Food Vancouver - The Fish House Weighs in on Healthy Eating

Healthy eating is tasting better every day. Whether at home or dining out, more people are beginning to think outside the freezer aisle and off the menu. Special dietary needs are a fact of life for many.

As a result of this increasingly conscious food climate, Foodvancouver.com is launching a series of articles spotlighting top Vancouver chefs and culinary celebrities who have put healthy eating plate-center in the minds of many.

This month, Foodvancouver.com stops by The Fish House in Stanley Park to share the wares and wisdoms of Executive Chef Karen Barnaby and chew the fat on weight-loss. Everybody approaches the concept of healthy eating from a different perspective, but weight loss is a primary goal for many.

For Barnaby, the endlessly energetic author of multiple fresh-focused cookbooks, it has simply become a way of life that has flowed over to the dining room. While the Atkins menu once offered is gone, special dietary needs have remained a primary consideration for Barnaby and her crew at The Fish House.

"About seven years ago, I made the choice to eat a healthier diet. It was either that or die," said Barnaby. "It was not so much about eating less, but cutting out the garbage foods. I had no energy for years. Things have changed drastically."

Those changes have benefited Barnaby, as well as everyone who has visited The Fish House or followed her recipes. Today, she has prepared a healthy menu to share with Chef Marcus Von Albrecht, professional culinarian and Chairman of the BC Chefs Association. Like Barnaby, Von Albrecht takes a keen interest in his health. He too champions quality ingredients and moderated indulgence as the path to healthy eating.

"It ís never a matter of cutting out everything bad at once. If you conceive of moderation as a possibility, then damage control is a better way of looking at changing over to healthy eating," said Barnaby.

An avid Atkins advocate with a keen eye for greens, Barnaby has dropped over 70 pounds in the intervening years and broken a cycle that posed considerable threats to her quality of life.

According to dietitian/nutritionist Maria Thomas of Urban Nutrition, the hardest thing for people to change about their diet is their way of thinking. "So much of it is perception. People have this idea that for things to taste good, they have to be bad. What Karen has done at The Fish House by offering special dietary choices is proof positive that good taste and good food are easily paired."

As for weight loss, it ís just the icing on the proverbial cake of healthy eating, according to Thomas, Barnaby and Von Albrecht alike. Moderating intake, taking some exercise and removing guilty pleasure processed snacks will certainly shave the pounds, but the benefits are far more internal than the scale will ever tell.

Today, Barnaby has prepared a seared tuna loin (photo above) and served it with a sesame-studded mix of kale and green beans. To the side is cauli-fried rice (view recipe), a truly fun and delicious take on cauliflower grated raw and steamed. Accompanying it is a bowl of manila clams swimming in an aromatic broth of tomato, bacon, green olives and chilies. A wedge of alcohol free tiramisu is to follow. THIS is a weight-loss menu?

Barnaby nods her head. "People get the wrong idea about healthy eating. It does not mean depriving yourself of flavour or variety. It just takes a bit of planning, some basic cooking knowledge and fresh ingredients."

Chef Von Albrecht, who is putting the finishing touches on a healthy eating menu planner to be distributed across the country, is also a principal organizer of the annual 5-to-10 Healthy Chef Competition. Both a chef and a fitness fanatic, he is used to eyeing a meal from many angles.

"While the portions seem a bit much, this is a delicious way to approach healthy eating. The kale is delicious and we should eat more of it. The cauliflower is incredibly creative and you can easily add all sorts of flavour profiles to change it up," said Von Albrecht. "What you can't see in the pictures is how well this food is cooked. The vegetables have plenty of crunch left and that's not only proper technique, but much healthier."

"What I like about this type of cooking is that you see a lot more vegetables on the plate," echoed Thomas.

Barnaby maintains that the weight loss is secondary to her improved energy levels and lower blood pressure, but the change in her appearance has inspired many to take a second look at their pantries. Barnaby has cleaned house on her own: no wheat products, no sugars or artificial sweeteners and no alcohol. Gone too, are the processed foods.

In their stead is a daily regimen aimed at keeping her energies up and diet balanced. Pilates three times a week keeps her more flexible than ever in the kitchen. Breakfast for Barnaby is a soup, usually with a barley for energy, while lunch is most often something from the grill along with a spinach salad. One signature staple requires no cooking at all.

"My friends think it is absolutely gross, but it tastes good and really carries me through,"said Barnaby of her magic mixture of raw oats, blueberries, soymilk, protein powder, dried curd cottage cheese, whole almonds untoasted and shredded coconut. "Eating seasonally is great, but really, it just has to be "good food" real food. These days we put convenience before cooking and that has to stop."

About the Author:
Jason McRobbie is a Vancouver resident, freelance writer and previous editor of BC Restaurant news. You can contact Jason at jasonmcr@telus.net.

About the Photographer:
Tracey Kusiewicz is a Vancouver-based photographer specializing in food and beverage photography. You can contact Tracey at tracey@foodiephotography.com, or go to www.foodiephotography.com.

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The Fish House Weighs in on Healthy Eating