Mandy Moore’s favorite comfort food isn’t sweet like candy (sorry), but her go-to choice is just as mouthwatering.
In an interview with HuffPost last week, the “This Is Us” star opened up about her preferred snack in times of stress (or really just any time she wants a delicious pick-me-up). Summed up in one word? Relatable.
“French fries. Always,” she said. “Not too soft or not too crispy, just the Goldilocks of french fries. I’m also not mad at a sweet potato fry. I’m also not mad at some truffle oil on fries. Ugh. Good french fries are just irresistible.”
Moore added that staying attuned to her mind and body is important when it comes to living a healthy lifestyle. That includes knowing when she needs to eat more vegetables than fries, cut back on caffeine or up her water intake, she said. But it also includes knowing when to enjoy really delicious food and not overthink it ― like when she’s on vacation with her husband, musician Taylor Goldsmith.
“We went on our honeymoon in December, and I swear you could cut me open and I was just bread and red wine,” she said. “And that’s not normal for us, but we were on our honeymoon! We were going to indulge! Then when we got home, we totally changed the routine.”
For Moore and Goldsmith, that meant participating in Dry January ― the challenge that encourages giving up drinking for a month ― before reintroducing alcohol into her life.
“Both of us didn’t drink for the month of January. Then I came to New York, and I saw my best friend [in early February], and we shared a bottle of wine,” she said. “And it was great. ... It was so lovely to listen to my body, and I felt really good, but also I was ready to have that wine. It’s all about balance.”
Intentionally or not, Moore follows a strategy for a healthy lifestyle that is highly recommended by experts. The approach, known as mindful or intuitive eating, is about eating whatever you want, whenever you want.
Mindful eating is not a diet but rather a practice that focuses on savoring your meal and listening to your body’s hunger and fullness cues. It also removes all shame or labels around food (e.g., “Potatoes are terrible!”).
“Mindful eating is also about removing the judgment,” Marsha Hudnall, a registered dietitian and the president of the Center for Mindful Eating, previously told HuffPost. “It’s about not having any preconceived notions about whether something is ‘good’ or ‘bad.’”
The result is a healthier relationship with eating (and some people have reported weight loss, although that’s not the goal). It means knowing what you’re putting into your body and allowing yourself to enjoy it.
Because in the end, life is too short not to savor delicious food ― something Moore clearly understands. This is especially true when it comes to french fries.