Meatless Mondays

  Meatless Monday--It's a new trend out there, even has it's own website: http://www.meatlessmonday.com/ .  But actually, it's not a new trend, the history is described on the website as

• During World War I, the U.S. Food Administration urged families to reduce consumption of key staples to aid the war effort. “Food Will Win the War,” the government proclaimed, and “Meatless Monday” and “Wheatless Wednesday” were introduced to encourage Americans to do their part.
• The campaign returned during World War II and beyond, when Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman used rationing to help feed war-ravaged Europe.
• In 2003 Meatless Monday was recreated as public health awareness program in association with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for a Livable Future. The campaign was endorsed by over 20 schools of public health. Its goal was to help Americans reduce their risk of preventable disease by cutting back saturated fat.

I only recently found out about this a few months ago and we have been following it (most weeks!).  The website has LOTS of yummy recipes and ideas and most are very easy to make.

So, you are probably asking, "Why go meatless?" Well, first of all it's just 1 day a week, but skipping one meal of eating meat does have health benefits--reduce heart disease, fight diabetes, and help with weight issues, just to name a few.

But you know what else?  If you don't eat meat 1 day a week, think of how much money you are saving!  Next time you are shopping, compare the price of a bag of dried beans to the price of a steak, or even chicken breasts. 

So, what's our Meatless Monday Menu for today?  Lunch=veggie stir fry and Dinner=black eyed peas, turnip greens, and cornbread (my hubby picked this one!).  Yummy!

Have you ever tried going meatless?