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Cooking was a family affair in Karolina\u2019s Chicago home. The 25-year-old cyber security specialist\u2019s mother is Polish, her father Latin, and they shared their love of cooking with Karolina. <\/p>\n
\u201cMost meals had elements of both cultures,\u201d says Karolina, who works at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. \u201cThat\u2019s definitely where I picked up my love of experimenting with different foods and flavours. Even my mistakes usually taste good!\u201d<\/p>\n
In fact, Karolina admits to harboring a secret desire to become a chef. \u201cIt\u2019s one of the reasons I entered the Make It Mindful Taco contest,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen I was younger I wanted to be a chef\u2014I guess I still do. It was fun to see if the judges thought my ingredient choices would go together.\u201d <\/p>\n
Mission accomplished. Browsing the different ingredients, she started looking for options that reminded her of all the flavours she enjoyed growing up. \u201cI thought, why not make a Polish taco,\u201d she says. Chorizo turkey blend saut\u00e9ed with onions stand in for Polish sausage\u2014with way less fat and calories. <\/p>\n
The whole grain Aztec rice blend gives her taco its satisfying heft, and an added protein boost. \u201cI want a healthy taco, but I also want it to be filling so you\u2019re not hungry right away,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m becoming more health conscious, paying attention to how much fat, salt and sugar are in my meals,\u201d adds Karolina, who spends her downtime reading classic fiction, playing adventure video games and teaching herself how to play the accordion. <\/p>\n
\u201cMindful meals are always a nice surprise\u2014there\u2019s always something new to try and they\u2019re always combining and preparing ingredients in ways you\u2019d never think of, but that totally work,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019d like to think my taco is the same kind of pleasant surprise.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Cooking was a family affair in Karolina\u2019s Chicago home. The 25-year-old cyber security specialist\u2019s mother is Polish, her father Latin, and they shared their love of cooking with Karolina. \u201cMost meals had elements of both cultures,\u201d says Karolina, who works at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. \u201cThat\u2019s definitely where I picked up my love […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[53],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mindful-eating-ca"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\r\n