Seinfeld - Food swings: 125 recipes to enjoy your life of virtue and vice

If you love food, eating different things at different times definitely makes life more interesting. Sometimes we eat healthy, sometimes we indulge. We can eat totally clean for a while, then we go off the rails.

We make these choices based on how were feeling, what were doing, whom were with. Youve got your pizza pals, wingmen, and foodies. Youve got fitness fanatics, who see bathroom scales whenever you suggest dessert.

Most of us move back and forth between want-tos and have-tos. Each morning, a voice in my head says, Pancakes and maple syrup or chia seeds and a banana? This type of debate continues throughout the day. I swing between being virtuous and giving in to vice. Virtue usually winsbut Im also a big fan of vice.

Of course, everyone defines these poles differently. Each of us has our parameters. For example, my very healthy and fit friend Joe likes a cold sliced steak salad for lunch. It fills him up with the protein and the greens he wants to eat, and keeps him from inhaling cheesecake at the end of a meal. My friend Amy likes to cook her chicken thighs with the skin on, because the juicier and crispier result is more palatable to her. Amy also prefers to eat chicken rather than red meat, so the chicken skin keeps her in her zone. Without a doubt, there are people who will not like that I put these recipes in the Virtue section. But I put them there because I know that satisfying meals keep many of us eating virtuously without feeling punished. So on that note, you will find a little bit of everything in this bookvegan, almost vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free recipes, each of which is noted at the top of a recipe.

In Food Swings, I offer my personal approach: recipes that speak to different sides of my personality. One half of the book has recipes for everyday eating, the other half is for when you need to feel the wind in your hair.

Either way, the important thing is to end up feeling satisfied when the dishes finally land in the sink. The more we deprive our bodies of what theyre craving, the more our bodies keep trying to compensate. The more energy we expend, the more we need foods that replenish. The desire to eat an entire chocolate cake after a long run is no coincidence; your body is just trying to protect itself. We can certainly make better choices than a chocolate cake, but the point is, if you eat smart, wholesome food as well as occasional treats, you can stay healthy and still enjoy your life. (By the way, if you do go the chocolate cake route, our recipe on will make your head cave in.)

Food swings are normal, as long as they dont swing too far out of control. I favor the relatively steady rhythm of a grandfather clock: eating a variety of wholesome foods, and allowing yourself some splurges without guilt.

This is the way I like to eat and the way I love to cook. Some nights, I make a simple poached fish with ample vegetables and sparkling water. Other nights, I go for chicken parmigiana, with pasta and wine. I suspect many of you seek a similar balance.

I also make a point of staying active. To me, moving your body daily is as essential as brushing your teeth. I try to exercise most days of the week, walk as much as possible, ride my bike to work, and take the stairs. This makes me feel entitled to eat freely between the covers of this book.

Life is short. My grandmother, who lived to age ninety-nine, ate tons of butter; had a cocktail, a glass of wine, and dessert every night; and walked everywhere in Manhattan. Its a good recipe for life: aim for virtue, accept some vice, and stay active.

People always say, Have a happy and a healthy

Not easy to do both at the same time.

I dont insist you do things my way. In fact, I assume most people have already established their own habits. For foodies, there are certainly plenty of voices out there that are louder, bigger, and more qualified than mine.