Christmas Cooking Tips for People Who Are Gonna Eat Like Sh$% Anyway
Lets talk about a strategy to get through the Holidays as a lover of abundence
Broccoli Chickpea Spicy Pasta
Spinach Lentil, Peppers & Sunflower Tahini Bun
Let’s be honest.
We are all going to eat like shit over the holidays.
Drink too much.
Argue too much.
Feel weird, nostalgic, emotional, lonely, full, and somehow still empty.
That is Christmas.
And food is right at the center of it.
Food memories are powerful.
Sometimes it is grandma’s cookies.
Sometimes it is McDonald’s breakfast you only got on special occasions.
Same emotional hit. Same imprint.
I am not here to take that away from you.
I do not believe in food shame.
I hate labels. They create judgment and bias, and most of that is just people projecting their own bullshit onto someone else’s plate.
Bake Like a Cook is not about baking.
It is about using your kitchen with intention.
Anything that goes in an oven, broiler, or air fryer counts.
The goal is not perfection.
It is damage control without compromise.
The holiday problem nobody talks about
Most holiday advice falls into two camps.
Camp one:
“Let loose. You deserve it.”
Which sounds great until January.
Camp two:
“Stay disciplined.”
Which sounds impressive until you hate yourself by December 26th.
Both suck.
What actually works lives in the middle.
Small moves.
Better structure.
No guilt spiral.
I side-eye every recipe. That’s the whole trick.
I am not a genius.
I just look at recipes sideways and ask one question:
Where can I sneak in something better without ruining this?
Not healthier.
Better.
Better texture.
Better digestion.
Better blood sugar response.
Better how-you-feel-tomorrow energy.
That mindset changed my life.
I have lost and gained over 1,000 pounds in my lifetime.
I lost 75 pounds last year.
I am working on losing another 65 now.
But I fell back into depression the last 12 months.
Unhirable
Cant pay bills
No savings..
Cheap Food and alcohol crept back in.
But this time I did not balloon.
Why?
Because I stopped chasing A+.
I live in the B range.
B minus.
B plus.
If I come out of a week or a month honestly evaluating my habits and I am still a B, I win.
Less self-hatred.
More appriciation
No punishment.
Just progress, or at least stability.
Holiday survival move #1: Add structure, not rules
You do not need to stop eating what you love.
You need to reinforce it.
Examples you can actually use this week:
• Mix lentils and broccoli shavings into your rice dish
• Add chickpeas or white beans to pasta sauce
• Stir chia into sauces, soups, gravies
• Add oat bran and shaved brussels to stuffing, meatballs, or breading
• Roast vegetables and blend them into creamy sides, or make them so good you crave them…
Same dishes.
Same comfort.
More structure.
No one notices.
No one feels deprived.
You feel better later.
Holiday survival move #2: Use the oven like a cook, not a baker
Roasting and air frying changes everything.
Vegetables stop being a chore and start being craveable.
I’m not a boil your veggies type of guy, I like to toss them in seasoning, roast at high heat and get all the best qualities.
Carrots.
Squash.
Sweet potatoes.
Cauliflower.
Brussels sprouts.
Roast them hard.
Season them aggressively.
Finish with acid.
Then add them into the meal you were already making.
That is not healthy eating.
That is good cooking, like a Chef would make.
Holiday survival move #3: Sneak fiber into indulgence
Fiber is not a cleanse.
It is a buffer.
It slows digestion.
Improves satiety.
Helps your gut handle chaos.
Sneaky additions that do not ruin anything:
• Chia in sauces and soups
• Ground flax in batters and doughs
• Beans blended into dips
• Lentils folded into grains
• Seeds sprinkled like seasoning
You are not fixing yourself.
You are supporting your system while you live your life.
This is not about being good. It is about not spiraling.
I am not a dietitian.
Yet.
What I do have is hands-on experience with failure, relapse, shame, and learning how not to yo-yo anymore.
The difference was not willpower.
It was forgiveness paired with structure.
80/20 is real.
Eat the cookie.
Drink the wine.
Have the meal that reminds you of someone you miss.
Then quietly support your body the rest of the time.
That is how you build a healthier relationship with food without losing joy.
Why I’m building this space
A lot of people feel lost in the kitchen.
Others feel confident but stuck in old patterns.
Most are tired of being told they are doing it wrong.
I am not here to eliminate food traditions.
I am here to help you hold onto them without self-destruction.
Bake Like a Cook is about perspective.
About making small, smart moves that compound.
About eating in a way that lets you live your life.
I have not even unleashed the full potential of this channel yet.
Once I share my base recipes and pantry staples, you will be equipped to start creating a food system that actually works for you.
One that is delicious, flexible, and sustainable.
As I continue my own journey, I will build guides and cleanses alongside it.
Not theory.
Real time.
What works. What does not.
If this resonates, here’s how you can support this work
If you are reading this and thinking,
“Yeah. I needed this.”
Subscribe.
Not for perfection.
For perspective.
Paid subscribers help me keep building this out, testing recipes, and sharing what actually works in real life.
And if you know someone who is struggling right now, or feels lost in the kitchen, or just needs a friend to get through the holidays:
Share this post.
Food is emotional.
Support should be shared.
That is how we set ourselves up for success.