What Can You Do For Our Earth?

Happy Earth Day! Okay, so it's the day after earth day, but that is sort of going to be the point of today's blog. Do we actually need an earth day or shouldn't everyday be a day to make a positive change in our lives that helps our planet?



I've been volunteering a lot at the Aquariam of the Pacific in Long Beach. This is something I decided to do this year, and I'm so glad I did. Volunteer work of any kind really pulls you out of your normal everyday ME syndrome. For a little while, you get to forget about personal problems and issues and do something to help others. But I digress. What I really want to share about the aquariam is that they are an awesome example of an organization that does what they can to be kind to the environment - everyday.



Something I learned from them is that we help our oceans and fish population by eating sustainable fish. What is that? I didn't know when I first heard it. Sustainable fish are fish that are abundant and caught and raised in an environmentally conscious manner. You can view what types of fish are sustainable and delicious reciepe recommendations at the AOP website.



By eating sustainable fish we allow fish population that have been overfished time to recover.



Here is one example of a reciepe you can find on the AOP site:



DUNGENESS CRAB SALAD WITH APPLE AND AVOCADO
Ingredients:
2 pints of Fresh Dungeness Crab

2 granny smith apples diced fine

2 ripe avocado sliced1 tble fresh chopped parsley

2 tble mayonaisse

1 t fresh lemon juice

1 t Dijon mustard

Salt and Fresh Cracked Pepper to taste

Mixed Organic Greens (optional)


Sustainability: The pacific coast Dungeness crab fishery is considered one of the most sustainable crab fishery in the world. Crabs are caught in environmentally friendly traps and are managed by size season and sex. Only male crabs are harvested: females are returned to the sea to reproduce for years to come. Most crab fisheries are dependent on traps that allow for the release of bycatch, undersized crabs, and females. Crab traps are constructed so as to minimize so-called “ghost fishing” when lost (Ghost nets are fishing nets that have been lost by fishermen. These nets are left to drift the oceans of Earth entangling sea life and causing varying degrees of damage throughout Earth’s oceanic ecosystem).


Healthfulness: Crab contains very little fat and provides essential omega 3 fatty acids which are believed to be linked to good heart health.


Flavor and Cooking: The sweet and succulent flavor of Dungeness crab is best simply prepared. The success in this recipe relies on the balance of flavors between the richness of the avocado and the tartness of the apples, the sweet flavor of the crab and a touch of fresh lemon juice to cut accentuate these refined flavors. This salad can be served on a crispy baguette, served over mixed lettuces or eaten alone.


Combine all the ingredients and serve immediately.



Hope you try it and enjoy!



Julia