Gen X Food....
Waffles: the perfect companion to all those Saturday morning cartoons you watched. I'm love Van's wheat/gluten free waffles - egg and dairy free, whole grain, and sweetened with fruit juice instead of sugar. I put Kerrygold butter on top and real maple syrup.
Fudgesicles: can be good on the rare occasion, but more often, I might pick up a package of Coconut Bliss frozen dark chocolate bars - made with agave nectar and organic, fair trade cocoa.
Macaroni and Cheese: many a latch-key kid's weeknight dinner. I like Amy's Macaroni and Cheez made with rice pasta - good stuff if you are also lactose-intolerant.
Potato Chips: Many bags of these were consumed by Gen Xers watching after-school specials. If you cannot eat potatoes, try CrispRoot brand cassava chips.
Chicken Nuggets: I call this elementary school cafeteria comfort food. I like Applegate Farms gluten-free chicken nuggets - humanely raised, no antibiotics, no artificial ingredients.
Soda/Root Beer/floats: I love Virgil's root beer and soda - especially the diet soda made with stevia*, herbs and spices. I also love Blue Sky soda in pretty much any flavor - this was originally made in New Mexico where I am from. If you look on the can, you'll see some of the flavors are made with stevia instead of sugar. Izze's sparkling clementine soda with homemade vanilla ice cream as a soda float is a great way to experience the Creamsicles we used to eat as kids, and reminds me of chasing the ice cream truck down the street on my bike as an 8 year old!
Bomb Pops: The real thing was good when I would eat them on summer evenings as a kid, though though the "cleaned up" version is like eating icy cherry lemonade...
Hot Dogs/Corn Dogs I love Trader Joe's nitrate-free hot dogs cooked in the toaster oven so they get a nice camp-fire toasty look and taste. I also like Applegate Farms gluten-free hot dogs.
Popcorn - perfect for watching old 80's movies. I love homemade - I pop it in a pan on the stove, use real butter, and sea salt. Then I get crazy and add whatever spices speak to me at the moment - lemon pepper, garlic powder, whatever. The beginning of a good evening is a hot bowl of popcorn and turning on the Atari Flashback.
Pizza: what Gen Xer didn't have a least one birthday party that involved pizza? I really like Amy's - with this brand, you get an assortment of dairy-free (if you want it), gluten-free (if you want it), or even vegan. I love Smart Flour Pizza, too - gluten free, and made with ancient grains.
(If you haven't discovered stevia yet, it is incredible. Who knew there is a sweetener out there that actually lowers the glucose in your blood? Very good stuff. It goes into a lot of my baking and hot beverages.)
And don't forget Otter Pops - a perfect mix of summer and retro pop culture:
Otter Pops started making a sugar-free, healthier, fruit juice based version of our old favorite. The original version began in 1970, so many Gen Xers remember eating these in back yards as kids. Included here are: Louie-Bloo Raspberry
Strawberry Short Kook
Sir Isaac Lime
Alexander the Grape
And now let's all take a moment to remember Rip Van Lemon who went out of commission in the late 1970's....
I have found many of the items above at either Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Grocery Outlet or the natural food section of some grocery stores. If you can't find these items locally, ordering online may be a good option. Have fun enjoying the generational comfort food you remember from the past, and take good care of yourself in the present.
Gen Xers were raised on a lot of processed food, so these days, the more you can eat of whole foods, the better. So eat your vegetables.
Love,
Chloe
*These are non-compensated recommendations
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