Celebrate Earth Day with Dairy!

Today I’ve partnered with Midwest Dairy to bring you this Dairy inspired recipe and chat about Earth Day!

Did you know that April 22nd is recognized as Earth Day? Being that it falls the day after my birthday, I find it easy to remember each year. Earth Day was actually first celebrated in the 1970’s and the intent was to bring awareness to the state of our planet, policy and how we treat the environment.

With this in mind, I think it’s only appropriate to celebrate with this dairy good recipe because Dairy both nourishes people and the planet. In fact, Dairy plays a very important role in sustainability and environmental stewardship. Not only do dairy farmers care for their animals, but they also care for the air, land and water.

Did you know…

In the last 70 years Dairy farmers have produced 3x the milk with half the number of cows? Thanks to innovative dairy farming practices, the environmental impact of producing a gallon of milk in 2017 shrunk significantly, requiring 30% less water, 21% less land and a 19% smaller carbon footprint than it did in 2007.

Milk production only contributes approximately 1.3% of all U.S. GHG emissions. (By comparison, transportation as an industry in the U.S. accounts for 28% of GHG emissions.)

US Dairy remains committed to nourishing the planet for future generations. Eliminating dairy would eliminate a very accessible, affordable and rich source of nutrition including 13 essential nutrients.

Now let’s talk about this recipe! This recipe was inspired by this recipe. I made a few modifications based on personal preferences, but this is delicious! It combines fruits, vegetables, nuts and of course DAIRY!

By the way, parmesan cheese is hands down the best hard cheese. And adding shaved parmesan to dishes like this not only enhances the color but adds so much flavor and texture. Personally, I think this would go really well as a side dish served with a grilled protein and a tall glass of milk!

For more information about Dairy sustainability or more dairy inspired recipes, please visit MidwestDairy.com.

 

 

Butternut Squash Noodles with Parmesan and Pomegranate

  • 15 minutes
  • 8 ingredients
  • 4 steps

Ingredients

  • 12 oz Butternut squash noodles
  • 1 TB olive oil
  • 1 TB butter
  • 1 TB fresh sage, minced or 1 tsp dried sage
  • 2 TB pistachios
  • 3 oz Parmesan cheese, shaved
  • 2 oz Pomegranate arils
  • Optional: chopped parsley

Instructions

  1. Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add butternut squash noodles and cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through and started to turn golden brown in places.
  2. Add pistachios, stir and lower heat.
  3. Add parmesan cheese and pomegranate arils.
  4. Garnish with chopped parsley if desired.

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