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My Grandpa (Don Nacho) Does not eat much meat

September 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment

My grandfather Ignacio better known as Don Nacho barely eats meat. He grew up living in the Puerto Rican countryside with so many brothers around him he had to survive with the bare minimum. My great grandfather apparently was into having many kids to the point I will let you guess how many brothers my Grandfather had?

After more than a decade of not going up to his little shack in Tibes up in the Mountains of Ponce, PR  (my home town) I had the opportunity to visit him once again.  I remember how big I use to see his house as a kid being an adult I realized it only has enough room for one full bed in the bedroom a small room to greet people and a even small kitchen which he has a stove but not even a fridge. If you could look for the definition of a minimalist I think my Grandfather Nacho would fit directly into it.

Eating Fresh Ingredients

It has been so long and I think as an adult it is the first time I realize he does not have a refrigerator. However he does have fruits and vegetable that grow around his house which he consumes when he needs to. Nacho also has spices and other items that he remove very easily from the plants that grow around his house. My grandfather is about to turn 86 years old and he is extremely healthy.

Grandpa Hardly ever Eats Meat

Since he grew up during a time where meat was very scarce grandpa does eat meat every once in a while or once a month. In Puerto Rico where people find it hard to not eat meat every day it is unique that my Grandpa looks and is so healthy by having less meat intake. The fact he does not have a fridge also makes it even less probable of him storing meat. Not only is my grandfather eco-friendly for not consuming much meat he saves on electricity by not having a fridge.

Plenty of Vegetables and Fruits

Ever since I can remember arriving at Gradpa Nacho’s house was the opportunity to eat fresh fruit and vegetables. Around his small shack you can see passion fruit, bananas, beans, limes, lemons, oranges, plantain, chilis, Guava, and many other plants that I might not recall.

Other than the fruit that grows in trees he has a small table where you can see a variety of other fruits and vegetables which he has traded or bought from his neighbors around him. I guess my Grandfather having worked well into his 70′s in construction and being a World War II veteran that was dishonorably discharged by the military losing his pention (under an issue related to Discrimination of him being Puerto Rican) he has learned on how to survive with the bare minimum.

But even better yet I have not met someone who is more eco friendly that grandpa.

He takes what he needs from the Soil to survive and does not deplete our resources just for the heck of it. I have learned a lot from Grandpa over the years and in just one visit it was overwhelming how much I was able to capture.

Filed Under: Vegetarian Tagged With: , ,

Veggie Dog

February 15, 2011 by 2 Comments

Title is probably not what you are thinking about; vegetarian soy dog with all the trimmings such as onions, ketchup, sauerkraut, mustard, and maybe mushrooms. I am talking about vegetables and giving them to your four-legged friend the canine.

When we welcomed our dog into our home, one of the things I researched the type of human food to give to our dog along with dog food. Since canines are omnivores, I knew that giving him meat in our vegetarian home was not going to happen. I wanted to provide him with other options besides the dog food we were going to be purchasing.

I read on www.webmd.com for pets that there were certain foods you could give your pets and others that were definitely a NO! After reading the list, we bought carrots with our grocery.

I decided to give our black Labrador JuanGa a piece of carrot. He loved the crunch and I would give him a whole carrot. Along with carrots, potatoes, and peas, he loves fruits such as apples, oranges, mangoes, and blueberries. But he is not too fond of the mushy banana.

The vegetables that you should avoid are garlic, onions, avocados, along with sweets, certain spices, certain fruits, and chocolate. On occasion JuanGa will wait for a grape or piece of onion to fall on the floor. We make sure to pick them up quickly in order to avoid any unexpected visits to the veterinarian.

If you have a dog, what type of foods does he love to eat besides dog food?

What organic pet food brands are there for dogs?

Here is the slide show of things to avoid and feed your dog.
http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/slideshow-foods-your-dog-should-never-eat

Filed Under: Animal Rights Tagged With: ,

The vegetable I learned to love

February 4, 2011 by 4 Comments

As a child my mother fed us different types of vegetables that at times I could not eat. She gave us different types of legumes such as garbanzos, lima beans, and pink beans. Other vegetables that she fed us such as broccoli, cauliflower, and spinach were no better. But if there was one vegetable that I detested as a kid it was the Brussels Sprout! It was a small round, green, vegetable that she would boil and put on my plate.

I was always a picky eater as a child and did everything to hide the food that I did not like. But it was a bit tricky to hide Brussels sprouts as opposed to beans that I could mash up and hide under my left over rice. After awhile my mother got the picture that I was not going to have a great relationship with Brussels sprouts and stopped making them. Every time I saw a Brussels sprout it reminded me of the times that I was forced to sit with my plate in front of me and was told that I could not get up until my plate of food was gone; that included the Brussels sprouts.

About three years ago, I was watching Ina Garten’s show, The Barefoot Contessa, on the Food Network channel. One of the dishes that she made was a baked Brussels sprout. I had a flashback to the taste and smell of the bland Brussels sprout my mother would serve to me. Her recipe was to bake them in the oven with olive oil, onions, garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper to taste. The finished product looked crunchy and tasty.

It made me think that I should give the Brussels sprout another try. I was getting tired of making the same vegetables at home for my partner and I. So I decided to buy Brussels sprouts and give Ina’s recipe a try. I made them and they tasted exactly how she described; like a crunchy French fry. After over twenty years of not eating Brussels sprouts, I had given them a chance and actually liked them. I began a love affair with a vegetable that I had hated as a child.

I asked a couple of my friends with children about what vegetables their kids love and how they introduced vegetables to their children. Here is what they wrote to me:

Diana: “Carrots. They have been eating them since they were babies.”

Niana: “Spinach…added it to homemade mac and cheese and they fell in love!”

Iris: “Carrots definitely. My kids will only eat them raw and corn.”

Danielle: “Ummmm I don’t have kids – but I love spinach and chard.”

Milagros: “The boys and I eat broccoli and mushrooms. At first they didn’t like it, but once they tasted both, the loved them. It makes me happy that at least they eat some type of veggie.”

What vegetables do your kids love? How did you introduce vegetables to your kids? Do you think the color of the vegetable attracts the kids?

Filed Under: Lifestyle, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , ,