My Capsule Menu
What I consume as a perimenopausal woman with celiac (who used to binge eat).
Content warning: eating disorders, body image, and diets.
Back in 2009 I wrote daily about what I ate on my blogger, then Wordpress blog The Actor’s Diet. That was the main focus of the site: my daily diet. I didn’t have to think of a subject or a headline for each post. I ate, I took photos, I shared my day through meals. Sometimes twice. This was before social media, before “What I Eat in a Day” videos. It was therapeutic and fun. It actually helped me overcome my binge eating disorder because it changed a fearful relationship with food into a fun one, with a sense of purpose and adventure. We went to so many restaurants and my fridge was always stuffed with leftovers. I look back very fondly at this decade, even if my stomach and teeth hurt just thinking about it.
These days, things couldn’t be more different. I’ve had celiac for almost 10 years, so majority of what I consume comes from my own kitchen, since I’m pretty sensitive to cross contamination.
I have never been able to adapt to a capsule wardrobe, but I can see the appeal: Wear the same uniform, use less brain fuel. I pretty much eat the same combo of things every day, and have for the last five or so years, since the pandemic curbed me of my restaurant addiction. I never get anxious/distracted by food anymore, I never experience decision fatigue. I love that I know exactly what to reach for whenever I get hungry, without much planning or thought. I barely experience FOMO, get cravings, or feel anything close to temptation or willpower. It is, indeed, freeing and not something I ever imagined most of my teenage and adult life.
I used to feel guilty that I didn’t cook more, and wondered why I never officially mourned or missed my former gluten-eating self — the one who constantly poured over cookbooks and watched the Food Network, the one who all my friends called whenever they needed a restaurant recommendation. I used to feel ashamed that my diet didn’t resemble anything near what I knew to be “healthy” or “ideal,” especially as somebody who used to be a spokesperson for the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) for several years.
But lately, through this new blog, and as perimenopause has taken over my day-to-day life, I have come to the realization that I just don’t have the energy to care anymore. Food is so personal, and I know firsthand how comparison can lead to trouble. So I’m done — at least for now — when it comes to “shoulds” over how/what I choose to eat. I plan to be writing about this subject a lot more this year, as my children’s book (which will be released in the fall!) centers around food and body image.
As a throwback to The Actor’s Diet, I thought I’d share some of my favorite day-to-day foods now. I find myself naturally wanting to eat every few hours, with the bulk of my snacking taking place while I watch TV at night. Sometimes I’ll eat two or three of these in the same sitting, especially if we are going someplace that isn’t gluten-free friendly.
I wanted to share this “capsule menu” because I’m hoping it might be helpful for anyone else who still feels anxious around traditional meals, or needs ideas beyond Chomps sticks and a handful of raw almonds (both of those leave me feeling ravenous). I know as a former binge-eater that when I have the urge to eat, I want it immediately. I want things that are filling, fun to eat, and won’t leave me feeling too bloated or ignite the old E.D. brain in my head that I just consumed too much. All of the following are indeed lower in calories and of course, gluten-free. Some contain artificial sweeteners/chemically-sounding ingredients, and can be viewed as “diet food.” But to me, it’s just the food I want to eat.
Savory
Oatmeal (I’ve followed this microwave recipe since the pandemic) or Chichi Chickpea Hot Cereal — usually with frozen broccoli/cauliflower and egg whites added in. Sometimes I’ll change up the seasonings but gochugaru/turmeric is still my favorite.
Breakfast Sandwich/Tacos — Veggies Made Great Frittatas smushed between gluten free bread or corn tortillas with ketchup/hot sauce/salsa.
Microwave Pancake Bowls — There are a million recipes for this on the internet and I am still figuring out my perfect one; I’ll use some combo of either protein powder, oat flour, egg whites, or ready-made GF pancake mix (I use Birch Benders) with chocolate chips, fruit, and sugar free syrup.
Mini Quesadillas — Turkey and/or cheese with hot sauce on corn tortillas. Right now I like the street taco size because they’re smaller and fit easily into the Dash Mini Griddler.
Canned Tuna or Chicken + Greek Yogurt or Cottage Cheese + Rice Cakes or Corn Thins + Everything Bagel Seasoning.
Pizza Toast — GF Bread (Right now I like Pacha) + Cheese + Tomato Sauce
Noodle Bowl — Kelp Noodles + Stir Fried Veggie mix + Kimchi Juice/Tamari + Edamame or Tofu
Goodles Gluten Free Mac n Cheese with riced cauliflower/broccoli to bulk it up.
“Fast Food” Bowl — Air fried Real Good Foods Chicken Nuggets or AmyLu Chicken Burger/Sausage/Meatballs on top of chopped salad greens with a sauce of ketchup/mayo or Guacamole or Salsa or Hummus, with some kind of pickled veggie (peppers, cucumbers, onions) on top.
5 Minute Ramen — Konjac Noodles with Samabila Instant Ramen Seasoning Powder as the soup. I’ll add meat and veggies if I’m hungrier.
Sweets
Greek Yogurt or Cottage Cheese with “stuff” — I combine it with either chopped fruit or SF jello, and some type of crumbled baked good, like the coffee oat cake in the picture (above) or a muffin (below). My preferred brands are Fage and Good Culture.
Veggies Made Great Muffins — I really like everything this company makes. The double chocolate flavor especially.
Buckwheat Porridge — I don’t enjoy this grain savory, so I”ll make it with chopped apples/blueberries, cinnamon, and some monk fruit. I also cook it in the rice cooker with less water to make it less like a porridge — but when you make it with tons of water, it gets really voluminous. I like big bowls and I cannot lie.
Ninja Creami pint (this is my go-to recipe, part 1 and part 2) — sometimes with a crumbled protein bar mixed in (see below). PE Science Select (Whey and Casein Blend) is hands down the best protein powder for this. I’ve tried so many other powders and they’re not nearly as good in flavor/texture.
GF Cereal with Unsweetened Almond Breeze Milk — right now my faves are Lovebird, Magic Spoon, and Catalina Crunch. I bulk it up with Corn Puff cereal sometimes.
Snacks
Legendary Foods Protein Chips — I have tried other protein chips (Quest, Wilde) but I like this brand the best, especially the pizza flavor. The entire bag is filling, fun to eat, and I like that the chips are so big.
Glutino GF Pretzels — Less filling but I like how crunchy they are. Abe likes them, too, and he’s a pretzel snob.
Siete Chips and Salsa — I love everything this company makes.
Bowls of fresh or frozen fruit — Faves are fresh grapes/berries/pineapple and frozen mango/blueberries/cherries.
Bowl of fresh or frozen veggies — I eat raw carrots and the chomping drives Abe crazy, so I started to microwave them to soften them. Then I decided if I was going to eat cooked veggies I’d prefer broccoli or cauliflower or sweet potatoes or butternut squash. Sometimes with Velveeta melted on top. I have bags of frozen veggies in the freezer at all times.
Protein Bars — I will quickly tire of these so I go through phases, but right now I like David’s in every flavor except Chocolate Chip, Quest Crispy Bars, and Built Bars.
Skinny Pop or Khloud Popcorn mixed with Corn Puff cereal.
Roasted Seaweed Snacks — I usually buy whatever is on sale at Hmart. I like them on their own.
Kimchi, straight up — I only buy the ones from Korean stores. I’ve made the mistake of purchasing overpriced jars that are just awful in comparison from Whole Foods, Ralph’s, etc.
A cup of beans. I am embarrassed to admit I have fully gone down the Beantok rabbit hole and am trying to see how incorporating 1-2 cups of beans a day will help my sleep, anxiety, mood swings, joint pain, and other perimenopause symptoms. Right now I’m starting off with shelled edamame, canned white beans, and lentils I make in the rice cooker. I have seen a couple changes, but I want to wait longer before I become a bean influencer.
Drinks
Proper Immune Support packets (when I feel sick; they kinda taste like what my memory of Tang was. Abe thinks it tastes like Metamucil).
Diet Soda — I really don’t like Poppi or Olipop. I just need my carbonated drinks to taste artificially sweet.
Hot water — Just hot water, no tea or lemon. Okay, sometimes lemon. And sometimes Apple Cider Vinegar.
Regular water with tons of ice and lemon juice — for some reason, it only tastes good through a straw in my giant Stanley tumbler.
Konjac jelly drinks — I introduced my niblings to these over the holidays, and was so proud when they reported they had bought a case back home.
Coffee — I only drink one cup of very weak coffee, first thing in the morning. To Abe’s horror, I prefer Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts beans, already ground. Yes, on an empty stomach. I’m doing it all wrong, I know.
Condiments
Nutpods Creamer — For the coffee above and sometimes I’ll add it to my Ninja Creami’s to make them thicker/creamier
Lakanto Monkfruit Drops — my favorite of the zero calorie sweeteners; no weird aftertaste.
Lily’s Dark Chocolate Chips — I consider this a condiment.
PB Fit — Goes into smoothies, Ninja Creami’s, yogurt, or just mixed with water for dipping.
Wickles Spicy Red Sandwich Spread — I like this midly spicy, sweet and tangy spread in small amounts. Weirdly, I like it spooned over beans?!
Laughing Cow wedges and Velveeta slices — I grew up on fake cheese and I prefer it.
Miso and Easy Paste — I like this with some kimchi juice to make a really quick soup.
Maya Kaimal Sauces — These have been a favorite pantry staple of mine for a long time. I can’t wait to eat them with beans this month!!!
I also take many, many supplements — mostly in gummy form — and consume multiple ginger chews and old man candies, plus countless pieces of gum every few hours. For the O.G. readers of my food blog, you may remember that I do this after a meal to signal my body not to eat mindlessly. It’s weird but it still works; my last binge was so long ago I don’t even remember the year (maybe 2008).
