The Dessert Effect

I decided that before I jump into minerals that it was time to take a break. I have spouted so much information the past few weeks that I am sure all of you are quite done hearing about nutrients. So today I want to talk about something everybody can relate to—dessert. Dessert is usually associated with cakes, cookies, brownies, pies, and everything deliciously chocolately under the sun. My goal today, however, is to change all of your minds about what dessert really is.

As a future dietitian, I get this question all of the time: do you eat dessert, and how often do you eat it? And here is my answer: HECK YES I EAT DESSERT, and I eat it…All. The. Time. However, someone looking at what I typically eat will generally not see a ton of normal dessert items. This is because to me, dessert implies indulgence, and that means you are eating something that you really really want because it makes you happy. With this definition, dessert can take many forms. Sometimes it is a slice of cake with dinner. Sometimes a glass of chocolate milk after a workout. Sometimes a late night bowl of cereal. And sometimes the couple of fries I occasionally make myself at work (but seriously, if you haven’t had Five Guys fries you are definitely missing out on some extra happiness in your life). And if this is the definition of dessert that we are using—eating something because it provides happiness—shouldn’t we be eating dessert every day?

Now, with that last statement, I should probably clear some things up. I am NOT saying that brownies, cake, and ice cream should have their own seat at our kitchen table because we need to eat them constantly. I would be the worst dietitian the world ever saw if I said that. I am simply saying that every day you should eat one thing that excites you just by thinking about it. For example, here are some things that I typically have for my daily ‘dessert’:

1.       Graham crackers with peanut butter (sometimes I stick a couple of chocolate chips on top)

2.       Peanut butter and chocolate flavored Lara Bar

3.       The Reeses’ Pieces that I put inside of my homemade trail mix (I always save them for last)

4.       Vanilla ice cream topped with berries

5.       Toast with Nutella (in what world wouldn’t this be delicious?!)

6.       Wheat thins scooped in homemade guacamole (guacamole is the 8^th wonder of the world)

7.       Roasted potatoes with parmesan cheese

8.       Cereal with chocolate milk instead of regular milk

9.       Vanilla yogurt with a tablespoon or two of quick oats (seems odd, but is actually quite tasty)

 I know this list isn’t your stereotypical ‘dessert’ list, but these are a few of the things that genuinely make me happy when I eat them. It’s pretty obvious that most of these items are sweet, but they don’t have to be. For example, today I really wanted some garlic bread. Like really badly wanted some garlic bread. I happened to have an artisan bakery loaf on hand, so I cut a few pieces off of that, added some butter, garlic, and parmesan, and roasted it in the oven until it was crisp. And for some reason, that happened to be the food that made me the happiest today.

But I want to make something else clear: all food should make you happy; that’s what it is here for! I figure if we are meant to eat 2,000-ish calories per day, every day, for the rest of our lives, we might as well enjoy it. I may spend way too much time in the kitchen, but I get so much joy out of the things I make that it is worth it to me.

So taking this new definition, I want you all to indulge and eat your ‘dessert’. Every. Single. Day. Food wouldn’t be on this earth if we weren’t meant to enjoy it, and at the end of the day, I hope we can all say that we did.