Many people wish they could eat healthier but don’t really know where or how to start. They might not have the money to hire a nutritionist to explain healthy alternatives and may not even realize the options that are available to them. Joy Waters, Executive Producer of “Tasty and Meatless”, realized this and decided to create a program that would not only demonstrate healthy recipes but allow people to adjust their diet in ways that weren’t so extreme that they would quit the following week.
“Our goal is to educate, entertain, and inspire our viewers by giving them practical tools that they can incorporate immediately into their lifestyle, no matter where they currently are in their process to improved health,” said Joy Waters.
The TV show showcases a number of outlets to get viewers to take the wellness path. Besides weekly cooking demos, they also interview prominent health leaders about nutrition and feature organizations that promote healthy products and services. And for those who like to eat out, they also feature on-location restaurant reviews so you won’t feel the need to give the waiter the third degree.
Each week, “Tasty and Meatless” opens with a guest cook sharing a healthy, meatless dish. The end result is far from just veggies on a plate. There are plenty of protein options and it’s all put together in mouth-watering recipes. Wa-ters tries to steer clear of the “vegetarian” cliché’ with a variety of weekly cooks. “We do this so that our viewers can see that there is no stereotype of the typical ‘health food’ person,” she said. “People making positive lifestyle changes come in all shapes, colors and sizes.” Instead of preaching to viewers about the negative effects of junk food and poor eating habits, “Tasty and Meatless” focuses on the positive aspects of healthy nutrition. The show provides pop-up facts about the ingredients used in a recipe and also features health information from nutrition expert Dr. John Westerdahl.
Explained Joy Waters, “We believe that eating lighter is a meal by meal decision and that any increase in adding more fruits, vegetables and plant protein to the diet will result in great health improvements in all of us.”
Because of the positive feedback that “Tasty and Meatless” has received, Waters’ company, Positive Media Hawaii, has released a new line of video cookbooks on DVD. So far, three DVD titles have been released: “You Won’t Believe It’s Tofu!”, “Beans and Greens”, and “Hawaii’s Local Favorites”. “These video cookbooks will teach viewers how to make simple, vegetarian meals that even meat-eaters will enjoy, in fifteen minutes or less,” Waters enthused. According to Waters, the DVD series will teach the viewers how to cook healthier by showing techniques that decrease the fat and cholesterol content of each dish, which, in turn, helps promote weight loss and even prevent some diseases. Comparison charts of meat vs. meatless recipes are featured as well. “In a recent survey, 80% of our viewers said they are meat eaters and are seeking new and effective ways to better their health,” she said. “They trust us to guide them towards new, healthy lifestyle habits.”
Waters feels strongly that staying healthy is both physical and mental. “We believe that staying happy is an important part of the process,” she says. “If becoming healthy feels too much like a sacrifice, then people won’t stay with it. It has to be an easy process and by watching ‘Tasty and Meatless’, people find good strategies and tools that make the process of getting healthy more convenient and definitely tasty!”.
Reprint of article published in Hawaii newspaper, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin on June 19, 2005 by Staff Writer.
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