Meet Bita from Honest & Tasty
Hi, it's so wonderful to have you here! My name is Bita and I'm the recipe developer, researcher, writer, food photographer, and videographer behind Honest & Tasty.
Here, you will find nourishing, nutrient-dense, preservative-free, additive-free, real-food-from-scratch recipes that are made SIMPLE.
You'll find traditional ancestral foods like my family's passed down beef bone broth recipe, but made quick and easy. You'll also find more modern dishes like my super popular cheeseburger recipe, but made with better quality ingredients like beef tallow. And if you're looking for a great dessert without bad ingredients, I've got you covered with recipes like my fresh strawberry pie that uses no packaged, artificial dye-colored gelatin and is out-of-this-world delicious.
Real recipes with quality ingredients is the only way around here.
All my recipes are extensively tested and perfected to create the most crave-worthy, tasty dishes that are made with wholesome ingredients.
My recipes have been featured in Good Housekeeping, MSN, USA Today, Country Living, HuffPost, Food52, and more.
About Bita
I live with my husband and two little kids, and am trying my hand at homesteading on our 2 acres in San Diego.
Beyond family, I have two true passions that really form the bones of Honest & Tasty:
1) Really, REALLY good food, made with natural, high quality ingredients
and
2) Scientific research--and specifically, research that relates to health & nutrition.
There is a lot of fear over wholesome ingredients that historically have made humans thrive. People have forgotten how to eat well and without fear of natural ingredients like butter & salt!
With 20+ years of experience, the way I eat, the ingredients I use, and the recipes I write are all framed by evidence-based research, ancestral knowledge, and my cravings for darn good food.
A bit more on my background:
I grew up in Southern California, as a first generation Persian American. Persians (certainly my family) take food and nourishment very seriously. Ancestral knowledge in cooking was a huge part of my upbringing. It wasn't unusual for my dad to bring home some liver or tongue to cook up for us, as we all sat around the kitchen counter, watching, chatting, and laughing. And my mom's cooking is beyond exceptional and beloved by everyone she knows. Any Persian recipes on my website came from her.
Science has always been an integral part of my life. And when I was diagnosed with two autoimmune diseases (first Rheumatoid Arthritis and then Sjogren's), I completely consumed myself in research because the truth was that no doctor could tell me what caused my autoimmunity or how to cure it. The answers I was seeking just weren't in the doctors' offices.
My body was fighting me to the point of being bed-ridden and I came pretty close to having to drop out of college due to my physical state. So I took it upon myself to delve into the scientific research and find answers to questions I wasn't finding otherwise. When I wasn't in class or in the laboratory, I was practically living in the science library at my university, reading research paper after research paper to get the answers I needed.
This naturally led me on my path to earning my PhD and becoming published in the intersecting fields of Immunology and Pathology (specifically, inflammation).
Studying science and my experience in inflammation research helped me learn just so much about foods that contribute to inflammation and foods that help combat it. Whatever ingredients we consume either contribute to health or take away from it.
So I try to use the best ingredients whenever possible, free of harmful, commonly-used additives, preservatives, or pesticides/herbicides so that I can make the tastiest foods that are also nourishing for myself and my family.
And oh how I'm so grateful that my autoimmune diseases have been under control for almost 10 years now and without the aid of any medications.
Thank you for stopping by and I can't wait to give you my recipes for the BEST FOOD that just so happens to be REAL FOOD!
Come join my subscribers on my Youtube channel and watch my latest videos!
Follow me on my Instagram page, where I share what I'm cooking at home for my family, as well as tips for making the tastiest, nutrient-dense foods.
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