A new food rating and comparison website launched today — Food Scores by the Environmental Working Group. You simply type in a food, for example you could enter “Frozen Sweet Potato Fries,” and the system returns the products that match what you entered along with a score from 1-10 based on nutrition, ingredients, and processing. The rating system is backwards from my perspective: 1 is the best and 10 is the worst. I guess you start with zero and gain points for each category that’s lacking.
There are 80,000 products in the system so far, which sounds like a lot but they still have a long way to go. In my search example above, one product resulted – Alexia Frozen Sweet Potato Puffs – which scored a 5. But from there I was able to compare it to other fries, potatoes, and onion rings, where I was surprised to find that there are six frozen potato products that rate in the 2 range. I was incorrectly assuming that sweet potatoes would rank healthier than regular potatoes. It depends on the other additives, contaminants, etc.
I searched on pumpkin donut and they rate a 9-10, of course. I was hoping it might get a little positive nudge for being a vegetable (just kidding). Another interesting search I did was on granola bars, where unfortunately Quaker Oats and Kellogg’s brands rated the worst (not surprisingly), but I was disappointed to find Kashi bars in the 5-6 range. The best bars, which I will try next, are the Larabar Banana Bread (rated 2.8).
Here’s where I’m going to use up the spaghetti squash I had leftover in the frig from a previous recipe, although I’ll add to it with another squash. This recipe is based on one from the October Vegetarian Times (pg. 68). I forgot to pick up a green onion so I substituted some regular onion plus a handful of chives for color.
Spaghetti Squash Gratin w/ Broccoli
2 small or one large spaghetti squash (3-4 lb total)
2 C small broccoli florets
1 C grated Cheddar cheese, divided in half
2 eggs
1/4 C milk
2 T ricotta cheese
1 green onion, thinly sliced
1 T Dijon mustard
Preheat oven to 375. Pierce squash in several places with knife. Microwave 4 minutes on high power to soften. Slice off ends, and stand squash upright. Cut straight down length of squash. Remove seeds with spoon. Place halves cut side down on rimmed baking sheet, and add 1 1/2 cups water to cover surface of pan. Bake 30 minutes, or until squash yields when pressed.
Increase oven temperature to preheat to 425. Cool squash 10 minutes. Scrape squash halves with fork to release strands. Transfer strands to large bowl. You should have about 5 cups. Add broccoli to squash along with 1/2 cup cheddar.
Whisk eggs, milk, ricotta, onion, and mustard in small bowl. Stir into squash mixture. Spread mixture in sprayed 2-qt. baking dish, and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheddar. Bake 25 minutes, or until center is set and top begins to brown.
