Earth Day – PB&J For A Day

Did you know that on April 22, Earth Day, eating a Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwich (or eating another plant-based meal) can reduce your carbon footprint significantly? It’s true!

PB&J Stats:

If you have a PB&J instead of a red-meat lunch like a ham sandwich or a hamburger, you shrink your carbon footprint by almost 3.5 pounds. That’s about 40% as much of what you’d save driving around for the day in a hybrid instead of a standard sedan. An animal product affects the environment and greenhouse gas emissions due the resources it takes to raise an animal, process the meat and ship the product.
· Conserve Water: 133 Gallons — You’ll conserve 133 gallons of water at lunch versus the average American lunch. Three PB&J’s a month will save about as much water as switching to a low-flow showerhead.
· Save Land: 24 Square Feet — Don’t forget the land you save from deforestation, over-grazing, and pesticide and fertilizer pollution: about 24 square feet at lunch.

Sodexo will be joining in this Earth Day and serving PB&J options at 6,000 dining establishments (including local hospitals, office buildings, military personnel, senior housing and university cafeterias) nationwide for breakfast, lunch & dinner on Earth Day—reaching approx. 10 million people.

So this Earth Day 2010 I challenge you to just have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch.

To help here are some fun and unique Peanut Butter & Jelly recipes:

Toasted Peanut Butter Baguettes

Peanut butter & honey – a yummy combination!

Ingredients
1 ea Baguette, French, fresh,
3oz Peanut Butter, smooth
½ ea Banana, ripe
1 T Honey, lavender
2 oz Jam, strawberry

Directions
Preheat oven to 350′
Cut a 6 inch portion of the baguette then slice it in half lengthwise
Spread the peanut butter on the bottom portion.
Slice the banana into pieces and cover the peanut butter
Drizzle the honey over the bananas and peanut butter
Put the top on and place in oven to warm, no more than a few minutes
Put the jam in a ramekin
Place the ramekin and sandwich on a plate, eat, and enjoy