All About Soybeans

With all this recent talk about tempeh, let’s get back to what tempeh is all about: SOYBEANS!!

I grew up on a small, family-farm in Southcentral Minnesota, so the soybean industry is something I have a strong connection with.

This farm has been in my family for 3 generations, and currently my parents raise pork, corn, and soybeans on their 600 acres of land. Having these three commodities optimizes the rotation of the crops and protects their livelihood from potential low markets of one particular commodity. (i.e. If the price of pork is really low for an extended period of time, they can fall back on the corn and soybean markets for sustained income.)

This is a picture after an 11-mile run with my sister (on the left), and the best picture I have of my parent’s farm in Minnesota. You can see a storage shed (of many!) for machinery off to the left and a couple grain bins (of many as well!) off to the right.

Check out my mom’s R.E.A.L. (Responsible Ethical Agricultural for Life) story here to learn more about their operation.

The article highlights my parent’s farm and the true passion they have for their livelihood. Here are a couple of quotes from the article:

Farmers are the professionals and experts at what they do, and they are important to everyone because they grow the food that feeds the world.

If farmers do not educate the public, there will be more misconceptions about farming and how we care for the land and animals. We as farmers need to get the accurate story out to the public and consumers.

Growing up, I had no idea about the misconceptions people have about certain farm-related issues: inhumane treatment of animals, GMOs, growth horomones, etc. I just saw how hard my parents worked to care for their animals and raise a safe, quality product!

I could spend great length sharing my viewpoints about these issues, but I will save that for a future post!

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The Minnesota Soybean website has a ton of interesting information about soybean farmers and the products they produce!

If you are a foodie and want to give some new soy-based recipes a try, check out this page.

I’m interested in this Peanut Butter Spread—tofu + peanut butter. . . interesting?!?! I wonder what it would be good on—any ideas??

Also, the Rigatoni with Zucchini and Onions sounds delicious!

One of my favorite soy-based dishes I created in my own kitchen:

Thai Peanut Tofu Noodles

Curious to know more about soy lecithin?

Ever wondered  how your miso soup is made?

Or what natto is?

Go check it out here.

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Today’s Run:

Distance ~ 8 miles

Time ~ 1:07

I was so psyched to go running this morning because even though it had snowed yesterday, the roads were dry last night, so I knew it wouldn’t be slippery in the morning.

My run started out fabulous! I felt good, the roads were dry, it wasn’t too windy, and I had taken half of a Clif shot for some energy before I set out. However, about a third of the way into the run, little white things started to fall from the sky!! 😯

NOOO!!! Not more snow!!! I wasn’t pleased, but I wasn’t about to cut my run short either.

In the end, it was still a good run—although I almost ate it several times!! GRRRR!!

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After work today, I plan on attending a yoga class and then eating a huge salad because that’s all I crave after a hot, sweaty yoga session! 🙂