What word comes to mind when I say the word ‘escarole? 

Green, lettuce like, bitter, or don’t know what that is? 

Ok so it’s a curly kind of lettuce, really quite nice looking but to many who may have tried it in a salad at an Italian wedding or otherwise, you may find it tasted bitter or unappealing.

Lately I’ve been eating quite a lot of it in salads because quite simply I am just loving the flavor, the crunch and how it tastes in a salad.

Today, something hit me like a ton of bricks when I was washing, spinning and prepping it, to get ready for my week’s lunches.

I began nibbling on a piece or two as I was rinsing, ripping and spinning each beautiful leaf.

To my absolute surprise, my taste buds registered a very powerful buttery sweet flavor and I thought to myself is this really escarole or have my taste buds completely changed.

Quite frankly, I had never noticed it before but then again when I had been eating it in a salad, it wouldn’t be alone.

I typically combine other vegetables and perhaps fruits, nuts, seeds which bring with them a host of other flavors which likely masked its own unique flavor. I simply didn’t ever notice it before.

That is until now, when I ate a plain, washed piece of endive. I was so taken aback, that I had to eat another piece to see if I got the same flavor sensation. I did, and I did!

I thought about this for some time, but then it all made sense to me.

We know studies have been done that show that the consumption of processed foods, especially those that include refined sugar, can skew our taste buds.

Think of it in terms of the sensitivity of how our taste buds react to foods that we eat. 

Studies have shown that “when we consume high sugar foods/drinks frequently, our taste buds become more and more acclimated to the taste and have a dulling effect.  Such treats become less of a reward, and instead, cause you to crave more sweet foods and drinks and start compromising your health, weight and energy.”

Totally makes sense now and since I have cut sugar out of my diet almost completely, my taste buds are hyper sensitive now to the actual flavors I am experiencing and I’m finding that foods have such subtle beauty to them that I may never have noticed otherwise. 

Do you have a sweet tooth?

It might be time for you to consider a ‘reset’ of your taste buds if you experience any of the following: lack of energy, weight gain, mood swings, brain fog, heightened sense of stress or you just seem to need more food to feel satisfied. 

Try cutting out as much of the processed food and sugary drinks and sweets from your diet as possible for 2 weeks and consume only whole foods, fruits and healthy oils and nuts/seeds. 

If you are a pop drinker, I’d encourage you to replace it with water. 

As a test, once you have reset your taste buds, try eating something sweet and see how your flavor buds react!  

Say goodbye to processed sugary foods and say hello to a whole new world of delicious healthy foods that will leave you feeling amazing!

Eat your way to a healthier version of yourself.