Meatless Monday's

During  WWI, the government started the idea of “meatless Monday’s” in which citizens were encouraged to skip eating meat on Monday’s to help war efforts.  This was revived in 2003 as it is good for our health, environment and wallets.  As stated in my last blog (Juicing: Fad or Fab?) North Americans consume 60% of there food from process and refined products, 30% from animal products, 5% from grains and white potatoes, and 5% from fruits and vegetables.  Not only does reducing the amount of animal products help our health, but it also gives our digestive system a break.  We are doing it all wrong.  We rush around all day grazing on processed and refined foods that are loaded with chemicals and then we come home after work and inhale a box of crackers (with MSG) while we put dinner on.  We need to be front loading our day with good nutrition.  I’m not suggesting everyone should go vegetarian, that is a personal choice, but really look at how much meat we are consuming on a daily and weekly basis.  Don’t forget plants are a great source of protein.  Did you know that one cup of raw pumpkin seeds have 40 grams of protein!  I love lightly toasting pumpkin seeds and adding them to my salads. 

It requires a lot of energy for our digestive system to break down animal protein.  If we are consuming too much too fast, we are not going to absorb the nutrients as efficiently.  I’m sure you have all heard of the saying “you are what you eat”.  Well take it one step further to “we are what we eat and what we digest”.  If our digestive system is sluggish, we won’t be absorbing the needed nutrients from our foods.  Less is more.  If we are consuming healthy vegetables and fruits (did you notice I said vegetables and fruits, not fruits and vegetables? Get more veggies!), nuts and seeds, fermented foods and animal products in moderation, our digestive system will thank you for it.  Our toxic load will be decreased allowing us to now lose unwanted fat.  This is the first step to weight loss.  We have to start including real live foods into our diets and eventually they will crowd out the bad foods and our bodies will thank us for it!  What are you having for dinner tonight?  Try this easy Chickpea Quinoa Burger recipe for Meatless Monday and serve it with a fresh salad or veggies.  Your digestive system will thank you for it!

• 1 yam
• 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
• 1 cup quinoa, prepared according to package instructions
• 1 (14 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 small onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup fresh spinach, tightly packed
• 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons sesame tahini
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce*
• salt and pepper, to taste
• a little g-free flour, for dusting the burger patties *Optional

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