Preparing a Meal

The first step I took when preparing my meal was going to Gordon Commons and purchasing food items from Ed’s. There weren’t many options when it came to making a meal from scratch, so I decided to make a turkey sandwich. I gathered a loaf of bread, Oscar Meyer oven roasted turkey breast, and Wisconsin’s Finest medium cheddar cheese. With these items, I went back to my room and made a sandwich. I first took out two slices of bread, then put three slices of turkey on the bread, and topped that off with a slice of cheddar cheese. I made these sandwiches for my roommate and I. When the sandwiches were finished I disposed of the paper plates and napkins and put the leftover food items in the refrigerator. Although the steps to preparing and eating this meal weren’t difficult, it took more time and effort to prepare it myself rather than going into the cafeteria and eating food already made. But at least by preparing the meal myself, I knew exactly what it contained and where it had been.

I agree with the statements Pollan makes about the events that led up to American acceptance of food. A long time ago, it was considered a good thing to be a little heavier—having some meat on your bones was a sign of wealth and power. People savored every last bite of food. Now, we are embarrassed to eat a lot. As Pollan says, “energy has gone into helping us keep all such animal appetites under control” (page 55). In addition to this, one problem we have as Americans is the abundance of food. There is so much food conveniently located everywhere that we don’t even appreciate it. Fewer meals are made from scratch with natural and organic ingredients. An increasing amount of meals are now pre-prepared or taken out from restaurants and brought back home. This is similar to having to make my own meal—it would have been much more convenient to microwave something already made. The preparation was quite difficult given a lack of choice in organic foods to choose from.

Real vs. Fake Food

I will admit that I too am guilty of listening to the constantly changing opinions on which nutrients are good and bad. About a year ago, I kept hearing about new studies and reports on how bad cholesterol was for me. Knowing I ate a lot of hamburgers, which contained high amounts of cholesterol, I decided to try incorporating veggie burgers into my diet, which were considered to be an overall healthier food.

Hamburgers had always been one of my favorite foods, so I was skeptical to try the veggie burgers. They actually tasted surprisingly delicious. I was not expecting to like them at all, so I was thrilled to find a new food. Another thing I liked about veggie burgers was how convenient it was to make them; it took less than ten minutes to prepare.

Veggie burgers look about the same as regular hamburgers, but a little lighter in color—more of an orange/red than brown. Veggie burgers taste excellent, although they taste more like vegetables than meat. The smell is also different; distinct although quite difficult to describe.

In addition to convenience and taste, around the time I started eating veggie burgers, there were numerous breakouts of various food bacteria. My chances of ingesting E. coli became much smaller by eating a veggie burger compared to a hamburger. Along with my fear of food bacteria, the nutritional value of veggie burgers was more appealing to me than hamburgers. There were smaller portions available, less saturated fat, and more soy and protein. Although veggie burgers contain more nutrients than hamburgers, they are not real meat, so it is difficult to tell if the veggie burger can really be compared to a hamburger.

As for now, I try and switch between eating veggie burgers and hamburgers. There are pros and cons to each food, so it is best to get a little bit of the natural food if I continue to eat the processed version. All in moderation, and it should be fine.