It’s June. Summer time. Hot days. Cold swimming pools. Watermelon. Lemonade. Burgers on the grill.
Recycla has grilled burgers on the mind today, as she is looking forward to her husband serving up the first batch of the summer this coming weekend. She can already imagine the juicy burgery goodness. Mmmm…
What WON’T be served at the Recycla household is beef that comes from cows raised in a traditional feedlot, fed antibiotics and hormones, no room to move around, and all the other disgusting things seen in the movie “Fast Food Nation.” (Or read in the book.) Recycla prefers her beef to be free of antibiotics, hormones, and animal bi-products, thank you very much.
Burger lovers looking for an alternative to conventional beef have two options — meat labeled organic or natural. Organic regulations, implemented by the U.S. Agriculture Department in 2002, ban antibiotics, hormones and animal bi-products in cattle feed. Unlike producers of “natural” meat products, which are minimally processed and free of preservatives and additives, organic producers must be certified annually for compliance with organic standards to raise, feed and process their livestock. Organically raised cattle also must be tracked from birth to consumption.
Organic beef does cost more per pound, sometimes as much as double as conventional beef, but since Recycla’s family of four will only need a pound or two of beef to cover their burger needs, Recycla isn’t going to sweat the relatively minor hit to her grocery budget.
This weekend’s menu will include the aforementioned burgers, served on either whole wheat or multi-grain buns. Extras will be mustard, ketchup, and cheddar cheese. There won’t be any tomato slices available, as they’re not in season yet. It’s also too early for corn on the cob and watermelon, so instead, Recycla will have fruit salad (berries are in season) and potato salad. For dessert, she’s planning to make homemade ice cream cookie sandwiches (vanilla ice cream in between chocolate chip cookies — Recycla still thinks the Nestle Tollhouse cookie recipe is the best).
Recycla is very glad summer is here.
Image courtesy of Flickr.
