Beetles for Breakfast?

When I was in college I travelled to South Korea to stay with a good friend and her family who lived in Seoul.  During my visit they introduced me to many of the local traditions, including many cuisine and food-related customs. Imagine my never-been-out-of-the-U.S.-before surprise when one of their favorite delicacies was silk worms! What!? I marveled at the women cooking these worms in pots on fire pits outside at a traditional Korean festival.

Although exotic to me, many cultures regularly consume "insects" as protein sources.  An estimated 2.5 billion people regularly consume insects. The United Kingdom is considering adding insect protein to its food supply. The basic reason to include insects in the diet is to provide a non-animal protein source. Read more about it in Insect and food pyramids could help reduce meat consumption , which sourced info from a new article in the journal Appetite called, "Can we cut out the meat of the dish? Constructing consumer-oriented pathways towards meat substitution."

Are you trying to reduce your meat consumption? If so, here are ways that Dining can help you with that goal:

• try Meatless Monday dishes at the grill every Monday at all 5 residential restaurants
• visit Roots, the all-vegan restaurant on Muir College
• choose the vegetarian or vegan options available daily; check Dining's site for the green VT label (vegetarian) or blue VG label (vegan)
• utilize the salad bar
• order a vegetarian sandwich at the deli
• who says you have to have an entree? try a meal of 3 vegetarian "sides" such as the vegetarian soup, a spinach leaf salad with garbanzo beans and tomatoes, and a yogurt
• choose veggie options at a Place & Market
• no, Dining is NOT serving bugs!

Happy Meatless Monday!

El Capitan at Roots

My lunch - El Capitan from Roots

I LOVE Roots, the all-vegan restaurant on Muir College and I have a new favorite menu item since my old favorite, the Grant Grove, was not popular among students last quarter and has been switched out for some new ones.  My new favorite, El Capitan, is a sun-dried tomato Italian Tofurky sausage with sauteed peppers and onions and vegan "mozzarella."  I love the flavor of the tofurky combined with the peppers and onions.

You definitely don't have to be vegan to enjoy the deliciousness that is Roots.  It's also a really nice, serene, and extremely close-by alternative to the nearly always busy Pines restaurant. Check it out and try a vegan meal. Here is Roots menu. 

Are you looking for some vegan/vegetarian info?
Then check out this cool Vegan MyPlate from the Vegetarian Resource Group, which is a vegetarian advocacy group that hails from one of the most awesome places ever: Baltimore. (GO RAVENS!)

Are You Keen on Quinoa?

I've heard the word quinoa pronounced many different ways but here's the deal, it's KEEN-wah.  I like it when people say kwah-NO-ah, though; that's just fun.

Anyway, quinoa is healthy and really getting popular in the U.S. these days, which is neat because it's been used in South America for thousands of years.  Dining's executive chef Vaughn Vargus likes quinoa so much that he even included it in a culinary competition he was in last year. Here's Chef Vaughn providing a cooking demo at the Zone.

UC San Diego Dining's executive chef Vaughn Vargus, CEC, CCA

Why eat quinoa?

• it's yummy
• it's higher in protein than most grains**
• it can be eaten all sorts of ways
• it's vegan
• it's gluten-free for those who need gluten-free options
• it's filling

**Technically quinoa is not actually a grain. The Whole Grains Council says that, "Botanically, quinoa is related to beets, chard and spinach, and in fact the leaves can be eaten as well as the grains." Read more about it here.

Where can you get some quinoa on campus right now? At Roots! Check out the Half Dome, a
multi grain burger made of red quinoa, barley & cornmeal on a vegan roll.

Tofu Enchiladas at Plaza Cafe

I've returned to UC San Diego from maternity leave and have jumped right back into eating in the various Dining Services outlets. 

On Friday I had lunch at Plaza Cafe on Revelle College - my lunch is pictured above.  The enchiladas were made with tofu. Both the enchiladas and black beans had a nice kick to them from jalapenos.  This meal was vegetarian. I went back to get some salsa verde (not pictured) to add a little more color to my meal. Usually I'd eat a nice green vegetable or salad with this meal but I was really pressed for time.

My favorite thing about this meal: There was a nice balance of protein (mainly from the tofu, beans and cheese), fat (mainly from the cheese), fiber (mainly from the beans) and carbohydrates (mainly from the tortillas and beans.)

Delicious, hearty, and high fiber.

Why You Might Be Wrong When You Think, "I Need To Eat More Protein"

People often ask me how much protein they need and are almost always surprised by my estimate of their daily recommended amount. It's likely that the amount of protein that you need is less than what you are used to consuming on a daily basis.

The average male needs approximately 65 grams of protein per day while the average female needs 55 grams protein per day. Of course, there is variation among people but those ballpark figures should help you to understand that consuming sufficient protein is relatively easy for most people, even vegetarians!

Eating too much protein can be a bad thing on two fronts:
1) your health - if you eat too much animal-based protein, especially processed meats or red meats (anything from lunchmeat to hot dogs to chicken fingers to steaks), you could be raising your risk of heart disease and cancer.
2) your environmental impact - the amount of energy it takes to get animal-based food products all the way to your plate is tremendous. There is a significant amount of water consumption that goes into one piece of steak. Perhaps that is a newer way to think about how we eat...but it's becoming more important as we look at global water shortages and environmental impacts.

Here is a pretty cool summary article on the topic of protein consumption with information from my favorite nutrition professor, Marion Nestle, of NYU: http://shine.yahoo.com/event/green/how-much-protein-do-you-really-need-2523319/

Dining Services has joined the Meatless Monday movement by offering only meatless options at the grill station of our 5 residential restaurants every Monday from September through June (the academic year.)

Legume Love

I am a big fan of legumes - they are nutrient powerhouses, vegetarian sources of protein, fiber-rich and affordable.

Check out this article from Mayo Clinic on many different types of legumes and their uses:

http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/library/legumes/NU00260.html

And visit Dining Services locations this summer - we serve lots of legumes!

LiveWell on the Weekend!?

Yes, you can "LiveWell" on the weekends too! All Dining Services restaurants have healthy, RD-approved LiveWell meals on the weekends too.

One of my personal favorite LiveWell meals is available today at Oceanview Terrace on Marshall College. It's the Sweet Potato Burrito - sounds weird but it's tasty!


Look for the LiveWell logo (pictured at right) to find the LiveWell meal in your Dining restaurant. You will also see the Nutrition Facts posted right by the meal.

Have a great weekend!

LiveWell with Vegetarian Gnocchi today at Pines

Today's LiveWell meal at Pines restaurant on Muir College is one of my favorites, the Vegetarian Potato Gnocchi.

I like this dish because it's tasty and filling but also contains veggies like zucchini, cherry tomatoes, spinach and shallots. The recipe also calls for parmesan cheese so the recipe meets vegetarian but not vegan requirements.

If you are vegan and would like to try this dish, please ask to speak with the manager on duty. We can make the dish for you without the parmesan cheese. All other ingredients meet vegan requirements.

Eat Right With Color, It's National Nutrition Month!

March is National Nutrition Month and this year's theme is Eat Right With Color.

Eating Right With Color can be accomplished by eating soup!

The picture to the right is of my vegan vegetable soup from Plaza Cafe. This soup contains several types of colors and veggies: green peas, white potatoes, orange carrots, yellow corn, green beans.

Soup is also soothing, particularly on a chilly day, and its volume tends to fill you up on fewer calories, which can be good if you're trying to lose weight.

You can find soup at every Dining Services' location. The healthier choices are broth-based (not cream-based) and contain a bunch of vegetables. Each restaurant serves at least one vegetarian soup daily.

If you have a favorite soup recipe, please send it to me! It will be considered for rotation into Dining's menu.

Mmmmm, hummus

Check out today's vegetarian special at Pines restaurant: the hummus plate with pita, cucumbers, tomatoes and lettuce. Ah, the humble chickpea - it's a vegetarian source of protein, fiber and deliciousness.

Meatless Mondays in Dining Services

Calling all vegetarians! You asked for more vegetarian options and, among other efforts, Dining Services offers Meatless Mondays at every restaurant location. At the grill of each restaurant every Monday, you will find all vegetarian choices.

Hey, meat-eaters! Don't be shy - try a meatless option. You might find that you love it!

Pictured above: the Chana Masala from today's Meatless Monday at OceanView Terrace on Marshall College. This dish is vegetarian and healthy - it's high in fiber and a good source of protein from the main ingredient, chickpeas.

LiveWell Lunch today at Plaza Cafe

Today's LiveWell option at Plaza Cafe is the Curried Chicken with Indian Dahl. The picture here is of my lunch today. I had rice and steamed veggies on the side with my chicken and dahl (lentils). This dish is high in fiber and protein...and it's tasty!

If you are vegan or vegetarian, you can choose just the Dahl (which we make separately from the chicken).

Nutrition Facts for the Curried Chicken with Indian Dahl:

440 calories

11g fat

11g fiber

49g protein

LiveWell Gnocchi at Pines restaurant today

Here is the LiveWell meal at Pines restaurant today. It's gnocchi or "potato pasta."

Nutrition Facts:

• 350 calories
• 4.5g fiber
• 10.5g protein
• vegetarian

Meatless Monday!

Every Monday is Meatless Monday at all Dining Services' grill stations. If you are a meat-eater, don't freak out! Reducing your animal fat intake could improve your health (lowering cancer and heart disease risk). Veggie meals also take less energy to produce so, in essence, those greens are green!

Here are some Meatless Monday options for today:

Plaza Cafe: Soy Sloppy Joe's, Philly Soysteaks, Veggies w/Swiss on Flatbread

OVT: Cheese Ravioli with veggies and garlic bread

Cafe V: Vyro sandwich, Black Bean burger, Boca burgers, Grilled Veggie Quesadilla, 3-Cheese Grilled Sandwich

Pines: Eggplant & Hummus Grilled Sandwich, Veggie Loaf

Have a great Meatless Monday!

Mmmm, good at Goody's

Goody's burritos are AWESOME but there are other choices from this restaurant, including the Grilled Veggies sandwich pictured at right.

This sandwich is vegetarian if you choose the one with cheese. If you are vegan, feel free to order this sandwich "without cheese." Also feel free to request a different bread.

There are many ways to get your daily vegetables and having a sandwich piled high with veggies is a good one! ...or should I say a "Goody's one!?"

Goody's Goodies

I met a friend from the Wellness Center (http://wellness.ucsd.edu/ ) for lunch at Goody's Place today. Chef Vaughn (Dining Services' executive chef) also joined us. The 3 of us talked about vegan and vegetarian eating on campus while munching on some delicious Goody's food.

Here is a photo of my lunch: a burrito bowl with cilantro rice, pinto beans, lettuce, guacamole, fajita vegetables, cheese, tomato salsa and fire-roasted salsa. My choice today was vegetarian. If you prefer a vegan option, you could order this same bowl just without the cheese.

Southwestern Vegetarian Salad Special

Plaza Cafe has specialty salads in the refrigerated areas of their rotisserie station (in the middle of the restaurant). This Southwestern Vegetarian salad has a black bean burger atop romaine lettuce, tomatoes, corn, shredded cheese, avocado, cilantro and green onions. It's your choice of dressing from the salad bar.



This salad is quick (it's already made for you!), healthy, and a good bargain at $5.95.

Vegetarian? Flexitarian? Check it out!

Here is a delicious meal from Plaza Cafe. It's vegetarian but even a non-vegetarian could get into it! This meal is a penne pasta with sun-dried tomato and feta cheese with a side of steamed zucchini. I also added a salad with some kidney and garbanzo beans to bump up the protein.

In a Rush? Use a Market to do Fast and Healthy

Sometimes you need a meal that you can just grab and take with you - to class, to your room or on your way. Here is my lunch from Goody's Market (the lower level) on TMC. I had a Fresh2U "Just Veggies" salad and added hummus to it for a protein boost. I also had a fresh apple for some sweetness.

I had about half of the salad and one big scoop of hummus so I saved the rest for later. This meal was quick, healthy and vegetarian.

Rolling Healthy Through Roger's on Revelle

Roger's Place & Market on Revelle College is a great place to hang out, shoot some pool, watch TV or grab a coffee. You can also buy healthy food and beverages at Roger's.

I got this healthy "meal of snacks" there. I had pumpkin seeds, organic carrots with ranch dip, and a black cherry yogurt. This nutritious meal was quick, tasty and vegetarian and full of fiber and calcium and...ok, you get the picture.