Health nut, noun: a person who cares about their health; a person who is willing to prepare and eat currently unconventional foods to care for their body.
I am a health-nut. I’ve been one for several years. But very recently I also became a scientist. Sort of.
This is is a flyover of the journey of the past 10 years, of how I went from being nervous to eat foods that were past their expiration date to literally drinking (at this moment as I write) milk that sat on my kitchen counter for 36 hours.
This journey is how I became a practical scientist: what was once my least favorite subject in school (hold on, maybe that was actually Latin) is now something I do every day in my kitchen: experiment.
In the same way that I cannot point to a single moment in time and say — there! that’s it! that’s when I became a Jesus follower! — I also cannot point to a single event that made me a health-nut. It’s happened slowly, steadily, gradually over the past ten years. But I can point to several key events and experiences that shaped my healthnuttery and made me who I am today, a scientist working in the world of microorganisms.
I grew up eating a relatively healthy Standard American Diet. We ate bread with dinner and ice cream for dessert. But the only chips in the house were plain tortilla chips and we never had soda on hand. Meals were homemade. We ate plenty of protein and greens and “roughage,” as my dad always called it.
Once, I became addicted to Coca Cola at the age of 13 while on vacation with extended family. After I got back, I told me my dad one afternoon, “I need a coke!” His response was essentially “the heck you don’t!” Needless to say, he did not buy me soda. I eventually got over my cravings.
In college, I floundered in my kitchen. I lived in an apartment and went to a school that didn’t have a dining hall. I was on the hook for sustaining myself. That’s a story for another time, but I have a vivid memory of calling my dad during my sophomore year, standing in front of my fridge, sniffing a jug of milk that was past its expiration date. I asked him how I would know if it was bad. I wondered if it would be okay to put in my boxed cheesy macaroni. I was terrified of anything that might make me vomit.
He said, “You just gotta smell it! And when in doubt, throw it out!” I threw it out.
My First Whole30
Then, one year after college, I looked at myself in the mirror while trying on bathing suits for the coming summer season. I decided I had enjoyed too many beers since turning 21, and it was time to do something about it. I had heard of the Whole30 and had a vague notion of it. With very little research, I figured — if it’s worked for some people, it should work for me.
“The point of Whole30 isn’t to lose weight,” one acquaintance warned me after I shared about it at a Saturday brunch. I shrugged. Any changes in my lifestyle would be sure to make a difference for a stressed out first-year teacher who came home and drank wine every night while watching The Office to wind down.
I ordered the Whole30 cookbook and its theoretical companion, It Starts With Food. To this day, I have never read that book in its entirety. But I skimmed it enough to get the gist and I followed all the Whole30 accounts that existed back then: Melissa Urban, Olive You Whole, the Defined Dish, and more.
I learned that eating a certain way not only helps you maintain a healthy or desirable weight; it also helps you feel good.
And after my first-ever Whole30, I felt incredible.
In the Whole30 program, there is a concept called “Non-Scale Victories.” During your 30 days of eating anti-inflammatory or potentially allergenic foods, you are not supposed to step on the scale. Because that’s not the only thing that reflects health.
I experienced a number of the “NSVs” including but not limited to: sleeping through the night, waking up early and feeling rested, more energy throughout the day, less sugar cravings, brighter and clearer skin and eyes, healthy hair, less bloating. One Saturday evening after dinner I had so much energy that rather putting on Netflix, I enjoyed reading a book for an extended period of time.
Whole30 was an amazing first step in learning about what certain foods do to our bodies and how to eat in a way that actually makes us feel good and function at a higher level. To anyone trying to get healthy, you cannot go wrong with Whole30. And It Starts With Food is honestly quite helpful as you get started. I recommend it and I’ve always wanted to read it straight through.
Oh, by the way, I also lost about 10 lbs of fat and felt confident in all of my clothing, including those bathing suits I’d been shopping for.
The Omnivore’s Dilemma
If I were to point to anything and say, this here is the reason I’m a health-nut, it would be because I read Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma. If you consider yourself a health-conscious person but want to take it to the next level, read this book. It will change your life. Consider pairing it with the documentary Food, Inc.
My dad read this book first, couldn’t stop raving about it, and so I had to buy my own copy from the bookstore I worked at and read it for myself.
The reason that reading Pollan will make you a true health-nut is because you won’t stop at thinking more intentionally about what you are eating. You will start thinking about what you are eating is eating.
Here’s what I mean: most meat and egg production takes place in Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). The animal, such as cows and chickens, were not designed to live this way. It’s inhumane and terrible. And because of that, and because of the hormones and medication these animals need to stay alive and grow in those environments, the meat and eggs and milk (etc.) isn’t actually that nutritious for us.
If it’s between Walmart meat and going vegetarian, stick with the veggies and roughage (and other stuff that vegetarians and vegans eat). You’ll be better off.
The Omnivore’s Dilemma is so thorough, it will have you walking into grocery stores and reading labels and not trusting anyone. “Cage free” eggs means nothing. “Grass fed” doesn’t mean what you think it means.
Joel Salatin, a farmer that Pollan goes to live and work with for a period of time, says that if you want to trust your food sourcing, you basically have to know your farmer and have been to their farm.
The Omnivore’s Dilemma is the reason that my dad started shopping at P.A. Bowen Farmstead for meat, cheese, and pet milk (wink wink). I’m thrilled because I just bought tickets to go to an event with Sally Fallon Morell (founder of the Weston Price Foundation) at P.A. Bowen Farmstead in May!
This book is also the reason that in 2018 I applied and got invited to “try out” for the Polyface Farm summer internship (I was not accepted, and people were confused about what a New Yorker was doing in the Shenandoah Valley). Polyface was the farm featured in Omnivore’s Dilemma and in Food, Inc. If you want to know more about Polyface and it’s founder, Joel Salatin, his book Folks, This Ain’t Normal is a great place to start.
Alli’s Kombucha
During those post-college years of Whole30 and paleo eating, as well as reading about sustainable farming, my best friend and roommate Alli started fermenting kombucha. We had already been drinking it quite often. I lived with someone my freshman year of college who sprouted beans, toasted Ezekiel bread, and drank GT’s.
But Alli loved it so much and knew enough of its benefits that she decided it made more sense to brew her own. I can’t remember where she got her SCOBY. She was also notorious for letting her ferments go too long — hey, life in the city is busy! — and her brews occasionally had a strong vinegar taste. We would also joke about how high the alcohol content must be… enough to feel it!
For years after Alli started making her own, I wanted to try it. Every time I bought a bottle at the store, I would think — this would be so much cheaper for me to make. But it was never the right time, until now.
Healthy Guts
The past 20 years have been an interesting time to be living and to become aware of the food landscape — how messed up it is and where to find hope.
My parents started shopping organic in the early 2000’s. We went to WholeFoods and Trader Joe’s and looked for organic labels. Then, a little over a decade later, everyone started talking about the Microbiome. It’s only in recent years that so much science has come out about our guts and how important they are for overall health.
I remember a time I drank kombucha because it was yummy and supposed to be good for you. And then I remember that several years later, people were drinking it for the probiotics.
During the months that I worked at the bookstore and tried to become a farmer, in the spring of 2018, I worked a conference in Brooklyn. It was the Fermentation Festival. I was the assistant to the special events manager, and I helped her order and pack up a bunch of books about fermenting, making your own kombucha, and sauerkraut, and sourdough, etc. On my break at the conference, I walked around trying all the ferments: mead, bread, kraut from Cleveland Kraut, and more. It was amazing. I wanted to buy all the books and make all the things.
And even though I didn’t do any of that at the time — because I didn’t yet know how important fermented foods are for our health; I just thought it was cool — one name stayed with me. He is the father of fermentation and my go-to resource for everything fermenting in my kitchen now: Sandor Elix Katz.
I have to admit: I have a very basic understanding of the microbiome and why it’s important to have pre and probiotics in our diets. I want to learn more and my husband has told me to read the book The Mind-Gut Connection. But what I do know is that I would rather ferment things than pay $60 every month for 30 probiotic pills that may or may not be effective.
Full-On Healthnuttery
2 years ago I started doing CrossFit. For the first time, I had a consistent exercise habit and I was really strong. Once you go down the weightlifting path, the supplements pop up, particularly in the form of protein shakes. And for people in Fitness, protein is the name of the game. Sourcing? Lack of Additives? Lack of Sweeteners? Not so much. Who cares how many chemicals are in the protein shake as long as it has 30 grams of those sweet macro P’s.
Well, I care. And I noticed something: when I worked out at CrossFit five days a week, I wasn’t eating healthier. I was just eating more, even though it wasn’t showing in my body fat percentage. I realized that working out hard every day and eating and drinking whatever I wanted without gaining fat wasn’t sustainable or necessarily even better for me in the long run.
At the end of the day, that lifestyle wasn’t compelling enough for me. What continues to be compelling, ever since Omnivore’s, is the Slow Food Movement. In my own words, this movement is the idea that we can eat local, grow our own, and sometimes the best and healthiest food for us takes time to obtain and time to be ready. Not only that, but doing food this way is also better for the environment and for the world.
I love the concept of eating local, knowing my farm, knowing that my beef actually grazed free-range and my eggs came from chickens that ranged behind them. I love knowing that the meat, dairy, and eggs I’m consuming is completely healthy and nutritious for me. I love making bone broth from the bones of truly cage free chickens and drinking a cup before bed. I love that, today, dessert is a glass of raw milk (which is very high in protein by the way!) that’s been sweetened with maple syrup I bought directly from its source.
However, it took me years to take the concept I loved and make it a reality in my life. It also took moving to a place where I can meet my farmer because they’re only an hour away. Embracing the Slow Food Movement takes intentionality and sacrifice.
It’s a big leap to go from shopping primarily at a grocery store chain to picking up meat and eggs on Saturday mornings at 10:00am. It’s inconvenient. Or to pick up my milk every Tuesday. Or to spend time preparing food in the kitchen, such as sauerkraut, that I don’t get to eat immediately and actually have to wait 1-2 weeks to enjoy. Prepping food that I don’t eat immediately is a hurdle I needed to get over mentally. The urgency of the daily need to make dinner, for a long time, deterred me from investing time in my sauerkraut.
But fermentation is a dream I held onto since that festival in Brooklyn. And now I love it.
Scientist-Mode
My husband and I put The Art of Fermentation on our wedding registry and someone generously bought it for us. And after “ferment sauerkraut” was on my task list several months, I finally got started in February.
Here’s what currently fermenting in my kitchen: sauerkraut, kombucha, a loaf of sourdough, and raw milk kefir. Katz has been my guide for all of the above, with a little help from my search engine.
When I first started consulting The Art of Fermentation, I was frustrated. These weren’t recipes so much as descriptions of different fermentation processes with different food items and in different cultures. Okay, so that’s great, but where’ my step-by-step for sourdough starter?!
But that’s the thing: fermentation is a science and an art. As I scoured the pages about making kraut and kefir, I realized that I needed to embrace the experimental nature of fermentation. Katz told me to keep tasting my cabbage submerged in its own juices in a jar on the counter until I decide it tastes the way that I want. Then, put it the fridge so the fermentation slows way down. That’s it! It’s that simple.
Sure, you can go to the store and buy Bubbie’s sauerkraut. But it’s so much cheaper over time — and rewarding! — to cut up some cabbage, add some salt, beat it to a pulp, stuff it in a jar, and watch it bubble over the next few days, microbes activated.
The same is true with kombucha. You can buy a bottle of GT’s from the store for $3.99. And it’s good stuff! But you can also get a SCOBY from a friend (my dear friend Corinne’s mom sent me one in the mail!). Then you simply brew some black tea, add sugar, add cold water to bring it to room temp, add the SCOBY and starter liquid, cover with a cloth, put in a shady spot, and let it sit for 9 to 13 days.
I just started my second round of Buch fermentation yesterday. I blended fresh strawberries and basil leaves, and bottled the purée up with the fermented tea. The whole process of “F2”, aided by You Brew Kombucha, gave me so much satisfaction. Now I have 5 pretty bottles, previously filled with GT’s, fermenting as homemade Strawberry Basil Buch. Tomorrow or Thursday, I’ll put them in the fridge to slow fermentation, strain, and serve!
And you know what I had to do before I decided it was time to bottle for F2? I had to taste plain old fermented black tea, sticking my spoon into the liquid next to the kind of freaky, alien-looking Mother.
The girl who used to call her dad to ask if the raw chicken went bad now tastes food that sits on the counter teeming with live microbes. I have arrived at full-on healthnuttery.
A Long Way To Go
In his forward to The Art of Fermentation, Michael Pollan (yes, he’s back!) writes, “[The Art of Fermentation] has inspired me to do things I’ve never done before, and probably never would have done if I hadn’t read it. In fact, Katz’s book is the main reason that my kitchen counters and basement floor have lately sprouted an assortment of mason jars, ceramic crocks, jelly jars, bottles, and carboys…”
When I read that sentence months ago, I knew in my heart I would get there too. It’s deeply sastisfying to have successfully fermented four different items. And not only am I making them, I’m also eating them.
Katz writes in his introduction,
…there is a tremendous fear in our culture of aging food outside of refrigeration. In our time, most people are raised to view bacteria as dangerous enemies and refrigeration as a household necessity. The idea of leaving food outside refrigeration in order to encourage bacterial growth triggers fears of danger, disease, and even death. “How will I know whether the right bacteria are growing?” is a common question. People largely assume that for microbial transformations to be safe, they require extensive knowledge and control and are therefore a domain best left to experts.
Most food and beverage fermentation processes are ancient rituals that humans have been performing since before the dawn of history…
Fermentation is a ritual and an art. For me, at this point, it’s still very much experimentation. I feel like a scientist when I check the bubbles in my kraut or stir the mixture of raw milk and kefir grains in a jar on my counter. I think if you told me 10 years ago I would actually like this science, I wouldn’t believe you.
Today I harvested my first batch of kefir, but I blended it with strawberries to drink because it was too tart and sour by itself. I’m still getting used to the taste and not hardcore enough drink it straight. The specific sour taste that often accompanies fermented things is not a taste that our SAD palates are used to. It takes time to like and even want that kind of taste. I still currently mix my kraut and kimchi in with other things. Rarely do I eat it on its own.
And I’ll confess something: I still get a little nervous to taste my kraut. Not so much because I’m afraid I’ll get sick, but because I’m afraid I won’t like it or it will taste bad. I need to taste my purple kraut today! It’s been sitting out for over two weeks!
I also folded my no-knead sourdough for its second rise (thank you Susi for the started and Corey for the recipe!). As I handled the dough, I popped a bubble and realized it’s the best dough I’ve made yet. But I am far from an artisan baker and fermenter. Hence the no-knead method. I still have a long way to go.
I’ve mentioned joy a few times. And I’m not kidding. There is so much empowerment and contentment to be found in slow food, in making something for yourself that’s expensive to buy, and then sharing it with the people around you so their guts can be happier too. You don’t have to rely on the industrial food chain.
Next up in my healthnuttery journey? It might not be for some time, but homesteading to grow and raise my own food would be the dream. And I know my dad, if he were here, would be so proud and want to ferment and homestead right alongside me.
Now, who wants some kefir grains?
Such fun to read about your Healthnuttery journey, Heather! Looking forward to hearing more along the way, and I'm so glad the SCOBY arrived safe & sound and is happily helping make your delicious Buch!
Heather - your mom passed this post along to me & I hear the joy seeping out in your words. Like your Dad, that irrepressible sense of joy (and humor! and that he was really pulling your leg!) is a trait of your family. Hearing your Mom laugh at the gym makes for a great day.
Anyway - a possible idea for limited space gardening: Green Stalk Planters
https://greenstalkgarden.com/
I got 2 last year & my bush beans were fantastic! And I grew carrots (hubby called them “Chernobyl carrots” because of their odd shapes🤣). Thanks for sharing the journey as well as the sorrows and joys.