For the love of soy.

I love me some soy beans.

As a person who doesn't eat meat, these little things are a necessity in my household. Usually we get soy in the form of well-seasoned tofu, or this product called "textured soy protein". Now doesn't that sound appetizing? It's actually not bad, like ground beef without the fat. We use it in tacos and pasta sauce and the like. On rare occasions, I get my hands on some edamame - whole soy beans.

These little treasures came from our local farmers' market. 

There's lots of ways to eat edamame, but in our household, finger food is king. We boil the pods for a few minutes and toss 'em in a big bowl in the middle of the table. Then we have a big empty bowl for the pods. Similar to the experience of eating steamer clams at a New England cookout, we shell those babies and pop 'em in our mouths. Easy. Yummy. And the lil' one loves it so. That's a big plus. 

Soy beans are one of the most genetically modified crops out there, so if you're concerned about eating GMO foods, talk to the farmer, or read the labels carefully. More and more farmers are growing non-gmo soy these days, so it's not too hard to find. 

Soy is considered a "complete protein", basically meaning it contains enough amino acids to count as a suitable protein substitute for meat. Plus, it's loaded with fiber, calcium and other nutrients. Learn more about soy here.

If you haven't yet tried these tasty treats, I highly recommend it.