Steve Johnson of Junk Food Blog has his finger on the pulse of all things snacky. He recently reported that Krispy Kreme’s snowman doughnuts are back for the holiday season and that Domino’s delivered pizzas to hungry passengers on a delayed airplane in Dubuque, Iowa. This blog is a dream for fans of new processed-food products, but it’s not so popular among manufacturers that’d like consumers to view their food as healthy:
Earlier this year, I contacted a well-known pickle manufacturer because I wanted a digital image of their newest variety. They refused, arguing that they didn’t want me blogging their product because they [are] trying [to] promote pickles as a ‘health food.’
This raised a big question for Johnson: “What Is Junk Food Anyways?” In a slightly convoluted argument, he reasons that junkiness is in the eye (or perhaps the stomach) of the beholder. Johnson, who clearly loves him some treats, believes that a celery stick could be considered junk food because it contains very little nutritional value and is often eaten as a snack. And chocolate bars, eaten in moderation, are said to have “positive health benefits in the form of antioxidants.”
Nutritionists may disagree, but I think Johnson is on to something.
Celery is wasteful and just plain evil. Don’t most people buy it, use two ribs for tuna salad, and then throw 90% of it out when it goes limp after a couple weeks. The unpalatable nature of celery certainly drives many kids to throw out their brown bagged lunches if they find celery sticks included. Then they have to turn to the pizza, and tater tots with nacho cheese that the school cafeterias serve. The poor kids are transformed into tubby little criminals. (Stealing change from their sister’s waitressing tips to feed their habit.) And isn’t celery one of those negative calorie foods, like broccoli, that supposedly require more calories to digest than they provide? Sounds deadly to me. Being trapped in a celery/broccoli field, with nothing else to eat, would lead to certain starvation/death.
Wow- we love it at my house, we eat it with wild abandon, filled with peanut butter/cream cheese or not. It’s crunchy, cold, sweet, bright, green(ish), and nonfilling- what’s not to like, as long as it isn’t bitter?
Celery is great with hummus and beats out pita chips or crackers, nutritionally….plus, you cannot make gumbo without it! Also awesome in stir-fries.
I was on a raw celery kick a couple months ago, until I read this: “[uncooked] celery produces psoralens, compounds that sensitize the skin to the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation in sunlight” http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA357082
Now I have cut way back. :(
Oh man. Guarantee there isn’t one thing on this planet that can’t do you in in one way or another; a quote I just read in Gastronomica: “My life is one big cancer risk.” Celery’s the least of it, so if you like it enjoy it!
And how is “celery wasteful”? It’s a vegetable, it doesn’t do anything. People are wasteful.