Don Colbert - The What Would Jesus Eat Cookbook

A PPETIZERS & S AUCES

S OUPS & S ALADS

B READ , R ICE , & P ASTA

A BOUT THE A UTHOR

I F YOU ARE THE AVERAGE A MERICAN , you are living your life in the fast lane, rarely taking time to relax, wind down, and enjoy a meal. Rather than making dining a pleasant experience, you may wolf your food down as you drive or as you sit in front of the TV. And you probably wash your meal down with a soft drink or sweetened tea.

Instead of eating in a rushed, stressed, and pressured manner, try eating the way Jesus ate, in a relaxed, peaceful atmosphere, surrounded with friends, laughing, conversing, and enjoying lifebut always start by blessing the food. This is not only biblical; it also helps to relax our minds and bodies in preparation for receiving the food.

Breakfast in particular is becoming a lost tradition. For years, I have told patients to eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper. I strongly recommend that you never skip breakfast, since this is, by far, the most important meal of the day. Breakfast means simply breaking the fast, which in turn will help keep the metabolic rate elevated, thus helping to prevent obesity. However, many people skip breakfast entirely and then eat a very small lunch and a very large dinner. As a result, we have an epidemic of obesity in this country.

For those who do eat breakfast, it commonly consists of something such as bagels with cream cheese, doughnuts, and coffee. Try healthy alternatives for breakfast such as high-fiber cereals with soy milk, skim milk, or rice milk. You may add berries or other fruit for extra flavor and nutrition. Or try plain low-fat yogurt without any added sugar, and simply add the fruit or berries to the yogurt. Whole-grain low-sugar granola is also healthy, as well as hot cereal such as old-fashioned oatmeal or oat bran. Or you may enjoy whole-grain blueberry pancakes Another healthy breakfast consists of toasted whole-grain bread with low-sugar fruit spread or a mixture of olive oil and butter (see recipe on page 3) on top. A very healthy breakfast that I commonly eat consists of an omelet with one free-range egg with yolk plus two to three egg whites. I cook the eggs with extra virgin olive oil and then add vegetables such as onions, peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes. I also like Ezekiel bread, millet bread, or any other type of whole-grain bread made as French toast, sprinkled with cinnamon, and served with blueberries on top.

Instead of grabbing a doughnut on the way to work, grab a piece of fruitI recommend you eat a piece every morning. If you are in the habit of drinking a cup of coffee in the car, try a protein shake for breakfast using soy, whey, or rice protein mixed with water or soy milk. Just add your favorite fresh berries such as blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries, and blend in a blender. I often grind one tablespoon of flaxseeds in a coffee grinder and blend this in with the shake.

Start your day with a healthy breakfast, and reap the health benefits of the most important meal of the day. And as you go through the rest your day, ask yourself, What Would Jesus Eat?

When you think of the typical American diet, that is not the way Jesus ate. Instead, the way we are eating has put us into the fast lane of health decline. Our modern fast-food diets are high in salt, low in fiber, very high in fat and sugar, and virtually void of nutrientsand that is not the way Jesus ate.

If you truly want to follow Jesus in every area of your life, you cannot ignore your eating habits. It is an area in which you can follow Him daily and reap great rewards for doing so. Following Jesus in your diet requires a commitment to change, a commitment to be all that God created you to be, and a commitment to yield your desires to Gods instruction. God, in turn, will honor your heartfelt commitment by giving you more energy, better health, and a greater sense of well being.

Are you willing to make a commitment to follow Jesus example and eat the way He ate? If you are, then lets begin cooking.

The eating habits that were the foundation of Jesus diet were:

choosing untampered, nutrient-dense foods;

avoiding foods that have been processed or refined;

choosing foods that are in their natural, fresh state.

These are the ten major steps I recommend for a person who wants to change from a typical American way of eating to a Mediterranean way of eating:

1. Eliminate all processed foods from your cupboards, and start over. Begin to buy whole-grain products and fresh fruits and vegetables. Stock your shelves with olive oil, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.