Author of ‘MeatLess: Transform the Way You Eat and Live’ reflects on gratitude in her journey through the plant-based movement
I had the privilege of meeting Kristie Middleton during her tenure as the senior food policy director for The Humane Society of the United States. Throughout her career, she partnered with prominent institutions such as the Los Angeles Unified School District, Detroit Public Schools, and Boston Public Schools, alongside numerous hospitals and colleges, to usher in healthier eating initiatives.
Kristie’s commitment to plant-based nutrition shone through when she completed a certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies in August 2014. Despite her busy schedule traveling and speaking frequently to groups associated with food and nutrition, she found the time to pen the book “MeatLess: Transform the Way You Eat and Live—One Meal at a Time.” Published in 2017 by Hachette Books, Kristie’s engaging book delves into the whys and hows of reducing meat consumption while embracing more plant-based meals.
Today, Kristie Middleton serves as the vice president of business for Rebellyous Foods, an innovative food production company creating delicious, affordable plant-based meats for the foodservice industry.
This being the season for gratitude, I interviewed Kristie on the topic of gratefulness as it relates to the plant-based movement.
Kristie, reflecting on your journey as a plant-based pioneer, what significant milestones or changes in the plant-based movement are you most thankful for, and why?
There have been many exciting milestones, but a few noteworthy ones for me were when Los Angeles Unified School District – the second largest school district in the U.S. – launched a Meatless Monday campaign, positively impacting hundreds of thousands of meals each week. It was also thrilling to see quick serve restaurant companies like Burger King offering an Impossible Burger, making plant-based options easily accessible to people across the country. Lastly, it’s been helpful to the movement for respected entities like the World Health Organization and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to come out in support of plant-based diets which lends tremendous credibility to our efforts.
What are you most thankful for in your role as VP of business for Rebellyous Foods?
An amazing team and community. First, I’m grateful to be able to work with a phenomenal team of passionate, hardworking people who love what they do and are dedicated to making the world a better place.
Second, as VP of business development for Rebellyous, I have the privilege of working with school foodservice professionals who similarly care deeply about the work they’re doing. They are wonderful collaborators and mentors who are patient in working with a young company to grow to our mutual benefit. Even the other manufacturers in the space are collaborative and tremendously generous with their time and advice. It’s a welcoming environment and we’re all working towards the same goal.
The plant-based movement has gained significant momentum in recent years in the foodservice industry. What factors or trends do you believe have contributed most to this growth?
It’s a thrill to see foodservice providers adding more plant-based options to their menus or even making their entrees plant-based by default. There’s ample evidence that for the planet, for public health, and for animals we have to eat less meat. I believe the abundance of high-quality, delicious plant-based products coming into the marketplace has made it much easier for foodservice providers to be able to do so.
There has been a welcome push to move back to scratch cooking, which I wholeheartedly support. However, the reality is that in busy kitchens serving hundreds, sometimes thousands of meals a day, that’s not always possible and these foodservice providers need easy options that allow them to meet their guests’ needs. That’s why I’m so excited about what we’re doing at Rebellyous Foods – allowing foodservice providers to offer delicious comfort foods that are loved by all!
What do you think the future holds for the plant-based movement? What changes or advancements are you most excited about?
I feel like we’ve come a long way with plant-based meats with some products being remarkably better than others. I think the innovation will continue with plant-based meat, eggs, and dairy products becoming indistinguishable from their animal-based counterparts which excites me. A huge barrier, however, in making plant-based meat mainstream, is it’s often 2-5 times the price of meat. That’s one reason I’m thrilled that Rebellyous’ technology will soon enable us to produce plant-based chicken at high volumes and lower prices so that it’s affordable for all.
As we celebrate this season of giving thanks, if you could express your gratitude to one person, organization, or group that has significantly advanced the plant-based movement, who would it be, and what would you say to them?
I believe the Meatless Monday campaign – the reason we met – helped make significant strides to plant-based eating. Before that the concept of eating meat was black and white. Either you were vegetarian or you weren’t. Meatless Monday helped show that for individuals and institutions, it didn’t have to be all or nothing, but that even eating meat-free one day a week or serving plant-based menu options one day a week was still a way to make a difference. And that helped open people up to eating meat-free more than one day a week.
Could you share one of your favorite easy, and simply delicious plant-based recipes to enjoy for Thanksgiving?
Who doesn’t love a good macaroni and cheese as a Thanksgiving side – or main? It’s the quintessential comfort food for Thanksgiving or any time!
Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 4
Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 pound of your favorite pasta (macaroni or shells work great)
- Cheese sauce ingredients:
- 1-1/4 cups raw cashews (if you have time to prepare in advance, soak them for an hour to overnight for a creamier sauce)
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1-1/2 cups plain, unsweetened soy, oat or almond milk
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/8 cup yellow miso
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
Method:
- Prepare the pasta according to package instructions. Drain, rinse, and pour into a casserole dish. Set aside.
- Meanwhile grind the cashews into a powder in a high speed blender or food processor. Add the nutritional yeast, onion powder, salt, and garlic powder and blend thoroughly.
- Add the soy or almond milk, oil, miso, and lemon juice and blend until smooth, scraping sides to ensure thoroughly combined.
- Toss cheese sauce over pasta and sprinkle with paprika. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
For more information about Kristie Middleton’s book “MeatLess”, visit her website
For more information about Rebellyous Foods, visit their website
