This post and my trip to Maryland were sponsored by Best Food Facts and the United Soybean Board, but as always all of my opinions are my own. A few weeks ago, I shared with you my recipe for Edamame Hummus – such an amazing snack that would be perfect for after school – and talked all about what I learned while touring a soybean far with Best Food Facts and the United Soybean Board. While on the trip, we also went to a soybean crush plant and had the opportunity to have a great lunch with a nutritionist and learn even more about the incredible power house that is the soybean. Probably like you, I had no idea what a soybean crush plant is. I learned at the Perdue crush plant how they take the soybean that has been dried and use ever last piece of it.
How Every Part of the Soybean is Used
That’s right, every last part of the soybean is used. When the dry soybeans arrive at the Perdue crush plant they: I love that they use every last bit.
The Nutritional Benefit of Soybeans
Probably one of my favorite parts of this trip was learning from nutritionist, Julie Garden-Robinson of North Dakota State University at a lovely breakfast at the gorgeous B&B shown above. I love getting a chance to ask nutritionists questions, because there is so much information out there about food. Nutritionists are great recourses because they spend their time reading peer reviewed scientific studies and staying up to date on the latest information. Some of the things I learned from Dr. Garden-Robinson are:
The chemicals that exist naturally in soybeans don’t act like estrogen in us. Eating soy will not affect the hormonal balance in our bodies. In fact, studies are begin to suggest that a cup of soy milk a day could reduce your risk for breast cancer. (I’ve started drinking a cup a day since going to Maryland!)Rather than focusing on eating organic and non-GMO, she would rather see the general public focus on eating the full amount of fruits and vegetables they should get each day.Soybean oil, though it comes from soybeans, does not affect people who have soy allergies. The protein has been completely removed from it and that is the part that causes the allergy.When looking for information on food, look for articles that are peer reviewed. Some great sources are National Institute for Health and Quack Watch.
How I’m Adding Soy to my Diet
With heart problems and breast cancer in my family history, the health benefits of soybeans definitely struck a cord with me. I am already making a concerted effort to add soy to my diet. As mentioned above, I am drinking a cup of soy milk a day. It is a great afternoon snack, with only 100 calories and 8 grams of protein. It keeps me from eating cookies and brownies that I might have lying around. Another great way to add soy to my diet and yours is with this tofu based vegetarian chili recipe! My mom made the BEST vegetarian chili recipe growing up. I don’t have her recipe, but I think this one comes very close to it.
The Best Vegetarian Chili Recipe
If you aren’t familiar with tofu, you’ll learn pretty quickly that it doesn’t have much of a taste on its own. The best recipes made with tofu put time and care into really flavoring the tofu. That is the number 1 step in this vegetarian chili recipe. At the outset of this recipe, we want to break up and drain the tofu really well. Then we season it and let it sit while we sauté the vegetables in this recipe. Where you would normally cook your meat and season it while cooking it (like in my healthy turkey chili recipe), we season the tofu before it hits the heat so that it can really absorb the flavors.
A Note About Spice
This chili has a decent amount of kick to it. If you want to lessen that, I would recommend that you leave out the cayenne pepper. You could always taste it and add a little if you want more flavor and heat.
What to Serve with this Vegan Chili Recipe
I’m going to give you some side ideas that will still keep this meal totally vegan if that is how you are cooking these days. Honestly, if were making this for my family, I probably would want to make all three of these sides. Sounds like an amazing spread to me!
THREE INGREDIENT BEER BREAD: This is as easy as it sounds and goes great with a hearty chili recipe.EASY BAKED POTATO WEDGES: Another three ingredient recipe, this is a perfect carby side to go next to a great warm soup.ARUGULA SALAD RECIPE: I love this recipe for it’s simplicity. It is also a nice way to add even more veggies to this meal.
If you make this vegetarian chili recipe or any of my other recipes, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!
