"Go Further with Food"
Happy March aka National Nutrition Month!!
This year's theme is "Go further with Food". I am not quite sure what they actually mean by that, but they mention: preparing meals in advance, shopping locally, reducing food waste, and determining a lifestyle balance that works for you specifically. If you follow me on social media (if not you are missing out so go check me out: @chrissieduff ) you probably already know I am starting a health board at my family's farm: Duffield's farm. Each week I will provide a new healthy tip and a recipe from my blog. Go check out my posts on their instagram: @duffieldsfarm. This month I am focusing on "Go Further with Food" for National Nutrition Month.
With
that being said, I obviously would love all of you to prevent food
waste just by simple practices. Some of the biggest complaints about
eating healthy is "too expensive" and "it goes bad too quickly". You can prevent this, save money, and eat healthier with these tips below.
Week ONE: Food Waste
"About 31% of all edible food waste in the U.S. and American households throw away nearly 28% of fruits and vegetables."-Eatright.org
Honestly, this is my BIGGEST pet peeve. I have struggled with watching food be wasted since I was younger. Watching my family work their butts off in the fields, produce is more than just food. Produce is our livelihood, my family's sweat and tears, and my family's daily love and care to make a delicious product. Farming is about planning months ahead to provide a beautiful fruit or vegetable in the time of season, ex: tomato seeds are planted in February (in the Greenhouse) and than placed in the ground (in April) to be picked in July. Farming is about having faith in the Lord during the beautiful weather and through the storms. My family has gone through hard seasons and seasons of blessings. They work in the pouring rain and the heat of the summer. My family does this so they can bless others with a delicious product and to make a small living. No one goes into farming for the money, they go in with faith in the Lord that he will bless them...and he does!
Tips to prevent waste:
- Plan your meals for the week
- Check what you have before shopping
- Blanch vegetables (quickly boil then place in ice water) and freeze
- Remove stems/skin/peels from fruit, place in single row, freeze, then bag
- Dehydrate
- Date items and use old first
- Cook and eat throughout the week
- Use a new recipe
- Here is a recipe to use some old avocados and spinach:
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| Chocolate Chip Avocado Zucchini Muffin |
- Here is a way to use frozen fruit (sub any fruit for mango) and spinach:
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| Smoothie Bowl |
- Here are some ways to use ripe bananas (also smoothie bowl above)
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| Banana pancakes |
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| Dehydrated Bananas |
Like I said, food waste has bothered me since I was little. When I was in middle school, I used to go
to my friend's houses and clean their parent's pantries! I would move
healthy items in eye sight and put the open boxes in front of the newer
items. Their parents loved me coming over, for obvious reasons! I still do that for my in-laws so they can save money by using what they have in their house first. I encourage everyone to find new recipes to use items that have been in the pantry or freezer before they become expired and thrown away. You may be able to delay grocery shopping by using what you have in your pantries and freezers!
**If you have any other tips, feel free to comment**
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