Secrets of a Kosher Girl. Book Review

Secrets of a Kosher Girl

Treat yourself to a copy (Amazon link above)!

What secrets? Secrets no more! Talented Beth Warren RD spills the beans: All revealed!

Can Secrets of a Kosher Girl be shared?

Please???? It sounds somewhat naughty, doesn’t it? Can we tell, say, Kosher boys? Or Non Kosher boys and girls? Everyone can profit from her thorough and well researched work! Her diet WORKS!

Hey let’s just start with this revelation:

Kosher Girl Can Eat Beans!

YES!!! Too many of us shuffle them around in their cholent plate every shabbos, worrying about, hmmm, environmental safety. Just look at the book cover: Beans and legumes every day! She even has brownies made with beans, for Gd’s sake! We are off on a delicious start!

The same reasons we love Beth are the reasons you will love her book: Beth thoroughly believes in her good work, and her passion is contagious. She shares and explains generously, up to her usual high standards. One look at her is enough to realize she’s the real deal: She works hard, plays hard, works out hard. Sensible and practical, she has her own personal tried-and-true style, and is never shackled to any food fad. Not a single word about gluten-free, paleo, keto, raw, vegan, sprouted. Please. Look around you: How many nice and fit survivors of the yoyo diet lifestyle do you see? All those tiresome mysterious punishing diets so many of us subject themselves to? With Beth’s program, you can eat and eat well. Way to go! That alone puts her on top of my Dietician list.

It all starts with Mindfulness

That’s right. Repeat. Mindfulness. Think before, while, after, why, how, when you eat. It all starts with the still small voice within us.
Before Beth digs in to the subject of food and dieting, she addresses all the above considerations, drawing from her own (Jewish Orthodox) heritage, where she finds all the inspiration and all the sources. After all, we are the tribe that says please and thank you to the Almighty before and after every meal, every food group, anytime, anywhere. We are the original Human Rights Activists, champions of a humane and integrated lifestyle.

“Let nothing that can be cured with food be cured by any other means”. Maimonides

This was said by a giant centuries ago, and it is borne out everyday. Our bubbies didn’t jog around the reservoir to erase last night’s dinner’s indiscretions. They ate mindfully. End of story.

Principles of Secrets of a Kosher Girl?

What guidelines and what philosophy inform Beth’s program?

Mindfulness. This is what we started with, above.
Establish a relationship with food. Real and fearless and friendly. If you learn how food works and what wonders it can do for you, then food and cooking will be your best friends. You are embarking on a 21 day trip with yourself, your food and your meals. 21 days for yourself, in a lifetime where you are likely devoting time to all around you, and too little for yourself. There’s your chance: Don’t squander it. With this 21 day bootcamp program, balancing your meals will become second nature to you.
No gimmicks. No mysterious hidden ingredients. Ain’t Nothin’ Like the Real Thing, Baby!
Never say never. There’s not a single food you must kiss good bye. Don’t eliminate! Limit!
Rotate. If the sacrosanct dictum of real estate is Location Location Location, then Beth’s war cry is Rotation Rotation Rotation. Do not pounce on the same foods. Eat the rainbow. Dare to eat something different. Learn to love foods you have been neglecting.
Do the math. Smaller portions of calorie-dense foods, hefty helpings of no carb plant foods. Sounds good to me! By the way, don’t be shy when ordering in a restaurant. Read, read, read the menu. Candied walnuts? No thank you! Plain or toasted? Yes please! Little tweaks like that insure you don’t go into an unnecessary setback.
Shabbos Foods Count! They are there, but in moderation. Incidentally, you may kiss the miles-long supermarket nosh aisles good bye, for you and your entire family. It’s totally OK, even highly recommended, to learn to hate these foods, because, well, they are not foods, never have been, never will be. Let them go totally unlamented. Likewise, you will be happy to learn how delicious and satisfying desserts can be with a small fraction of the sugar/sweetener they so often have in countless cookbooks and commercial bakeries. You might even be able to enjoy them regularly (Beth’s Biscotti recipe is a perfect illustration, and is awesome!)
It is all cheap and accessible. One trip to a well stocked supermarket is all you need.
No more huge meals. More small meals throughout the day. This part I found rather sobering, but it is the only thing that will work. Eating a big meal and promising yourself you will starve tomorrow does not work any better than blowing your money at bingo and being broke for two weeks. It is never worth the sacrifice. This is why we have doggie bags, right?