So here's this article from USA Today about "
Baby carrots take on junk food with hip marketing campaign." This article basically is saying that carrot growers are launching a marketing campaign to try to create "news" for baby carrots the same way junk food producers have been hyping their products. Sounds like a great idea, right? I think it's a great idea!..Why?:
- Your using the same approach with kids to make the baby carrots fun
- Your using fun packaging to get the kids thinking "fun + carrots = good"
- The carrot industry is learning to "if you can't beat them, join them" regarding the marketing campaign is concerned.
What troubles me, however, is the comment at the end of the article, which like anything else, is the last impression you have when reading this article:
Consultant Kate Newlin says she wants to like the idea. She loves the fact that carrots are the color of Cheetos and make the crunch of Doritos. But she says she is not quite buying the premise of carrots mimicking junk food. "The guilt is missing," says Newlin, author of Passion Brands. "I don't think Frito-Lay will be trembling."
An "expert on this subject" is saying, "you need to have "guilt" to market junk food." And the whole point of this article is that the baby carrot growers are "using the marketing strategy" of the junk food producers by making carrots fun and approachable for kids. And as parents, "whatever you have to do to get your kids to eat their vegetables" is what goes through the minds almost every day. And if it doesn't cost too much or make that much of a difference, parents are looking for any angle to get more fruits and vegetables into their children's diets. I know, my nephew refuses to eat carrots, but if you make it fun and exciting, he miraculously changes his stance and tries it. We need to make food fun for kids and I applaud the baby carrot producers for making this attempt.
Only time will tell if it works. But lets take the "spirit" of the baby carrot producers and "make food fun for kids" so they try the foods. Of course, the best quality foods are always best, but I guarantee you, organic carrots at a farmer's market taste a whole lot better than packaged "carrots" (no offense baby carrot producers!). The reason is because it's fresh and its grown to be a "carrot" instead of a mass-producing commodity. So here's what I suggest - take your children (yourself, while you're at it!), and go to the farmer's market and look for some carrots. Talk to the farmer and ask them to tell you about their carrots and taste them. You'll love the crunch; after a while, you'll love the sweetness; and then your body will thank you because the vitamins will make it strong and try to shed some fat for you from the fiber you're giving it. And that's just eating them raw!...Here are some ideas for getting more carrots into your diet and even having your kids try them too:
- Apple-Carrot Sauce (Stewed apples and shredded carrots, add a cinnamon stick, add lemon juice, agave, and some water; slowly stew the mixture until very soft, to bring out the natural sugars in both the apples and carrots; then put them in a blender and now you have apple-carrot sauce!)
- Roasted Carrots with balsamic vinegar (cut your carrots into bite size pieces, then boil some water and then place the carrot pieces in until they are fork tender; strain them and then allow the heat to steam themselves dry; place them in a bowl, 2 pinches each of salt & pepper, olive oil to coat, fresh rosemary or thyme or oregano, drizzle balsamic vinegar; roast in 400-degree oven for about 20 to 25 minutes - the sugars in the carrots will get sweet, the balsamic vinegar will get sweet; the herbs will create an aroma that will make everything wonderful)
- Carrot and Zucchini salad (using a vegetable peeler, peel around the cores of 2 medium carrots and 1 medium zucchini - discard the cores, add a handful of arugula, some dried cranberries, blue or feta cheese (or pitted olives if you don't like cheese), juice of one lemon and a drizzle of olive oil. Pinch of salt and pepper, toss with your hands, and voila!)
- And of course, Carrot cake - Jameson Style:
Citrus Olive Oil Carrot Cakes
Serves 6 to 8 @ 3 oz portions
Dry Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 3/4 cup spelt flour
- 1 Tbsp ground coriander
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup light olive oil
- 1 cup light agave nectar
- zest and juice of 2 medium oranges
- 1 medium carrot, finely grated
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp Harvey's Sherry or Grand Marnier
- Preheat your oven to 400-degrees. Spray your muffin mold / cupcake mold with non-stick spray.
- Mix your dry ingredients and make sure to whisk any lumps. Mix spices thoroughly in flour mixture. Set Aside
- In a small bowl, zest and juice the two oranges. Grate you carrots and put into orange juice/zest mixture. Set aside
- In a large mixing bowl, add olive oil and with a whisk, mix the agave, vanilla extract and sherry.
- Slowly add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the liquid and mix until just incorporated (do not over mix). Add 1/3 of the orange-carrot mixture and lightly mix. Repeat flour / orange-carrot mixture until everything is mixed together.
- Spoon / Piping Bag / Pour batter into your molds and bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until the tops are golden and a crust is starting to form. Using a toothpick, poke the center - if it comes out clean, remove from the oven. If the toothpick comes out moist, turn off the oven and leave the cakes inside with the oven door closed for another 2 to 3 minutes or until the toothpick method comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and allow the cakes to cool slightly before you take them out of the molds. You want the cakes to cool and set otherwise, you could break the cakes while removing them from the molds.
- Allow the cakes to cool on a baking rack.
The following article puts a "fun spin" on the battle between "Health officials vs. Processed Foods/ Fast Food Officials" (Why Activists Alone Can't Stop Obesity). Here's what we know:
Take the best from both sides and make it your own information to make your "informed" decisions. Learn about the ingredients in your foods / cook your own foods so you know what is in the foods you're eating / read the labels of the processed foods (the ingredient at the top of the list is the one that is most abundant in that package) / understand what the nutrition information on the labels do for your body (carbohydrates, sugar, fats, fiber, protein, etc.). What's my point?
The REAL ANSWER is to depend on information from both to make informed choices and depend on OURSELVES to make our lives healthier. If we wait for someone to tell us what to do, we will be unhealthy, in the hospital, and living a miserable life. But if we take the initiative to take back our own health and do what we have to do to listen to healthcare officials and while having the taste we get from convenience foods we can strike a balance for what we need to do for a great life.
