Meatless Meals

Our youngest daughter is giving up meat for Lent. Thinking there may be readers out there who are doing the same, I decided to share the recipe--and a few related facts--about this dish: "Two Potato and Beet Hash with Poached Eggs and Greens."

Removing meat entirely--or even partially-from your diet has health and environmental benefits. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health partnered with other university public health and communications organizations in 2009 to begin a now international movement called "Meatless Mondays" to promote the practice of reducing meat consumption for healthier bodies and a healthier planet. For your health, reducing your meat intake, particularly red and processed meats, lowers your risk for certain cancers, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes. For the planet, a reduced meat diet conserves fossil fuels and fresh water. According to research gathered by Meatless Mondays, 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water are used in the production of 1 pound of beef, and it takes 40 calories of fossil fuel for every calorie of feedlot beef.

I know, I know. I can already hear some people say that they don't eat red meat, so this information is not relevant to their lives. I think, though, regardless of what meat we may eat, their are environmental costs to producing and transporting that meat from the factory/farm to the grocery store. Our family eats meat, but 98 percent of our meat comes from a local farm--Randle Farms. This family farm uses sustainable practices for meat production and vegetable production.

I've provided a link for the recipe pictured above (just click on the recipe name). I varied it a little bit. We had some leftover butternut squash, which I used in place of the sweet potato; and we had small red potatoes, which I used in place of the Yukon Gold potatoes.

Don't be afraid of poaching an egg. Until last year, I had never poached an egg. I think the secret is adding a little vinegar to the water and having fresh eggs. Usually my eggs are a little ragged on the edges--this is the first PERFECTLY poached egg I have ever made!

If you're interested in adding more flavorful vegetarian meals to your diet, I highly recommend Vegetarian Suppers by Deborah Madison. You can find it on eBay for under $10. Also, check out "Ten Tips for Meatless Meals" on the MedicineNet.com website.