10/05/2022

Student and Alumni News

 

Three randomly selected culinary creators will each receive a box of Misfits Market groceries (valued at $35), a $100 Misfits Market gift card, and a chance to use a state-of-the-art test kitchen at Lehman College.

No experience necessary! The Student Wellness Committee of Macaulay’s Parents’ Council and online grocer Misfits Market have partnered to launch the Macaulay-Misfits Market Recipe Challenge to encourage student wellness. We invite you to submit a healthy, delicious recipe.

Hungry? Join the challenge now! Deadline for submissions is: Tuesday, November 29th!

 

See complete rules below.

 

SUBMISSION RULES:

Open to current Macaulay students only. No purchase necessary. Three randomly selected recipe submissions will be chosen by the taste-testing panel from all those submitted by the deadline of November 29th.  Selected recipes will be announced by the end of the month, and the creators will be notified via email.  The taste-testing panel will consist of representatives from Macaulay staff and student body, Misfits Market, and Macaulay’s Student Wellness Committee (of the Parents’ Council). Selected students will be invited to re-create their recipes in the professional test kitchen at Lehman College. Recipes, images, and instructions become property of Macaulay Honors College and may be used to promote the challenge or future student activities. Contact Macaulay Parent Liaison stephanie.straffi@mhc.cuny.edu with questions.

TIP: The ideal recipes (which can be vegan, vegetarian, meat- or fish-based) would include complete proteins, high fiber, and omega-3 fats. These dishes will be naturally colorful, richly textured, and low in added sugar.

Complete Protein
Protein is comprised of 20 kinds of amino acids; 11 of these amino acids are produced by the human body. For good health, we must get the other nine amino acids (called “essential amino acids“) from the foods we eat. When a food contains all 9 of these amino acids, it is called a “complete protein.”

Which foods contain complete protein?

  1. Animal proteins:
    For example: fish, poultry, meat, eggs, dairy
  2. Plant-based sources:
    For example: Quinoa, Buckwheat, Hempseed, Chia  Seeds, Pumpkin Seeds, Soybeans
  3. Combinations of incomplete, plant-based proteins:
    Beans with nuts or seeds
    Beans with whole grains
    Nuts or Seeds with whole grains

Omega 3 Fats
Omega-3 fatty acids are an important type of fat that the body needs but cannot make on its own- this makes them an“essential fat”, which needs to be gotten from foods. Oily fish are the best food source of omega-3 fatty acids. Some plants also contain omega-3 fatty acids. Grass fed meat, fortified eggs and dairy, seaweed and algae (chlorella, spirulina) can also be some good sources.

Which foods are richest in omega 3 fats:

  1. Fish
    For example: Mackerel, Salmon, Sardines, Anchovies
  2. Plant sources
    For example: Walnuts, Flax Seed Chia Seeds, Hemp Seeds

Fiber
Dietary fiber is found in plant foods – mainly in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes. While fiber is a part of the plant your body can’t digest or absorb- it plays a critical role in health including encouraging proper digestion, preventing constipation, helping to lower cholesterol, balancing blood sugar, feeding the good bacteria in your intestines, and more. Fiber can be classified as soluble and insoluble. A variety of both is most important. You get variety of both by eating a wide variety of plant foods.

Foods rich in fiber:

  • Whole-grain products
  • Fruits
  • Vegetables
  • Beans, peas and other legumes
  • Nuts and seeds

Refined or processed foods — such as canned fruits and vegetables, pulp-free juices, white breads and pastas, and non-whole-grain cereals — are lower in fiber. The grain-refining process removes the outer coat (bran) from the grain, which lowers its fiber content. Enriched foods have some of the B vitamins and iron added back after processing, but not the fiber.

Low added sugar
The average American adult consumes approximately 77 grams of sugar per day.  That’s equivalent to about 19 teaspoons a day (1 teaspoon has about about 4g). What’s the problem with this? The American Heart association recommends eating half this amount or less. Regularly eating excessive sugar can lead to diabetes, heart disease, obesity, concentration difficulty, mood fluctuations, poor sports performance, ongoing inflammation and more.

Many foods including fruits, some vegetables and dairy products naturally have sugar in them. When you consume these foods in their natural form, they come along with other useful nutrients like vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber. These help ensure that your body is using the sugar in the most efficient way.

Added sugars are those that are artificially added to a product during its processing or preparation, before packaging or serving.These are most often the biggest culprit in exceeding a reasonable amount.

Where added sugar can be found:
Pastries, candy, breads, cereals, sports bars, sauces, yogurts, many bottled or canned drinks (ex. sodas, bottled teas, sports drinks), granolas, nut butters, nut moxes, jellies, flavored items, and in many many more foods. Even some foods promoted as “natural” or “healthy” are laden with added sugars.

You can find out how much sugar is added by reading the label on the packaging or description for the item you plan to use. Most labels will have a section that says “added sugar”. We suggest trying to limit the amount of added sugar for your dish to a max 6 grams per serving.

While natural sweeteners like honey and maple syrup have health benefits, using too much at a time (since they are concentrated sources) can add up- so if utilizing them be thoughtful in how much you use.

Please avoid using very refined (ex. high fructose corn syrup) or artificial sweeteners (ex. sweet n low) at all.

Naturally colorful
Try to make your dishes as colorful as possible. The colors in your dishes should come from foods themselves not artificial chemical colors.