Lentils, Beans and Peas in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans

Legumes - Plant-based Protein

The 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) are underway! Nutrition experts on the DGA Advisory Board have been busy over the past few years with researching the updates that aim to promote better health to prevent disease. The DGA gets updated every five years by the US government's Health and Human Services and the US Department of Agriculture. Public comments have already been received. In fact, they received the most comments ever so far in DGA history with greater than 9,900 comments to date. Another public comment period is still open until February 10, 2025.

At the DGA last recorded meeting in 2024, the nutrition team were discussing considerations for reclassification of beans, lentils and peas from the vegetable subgroup to either their own category or perhaps to the protein food group. Personally, I think the shift to the protein food group in MyPlate would be good because it will highlight plant-based protein options. 

Legumes like beans, lentils and peas are full of vitamins and minerals, especially iron, zinc, potassium, folate and dietary fiber. Legumes are also known to be sustainable foods, which is helpful for the environment; a win for public health and a win for the planet!

Below is a video about the many varieties of lentils that can add nutrition to your meals.

#haveaplant

 

Related Links

Scientific Report of the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines

How to Cook Lentils

Nutrition benefits of Peas 

Power Packed Proteins all about Beans

Blog post Copyright (C)Wind. All rights reserved.

Debunking the paleo diet | Christina Warinner | TEDxOU #gardencuizine

Romanesco #gardencuizine #haveaplant

Incredible Edible

 

Meet Romanesco, one of the wildest looking veggies on the planet! This fascinating, Italian heirloom veggie is sometimes called Fractal Broccoli. This beauty was grown in New Jersey! If you see it at your local farmers market or grocery story give it a try. It's super nutritious and you can eat it and prepare it as you would broccoli or cauliflower. The head is chartreuse and the leaves are green of course; although purple leaves would make it even cooler!!

Related Links

If you Love Cauliflower, it might be time to try Romenesco

Incredible Edible

Photograph Copyright (C)Wind Photography. All rights reserved.

Pioneer in NJ history of Natural Foods and Organic Produce #GardenCuizine @SouthJerseyMag @EatRight_NJ

South Jersey Pioneer Woman in history of Organic Produce

The recent news of my sister and nephew taking jobs in a company selling organic produce is heartwarming. Our mother, in heaven must be smiling! The late Junetta S. Mehl and I were leaders in bringing organic produce to South Jersey. 

The demand for Organic produce appears strong. Even with the higher costs and inflation related to the pandemic.

Now, having worked for over 10 years in each career, my journey from business owner to Registered Dietitian Nutritionist feels like it has come full circle! My business Garden of Eden Natural Foods and Country Kitchen, Inc. was among the first places in South Jersey where the community could buy a variety of organically grown produce. 

We sold all kinds of organic fruits and vegetables from organic kale to organic carrots. Organic carrots were a popular feature in fresh squeezed organic carrot juice at our juice bar. Customers in the Garden's 60-seat restaurant loved the 100% pure fruit smoothies!

I remember the days driving to Kennett Square to Albert's Organics to pick up cases and 50 lb bags of organic produce. I would take my dog Aspen on the drive too. Those were the days!

Upon arrival to Albert's, sometimes I'd have a chance to chat with Albert and his wife, Claris. They were from LA. He opened Albert's in 1980. This was back in the day before Whole Foods opened in Marlton, NJ. Albert's Organics grew into the largest wholesale distributor in the US.

In 1987, Garden of Eden was the hub for everything natural and organic. During the 1980's demand for natural and organic foods was rapidly growing. So was the explosion of technology. The Internet was born around 1983!

When Whole Foods did arrive in town, they started out as Fresh Fields. Natural Foods sales became big business. According to Natural Foods Merchandiser (The Evolution of an Industry), natural foods sales in the US grew from 1,900 million in 1980 to 4,640 million in 1991. 

Related Links

Growing Organic Demand

Photographs and blog post Copyright (C)Wind. All rights reserved. Portrait photo of Diana Wind (C) Harry Wind. All rights reserved.

@RowanUniversity #RowanPROUD Bridgeton Schools Veggie Train! #GardenCuizine

 Veggie Train

Choo Choo... here comes the nutritious and delicious Veggie Train!! Last week, Rowan dietetic intern Ms. Lyndsay showed students at Bridgeton Public Schools how fun it is to nourish their bodies. 

 "Feeding education is always on the menu" is the philosophy at New Jersey, Bridgeton Public Schools Food Service Department. The Vegetable Train included colorful bell peppers, cucumbers for the wheels with grapes, celery and carrots for the cargo. This train shown above was created by special education children. 

This creative nutrition education lesson was lead by one of Rowan University's future Registered Dietitian Nutritionists, Ms. Lyndsay. She is participating in what Rowan calls "Supervised Practice".  

Supervised practice experiences are included in Rowan's Coordinated Masters in Nutrition & Dietetics curriculum. The curriculum is designed to meet the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) Core Knowledge and Competencies required for students who plan to become Registered Dietitians.

Great job Lyndsay! Special thanks to preceptor Ms. Allison!

Photos like this make me proud to be a supportive adjunct faculty member at Rowan.

Copyright (C) Rowan Dietetic Intern Lyndsay; photo used with permission.

Jersey Fresh @BurlCoNJ Cabbage and Radish for homemade Sauerkraut #gardencuizine #probiotics @eatright

Homemade Sauerkraut with Radish 

We stopped by our local farmers market at Burlington County Ag Center yesterday. In addition to Jersey corn and fresh peaches and cherries, we picked up a whole head of cabbage and a bunch of spicy red radish to make homemade sauerkraut. 

I used the same recipe that was already posted here on GardenCuizine.com, but I will mention it again since it is so quick and easy.

You will need 1 head of cabbage. The first time I made sauerkraut, I used a supermarket cabbage. It was good; but, this time I'm using an even fresher head of cabbage from our local farmer's market. I can already see a difference in the amount of brine. Fresh picked cabbage has more water. 

Rinse and peel off any damaged leaves. Slice in half. Remove the core. Slice ribbons similar to coleslaw and put in a large bowl. I used a large stainless steel bowl and had it on a digital scale so I could weigh the cabbage. Our sliced cabbage weighed almost 4 lbs. Note: don't forget to tare the bowl on the scale first so you don't count the weight of the bowl.

We also added a small bunch of spicy red radish. Rinse and slice and add to the cabbage.

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of course salt (not iodized) per 2 lbs. of sliced cabbage. I used just under 2 tablespoons since the weight was just under 4 lbs. Massage the salt into the veggies. I wore food safe plastic gloves.

Place the prepared veggies loosely into your desired mason jars or crock. Tamp down with a wooden spoon and cover the jars. Brine will increase over time. 

I debated on what to use to cover the jars. What do you use to cover your jars? I decided to use a paper towel under the screw caps. That way any natural gases that occur in the fermenting process can escape. 

I still may end up covering the jars with the metal lids so the brine does not evaporate. The gases can still be released when I open the jar daily to tamp the cabbage down beneath the brine.

Photos Copyright (C)Wind. All rights reserved.

Dad's Pickled Beets with Eggs #GardenCuizine Brain Health #recipe

Dad's Pickled Beets with Eggs

Growing up, I remember loving pink, hard cooked eggs. The eggs were served family style in a bowl with pickled beets that Dad made. Funny, all these years gone by since his passing (RIP Dad) and I've never made pickled beets and eggs until now. I made them using last week's leftover hard cooked eggs and 3 whole beets in the cooking liquid that I saved from my kid's "Brain Health" cooking class.

• Eggs contain many beneficial nutrients, including: protein, Vitamin D and Choline. Choline is good for brain health.

To make Pickled Beets with Eggs, cook however many eggs and beets you want to use. One medium beet per person works well. You can use canned beets, but it is so easy to cook your own. Or, better yet, grow your own! 

Whole beets are readily available in the produce section in markets. Simply cut the tops off (compost or use the greens in another recipe), leaving a 1/2-inch on the beet. Rinse and place unpeeled beets in a saucepan. Cover with plenty of water and boil until tender when pierced. Refrigerate. (I leave the cooked beets whole in the cooking liquid until ready to peel and eat.)

Ingredients

Hard cooked eggs
Cooked, peeled, sliced beets 
Beet water - reserved from cooking
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Putting it all together

1. Peel your cooked eggs and add to a large mason jar
2. In a medium sized pot, add sliced beets and their cooking liquid
3. Add the vinegar, sugar and cinnamon; bring to a boil, gently stir to combine
4. Reduce heat to simmer; when the cinnamon looks blended in an all combined, turn off heat. Allow to cool at least 15 min. before transferring to the egg jar. 
5. Let sit another 10-15 min. to color eggs. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve family style at the table.

If you're eating the beets at a meal, they taste great served warm or cold. Save your leftovers! 

I don't like the eggs soaked overnight in the beet liquid; they soak up too much natural color. Save leftover naturally dyed eggs in a separate container without liquid. Pink eggs make a healthy snack!

Enjoy!

Nutrition Data Beets: 1/2 cup slices (85g): 37 calories; 8.5g total carbohydrate; Dietary Fiber 2g; Folate 68 mcg (17% DV); Potassium 259mg (7% DV) plus other nutrients
Blog post and photos Copyright (C)Wind. All rights reserved.

Oyster Mushroom Nutrition @GardenCuizine #GardenCuizine

Oyster Mushrooms

Excellent Source: Niacin
Good Source: Potassium

Oyster Mushroom Nutrition: 1 cup sliced = 3g Protein (wow!), Niacin (21% DV); Potassium (10% DV), Riboflavin (18% DV); source Fiber, Folate, Iron, Zinc* and other important nutrients.

*Unlike Oyster shellfish, which are high in Zinc, Oyster Mushrooms are low in Zinc. One cup sliced Oyster Mushrooms contains 4% Daily Value of Zinc.

Where can I find them in NJ?

• Drop the Beet Farms

462 Adelphia Road
East Freehold, New Jersey 07728

• Whole Foods 
• Local Farmers Markets

Related Links
Drop the Beet Farms 
Oyster Mushroom Recipes

Blog post Copyright (C)Wind. All rights reserved.