Between food recalls and dire environmental news, tightening our belts around expanding bellies, eaters with a conscience can become discouraged. Often it seems that wallet-friendly and palate-pleasing must give way to conscious food choices we can be proud of.
Two new tools can be added to your tool box or pantry, whatever your motivation. Delicious and fun, grab your kids
Cook-wise on National Geographic Ocean
Barton Seaver, chef, author, and National Geographic Fellow has recently launched a site called Cook-Wise. Check it out for recipes, videos of Barton visiting with "fishermen, farmers, and scientists" to uncover delicious ways to enjoy and sustain our blue planet. From Chesapeake blue crabs to success stories like the rebound of striped bass.
On this comprehensive and easily accessible site you can find guides to making more sustainable choices. You can dive deep into seafood substitutes, links to more conservation programs, even wine pairings to go with your sustainable seafood choices.
Two of the best tools there include the Seafood Substitutions guide and take the Seafood Quiz.
To hear more from Barton, check this interview: Seven Questions for Barton Seaver.
Meatless Meals to Make Carnivores Happy
For many reasons, health, the environment, the budget, people increasingly have turned to "Meatless Mondays." For some, it's felt like penance for meals. For others, an obligation. Kim O'Donnel aims to change all that. With her new book, The Meatlover's Meatless Cookbook, she puts the "mm" in Meatless Mondays.
With a friendly tone and confident, positive manner O'Donnel guided home cooks for 12 years at the Washington Post. She continues her role as your meatless mentor in weekly chats on Culinate. See Table Talk.
The merits of going meatless, even occasionally are not seriously debatable. Lowering our consumption of saturated fats, reducing risks of obesity and diabetes, these are all good reasons to reduce our consumption of meat. In fact the US Dept. of Agriculture says men in the US eat 170% of the USRDA of meat, and women 135%.
Then there's the environment, the whole sustainability thing. But guilt does not make good gravy. O'Donnel knows this and gives us 52+ menus -- one for every week of the year -- organized by season. There are special designations for recipes that are gluten-free, dairy-optional, kid-friendly, vegan, etc. From Gumbo Z'herbes to Tempeh Red Curry the recipes cover a wide range of cuisines, palates and options for full-flavor meat-free options.
Eat well, for your health, for the planet, but more seriously, for enjoyment.
Jacqueline Church - Award-winning writer, speaker, teacher on topics at the intersection of gourmet and sustainable food issues.
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