Fantastisk Food

As if the fashion wasn't enough nutrition to keep me coming back out to the streets for more, it should be noted the food in Denmark is divine, and deserves it's very own blog. For those who know me well, you know I have never been a Julia Child in the kitchen, and actually border on the lines of Carrie Bradshaw, using my stove for storage. However, I have turned over a new leaf in Denmark! (Literally).

I have never tasted such fresh food, happily free from chemicals and preservatives that we all pay the price for at Whole Foods in the US. The food quality found in Danish grocery stores remind me of the selection we have to wait until the weekend to get at a local Farmer's Market in the US. Healthy food options are as much a part of the Danish culture, as bicycles are as a means for transportation. Fresh produce is available to buy from farmers alongside highways in the countryside, and fresh fruit is available at work as a snack, in all the kiosks and 7 elevens, and is typically the cheapest food you can buy. Whereas in the US chips and candy and soda or in other words; sugar is always on sale.

After my last trip back from the US I decided to go on a detox and get all the chemically induced foods out of my system and start fresh with natural Danish nutrition as an experiment to see how I would feel afterwards. It's week 3 and my body is free from caffeine, alcohol, chocolate, dairy, wheat and sugar (for the most part) and I've never felt better. My skin and nails are noticeably healthier as well. Now, it hasn't been an easy process, it's forced me to cook, but it's also taught me to be creative in the kitchen, which as it turns out, is sort of fun. (Don't tell Tobias!)

Our first true "detox" recipe included stuffed peppers with brown rice and all sorts of vegetables and spices that got me excited for future dish potential, but when I realized the herbs didn't come by the batch readily wrapped in a plastic bag or already encased in portable plastic, but an actual plant that you had to buy, I had to take a picture! Our stuffed peppers turned out phenom, and our herb plants have now taken a permanent residence on our kitchen ledge, where I will continue to try to keep them alive while plucking at their leaves when needed.

After I thought about it, and laughing a little as well, I decided it made sense. It was the same price I have paid time and again for a small batch, parted from her mother plant, to only die 5 days later, and cheaper when you factored in how much more use you got out of the herb you just bought. Brilliant! Not only that, it was once again, very environmentally conscious. A theme that is alive and well in Denmark on a daily basis. More on that one later!