Happy Monday, all. Here’s a yummy MM menu from Natalie in Toronto. We’re getting a little bit low on these, so please send yours!
Meanwhile, did you all hear about the scandal a few weeks back between the USDA and the beef industry?
The short of it is that the USDA put up an internal memo encouraging employees to take part in Meatless Monday as a way of reducing environmental impact, the beef people went ape sh*t, and the USDA cowered, saying later it was all a mistake because the memo was posted without “proper clearance.” You can read more about it in this LA Times piece, but here’s the reaction from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Assn. from that article:
The organization’s president J.D. Alexander stated that Meatless Monday is “an animal rights extremist campaign to ultimately end meat consumption” and that since the USDA’s mission is to promote U.S. farming, “this move by USDA should be condemned by anyone who believes agriculture is fundamental to sustaining life on this planet.”
Oy. With that bad taste in our mouths, let’s all get inspired by this menu, shall we?
Name: Natalie
Hometown: Toronto
My dietary leanings: Vegetarian since January 2007, vegan since October 2011.
My favorite vegetable: Brussels sprouts. Kale is a close second. What can I say? I like my cruciferous veggies!
This morning I ate…
My usual is a kale smoothie with berries, mango, avocado, banana, sprouted chia-flax seeds, almond milk, and some brown rice protein powder, and a slice of chia-flax toast with whatever nut butter strikes my fancy at the time. But since I played hooky from my Sunday grocery shopping, I revisited an old favourite breakfast using ingredients I had on hand: oatmeal with berries, almond milk, sprouted chia-flax seeds, brown rice protein powder, and Udo’s 3-6-9 blend with vegan DHA.
As a mid-morning snack, I had some Sunrise brand peach-mango dessert tofu.
Lunch was…
A quick and dirty fruit salad of kiwi, orange and apple slices, mixed berries, and raw pumpkin seeds.
As dinner time rolled around…
I was really looking forward to digging into some red quinoa and black bean salad. Post-grocery shopping, I made a slightly modified version of this Oh She Glows recipe, with corn, tomato, avocado, garlic, cilantro, lime, green and jalapeno peppers. It did not disappoint! Dessert was a leftover birthday cupcake–my mom makes a great vegan carrot cake with crushed pineapple–and some cherries.
Do you think Meatless Monday is extreme or not extreme enough? We’ve certainly heard both arguments!
Michelle Obama, our inspiring First Lady of the Dougie and the nation’s healthy-food champion, made a big announcement this morning at the USDA headquarters: the food pyramid is being replaced by—what now seems like an obvious choice—the plate! The message: Make half your meal fruits and vegetables, a quarter protein, and a quarter grain. (Looks like we still need that glass of milk though—hello dairy lobby!)
So what do you think? From a branding perspective, I’m really digging this new design. The idea is clear and easily understandable, even for kids (clearly Obama’s focus). And while it’s lacking details that are crucial to the obesity battle—like “don’t deep fry your veggies in lard” and “don’t pile that plate too high”—that also means people won’t get lost in the weeds. With so much conflicting nutrition advice out there, that could be a good thing.
The big question of course is whether this will make any difference in the way people eat. In her introduction of the MyPlate, which you can watch here, Lady Obama said it best: An icon isn’t going to replace exercise, or make fruits and vegetables more affordable.
But could it make kids and parents rethink what’s on their plates? That’d be cool. We’d especially love to hear what you moms out there think.
