  • Chocolate Protein Bar – mmmmm! with just under 7g of sugar, this is not sugary sweet, but so nutrient-dense that it is the perfect 3pm snack between lunch and dinner. It not only fills me up, but because it’s chocolate it takes care of my desire to have a piece of chocolate! Killing two birds with one stone! NICE!! Drink 8oz of water along with this yummy dessert-like bar and you’re FULL till dinner!
  • Pomegranate Energy Fizz Sticks – these yummy little powder packs are great to flavor water if you don’t like the taste of water; they have antioxidants and B vitamins, making them a great source of energy! The small amount of natural caffeine makes it so I am performing with high energy without worrying about the 3pm caffeine crash. I have clients who swear by these! And, they’re YUM! 
  • Hybrid Supplements – we have them for men too – you guys! But these have transformed my opinion about supplements. Like most people, I shopped at GNC or even Costco for my supplements and always wondered if I was just creating expensive urine! Until I started on these I never really believed that vitamins did anything. I am a mom of two young ‘uns, a wife, a fundraiser, an entrepreneur,  an athlete, friend, daughter, sister, now blogger…ah yes add regular 5:30am meditator to that list…on top of which I just had a milestone birthday – yep – the big 4-O (more on that later)! But believe me when I tell you I have boundless energy and have managed to reduce my hours of sleep from 8 to 7 with no change in my levels of energy. The cool thing about these is that they come in pre-made packets and the 5 pills cover me for probiotic, bone health, calcium and multi-vitamin/multi-mineral! So all I do is add vegan Omega-3 pills and yes, an extra calcium supplement with vitamin D and I am good to go! And in fact, what I do so that I am not overdoing the supplements (and yes you can do that) I alternate the pills. On one day, its the power pack, the next its omega and calcium! It works wonders! I’m almost afraid of how much more energy I will have if I took them all daily!

So March 4th will mark the last day of this program for me, but the best thing that it did for me is reset my metabolic thermostat, make me aware of the way my body responds to certain foods ( I will be more aware of this as I reintroduce those foods one by one next week and beyond), and realize that I have total control of my body’s nutritional intake. I recognized that I would have to consume over 5,000 calories a day to get the nutrient values that my body needs to perform at its optimum best – and well…I wouldn’t be seeing the underside of 130…ever, if I did that. So I’m grateful to have found products that are made with pure botanicals enhanced by science and scrutinized by health and wellness professionals before hitting the marketplace and my household. 

Healthy living is a choice that most of us find hard to make…it doesn’t have to be. It in fact can make your life a lot simpler. I’m living proof of that! Ping me if you want details.

Falling off the wagon but not hitting the ground hard!

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Family, Health, Nutrition

So this past weekend, I had family come to visit. My husband being the amazing cook/bbq-er that he is smoked ribs and made buffalo chicken wings, grilled zucchini and smashed potatoes! Our house was filled with 6 children including mine, ages ranging from 2 – 14! Talk about needing a glass of wine! BUT – no actually I didn’t fall off the wagon there. Nope, I am not in recovery – if you remember, I talked recently about the Arbonne 30 day fit kit – well the first no no on the list of no nos is alcohol! The goal of this program is to help you naturally cleanse your system of foods that are allergenic, addictive and acidic (caffeine, milk etc.) and so there’s a list of foods that you must abstain from for the 30 day period. It’s not to have you NEVER eat/drink those foods again – rather it’s just to rid your body of them for 30 days so you can see how it responds, when you re-introduce them into your body one at a time after the 30 days are up – much like you would introduce new foods to a 6 month old baby! One at a time, to see the reaction. For some of my clients, they’ve discovered gluten is bloating, for others they realized the headaches they were having were related to dairy or gluten, and for yet others there was no difference except a ‘lightness’ when they eliminated these allergenic, addictive and acidic foods. Leave a comment with your email address for the entire list if you’d like to have it.

Anyway – so here I am, 2 weeks into this program and doing rather well I might add…no temptations for bread, pasta, peanut butter, caffeine…and then along comes this BBQ from the heavens! Well – there’s nothing better to drink with a BBQ meal than beer…so I allowed myself ONE of my absolute favorite beers – Abbey Leffe, Blonde. I didn’t over eat the ribs and chicken like I usually would have – not because I didn’t want to, but only because 2 weeks of being on this program and my stomach has shrunk so that 2 ribs and 2 small chicken wings and 1 spear of zucchini is all I could take on after my beer. My 10 year old niece did a better job demolishing the chicken than I did! I had made gluten free, dairy free brownies for the allergic kids, and so that was the perfect compliment to the meal! I got to eat a piece without feeling guilty- gluten and dairy are both on the NO list! (so is sugar, but again, I just had a small piece).

The next day, we went roller skating! Now, I haven’t been on skates in 20 years but it came back as easily as if I had been skating daily for years! It was so much fun, didn’t feel like exercise and it was a great social/physical activity to do with 6 kids with boundless energy! After 90 minutes of skating, Coldstone Creamery seemed to be the obvious next choice! Here we go again – temptation…so I ordered a dark chocolate peppermint ice cream with almonds, brownie and coconut shavings (try it if you haven’t it is absolutely divine!); but then proceeded to share that with my dad, my brother and my son! So I am lucky if I got two bites…and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I learned that it was OK to fall off the wagon, as long as you didn’t hit the ground too hard! I did the things I wasn’t supposed to do, but I did them in moderation.

  • Depriving yourself makes matters worse – when your body wants something, give into the craving – but just don’t over do it! If you want dessert and don’t have anyone to share it with – take a few bites and then sprinkle salt or pepper over the rest, thereby ruining it for yourself. (learned that from my mentor!)
  • Don’t be a party-pooper! – whether it’s a party you’re attending/hosting, or when you have family in town like I did – people who don’t visit often, you want to enjoy their company, and we are such a food society that a lot of our celebrations happen around food! Enjoy it – just within limits.
  • Get back on the wagon as soon as possible – So I knew that the weekend was one of eating things off the NO list – the moment they left, I went right back on to the YES list and made sure that I stayed committed to my program.
  • Do away with the guilt – If you’re going to ‘cheat’ enjoy it! Don’t eat every morsel with remorse or guilt. You’re ruining the experience for yourself, and the vibe you’ll give your guests is one that they’re the reason you’re miserable. Instead, embrace the foods, and savor every bite – appreciate the fact that you are eating foods that have been off limits to you and let the flavors linger in your mouth (another great way to ensure you don’t over eat).

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Can you say NO?

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Inspiration, Quotes and Thoughts

Lately I have become more aware of my heart’s desires. You would think that it’s something we all have crystal clarity on but it turns out that what we want is often mired beneath the murky waters of our daily life! The day-to-day rigors of being a parent, a partner or even (especially) an employee/employer leave us little time to sit back and dream. And then there’s the inability to say NO! We feel obligated to help everyone– – we take on way more than we can chew and then we wonder why we are stretched thin. That sentence in our job description of life ‘…and other duties as assigned’ is something we take seriously. We are after all a society of multi-taskers, we can definitely take on just one more responsibility– and then our innate work ethic, the one that requires us to do everything to the best of our ability kicks us into overdrive and we spend all hours fulfilling our responsibility. Even and especially at the cost of ourselves and the balance of our family!

So what are somethings you can do to simplify your life? Shed some layers and work to unearth the real you! How can you make time in your day to spend time in quiet reflection?

1. It’s OK to say No! – at a recent seminar I attended one of my table mates had an interesting internal process that he’d devised for himself to see what made sense to take on– Value vs. Risk – does the thing you’re about to take on add value to your life and your bottom line goal (do you know what that is) or does it risk you spreading yourself too thin?

2. Limit yourself – My sister in law once shared with me how her kids were only ever allowed to be enrolled in 2 activities at a time- and that if they wanted to do something different then they had to make choices. Employ this same tactic for yourself! Don’t spread yourself too thin. You end up not doing anything well.

3. Quitting is not failure – recognizing that something that was working is no longer working or is no longer aligned with your passion and goals is a powerful tool if you’re willing to ‘go there.’ There’s no shame in taking a hiatus or simply walking away. The relief you will feel afterward will validate your decision.

4. Be fiercely protective of your limited free time – before you say Yes to the next request on your time – ask them for the time to think about it. And then don’t think of it only from their standpoint. Rather think of it from yours! What will you have to give up to make room for this? Is it worth it? Could you be doing something with/for yourself or your family during this time instead? What will this do for YOU in the long run? And if you don’t like the answers – say NO!

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30 days to feeling fit

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Health

On February 4th I started Arbonne’s 30 day fit kit because I’ve been carrying around 10 extra pounds since my baby was born two years ago. They were stubborn and clinging to me like my baby does when he’s sick and needs mommy!

I didn’t start talking about it right away because quite frankly I wasn’t sure if I could commit to it. It was more a fear of failing my public accountability partners than anything else. And then it occurred to me that this was silly. You more than anyone else would help me stay on track and stay accountable. You wouldn’t judge me half as harshly as I judge myself and if anything you’d make the journey easier and way more fun!

So here I am- I want to bring you up to speed:

I ordered the kit which when you do the math works out to less than $10 a day for breakfast and lunch for a period of 30 days, stocked my pantry and fridge and got going. I’d already been doing smoothies for breakfast so no change there. The big question was would I be full enough on a smoothie for lunch? And the answer I found even from day 1 was YES! And that’s because I am eating every 2 hours. I’m actually NEVER hungry and because of how densely I pack my smoothie with fiber booster (spinach, kale, almond milk and butter, even raw almonds, berries, flax seed, sometimes even carrots…) I’m very satisfied!

The supporting products are great– the lemon chews are perfect for my 3 pm sugar craving and the fizz sticks give me the effervescent drink I sometimes want when water isn’t cutting it. (Drinking 8-9 glasses of H20) – the detox tea is quite yummy for end of day wind down time with hubby and oh I added the Arbonne chocolate protein bars to my repertoire. These 7g stevia, 170 calorie dense not overly sweet bars really help me bridge the gap between lunch and dinner. Morning snacks are almonds or just a fizz stick and a few chews!

So here’s how it went: the first day was really hard. I wanted so badly to eat a bag of chips! I think it was my mind checking to see how committed I was…because I barely ever eat chips anyway! But once I ensured I was eating every 2-3 hours it got easier. The hardest thing for me is to not jump on a scale every day! I am doing this to kick start my healthy habits again– not to drop the weight — well who am I kidding– of course I want to drop those final 10lbs but I do want to get back to my good eating habits and I’ve always wondered what my body does in response to certain foods- so when in 30 days I reintroduce bread, pasta etc it will be interesting to see.

I will keep you posted as I progress but the biggest win so far is the fact that my stomach has nicely shrunk so that yesterday when I ‘over ate’ by eating a smallish Cobb salad at a celebration lunch (dressing drizzled and no bacon) I was stuffed for hours after.

I cannot wait to step on the scale at the end of week two. Suffice it to say that at the end of week one I had lost 4lb!

WOOT! For details on this program of for samples contact me

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