SNAP Challenge Day 2: Rethinking Waste

This post is the fourth in a series.  Read post one, post two, and post three.

I’ve been thinking a lot about waste these last couple of days.  Suddenly I’m weighing my day to day frivolities with the cost of food.  Yesterday’s mojito, this afternoon’s manicure… I could go on.  But you know one thing that isn’t wasteful?  Food Stamps.  The SNAP program is the most efficient major benefit government assistance program in operation.  USDA reported an efficiency rate of 97.8% in FY2013, the highest in history.  In fact, economists consider SNAP benefits to be one of the most efficient forms of economic stimulus.  Nearly 95% of federal SNAP spending goes directly to benefits, with the remainder covering important services like employment and training  programs, nutrition education and federal oversight for the retail stores that accept EBT cards.  Just a little food for thought next time you hear someone call the program wasteful.

The other type of waste I’ve been hyperconscious of this week is food waste.  This is something I already considered myself extremely responsible about (much better than the mojito and manicure type of waste!)  I cut the mold off of bread, eat yogurt well past its sell-by date just so long as it passes the smell test, and firmly believe in the five second rule.  Hell, I once ate a casserole after pouring bug-infested bread crumbs on it.  But this has brought it to a whole new level.  For instance, I would normally discard the stem of this broccoli… but you better believe that won’t be happening when this is one of the only vegetables I have for the entire week!  Not a single egg yolk will be going down the drain, and the rejects formerly known as bread ends will now be Sunday’s sandwich.

Today’s Meals:

Pre-workout snack: 1/2 Banana and 1/2 T Peanut Butter

Breakfast: French toast with strawberry coconut sauce
While brainstorming something different I could make for breakfast with my limited ingredients, French toast came to mind.  I’m trying to stretch the eggs to last all week, so I only used one.  I saved a bit of coconut milk when making last night’s curry to use in place of milk, mixing it with the egg before dipping the bread.  Of course I don’t have syrup, but I do have strawberry jam!  I combined it with coconut milk and heated it up in the microwave to create a sweet strawberry coconut sauce to drizzle on top.  Not too shabby!

Lunch: Leftover Thai Coconut Lentil Curry with a side of broccoli

Afternoon snack: 1/2 Banana

Dinner: Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Stew and a slice of whole wheat bread
I chose this recipe because many of the ingredients overlapped with yesterday’s Thai Lentil Coconut Curry, and buying in bulk is cheaper.  Curry was my “staple spice” for the week, the base of both dishes.  This stew was incredibly easy to make, requiring less than thirty minutes and just one pan.  It’s as full as vegetables as it is flavor!

Nutrition breakdown for the day:
1,311 calories, 33g fat, 209 carbs, 47g fiber, 56g protein

Still on the low end for calories and protein, but I’m  getting a healthy dose of fiber, which has numerous health benefits and helps keep you full longer.  Once again, I got plenty of Vitamin A and Vitamin C, but was sorely lacking iron (64%), calcium (235) and potassium (54%).

Johanna