Mentally Healthy Foods

Healthyhunny231567

When I was younger my parents would take me and my siblings to blockbuster & we were always allowed popcorn & a candy. I always got the buncha crunch...& we'd go home and watch all our movies & eat our food. Buncha crunch is one of my favorite nostalgic treats....reminds me of wonderful memories

corinasue1143

Yes, I think foods of our youth are definitely good for our mental health.
The first thing I learned to make myself was cheese dreams--whatever stale bread you have with lots of butter on it
Toasted under a broiler until it softens a little and browns, covered with a slice of tomato, bacon, and American cheese,
Warmed under the broiler until the cheese melts.
Just thinking about it is enough these days. Definitely puts a smile on my face!

jgnatca

All the mouth can taste is sweet/salty/bitter. All the nuance we are getting from our sniffer.

AnvilHead

NovusDies wrote: »

So as the debate warred on about natural food vs evil food I couldn't help but think about food that makes me happy or nostalgic and why are we so quick to dismiss it and its benefit in the name of almighty nutritional health?

I don't have any scientific evidence to back my claim. I have to think if I am smiling about something it is good for me, right? Perhaps it is something that just enhances a particular experience like the nachos with the goopy fake cheese at a ballgame or the beloved hot dog.

Before I begin I do believe in making today a happy experience and not dwell too much on the past but in moderation most things are okay imo.

I will start with 2 examples.

I had 2 distant grandmothers. One was physically distant and one was emotionally distant. So as a teen I adopted this older lady who was lonely herself and she became a surrogate. I didn't realize I was doing it at the time cuz I was a teen. In any event, when I visited her she always made me these grilled cheese sandwiches. Now when I make one, especially when I make one like she did, I can be right back there in her kitchen keeping her company.

When I was a teen I was also a camp counselor and like all good camp counselor stories go I had a camp counselor girlfriend. My favorite beverage at the time was Mellow Yellow and my favorite snack was Funyuns. I can't drink Mellow Yellow anymore as it tears me up but I still like a bag of funyuns to take me back to camp.

Nutritious? Maybe a little. Mentally Healthy? You help me decide.

They invented the term "comfort food" for a reason.

Cbean08

My grandpa passed a few years ago and he used to make amazing homemade jams. We'd always have batches of pear jam and peach jam in our fridge. I haven't seen a pear jam around, but I recently found a peach one at Whole Foods and even though it doesn't taste nearly as good as his, it was a nice reminder of him.

ahoy_m8

One morning I was in a wretched mood. I don’t remember anything about why. The part I remember was how I felt after an egg in Posole (it was a strong batch of anchos) for breakfast — miraculous. I felt so much better immediately, that I had to google it to see if it’s “a thing.”
https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/02/24/281978831/sriracha-chemistry-how-hot-sauces-perk-up-your-food-and-your-mood
So I put hatch chile stew (hatch anything, really), Posole (any ancho sauce) and mole at the top of my mentally healthy list! Plus, delicious.

mbaker566

macaroni and cheese is my mental mood enhancer. and chips and salsa.

NovusDies

jgnatca wrote: »

There’s some science behind it.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brain-babble/201501/smells-ring-bells-how-smell-triggers-memories-and-emotions

I suggest if you go for emotionally evocative foods that you decide ahead of time what your portion will be and fully immerse yourself in the feelings and the memory.

Otherwise you may eat mindlessly, one after the other, trying to repeat the experience.

It makes sense and good advice for those of us that enjoy mental time travel.

My next example is something I will never eat again:

Boiled spinach from the frozen box or the can. I liked Popeye as much as the next kid but spinach cooked that way would only bring back negative emotions. Is is good for me nutritionally? Sure. Does it represent an otherwise fairly obedient child taking bite after nasty gagging bite for 45 minutes after the meal was over? You betcha. I like raw spinach and I like barely wilted spinach but even if I have outgrown the aversion to boiled it will not ever be on my plate again

NovusDies

raymax4 wrote: »

Yes indeed grilled cheese and tomato soup! I am not alone in this!

I love grilled cheese paired with tomato soup but grilled cheese doesn't need the soup to be delicious and satisfying. There will be no more blasphemy in my thread!!

NovusDies

100_PROOF_ wrote: »

Yeppers. My sister and I share a birthday. Every year we got an ice cream cake and a pudding cake ( we insisted on 2 separate cakes)
It reminds me of that Every time I taste either of them. My Mom still makes us the cakes as adults and delivers them to our homes every year.

Any chance your mom might be interested in adopting an overweight well worn male?

NovusDies

kshama2001 wrote: »

Oh, yes, I have unsweetened chocolate. But Baker's is I believe 16 squares in 4 oz now, and Hershey's is 8, so my issue is with the conversion. And if by "chocolate" she meant unsweetened, which I'm sure she did due to the amount of sugar.

Another fun thing about old recipes is that they never list the oven temperature, so I assume she meant 350 degrees F.

I wish I could help. I only bake bread and rolls. I don't think cookies matter too much on temp and the recipe calls for 5-10 minutes which is a crazy spread. Anywhere from 350 to 400 should do the trick I think.

urloved33

"mentally healthy" I thought you were talking about...fish. brain food. you are talking about food that uplifts the soul. ok . that's a good thing. I would not kick the rules and regs to the curb but I would include them...most definitely.

toxikon

mutantspicy wrote: »

LMAO. Grilled Cheese is the only good thing you mention in this thread and it has to be with tomato soup or it doesn't count. Everything else you mention is either gross or heartburn city. Baseball Park Nachos .. GAG!

One of my favourite sayings is "Don't yuck someone else's yum."

Crapping on someone's nostalgic meals is pretty rude and unnecessary. Everyone is entitled to enjoy different foods, let's all be kind.

Kadoober

Red pepper jelly with cream cheese on Ritz crackers is always comforting because it reminds me of my Grandpa. He and I were the only ones that liked it, so it was 'our' thing when I was little.
As an adult I found a recipe for it and canned a bunch so we got to enjoy it together again, for awhile.

Swedish pancakes. Roast goose with sweet and sour cabbage and dumplings.

Mmmm....mental health memory comfort food. Just thinking about it makes me happy.

AliceDark

I'm a firm believer (to the point that I'm probably annoying about it) in the idea that "health" isn't just about the physical. It's okay, even good, to prioritize our mental health, and anything that causes joy is good (at least in moderation, if necessary).

When I'm sick, I want god-awful, nutritionally-deficient white bread toast with melted butter and Sprite. I can think of a bunch of goods ways to make it more nutritious (toasted Ezekiel bread with mashed avocado and sparkling water with lemon/lime slices, for example), but the nutrient-dense version doesn't make me feel like my mom is taking care of me. That mental/emotional boost is good for me.

NovusDies

WinoGelato wrote: »

I love those old recipe cards (especially when they have food stains!). and anything I find with my mom’s handwriting on it. It kind of makes me sad that my kids won’t really have that familiarity with my handwriting.

Speaking of, one of my nostalgia recipes is this freezer cheesecake my mom used to make for my birthday. Graham cracker crust, and a filling that when I found the recipe had an ingredient I had to look up - Millnot. Also powdered lemon jello and cream cheese. A very unique texture - I never knew till I was an adult that most cheesecakes are baked!

I just had to google milnot. I think I would probably like the freezer cheesecake. I find the 'real' thing too sweet and rich for me.

Something I didn't learn until adulthood was that steaks are actually good if ordered medium rare.

NovusDies

@carvedtones I imagine many of us have holiday type food memories. Cinnamon rolls are one of mine.

@kam26001 If costo polish dogs float your boat then great.

@raymax4 PB and pickle is an interesting pairing. Was that something your mom or dad did or just a personal preference?

glassyo

NovusDies wrote: »

@carvedtones I imagine many of us have holiday type food memories. Cinnamon rolls are one of mine.

@kam26001 If costo polish dogs float your boat then great.

@raymax4 PB and pickle is an interesting pairing. Was that something your mom or dad did or just a personal preference?

I don't really have any mentally healthy foods that remind me of good times but I *have* tried a pb & pickle sandwich! I read a series of books by Sue Grafton and that's something the main character would eat. It's pretty darned good.

NovusDies

@Healthyhunny231567 Movie snacks. Definitely. I am a longtime raisinnettes fan.

@corinasue1143 Exactly. How can that NOT be good for you? This is and the BLT is kind of reminding me that we did not have much bacon in my house growing up.

jgnatca wrote: »

All the mouth can taste is sweet/salty/bitter. All the nuance we are getting from our sniffer.

I believe you missed sour and the new umami discovery.

@AnvilHead I was trying to take it beyond just comfort foods. I don't necessarily need a trip down memory lane I just enjoy it from time to time.