Recipe by Simply Fresh Foodie

Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars are from the vegan cooking blog simplyfreshfoodie.com and are perfect for autumn baking. These oatmeal bars walk the line between naughty and nice, making them perfect for a special breakfast or healthier dessert.

TMF Eco-friendly Tips for Baking Oatmeal Bars

Nothing compares to the freshness of a homemade dessert! But did you ever stop to think about the environmental impact of the equipment or ingredients you are using when baking? Check out The Mindful Fork’s Resource Page for recommendations on what to look for when purchasing things you’ll need like equipment, tools, and spices.

If you need tips on how to make this recipe, click on the link below:

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Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars

These vegan pumpkin chocolate chip oatmeal bars are the perfect snack to munch on all October long. They’re sweet, but not too sweet, making them the perfect healthy-ish dessert, cheeky breakfast or afternoon treat to go alongside a cup of tea.

Course Dessert, snacks

Cuisine American, Australian, Healthy

Keyword Autumn, baking, Fall, pumpkin

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 12

Calories 176kcal

Author Kit

Ingredients

• 1 cup coconut sugar
• ½ cup pumpkin puree canned or homemade
• ¼ cup coconut oil melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup oat flour
• ½ cup oats whole
• ¼ cup coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice/ mixed spice
• 1 pinch sea salt
• ½-¾ cup chocolate chips

Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 176kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 74mg | Potassium: 72mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 1589IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Recipe by Chef Cindy

If you haven’t made applesauce before, you’re going to appreciate how easy this recipe is and wonder why you have never made homemade applesauce before! It’s especially great to make in the fall when apples are in season, and there’s an abundance of varieties to choose from. You can bet the apples will be super fresh and crisp!

TMF Tips for Plant-Based Replacement Ingredients

Applesauce is a great addition for adding moisture and a little extra flavor to a baking recipe. But for vegan baking, applesauce is a must-have ingredient to stock at home. You can replace one egg with 1/4 cup of applesauce in sweet desserts. Applesauce can also replace butter 1:1 in most recipes. You will be amazed at how much better your desserts will taste when using homemade applesauce.

For more ideas on how to substitute plant-based ingredients in recipes, download our guide!

If you need tips on how to make this recipe, click on the link below:

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Best Homemade Applesauce

This is the Best Homemade Applesauce Recipe! It’s especially great to make applesauce in the fall season when apples are abundant!

Course condiment, Dessert

Cuisine Healthy

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 5 cups

Calories 179kcal

Author Chef Cindy

Ingredients

• 6 large apples cored, peeled, and cut into cubes (about 8 cups cubed)
• 3/4 cup apple cider
• 1 lemon juiced
• 1/4 cup brown sugar packed less with sweeter apples
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Notes

Optional Ingredients: Nutmeg, allspice, maple syrup.

Nutrition

Calories: 179kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 316mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 37g | Vitamin A: 124IU | Vitamin C: 22mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 1mg

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by Rachel Phipps

This easy poké bowl is easy to make at home using salmon from the fishmonger or supermarket fish.

How To Choose Sustainable Salmon

The two main varieties of salmon widely consumed globally are wild-caught Pacific and farmed Atlantic salmon. For both types of salmon, there are sustainable and non-sustainable options, so it’s essential to gather as much information as you can about your seafood ingredient before you head to the store to buy it. 

Wild pacific salmon inhabit the entirety of the Pacific Rim coastline. Although wild salmon can be consumed all year round (thanks to freezing and canning practices), most of the fresh wild salmon is harvested from June to September, when salmon migrate from the North Pacific Ocean. Many Chefs prefer the deeper color, firmer texture, and rich taste of wild salmon over its farmed Atlantic counterpart. 

When shopping for wild-caught Pacific salmon, look for the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) label in stores and restaurant menus. According to the Wild Salmon Center, an organization that strives to protect wild salmon species in the North Pacific, Alaskan harvested salmon is one of the best options known for their state’s healthy and well-managed fisheries. If you are still unsure where to purchase your salmon from, Chef Cindy’s go-to source for salmon has been Wild Alaskan Seafood for well over a decade. Their company offers only the healthiest, highest quality wild-caught seafood from sustainable fisheries in Alaska. 

Farmed Atlantic salmon makes up 72% of the world’s total salmon harvest. Most salmon is farmed in Norway and Chile, whose coastline offers the optimal environment for growing salmon. The United States is the worlds’ largest importer of farmed salmon, although the fastest-growing market is in China and Japan, where it is served sashimi style in many restaurants. Unlike wild-caught Pacific salmon, farmed Atlantic salmon is available fresh all year round. Although, as mentioned above, many chefs prefer the flavor of wild salmon, farmed salmon has a higher fat content making it a better candidate for smoking.

If you choose to purchase farmed salmon, look for the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) logo on the packaging. ASC is a non-profit organization that sets standards for farmed salmon, ensuring that the salmon comes from a responsible farm that strives to reduce environmental impact by minimizing the use of pesticides and antibiotics and offering optimal working conditions for its farmers. 

Overall, salmon is a great protein choice for people who choose to include animal products in their diet. The carbon footprint of farmed salmon is 2.9 carbon equivalents per kilogram of edible food product versus cattle which has an impact of approximately 30 kgCO2e. For more information on the topic of sustainable seafood, check out How to Eat Seafood – The Sustainable Way on our resource page. 

When you choose to eat seafood, remember …

being mindful matters!

If you need tips on how to make this recipe, click on the link below:

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Easy Salmon Poké Bowl

This easy poké bowl is easy to make at home using salmon from the fishmonger or supermarket fish counter.

Course Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine hawaiian, pescatarian

Prep Time 15 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings 1

Calories 670kcal

Author Rachel Phipps

Ingredients

• Dark Soy Sauce
• 1/2 tbsp Japanese Rice Vinegar
• 1/2 tbsp Toasted Sesame Oil
• 1 tsp Furikake
• 3.5 oz Sushi Grade Salmon cut into chunks at room temperature
• 7 oz Cold Cooked Brown Rice Sushi Rice or Quinoa
• 1 Spring Onion thinly sliced
• Small Handful Fresh Pineapple cubed
• 1/2 Small Avocado cubed
• 2 Radishes thinly sliced
• 3 tbsp Kimchee

Nutrition

Calories: 670kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 788mg | Potassium: 696mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 267IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 43mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Easy Salmon Poké Bowl appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Recipe by Rachel Phipps

This easy mussel dish is given a real naturally salty hit of the sea by steaming them with fresh samphire.

TMF TIPS: How To Choose Sustainable Mussels

Bivalves such as mussels are one of the most if not the most sustainable seafood option available.  They are rich in protein and essential nutrients and so widely abundant that they have the potential to feed billions of people in countries battling starvation. Bivalves such as mussels, clams, and oysters are sustainable for many reasons. Not only do they need no active care— they don’t have to be fed, given antibiotics or chemicals to be farmed, but they also sequester carbon, meaning they capture and store carbon, so it is not released back into the Earth’s atmosphere. According to David Willer, a zoologist at the University of Cambridge, although meat and fish have a more significant environmental impact than plant-based foods, the ecological footprint of bivalve aquaculture is lower than most arable crops in terms of carbon emissions, land and water usage. 

As is the case with anything you put in your body (but especially with a filter feeder such as mussels), one thing to consider before you buy or order them at a restaurant is where they are sourced from. Since mussels and other bivalves eat what is all around them, depending on their environment, they can concentrate harmful micro-organisms, toxins, and chemicals in their bodies. When eating any animal product whole and consuming it raw or lightly cooked, it is essential to be aware of the potential health risks associated with it. 

Luckily, many programs are in place to ensure that seafood products such as bivalves have been assessed before reaching consumers and as always, if you do your research and purchase from reputable sources, you should feel comfortable eating these sustainable little creatures. For more information on the topic of sustainable seafood, check out How to Eat Seafood – The Sustainable Way on our resources page. 

If you need tips on how to make this recipe, click on the link below:

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Mussels with Chilli & Samphire

This easy mussel dish is given a real naturally salty hit of the sea by steaming them with fresh samphire.

Course Appetizer, Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine French, pescatarian

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 1

Calories 295kcal

Author Rachel Phipps

Ingredients

• 600 g Fresh Mussels
• 1 Handful Samphire
• 1/2 Large Red Chilli roughly chopped
• Olive Oil
• 1 Echalion Shallot finely chopped
• 1 Large Garlic Clove finelly chopped
• Dry White Wine

Nutrition

Calories: 295kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 86mg | Sodium: 902mg | Potassium: 1147mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 705IU | Vitamin C: 60mg | Calcium: 97mg | Iron: 13mg

The post Mussels with Chili & Samphire appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

With all of the buzz on social media with Taco Tuesdays, trust us … you are not going to want to limit yourself to just Tuesdays with these Plant-Based Meat Tacos with Cabbage, Beans & Peppers! You will be surprised at how many ingredients fit into this one taco, making each bite burst with flavor. This easy vegan taco recipe uses No Evil Plant-Based Meat, which makes this recipe super easy because the meat is pre-seasoned. Just a simple addition of a few extra ingredients and spices, and you are well on your way to a delicious meal that will please all palates!

Once the ingredients are prepped, just cook them in a pan and stuff your tacos! Add a few extra toppings if you want, warm them in the oven for 5 minutes and you are ready to enjoy!

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If you’re not familiar with No Evil Foods and the benefits of eating plant-based meat, check out this article Say Yes to No Evil Foods shared by one of our contributing writers!

Hard Taco vs. Soft Taco

Everyone has their preference, but either one works with this recipe. Some people like the crunch of the hard shells, while others like the flexibility of the soft tortilla wrapped around the ingredients. If you can’t decide, you can use both creatively by wrapping the tortilla around the hard shell!

SIETE brand has a great line of both – check them out here ! For this recipe, SIETE Grain Free Chickpea Flour Tortillas were used.

If you’re having a difficult time making the switch to a plant-based diet, you’re not alone. Get some tips on How to make a gradual shift to a plant-based diet. One of our contributing writers shares seven easy suggestions to help take the rest of your household with you in making the switch to a plant-based, or at least plant-curious diet.

The post Plant-Based Meat Tacos with Cabbage, Black Beans & Peppers appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

by Rachel Phipps

These easy summer rolls are packed with the fresh, fishy flavor of freshly picked white crab meat, creamy avocado, and crunchy greens. Served with a creamy miso yogurt dip, they’re a super healthy, but also slightly indulgent lunchtime treat.

When choosing seafood, it’s important to be mindful of sustainability issues that arise with certain seafood you may be accustomed to eating. Visit The Mindful Fork Resource Page for tips on what to look out for when buying seafood!

And while this recipe is delicious, there are some plant-based alternatives you can use instead when making this recipe:

• plant-based yogurt vs. natural yogurt
• matchstick cut carrots vs. crab meat
• roasted shiitake mushrooms vs. crab meat

Craving other lunch ideas …

Vegan Jackfruit “Pulled-Pork” BBQ Lettuce Wraps

Vegan Chickpea “Tuna” Salad Recipe

Vegan Collard Greens Wraps – A healthy lunch on the go!

See All Lunch >

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California Fresh Crab & Avocado Summer Rolls with Creamy Miso Yogurt

These easy summer rolls are packed with the fresh, fishy flavour of freshly picked white crab meat, creamy avocado and crunchy greens. Served with a creamy miso yogurt dip, they’re a super healthy, but also slightly indulgent lunchtime treat.

Course Appetizer, starter

Cuisine American, Asian, californian, pescatarian, seafood

Prep Time 20 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 1 -2

Calories 808kcal

Author Rachel Phipps

Ingredients

• 1 Medium Avocado sliced
• 1 Baby Gem Lettuce thinly shredded
• 1/4 Unpeeled English Cucumber cut into matchsticks
• Small Handful Fresh Coriander leaves picked
• 50 g 2 oz Fresh Picked White Crab Meat
• 6 Rice Paper Sheets
• For the Creamy Miso Yogurt
• 4 tbsp Natural Yogurt
• 1 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
• 1 tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
• 1 tbsp Red Miso Paste
• Juice of 1/2 Lime

Notes

Interested in making this recipe, click here for instructions.

Nutrition

Calories: 808kcal | Carbohydrates: 96g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 21g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 2764mg | Potassium: 1548mg | Fiber: 18g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 2933IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 233mg | Iron: 7mg

The post California Fresh Crab & Avocado Summer Rolls with Creamy Miso Yogurt appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Strawberries come late spring season, making this Fresh Strawberry Sorbet Recipe the perfect summer treat. You can make a big batch and freeze it to be used over the next three months of summer!

If you are short on space and money to invest in an ice cream maker, freeze the blended ingredients in a freezer-safe bowl. Once frozen, you can remove it from the freezer to defrost for 15 minutes. Scoop out and add to a food processor. Blend until smooth and serve immediately. If you have any leftovers, just re-freeze and save for another summer day treat!

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Fresh Strawberry Sorbet

This Fresh Strawberry Sorbet recipe is the perfect treat if you have an abundance of summer strawberries on your hands. It is sweetened with a little bit of sugar and brightened with a hit of fresh lemon.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, French, Italian

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Servings 12

Author Rachel Phipps

Equipment

• Ice Cream Maker

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 oz white sugar
• zest and juice of 1 large lemon
• 1 1/2 lb fresh strawberries

Instructions

• Combine the sugar, lemon zest and juice in a small saucepan and set over a medium heat.
• Heat, stirring occasionally until all the sugar has dissolved and you have a thick syrup.
• Set aside.
• Meanwhile, top all the strawberries and transfer them into a large glass bowl.
• Using a stick blender, blitz into a smooth sauce.
• Blitz in the cooling sugar syrup.
• In an ice cream maker, blend the sorbet for approximately 40 minutes until frozen.
• Freeze in an air tight container and eat within 3 months.

The post Fresh Strawberry Sorbet appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Buying a kitchen knife is a personal decision. Just like clothes – not one size or type fits all! You may be attracted to one because of the design, but it may not fit or feel well in your hand. It may not even be the best suited for your everyday needs or budget. With that being said though, once you buy one it will last you many years to come with proper care. Buying a quality knife will never come with regrets. So, let’s break it down to a few simple steps to make your decision.

For a chef, a knife is the most important tool they use in the kitchen. Therefore, a lot of research will go into the purchase because they will be using it for many hours each day. It is really important that it serves their needs comfortably for the tasks they perform daily.

For home cooks, the right set of knives can also make a world of difference in your cooking. Certain knives are suited for certain types of tasks, and if you’re using the correct knife, you’ll find cooking easier and more pleasurable.

What size knife is best to start with?

Although many people will start out with a 10-piece Kitchen Block Knife Set, there are only 3 knives in that set you will continually use. So instead of buying what’s usually lesser quality in a block set (but within your budget), splurge on buying these 3 knives to start.

• Chef’s Knife – A chef’s knife is a professional chef’s best friend. We obsessively care for it knowing it will serve us well if properly sharpened, honed, cleaned & stored. They are simply called “Chef’s Knife” and they come in varying lengths – 7″ & 8″ are probably the most popular.
• Paring Knife – A paring knife is second best to have and is great for smaller tasks.
• Serrated Knife – Lastly is a serrated knife which is especially great for slicing tomatoes and bread.

Understanding the anatomy and materials that make up a knife will be helpful in your decision-making process. For a more detailed description, check out knife depot which gives a great breakdown.

Should you buy a kitchen knife based on brand names?

There are some top names to look at when purchasing knives. We share them because they are worthwhile mentions for the quality of workmanship put into their knives. Our top 5 picks are:

1. Wüsthoff
2. J.A. Henckels
3. Global
4. Shun
5. Miyabi

It is worth making a trip to the store actually to hold the knife in your hand. Be sure to properly hold it in your hand, how you would when you are chopping and dicing – that means, not just by the handle. Buying online based on brand or size isn’t recommended unless you have already tested the knife out in person.

Purchase Tip: Always save your knife protector sleeves (guards) – they come in really handy for storage or for shipping knives out to be sharpened!

Are Japanese kitchen knives the best?

Japanese knives are preferred by many because they tend to be lighter in weight and have a sharper blade. They are especially great for chopping, dicing, and slicing. But there are times you may need a knife for heavier duty jobs like cutting open a butternut squash. That’s where a German knife tends to be the stronger blade proving less worry that you’re going to cause damage by chipping the edge.

What are the best kitchen knives sets?

With all that said, if you still want to start out with the block set and work your way towards the higher quality knives, I would recommend staying with these 3 sets

• Wusthof Classic Nine Piece Block Set
• Shun Classic 5-Piece Starter Block Set
• Henckels Classic 15-Piece Self-Sharpening Block Set

Tips for using a knive

• Be aware of your knife at all times – holding, passing, and using.
• Hold it close to your side, pointing down when moving in the kitchen
• Pass it by placing it down on a flat surface for another person to pick up by the handle.
• Use it safest manner – cut side down of food which produces stability. 
• Dry with the sharp edge away from your hand.
• Always cut on wood, plastic, or hard rubber – never metal.
• Store knives properly in a holder, not scattered in a drawer with other kitchen utensils.
• Never wash in a dishwasher, or let sit in the sink with other items.
• Always let a falling knife drop.
• Always cut away from your body.
• Be conscious to hold food using the “bear claw” technique.
• Remember, a sharp knife is safer than a dull one.

How to care for and store knives

Chefs are known to care for their knives obsessively by sharpening and honing them frequently. As a home chef, learning to do this yourself will save you time and money. But if you are uncomfortable with sharpening your own knives, you can bring your knives to a local Williams-Sonoma or Sur La Table store. Many even offer free sharpening! You can Google search “knife sharpening services” and find out where to send your knives out to be sharpened.

When storing knives, it is crucial to keep the sharp side of the blade covered. This will prevent any damage to the edge or getting a knife cut when reaching into a drawer. If you can, store your knives in a block on your counter or in a drawer with a knife organizer. There are many to choose from depending on the dimensions of your allocated space.

Caring for knives also means always cutting on proper surfaces. Check out our Resources Page for TMF Cutting Board recommendations.

If you want to learn more, subscribe to The Mindful Fork where we will announce a FREE Introductory Knife Skills Course that is exclusive to our subscribers – coming soon!

The post What You Need to Know When Buying a Kitchen Knife appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

by Rachel Phipps

It is easy to make the change towards a predominately pant-based diet if you’re committed to that change, but what if you live and eat with people who are less than sure? Here are seven easy suggestions to help take the rest of your household with you making the switch to a plant-based, or at least plant-curious diet.

I eat meat. That is a basic fact about me that I don’t think is ever going to change, but one thing I’ve been actively been trying to do for years is to eat much less of it. Eating less meat and more plants is better for our health, our planet, for animal welfare as lower demand lowers reliance on intensive farming techniques. I don’t think it needs to be said that it is also better for your bank balance. Happily, my last cookbook, One Pan Pescatarian, was entirely meat free, but while I’m the one in charge of meals at home, the only times I get to cook my favorite vegetarian, vegan, and even pescatarian meals is when I’m home alone. 

Transitioning to a predominantly plant-based diet is a personal choice, and one that can be tricky if you don’t take the rest of your household with you. The kitchens I tend to cook in are my own and my parents, and in each I have a stubborn man who refuses to accept a meal is a meal if it does not contain meat. 

I know I’m not the only one who is not even going to get someone to even agree to a 50/50 compromise on meat consumption overnight, so I thought it might be helpful to share some helpful tips on how to take the rest of your household with you when embarking on a predominantly plant based diet. 

Make meat the accompaniment, not the star

While ‘meat and two vegs’ is a very outdated idea of a balanced meal, it is an idea that we can invert when planning dinners that contain meat, but where the meat is not the main event. Yes you could use a whole packet of ground beef in that pasta bake, but why not use just half, or even a quarter and up the amount of delicious roasted peppers in there instead? This treatment also works really well for casseroles, chicken salads, anything you can think of really where both meat and veg are present. 

Relegating meat to side dish status can actually make for a more exciting meal: I love ribs, and I always keep a stash from locally reared pigs in the freezer, but for me, I also love the grilled corn, wedges of cornbread with whipped jalapeño butter, homemade slaws and potato salads that come with said ribs. I used to serve one rack of ribs between two, but splitting the rack four ways instead, we’re eating less meat, the meat I’m buying is going further, I’m happy as there is more space on the plate for sides, and my boyfriend is always happy when he can smell ribs for dinner!

Embrace meaty garnishes

Crispy fried bacon bits, ribbons of parma ham, crumbles of chorizo. As a carnivore these still sound good to me, and they’ll also sound good to committed meat eaters, too. You can happily serve up a vegetarian or vegan option for dinner if that option, say like a bowl of pasta or even a salad is something you’d ordinarily sprinkle some sort of garnish over if you make that option meat-based. This way you’ll be also serving up a minuscule amount of meat per meal: one rasher of sustainable butcher’s streaky bacon can make enough crumbles for two bowls, and if you roll it up and freeze the slices individually on a tray before transferring them to a zip lock bag one pack will last for weeks this way.

Agree on a set number of plant-based meals a week

I’m a professional recipe developer so dinner is most often either a total experiment or a recipe that is a work in progress. To that end long ago we decided that my boyfriend could choose any dinner one night a week (in addition to his beloved Sunday roast) that would appear alongside all my experiments. When I declared an intention to eat more plant-based meals, we agreed that I could also cook something entirely vegetarian or vegan once a week. This way I’ve started to identify dishes that we both enjoy without meat which I can slide back into our usual rotation at a later date to further cut down on the nights a week where we do eat meat. 

Have a back up plan

I know when dinner is going to be risky. While there have been some happy conversions, I know serving meals that go against someone’s idea of what makes an enjoyable dinner is always going to be risky, so always have something on hand you know they’ll love and won’t be too much effort for you. You’ve already made dinner, after all.

Perhaps plan a substantial, beloved dessert to serve after the ‘risky’ meal, or else, even though I’m usually a massive advocate of 100% homemade having some root vegetable fries and a packet of sustainable fish fingers to throw in the air fryer at the last minute has saved dinner more than once.

Start with things your family already know and love

I did not grow up eating Indian food and flavors even though they’re a massive part of the British palate, but since moving in together, Indian food has become one of our favorite things to cook and eat at home. So, most of the time, I make our one vegetarian or vegan meal a week Indian food. It helps that much of the Indian diet is naturally vegan.

Focus on more sustainable meat options

Switching to a predominantly plant-based diet is not just about eating less meat in general; it is about choosing better meat when that is the direction you still plan to go in for dinner time. Recently I’ve been cooking with a lot more wild venison, which is reasonably priced and highly sustainable. We’re still having the same steaks, sausages, and burgers, but from a great-tasting and healthier meat that has less of an environmental impact on its journey to our plate. Goat is also a great, low impact alternative to lamb, though, on the red meat front, lamb will often be a better option than beef as they require a lot less space to graze. 

Also, make sure you use every scrap of the meat you do buy. I’m a big fan of enjoying a chicken at the weekend as none of the meat gets wasted as leftovers can go into a pie or into sandwiches, and I use the carcass to make stock with leftover vegetable scraps in the slow cooker. We like a nice duck breast with a massaman curry once in a while, and I’m always sure to collect the rendered fat from the skin to roast potatoes in at a later date. 

Accept change is not going to happen overnight

As a professional cook who grows my own veg I’ve always been more interested in cooking and eating vegetables than I have meat. Before I moved to California when I was 19 I did not even eat red meat, so I was never going to find it hard to switch to a predominately plant based diet because that is what I’ve always preferred. But you’ve got to accept even for someone committed to change if they’ve been eating their meat for almost every meal their entire lives, change is not going to come overnight. Not only will you create less friction at home by instigating small, gradual changes instead of several big ones, is also more likely your family will happily stick to a new diet if the change has been a slow one, giving people time to adjust, to discover new likes and dislikes, and to stop sitting there stressing about what they’re suddenly missing. 

Check out The Mindful Fork Resources page for tips on how to purchase meat that is sustainably sourced. And while making the change to a more plant-based diet, use TMF’s Recipe Index as a guide to Eco-Flexitarian meals that are climate-friendly!

The post Gradual tips for moving towards a plant-based diet appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Written By Rachel Phipps

It is possible to still eat meat and do your bit for the planet. Choosing sustainable meat is not only good for the environment, but it also helps support local farmers. Here are some tips for choosing and buying more sustainable meat wherever you shop and whatever your price point. 

While I’m always trying to take positive steps towards a more plant-based diet, I’m never going to give up eating meat. I grew up in a rural community, and I believe passionately in supporting the farmers who have been at it for generations. So, by making an effort to choose sustainable meat options, lower my consumption and make the most of the meat I do buy (something I advocate in my latest cookbook, One Pan Pescatarian) I believe it is still possible to make a positive change without fundamentally impact the way I eat. 

Aside from the fact that spending a bit more on higher quality meat (and therefore eating less of it and enjoying it in smaller portions to keep it affordable) obviously helps support farmers, the numbers are clear on both sides of the pond that eating less meat is better for the environment. 

Ahead of COP26 (the UN’s climate change conference being held in Glasgow this autumn) in April 2021 the UK Government set an emissions target aiming to reduce emissions by 2035 by 78% of where they were in 1990, and the White House announced a similar target of a 50-52% reduction from 2005 levels by 2030. There are some pretty stark numbers out there from academics, too. Eating less meat is pretty essential: the average carnivore diet produces 7.2kg of carbon dioxide a year (almost double the amount released by a vegetarian diet) and according to one of the lead authors of the UN’s most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) report 0.5C (32.9F) of the rise in global temperatures we’ve seen in recent years is down to the methane produced by cows. 

However, in trying to pinpoint actual figures to share I’ve become even more convinced that the answer is not just to simply stop eating meat, but to invest in more sustainable farming practices across agriculture. In August 2021 it was estimated that agriculture made up for an estimated 10.5% of total US greenhouse gas emissions; the 2019 figure for the same in the UK came in at 10%. These figures, however, include emissions from farm vehicles, the use of fertilizers etc., as well as the headline-grabbing cow methane. This report on how the British National Farmers Union plans to achieve net-zero in British agriculture by 2040, ahead of the UK’s own 2050 net zero target helps relate the complexity of this issue.

While I wholeheartedly believe everyone should be left to make their own, conscious decisions about their diet, I do want to share a little about regenerative farming practices, such as rotational grazing, and how they can be just as valid a step towards a sustainable ecosystem as adopting a 100% plant-based diet. These practices relate just as much to crops as they do to cattle, after all. 

You’ve probably started hearing more and more about the importance of soil. It’s obvious that good soil, full of nutrients will produce better for us crops, but it goes deeper than that. By re-wilding areas of farmland, diversifying crops and utilising crop rotations we’re not stripping the soil of everything just one crop needs. We can also graze animals on land where their urine, manure and saliva will help regenerate the soil (and these animals can be cattle later slaughtered for meat) as long as overgrazing is avoided, actually helps trap carbon in the soil.

But what meat should we actually be buying? If you’re reading this, I’m pretty sure you often buy beef, lamb, chicken and pork. Some of these are more sustainable than others. In most cases that great emitter of methane, beef, has the most impact on the environment, requiring a large amount of land on which to graze, and a lot of feed to sustain. But chickens, on the other hand, because they grow so quickly, and still when farmed responsibly require comparatively little space are not actually as bad for the environment in comparison.

You can also make other substitutions in your diet for other more sustainable and often healthier meats. I’m a big fan of wild venison – not only is it delicious and relatively affordable, but it has quite a low environmental impact. When venison has not been over-hunted, culling of the deer population is an essential part of responsible and sustainable land management. Rising populations can have a devastating effect on both natural ecosystems and farmland.

Rabbits multiply like rabbits, so eating wild rabbits is also a great sustainable option – it does not require intensive farming. While rabbits are a vital part of the ecosystem, again overpopulation can cause damage to existing habitats. 

Veal is a very controversial topic for conscious meat eaters because a whole spectrum of products exists, from white veal, which is commonly farmed with low animal welfare standards (this is particularly prevalent in some parts of the US as veal farming is regulated on a state rather than the federal level, and some practices banned in the UK and EU are still common), to rose veal with much higher standards. However, great strides are being made among some dairy farmers who are now producing rose veal from male dairy calves who would otherwise be destroyed, as often popular dairy breeds are deemed unsuitable for beef production. So, if you’re careful about what you buy, it is possible to (and I encourage you to) source high-welfare rose veal sustainably farmed from a dairy herd.

Shopping for sustainable meat at the grocery store

While in an ideal world we’d all be eating much less, better quality meat from independent sources, one of the most annoying things I find about advice online about how to be more sustainable is they don’t take into account real life: most of us shop at a supermarket because we have to, be it down to access or affordability. So how can we choose more sustainable meat at the store?

• Look online. Most stores publish sustainability and sourcing information that may not be available in store.
• Read the packaging. Whole Foods for example lists the name of the farm meat was reared on, and sometimes even the name of the farmer. Many UK supermarkets such as Waitrose do too. However, look out for some budget supermarkets who create names of farms as a marketing ploy to try and make you believe your meat is actually more traceable than it actually is.
• We are still some way off clear labelling indicating the sustainability of meat products, but good animal welfare standards go hand in hand with more sustainable farming practices so look out for labels such as Certified Animal Welfare Approved by AGW, or products with a Global Animal Partnership rating of 4 or higher in the US, or the Soil association or RSPCA Assured labels in the UK.
• Visit the meat counter. When a recipe tells you to ask your butcher, they don’t just mean an independent butcher – some grocery stores have very knowledgeable staff on the meat counter who you’ll be able to ask the questions I’ve included below to help you choose the best, sustainable meat option for you.

Shopping for sustainable meat at a butcher shop

Your local butchers is a fantastic place to shop for sustainable meat as they’re usually small local businesses with a human face who take the time to get to know their suppliers, but you still need to know what to look for and what questions to ask when shopping for sustainable meat. 

• First, ask where the meat comes from. Most good butchers will know the name of the farmer, breed of the animal, and the location of the farm and will be proud to share these. They’ll also often offer more information such as how the meat was raised, if it is organic etc. saving you the trouble of asking. It does not bode well for follow up questions – or the meat you’re planning to buy – if they don’t know these basics.
• Ask how the meat was reared, is the chicken free range? Is the pork free range? Is the meat grass fed? Is the farm and the meat certified organic?
• Has the meat been frozen? Unless you’re intentionally shopping from a butchers freezer cabinet (great for items they’ve had to make in batches such as sausages, or for preserving seasonal meats such as wild game) this may be a red flag. Ask why the meat has been frozen and is not fresh.
• Don’t be put off if the meat comes from a little further afield, just ask more questions. For a conscientious butcher, it may be a good sign that their meat does not come from the farm next door whose animal welfare practices or sustainability credentials may not quite be up to scratch. 
• With all of these questions, ask them about the butchers themselves rather than just a single piece of meat: they may for example source pork from multiple sources and you want to make sure everything is up to scratch on a return visit.

You might find that you end up shopping at several local butchers to buy sustainable meat at the best price. When I lived in London I was lucky enough to have a brilliant butchers at the end of my road who were happy to answer all my questions about the meat I was buying, but returning home to the countryside I now have different butchers where I go to buy pork, beef, and other meats, based on who is supplying them and if they rear their own animals.

Shopping for sustainable meat online

I’ve included tips below for finding good websites to order sustainable meat, but my favourite websites came to me via word and mouth, so ask around!

• On Instagram, hashtags such as #sustainablemeat, #slowfood, #regenerativeagriculture, #sustainablefarming, and #fieldtofork are not only great for finding farms you can order from, but they’re also good places to get recipes and tips to become a more conscious meat consumer. @thegoodsshedbutchery (where I shop) and @pipersfarm are two accounts I follow to learn more about how to be a more sustainable meat eater. As with everything on the internet, however, to check the profile you’re browsing is a reputable source. 
• Check trusted websites for lists of approved or partner suppliers such as the Slow Food movement (find the UK site here.)
• Don’t discount a good old Google Search including the meat you’re looking for and your location, just remember to do as much research as possible to check the meat you’re ordering is truly sustainable. 
• Once you’ve done a trial order from a particular website, try to place as large orders as possible, or share deliveries with friends and family to cut down on the environmental impact and necessary speciality packaging every time you shop.

There are more great resources for choosing sustainable meat over on The Mindful Fork’s Resources page. Regenerative Food and Farming, Sustainable Food Trust, Compassion in World Farming and Pasture For Life are also good websites for further reading.

The post How To Choose Sustainable Meat appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Written by Cindy Siegenfeld

Once in a while, you come across a life-changing read. That was my experience when I read the book KISS the GROUND. Like you, I walk on it, plant vegetables/fruits/flowers, grow trees, place structures upon it, etc. But, I never stopped to think about how essential soil is to all living creatures until I read KISS the GROUND. This book will open your eyes to the importance of rebuilding our most precious resource – the ground beneath that feeds us!

This is not a book about climate change, at least not in the way it is argued about today. This book takes the perspective that carbon is the most basic and essential building block of life. Where there is carbon in the soil, there is water. And where one finds carbon, and water in soil, one finds food. Thus this book deals with atmospheric carbon not as a tired political problem but rather as an ecological opportunity that we can access through our food. 

At the core this book is about food's ability to alter the world. Our choice of foods will make or break our civilization. This daily choice holds more power than almost anything we do. Food is power. It is so powerful, in fact, that food is likely at the center of what caused the downfall of the previous forty or so significant civilizations that have come before ours. 

One can say this is a book about food, agriculture, soil, climate and the planet. But that would be missing the point. This is really a book about the whole system in which all things interact. Each of the aforementioned acts as one of the many interconnected cycles with the system. For most of us, the access we have to altering those cycles is through the food we eat. 

This book is also about people. Specifically, it is about a global movement of people who, due to the combined understanding of natural systems, could offer a new framework to humanity. In its simplest terms the movement is called  "regenerative agriculture." Regenerative agriculture essentially means building the soil through the four pillars of trees, managed herd grazing and compost, cover crops, and "no till" agriculture systems. Since building soil requires tremendous quantities of carbon, regenerative agriculture holds the key to moving the carbon that's currently in our atmosphere back into the ground. 

An excerpt from KISS the GROUND by Josh Tickell

What you will read about in “Kiss the Ground”

• Today’s agriculture is vastly altering our landscapes and so quickly outpacing the earth’s ability to regenerate soil that agriculture threatens planetary life itself.
• If we let climate change get out of control, there will be millions of climate refugees.
• Each year, 1 in every 122 people becomes a refugee and that number is increasing with the most severe displacement occurring where there is a lack of food and water.
• Plants, have the ability to pull enough CO2 out from the atmosphere to make a measurable dent in the global concentration of CO2.
• The 4 per 1,000 initiative aims to increase soils ability to sequester carbon.
• The U.S. sprays one billion pounds of herbicides, insecticides and fungicides onto its crops annually which is equivalent to 3 pounds per person.
• Desertification is the most immediate environmental crisis our global civilization faces.
• Organic farming doesn’t just free us from ingesting chemicals & pesticides, it actually helps heal soil and reverse climate change.
• Soil health could be restored using strategic grazing of cattle.
• Permaculture offers a way to begin working towards a permanent agriculture with diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. 
• The soil environment can hold more carbon than both the atmosphere and the organisms and plants living on the surface of the soil combined.
• Life in the soil is what holds the carbon – fungicides, herbicides, insecticides & fertilizers destroy the life in the soil.
• Our ability to grow food is shrinking while our population is rapidly increasing.
• Managed intensive rotational grazing (MIRG) is a way to put nutrients back in the soil.
• Grass fed cows poop will feed the soil 0.31 pounds of nitrogen and 0.11 pounds of phosphorous 13.

They are sharing tips to make a difference!

Kiss the Ground takes many lengths to open our eyes to what is happening on our planet, but they don’t stop there. They also offer everyday personal tips in the “Regenerative Revolution” beginners guide found in the final chapter. With a few simple changes, you will learn how to make a difference. Suggestions are shared to Join a CSA, initiate local programs, and support organizations fighting for change. Check out Kiss the Ground website, where you will find other ways to be involved and even learn how to Become a Soil Advocate!

Suppose you don’t have enough time to read, then watch the KISS the GROUND MOVIE (streaming on Netflix) hosted by Woody Harrelson and directed by Joshua Tickell and Rebecca Harrell Tickell. The film begins by examining how tilling and pesticides have led to soil erosion. It then traces the damage done to our ecology, health, and climate. The filmmakers find a solution in regenerative farming, an ethical practice designed to restore degraded lands and facilitate carbon drawdown.

Whether it’s Kiss the Ground or The Mindful Fork that inspires you, remember we are all in this together and it will take all of us to bring about change for a brighter future!

The post Kiss the Ground Shares Steps To Protect The Ground Beneath Us appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Gazpacho is a summer favorite for many, especially me! I agree that the traditional version with tomatoes is delicious but add in some watermelon to Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho and ooh mama, now that’s delicious! I love the blend of flavors in this refreshing, cold summer soup. And you can control the “spicy heat” of the soup with the type of peppers you use and the amount. My family tends to like things spicy so I always “bring on the heat” with lots of jalapeño! Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho with Jalapeño also gets a unique flavor from the blend of mint and basil. Add in all the other ingredients and you have a perfect “make ahead” cold summer soup to enjoy as a summer appetizer or to bring along to a barbecue. Just fill a mason jar, wrap it with a bow and you have the perfect summer hostess gift!

Making gazpacho doesn’t get much easier than this:

1. Prep the ingredients.
2. Separate a small amount for the toppings.
3. Pulse the rest of the ingredients in a food processor or blender on low speed.
4. Stir in fresh lime, apple cider vinegar, and olive oil.
5. Refrigerate for 1 hour or more.
6. Pour in separate bowls with toppings.
7. Ready to serve and enjoy Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho!

Are WATERMELON RINDS edible?

For so many years, I have been throwing away the watermelon rinds. I bet you have been also! But since I strive to be zero-waste in my kitchen, I’ve recently learned there are so many ways to use the rinds. Stay tuned for recipes to follow soon and subscribe for my updates!

Check out TMF Resources -Zero Waste for more eco-friendly tips!

Looking for other ways to use watermelon, try some of these recipes:

• Yellow Watermelon Salsa with Tomatillo by Chef Cindy
• Watermelon, Fennel & Feta Salad by Chef Cindy
• Watermelon Juice by Cookie + Kate
• Spicy Watermelon Salad by Nyssa’s Kitchen

This post was originally published on CHEFCINDY.COM and shared with The Mindful Fork. You can view the original post here.

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Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho with Jalapeño

This easy Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho with Jalapeño Recipe is a refreshing, cold summer soup where you can “bring on the heat” with lots of jalapeño!

Course Soup

Cuisine Healthy, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword easy gazpacho recipe, gazpacho toppings, spicy cold summer soup, spicy watermelon gazpacho, watermelon gazpacho

Prep Time 20 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 262kcal

Author Chef Cindy

Equipment

• Food Processor

Ingredients

• 4 cups red watermelon * cut into large chunks
• 1 seedless cucumber * cut in large chunks
• 1 large tomato * diced
• 1 red pepper * diced
• 1 shallot diced
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1 handful fresh basil *
• 1 handful fresh mint *
• ½ – 1 jalapeño minced
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 green onions chopped
• 1 avocado cubed

Instructions

• Prep all of the above ingredients. 
• Stir & set aside the * ingredients in a separate bowl.
• Place all of the other ingredients in a food processor: watermelon, cucumber, tomato, red pepper, garlic, basil, mint, salt & pepper, jalapeño.
• Pulse until blended but still chunky.
• Pour into a bowl. Stir in olive oil & apple cider vinegar. Adjust salt & pepper to taste. Refrigerate until chilled for 1 hour or  more.
• Serve in separate bowls, each with toppings added. Enjoy!

Notes

*Set aside a small amount these ingredients to be, adding the avocado & green onions to be mixed for gazpacho toppings.

Nutrition

Calories: 262kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13g | Sodium: 1176mg | Potassium: 767mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 2442IU | Vitamin C: 88mg | Calcium: 47mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Spicy Watermelon Gazpacho with Jalapeño appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

If you love tomatoes and bread, why not put the two together & and form a Panzanella Salad! This is one of the easiest salads to make and is always a big hit. There are many variations of Panzanella Salad, but this recipe is a Summer Fresh Gluten-Free Panzanella Salad. If you do not have any dietary restrictions, use whatever bread you like. Preferably, firm & crusty so it can still hold together when soaking up the juice of the tomatoes. So delicious!

Panzanella Salad, originated in Italy “panmolle” and is a Tuscan chopped salad of soaked stale bread, onions and tomatoes. It often includes cucumbers, sometimes basil and is dressed with olive oil and vinegar.

Do I have to use “stale” bread to make Panzanella?

You do not have to use stale bread! If you use fresh bread and simply toast it in an oven. That way, the bread is still soft on the inside but crispy on the outside and tastes so much better!

How long can Panzanella stay fresh, and what can I do with the leftovers?

If you want to make it ahead of time, prepare and mix all of the ingredients except for the bread. I like to eat it within a half hour of mixing the bread in. It soaks in just the right amount of the juices without become too mushy but some people enjoy it even hours later. I haven’t tried this yet, but leftovers from the night before, can be blended in a food processor and probably be made into a delicious soup. I will give a link for that in the future, when I give it a try.

What other ingredients taste good in Panzanella Salad?

There are many versions of Panzanella salad, so here’s your chance to get creative. You can mix in any of the following:

• Red, Yellow & Green Bell Peppers
• Capers
• Sourdough, Italian, Ciabatta, French Baguette, Rosemary Bread
• Chopped Greens – Spinach, Arugula, Dandelion
• Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Asiago Cheese

Can Panzanella Salad be a meal? What can I serve with Panzanella Salad?

Yes, Panzanella Salad can easily be a meal just by adding your favorite protein. My preference is to add garbanzo beans to the salad or prepare it with a side protein such as a vegan sausage or burger. Of course – meat, poultry, seafood also works if you are not on a plant-based diet!

How to make Summer Fresh Gluten-Free Panzanella Salad – Panzanella Ingredients

1- Start with fresh tomatoes

Try and choose local, seasonal, organic red & yellow juicy tomatoes

These are from a Long Island, NY local CSA – learn more here.

2- Choose your bread

This is a delicious gluten-free bread that is sold in most markets

You can find it in the freezer section

Cut your bread into cubes & toast in the oven until crispy

3- Prep the rest of your salad ingredients

Seed & slice the cucumbers

Cut the tomatoes into chunks

Halve the cherry tomatoes, slice the red onions, chop the basil & garlic and mix all the ingredients and you have Panzanella Salad!

Interested in growing your own tomatoes, check out for TMF Resources/Garden!

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Gluten-Free Panzanella Salad

This is a twist on the traditional Tuscan salad recipe, Panzanella Salad, but made with gluten-free bread that is toasted. 

Course Salad

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Gluten-Free, Italian Tomato & Bread Salad, Panzanella, Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4 - 6 servings

Calories 315kcal

Author Cindy

Ingredients

• 1 ½ loaf of gluten-free bread about 3 cups
• olive oil spray
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp salt & ¼ tsp pepper
• ½ english cucumber
• 3-4 large ripe red tomatoes
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes sungold
• ½ red onion sliced thin
• 20 leaves fresh basil chopped

Dressing:

• 1 tsp fresh garlic chopped
• 3 tbsp champagne vinegar
• ½ cup olive oil
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground pepper

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 325°.
• Cut the bread into cubes. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet. 
• Spray with olive oil and season with garlic, salt & pepper. Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown.
• While bread is toasting, prep other ingredients. Peel, halve, seed & slice the cucumber. Cut the tomatoes into large chunks.
• Halve the cherry tomatoes. Thinly slice the red onions. Chop the basil.
• Prepare the dressing by mixing all the ingredients together.
• Place all ingredients (except bread) in a large bowl and mixing thoroughly with the dressing. 
• When ready to serve, add toasted bread to the serving bowl and gently stir in the tomato mixture. It is best to serve within a half hour of mixing.

Notes

• The traditional Panzanella is made with "stale" Italian Bread,  no need to toast
• Capers & bell peppers are another great addition to the recipe

Nutrition

Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 20g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 637mg | Potassium: 401mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1151IU | Vitamin C: 24mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Summer Fresh Gluten-Free Panzanella Salad appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

We are all guilty of producing unnecessary waste, especially from our kitchen. Check out how quickly your kitchen garbage and recycle bin fill up. Much of it is from food packaging which you have little control over, or maybe you do? Being mindful in your kitchen, especially with what you purchase will reduce kitchen throwaways tremendously. You can make the choice to support brands that are made with compostable packaging. Or, you can cook using less processed packaged food at home which will naturally reduce the garbage you produce bringing you one step closer to a zero-waste kitchen.

According to an EPA study from 2018, the average American consumer produces just under five pounds of trash each day, while a family creates about 18 pounds. Multiplying those numbers by 365 days for the year, it all adds up to:

• 1,642 pounds per person.
• 6,570 pounds per family.

Food waste is another area of wastefulness in our kitchen. While the world wastes about 1.4 billion tons of food every year, the United States discards more food than any other country in the world: nearly 40 million tons — 80 billion pounds — every year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. That’s estimated to be 30-40 percent of the entire US food supply. Download a guide to Food Waste in America 2021 here.

Americans waste more than $218 billion each year on food, with dairy products being the food item we toss out the most. The average American family of four throws out $1,600 a year in produce. 

Feeding America

All of us play a part in that waste, but we can reduce much of that waste with a few simple changes in habits and products we’ve gotten accustomed to. Like most things, the more knowledge we have, the better and more efficient we will accomplish the task. The suggestions below are a great starting point. But, learning how to cook will help reduce food waste tremendously!

Eco-friendly Suggestions to Reduce Kitchen Throwaways

Many of us get used to tossing more trash than is necessary because we just don’t know what the eco-friendly alternative is. Here are the most popular questions people ask when trying to be more eco-conscious in their kitchen:

As you see, there are many options available to reduce the amount of garbage you produce. Make note of how less often you need to take out the garbage as you incorporate these changes.

What should you do with items that do have to be thrown away?

It’s inevitable that items are going to end up in the trash or the recycle bin. There are many ways to reduce food waste and stop scraps from going to a landfill. Learn more about composting your everyday kitchen scraps.

Plastics have been shown to be extremely detrimental to our planet. It may take a while before we can completely rid of using plastics. Visit our Resource Recycle post where we share a company’s mission to offset your plastic impact.

Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links, and TMF will earn a commission if you purchase through these links. Although we haven’t used all of these products ourselves, we did research on them and felt they were worth mentioning. Let us know in the comments below if you have any great products you would like to tell us about!

The post Easy Tips to Reduce Kitchen Throwaways appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Composting is one of the most efficient and eco-friendly methods of disposing of biodegradable kitchen scraps, but it can take time. Adopting worm farming as your chosen method of composting is a simple, accessible way of speeding up the process, easily transforming your vegetable peelings into rich compost and homemade fertilizer. 

Why choose Vermicomposting?

Vermicomposting, otherwise known as worm composting or worm farming in a worm bin or wormery, is a quicker method than traditional composting to create rich compost and homemade fertilizer from kitchen scraps. It’s a great option if you’re trying to cut down on kitchen waste, if you live somewhere with irregular waste collection, you grow your own fruit and vegetables (or you know someone who does who will be very pleased with a gift of homemade compost and fertilizer) or if you’re simply too time poor to explore other waste cutting kitchen measures such as making homemade stocks or ‘potato chips’ from vegetable peelings. 

While you should do your best to keep the worms living in your worm farm happy, they can easily put up with a couple of weeks of neglect, so you won’t have to worry about your worm farm if you want to go on holiday, or if you’re experiencing a particularly busy work week. 

Choosing the right worm farm composter for you.

Do you have a lot of space to start a worm farm, or just a small fire escape or patio? Are you planning on starting your worm farm indoors? Are you a couple, living alone, or part of a big family generating masses of kitchen scraps? All of these are important factors in choosing the right worm farm composter design for you.

Traditionally there are two common designs: single bucket or bin styles (these may or may not have a tap for harvesting worm fertilizer ‘tea’, they’re also less common in the US) or stackable bins or trays to help you harvest a large amount of compost in stages. For outdoor worm farming, you can also buy subterranean designs that you can sink into the ground to attract existing worms through holes into your composter. 

If you’re looking to worm farm indoors and you don’t have a basement don’t be put off: there are actually some pretty stylish options available! 

Can I build my own worm farm composter? 

Yes, of course! The United States Environmental Protection Agency has a great guide to safely building and maintaining your own indoor worm composting bin. The Spruce also has a great DIY for creating a slightly more attractive, stackable outdoor worm farm setup. 

Where can I buy worms for composting?

Ideally, you’re looking for red wigglers (also known as tiger worms) or common earthworms. Search online for providers such as Uncle Jim’s Worm Farm (US), Gardeners Supply Company (US), Wormbox (CA), Worms Down Under (AU), Wiggly Wigglers (UK), or Wormery (UK). 

It is also sometimes possible to order worms directly from your local U.S. Department of Agriculture extension office. 

Make sure the worms you are buying are not an invasive species such as Asian Jumping Worms, also known as Alabama or Georgia Jumpers which will inevitably make their way into your garden no matter how much care you take.

Where should I position my worm composter?

Very high or very low temperatures can possibly be fatal to your worms, so while you may be limited in your choice of worm farm by the space you have available for it, consider the natural climate where you live if you choose to worm farm outdoors. As a general rule choose a shady spot out of the direct sun, and move the bin inside when temperatures drop below freezing.

So I’ve got everything I need, how do I get started?

If you’ve purchased a worm farm composter rather than make your own, it should come with instructions specific to that particular design, but for all worm farms there are a few basic steps to keep in mind when starting out:

• Don’t feed your worms too much all at once. During the first few weeks only feed small amounts to your worms so they have a chance to process the compostables into a habitat. Be patient while the population – and therefore capacity – grows and bear in mind worms will eat a lot less in cooler weather. 
• Make sure you’ve added something for aeration. Some worm farms come with wood chips or cardboard to place at the bottom to start the worms off and provide aeration within the worm farm, but filling roughly 20% of the worm farm with shredded newspaper or cardboard will also do the trick.
• Make sure you feed your worms a varied diet.

What can I feed my worms?

As a general rule, if you’d compost it, the worms will love it, but with a few important exceptions:

Do compost:

• Vegetable peelings.
• Fruit peelings, including banana skins and melon rinds.
• Coffee grounds.
• Cardboard marked as compostable. 
• Newspaper.
• Compostable plastics, but only the thin bags rather than thicker, bio-degradable cups.

Don’t compost:

• Highly acidic foods such as citrus fruit, tomatoes, or pineapple.
• Chili peppers or the seeds from bell peppers.
• Anything with lots of seeds in, for example melon or squash innards.
• Meat, fish or dairy products. These will attract pests and can spread disease. 
• Processed foods or any foods containing oils.
• Plastic tea bags.
• Coffee filters.
• Plastic labels on fresh produce skins.
• Dog or cat feces. 

Egg shells are a controversial topic in worm composting. Some people argue you should not be adding them to the worm farm as the worms can’t actually ‘eat’ them, as in, they don’t break them down by digesting them, but other people argue they’re good for their worm farms as if you crush them into small pieces first the worms do actually consume them and the grit they provide aids digestion – they also help add calcium to your worm farm compost. They will also help keep the pH in the worm farm neutral; acidic conditions may prove fatal to your worms. Don’t put too many in, however, as you’ll start producing really gritty compost.

Tea bags compost really well and your worms will happily break them down for you, but some people prefer not to add these to their worm composter, or to tear them open and throw away the bags before composting as the bags can take a lot longer to break down than almost everything else you’re composting. This may lead to your compost still having pieces of teabag bag in it.

Onion skins are also a compostable item where when it comes to feeding them to your worms it is really up to how many onion scraps you generate. Onion skins, as well as the root of the bulb you’ll also be throwing away, are highly acidic, so while small amounts are fine to feed to the worms, larger amounts will upset the pH level inside the worm farm. 

For larger items, such as melon rinds, it will be a massive help to both your worms and the decomposition process if you chop your scraps into smaller pieces before composting. The same rule applies to compostable cardboard such as egg boxes: tear the card into small pieces first.

Do I need to add anything other than kitchen scraps to keep my worms happy?

Really, it depends on what condition your worm farm is in. The ideal pH for your worms is neutral so if you’re having problems (dying worms, worms that won’t eat anything, food decomposing before it can be eaten – though this could also be a sign that you’re overfeeding your worms) check the pH. If the pH is too high you can neutralize it by adding agricultural lime.

You also won’t want to let your worms get too wet, or too dry. If things are too damp (usually because you’re adding too many high moisture items) add more dry materials such as torn-up cards or shredded newspapers. Obviously, if your worms get too dry, add a little water with a spritzer bottle until things get back to normal.

Worm Fertilizer (‘Vermicompost Tea’)

If your worm farm has a tap, you’ll want to save screw top bottles to collect the light to deep brown (depending on the worm’s diet) run off which makes a fantastic all natural, zero-waste fertilizer that you can use on any crop you’d usually provide with a few extra nutrients. Tomato and aubergine plants, both from the nightshade family particularly love this fertilizer and it is a good alternative to seaweed fertilizer if your corn or squash plants are looking a little yellow because they’ve already eaten up all available nutrients in the soil. Houseplants will enjoy it in moderation, too.

If your worm farm does not have a tap for collecting this natural fertilizer, here are some great tips for how to make it yourself from what is already in your worm farm.

Using the compost from your worm farm.

How you harvest compost from your worm farm depends on which design you’ve chosen.

Single Bin Worm Farms

If your worm farm consists of one single compartment, for example, a lidded bin design, you have two choices. Either just go ahead and use the compost, and buy more worms to replenish the farm (they’ll be happy enough living out in your garden, just check the variety of worms you have purchased will not be a danger to the natural eco-system where you live), or you can manually sort the worms from the compost.

The easiest method to do this is to empty the worm farm into a large, shallow plastic bucket or wheelbarrow and, wearing plastic gloves, sort the live worms out of the compost by hand, returning them to the worm farm along with a few extra scraps for them to feed on now you’ve removed all their compost. Worms run from light, so by dumping the compost out you’re automatically sending the worms to the middle of the pile so you can start harvesting the compost from around the edges. 

Alternatively, you can simply remove just half the compost at a time so there will be some worms remaining to reproduce.

Tiered Worm Farms

Tiered worm farms, if you have space for them are much easier to remove the compost from as your compostables will be decomposing in removable layers. If you choose to remove the worms from a layer of compost before you use it, great! If not, you won’t have to worry about buying more worms if you just go ahead and use it as there will still be plenty of worms reproducing in your worm farm. 

Regardless of the method you choose, eventually, a bin will become overrun as the worms reproduce, so you will need to let some of your worms loose in the garden eventually! 

The post Everything You Need To Know About Worm Farm Composting appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

We have gotten accustomed to the many “diet” labels – Vegan, Vegetarian, Plant-Based, Pescatarian, Gluten-free, and Paleo, to name a few. And for some like myself who eat a primarily vegetarian diet but are flexible to eat outside of those boundaries under certain circumstances, we are considered Flexitarian. For almost 20 years, it fit my personality to be less strict and rigid when I was cooking for my extended family and friends or dining out on social occasions. People outside of my culinary tutelage assumed my dietary focus was to eat organic plant-based food. But, my food decisions went far beyond eating organics and being a Flexitarian. Early on, I had chosen to live sustainably and eat the Eco-Flexitarian Way!

I share this because being a flexitarian has come with little acknowledgment like other diets because it is neither vegan nor vegetarian – and some say, even lacks real commitment. But if you are a “foodie” like me, having little or no judgment from others brings freedom for individual flexibility. If anything, it has always rewarded me with a bit more ease from others for not being so rigid about my primarily plant-based diet, since I am a Vegan Chef. As a Flexitarian, it also took a lot of stress out of dining at a friend’s home as a no-fuss guest!

But now with restaurants and society evolving more towards plant-based diets, it has gotten much easier to stand by my pickier, more “mindful” eating habits without awkwardness or ridicule. And if anything, I can more openly share with others my stance to choose my ingredients the Eco-Flexitarian Way!

Why the need for change to an Eco-Flexitarian Diet?

We’ve heard all of our lives, in order to be healthy we need to eat more fruits and vegetables. Now with climate change and its ripple effects looming over us, eating less meat is the sustainable choice for a healthy planet. As we try to incorporate more environmentally conscious ways of living, an Eco-Flexitarian Diet emphasizes being eco-conscious in all aspects of our food sources. An Eco-Flexitarian will choose food based on global factors, not just the individual health benefit from the food.

So why the need for change? Our current food systems are unsustainable. The UN projects that by 2050, the global population will have risen from 7.8 billion to 9.7 billion. But the demands we are placing on the planet to feed ourselves have already slammed up against the limits of the earth’s resources. Soil fertility is declining in the industrialized world, thanks in part to agriculture, practices like overgrazing, pesticide and fertilizer use, and erosion.

We’re flailing as a species to keep the planet’s temperature from rising 2 degrees Celsius. This tipping point would cause sea levels to rise 4 inches and create a worldwide crisis as people are forced to flee flooded lands or are too hot and arid to productively farm. At the same time, demand for meat is projected to increase by 88% between 2010 – 2050, and there’s no way to supply it. Half of the world’s habitable land is already devoted to agriculture – and 77% of that is used for livestock and feed.

How does eating meat affect the environment?

Meat from ruminants (beef, sheep, and goat) is by far the most resource-intensive food, a 2019 WRI report on a creating sustainable food future concluded. “It requires over 20 times more land and generates over 20 times more greenhouse gas emissions than pulses (like beans and peas) per gram of protein. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that around 9% of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions worldwide come from producing meat & dairy, some from growing animal feed, and some in the form of methane – the belches and farts from cattle. In the US, the EPA estimates livestock represents 4% of the total US greenhouse gas emissions, a little less than the world’s %.

Beef requires over 20 times more land to produce than pulses like chickpeas or lentils (per kg of protein)

WRI, Creating a Sustainable Food Future, July 2019

Did you know: The average American eats about 68 lbs of beef — roughly half is in the form of a burger.

Simply reducing meat intake, will have a positive effect on the environment. But choosing meat from Regenerative Farms which practice rotational grazing is the Eco-Flexitarian solution for occasionally eating meat.

Regenerative Agriculture is an additional solution – cattle grazing on land managed through rotational grazing produced a carbo sink = 6.5 kg of CO2 per 1 kg beef. Conventional farming emits 33kg of CO2 per 1 kg beef. Compare to a plant-based Impossible Burger which emitted 3.5 kg of CO2.

Quantis study

Regenerative Agriculture serves a purpose in our ecosystem and should be supported. Tech companies are looking to develop ways to measure and pay the farmer for sequestering carbon in their soils. This will incentivize ranchers to switch to more sustainable practices that will be a win-win for everyone. Want to read more about Regenerative Farming? Read our article on it here.

Will changing my diet really make a difference in climate change? 

Reducing the amount of beef we eat will make a tremendous difference, A 2018 journal Science – found that a mostly plant-based diet would reduce the land required to produce food by an area as big as Africa and lower the amount of GHG enough to offset the total amount produced in the US annually – 6.6 billion metric tons.

Can you still eat fish and be an Eco-Flexitarian?

You may think that fish is a more sustainable choice than land animals, but the fish in our oceans are in trouble as well. We may even be past the point where fish can be sustainably harvested. Ocean pollution has caused many fish and ocean plant life to die off and we have a long way to go to recover from harmful practices. The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch is available online or as an app to guide you to better choices when dining out or determining which fish to purchase.

Just like choosing your better sources of meat, you can also be mindful about the fish you choose to eat. The Mindful fork shares more insight on how to choose seafood more wisely for your own health and that of the planet. Check out our Resource Page for tips on choosing seafood.

What is Eating the Eco-Flexitarian Way?

An Eco-Flexitarian will ask these questions when choosing food:

• how is this ingredient sourced – is it sustainable? fair trade?
• is the produce local, organic, seasonal?
• are the animals humanely treated and raised on a regenerative farm
• are fish farmed sustainably? if wild, it must not be overfished/inhumanely treated
• are the products packaged with biodegradable or recyclable materials?
• is the company I’m supporting with my purchase , respectable to the sustainable goals during production , packaging and shipping?
• what is the carbon footprint of what I’m eating and does it balance out with my own carbon footprint?
• am I being mindful about zero-waste with my choices?

An Eco-Flexitarian will eat more plants, support small farms, shop farmers’ markets, avoid industrial meat, select sustainably raised fish, waste less food, support eco-conscious food products, increase your food budget and cook from scratch whenever possible.

The Mindful Fork’s Mission is to share recipes and information so you can make these decisions for yourself and feel good about them at the end of the day. None of us want to be told what to do, but we all have to accept that we play a part in what lies ahead for our planet. Getting empowered with the knowledge to do the best that you can today is an incredible feeling. An eco-flexitarian does just that, so why not eat the Eco-Flexitarian Way!

The post Live Sustainably And Eat The Eco-Flexitarian Way appeared first on The Mindful Fork.

Written By Rachel Phipps

Making sustainable choices when it comes to our weekly grocery shop is getting easier. More information is available every day to help us make better choices by choosing sustainable meat, responsibly farmed fish, and vegetable boxes grown by our local farmers. But how sustainable are the dried herbs and spices in our spice rack, and how easy is it to find the information on sustainability and fair farming practices relating to the spices we buy?

I write recipes for a living, so it follows that I spend a lot more time sourcing my ingredients than might be considered normal. I’m gradually locating independent butchers where I can source sustainable and traceable meat. Most of my fish comes directly from the family who owns the day boats. And, I buy the fruits and vegetables I don’t grow myself, from the local farm shops.

However, I have never once considered the provenience of any of the dried herbs and spices nestled in my spice rack. 

I write an ingredient-focused newsletter (called ingredient), and in my July edition, I focused on sumac. Doing my research, I was fascinated by an article I stumbled upon by a blogger in Canada who harvested his own sumac for culinary use. This got me thinking, should our approach to be more sustainable when sourcing our herbs and spices be twofold? Should we not just be taking more of an interest into where and how our herbs and spices are sourced, but also, if we have the space available, be making more of an effort to cultivate our own?

First, what are the sustainability issues surrounding dried herbs and spices that we should be considering? Well, obviously there are the usual agricultural questions as herbs and spices are, after all, a crop: if they’re grown and harvested using sustainable and non intensive or invasive farming techniques with the lowest environmental impact as possible. But, when it comes to spices especially, I think the question is more of an ethical, rather than an environmental one. For centuries the global spice supply chain has relied on middle man after middle man, often exploiting the people and ecosystems of spice-rich countries for financial gain. In choosing our dried herbs and spices the biggest question we really ought to be asking ourselves is if the farmer who produced our little jar of spice has fair working conditions, and if they are receiving a fair price for the spices they grow and harvest? Looking after our planet is important, but looking after the people who live on it is important too.

Grocery Store Spices

In an ideal world, we would all be buying everything we eat directly from the producer, but, realistically, most of our dried herbs and spices come from the grocery store.

“Sustainability” is the buzz word all grocery stores are putting at the heart of their corporate mission, and pretty much every company website has an easy to find sustainability policy, quite a few of them broken down across areas such as pork and dairy farming, fish and shellfish, soy, coffee, tea and cocoa. I searched and browsed statements from every grocery store I can think of here in the UK and every one I used to shop at in the US (to cover the whole of America I’d be reading sustainability statements long into next week!) Consumer demand for more transparency in the food chain has forced the big names to make this information available, even if the quality and extent of this information varies wildly. 

Everyone has different pressures on their time and budget, so if buying store branded spices from the grocery store is what works for you, take the time to see what information is available for where you shop as in most cases it is possible to find information about the general sustainability of all of the products sold at most stores, if not the individual products, so it is possible to make a more informed choice about where you want to send your custom. I’ll delve a bit more into this in a moment, but shopping organic and fairtrade is always a good place to start as at least you can be sure of a basic set of standards your spices will need to have reached.

Big Brands

So what about name brands? Most all of my non-own brand herbs and spices are sold by Barts and Schwartz, which is the UK brand name for McCormick products, that I used in my Los Angeles kitchen. I know Frontier Co-op, and Simply Organic are pretty popular US brands, the former owning the latter. 

• Barts seemed the best bet from my own kitchen, noting on some labels if the product is Fairtrade and or organic, which is both encouraging and organic certification is something that is at least legally protected. The only spice where they dive a little deeper into on their website – because there is a lot more press surrounding the issues – was to clarify that their cinnamon is sourced in Sri Lanka, and that it is pure cinnamon, rather than cassia bark.
• Schwartz / McCormick had more impressive sustainability practices. The information on their spice products was much easier to find on their website. Schwartz / McCormick put more of an emphasis on their UK website on how their involvement in the food chain and work with farmers helps improve quality rather than sustainability, but they do encourage consumers to get in touch about any further sourcing questions they may have. Also, on the US based McCormick corporate website there is more of a specific focus on environmental sustainability, with case studies actually diving into some of the more popular herbs and spices in our kitchens.
• Frontier Co-op are very clear both on their website about their sustainability practices, and in as much detail as could fit on their actual packaging, too, so you can be confident shopping in store.

Overwhelmingly, I’ve discovered that if we want more information about the dried herbs and spices we buy from big vendors, we need to ask for it. The information is already there for big-issue products such as coca, coffee and bananas. With a sustainability focused mission statement now an essential for these businesses, they will put the information out there if enough people ask for it.

Shopping Small 

So we’ve covered the big brands, but if you’re happy to go small and independent, how easy is it to find what we’re looking for? 

Twitter and Instagram shout outs to my followers landed me with so many websites for spices packaged here in the UK, some of which claim to be sustainable, but without much information on their websites about how their spices are sourced. The Fairtrade label was helpful tracking ethical sourcing (the Fairtrade label I’m used to, as well as many others appear on US products, but be careful a label actually means what you think it does). But, once I started to dig into places I was already a customer I was pleasantly surprised to find Steenbergs commit to ethically sourcing organic and eco-friendly products across their range of herbs, spiced and teas, and state that they are a carbon-neutral company.

• Diaspora, a company that ships across the US focuses on sourcing single origin spices using regenerative farming techniques, and on creating a fair and equatable supply chain for Indian spice farmers. Their website is so clear and informative, also explaining why sourcing sustainable spices are so important. Their spice jars are super cute, too.  
• Burlap & Barrel also seems to be an excellent shout if you want to properly dig into the human impact of the supply chain and support equitable sourcing. 
• Daphnis and Chloe, founded in Athens, are another supplier I’m bookmarking – they ship across the US, EU and to the UK – you can point to their Mediterranean grown herbs and spices almost exactly on a map.
• Pinch Spice Market may not have the fancy branding, but they also look like a fantastic option if you’re into buying blends as well as whole and ground spices. They are impressibly transparent about their practices, sourcing and ethos. Also, I like that you can choose big refill bags or tins for the lowest packaging option that works for you, and that if you’re based near Louisville, Kentucky you can also shop their spice vending machine! 

I’ve purposely focused on independent storefronts that stock a wide range of sustainable spices here because while some fantastic brands out there specialize in single spices, I wholeheartedly believe that you should be focusing on buying these when you come across them in brick and mortar stores. Not only do these tremendous physical stores need our support, but there is less of an environmental impact without the packaging required to ship individual items from online stores. 

Cultivating Your Own Dried Herbs & Spices

As for producing your own, it depends on the resources and climate available to you. Herbs are the obvious easy choice; most of you reading this English language article will live in an environment where almost all herbs can easily be grown outside at least some of the year, and fresh herb pots also thrive indoors on a kitchen windowsill or using a herb planter with a fitted UV light. 

There is also a range of drying options available to fit your space and budget, from investing in a dehydrator to drying them in your oven or by simply hanging them in a bunch to dry in a suitable spot. Gardening Know How has some great tips.

Cultivating your own spices is where it gets a bit tricky, as most spices are not really suited to a Western climate. However, there are a few starting points, some of which are simpler than others. 

• I rather like the idea of trying to produce my own coriander seeds; as us Brits who call cilantro coriander will know they’re the same plant, and something I can happily grow in England. 
• Mustard seeds are also an obvious one as mustard plants are already popular in borders.
• All it would take to make your own chili powder from home grown chillies would be to dry or dehydrate them using an oven or dehydrator before going at them with a good spice grinder. 
• If you’re a keen vegetable gardener, you might already be growing fennel which you can then again harvest the seeds from.

So what have we learned?

If we want to make truly sustainable choices when it comes to our spice racks, there are a few options. As I’ve just discovered, with a little time set aside – perfect if you’re one of those Sunday meal prep people – it is possible to cultivate some of your own herbs and spices at home without special equipment and very little space, and also to do some basic research on the things you can’t grow yourself so that you can make informed choices about ethical and sustainable sourcing regardless of your personal circumstances.

For me, it is going to be about making more informed choices leading to a gradual change. I’m going to make more of an effort to source my spices from more sustainable independent options when I’m able to cut down on unnecessary packaging by placing a big order. Otherwise I am going to carry on buying grocery store dried herbs and spices, trying to focus on brands who have shared as much information as possible to reassure me about sustainability. I’m also going to attempt a few dried herbs towards the end of the summer with plants that will die back once we hit winter here in our changeable British climate.

If you want to learn more about choosing and storing spices, check out TMF Resources – Spices.

The post How sustainable are the spices in our spice rack? appeared first on The Mindful Fork.