Healthy Holiday Meals – Tips on How to Stay Green and Healthy During the Holiday Season
I’ve written a lot about the importance of eating organic and pasture-raised produce and meats. And it’s just as important to eat sustainably grown and raised foods during the holiday season when most of our festivities involve lots of food.
Now, you might think that will mean your food bill will be way too much for you to afford. But there are ways to minimize your costs. You can order your veggies and meats from a farm, either as part of a regular Community Supported Agriculture subscription or as a one-off purchase.
British Columbia has many organic farms that offer direct sales. My favourites include:
- Close to Home Organics
- Earth Apple Organic Farm
- Crisp Organics
- Klippers Organic Acres
- Fresh Roots Urban Farm
- Whispering Winds Ranch
- Sumas Mountain Farms
- Central Park Farms
- Blue Comet Seafoods.
Also, for your healthy holiday meals, before you decide where to source your food, take a look at the Environmental Working Group’s Meat Eater’s Guide. It looks at the greenhouse gas emissions of 20 common foods, providing some enlightening information about how our food choices contribute to climate change. It’s a great reminder that we should be consuming less meat on a daily basis.
Now let’s talk about the types of dishes we can make for our healthy holiday meals. Traditionally, holiday meals can be very heavy on carbohydrates with dishes such as mash potatoes, pasta, all sorts of treats such as pies, cakes, and other baked goods. While I’m not saying that you shouldn’t have any of these foods, it is important to remember that all of these dishes and treats will add up to a lot of carbs and raise blood sugar levels. So it’s best to remain conscious of what you’re making and eating. The good news is that many of these traditional dishes and treats can be made with reduced carbs (including sugar). You can find many of my favourite go-to recipes here.
Lastly, when you’re having a holiday meal, you can reduce your eco-footprint by reducing the amount of single-use items (e.g. styrofoam containers, straws, plastic cutlery, etc.) used you in your meal. Opt for reusable plates, cutlery, glasses, etc. instead. You can also have cloth napkins instead of paper towel or tissue paper since even though these items can be composted, they still take resources and energy to make and compost.