Month: November 2020

By Elesha Ergle, RDN

It is hard to believe that November is already upon us, bringing with it cooler temperatures, and of course, the holidays. For many, the holidays might look a little different this year due to the pandemic, but we can still keep some traditions alive as well and add some beef to our holiday menus. Keep your family fed this holiday season with the versatility and optimal nutrition of beef! 

Beef’d up Breakfasts

Busy holiday mornings are no time to be worrying about trying to cook a big breakfast for your family. Try some easy recipes that will feed a crowd without spending too much time in the kitchen, like this One-Pan Cheesy Beef Breakfast Scramble. For those hunters that are going out early, make up some Beef Breakfast Burritos the night before that can be quickly microwaved for on-the-go eating. Add some protein to your grab-and-go breakfasts with beef jerky. Pair some jerky with a cereal bar or pastry for a more complete and filling meal. 

Beefy Casseroles

If you have some family members staying with you, get some casseroles together for easy cooking and entertaining. Put together a Cheeseburger Pie and sit back and watch your guests gobble it up. Or try putting together some casseroles ahead of company coming so that all you have to do is heat and serve. Shepherd’s Pie is a delicious and filling meal that can be made ahead of time and reheated when company comes. Add in a salad and you have a complete meal with very little work!

“Turkey Day” Featuring Beef 

Add beef to your Turkey Day with some beefed up sides. Beef It’s What’s For Dinner has an entire collection of beefy sides sure to add flavor to your Thanksgiving spread! Change up your traditional green bean casserole with this Hamburger Green Bean Casserole, try out cornbread muffins with the bold flavor of beef sausage, or make up a slow-cooker of your favorite meatballs for before meal grazing. 

No matter the time of year or holiday, beef has you covered for all your favorite recipes! For more recipes, nutritional information, and information on beef from pasture to plate, visit Beef It’s What’s For Dinner.

Have a wonderful and blessed November and holiday season! We have so much to be thankful for. 

This article was funded by the Alabama Beef Checkoff Program. Brought to you by Alabama beef farmers and ranchers.

It has been a few weeks since we last updated you all here on the blog, but with Board meetings and checkoff planning…and of course social media, hopefully most of you have gotten an update or two along the way! While 2020 quickly comes to a close, the phrase “Hindsight 20:20” comes to mind. It has been one heckuva year- one that has challenged us and one that’s made us grow as stewards of your association and your checkoff dollars. While in the future the phrase “2020” may just send a chill down all our backs, we can also reflect on the positive growth we as an association and beef council have found during this year of trial, change and lots of “Plan B’s and C’s.” Keep reading to learn what’s going on this week at the ACA.

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Alabama Beef Checkoff Task Force Set to Meet

Speaking of Plan B, this week’s Alabama Beef Checkoff Task Force Meeting is just that. Originally scheduled for Thursday, October 30, we were forced to postpone the meeting when Hurricane Zeta decided to come to town the evening before. Now, on Thursday, our staff and officers will welcome cattlemen and industry influencers from across the state in for a checkoff program highlight presentation and brainstorming sessions about how to put those dollars to work in 2021. We always look forward to this meeting as it is the first step to creating our “playbook” for the next year and allows us to go boldly into 2021 with a plan in place! It’s not too late to decide to come to tomorrow’s meeting- just call our office and bring your ideas.

YCLP Meets for Session 4

The Young Cattlemen’s Leadership Program Class (YCLP) VII kicked off their fourth session November 12 and 13 in Montgomery. The class had the opportunity to sit in on the Alabama Cattlemen’s fall board meeting and witness county leadership receive their red coats for going Over the Top. A special congratulations to Caleb Beason and Chad Kennedy, YCLP alumni, for going Over the Top as county presidents! The class was able to see firsthand how being involved in YCLP creates leaders of our industry and association!

The class also gained knowledge of how the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association is a grassroots system. At the conclusion of the board meeting the class met with ACA leadership to discuss becoming a leader in county cattlemen’s chapters. We appreciate ACA President Larry Reeves and ACA Vice President Jim Jordan investing their time into this class. Following, Erin Beasley and checkoff staff explained to the class the flow of state and national checkoff dollars.

On Friday, the class participated in leadership training provided by Dr. Don Mulvaney of Auburn University. YCLP members finished out session four with a pasture to plate experience. The class was able to watch a full carcass fabrication by participating in the BEEF 201 program. It truly brought the program full circle. We will be accepting YCLP Class VIII applications online starting December 1 at www.BamaBeef.org/YCLP.

Checkoff Sponsors Nutrition Seminar Program

ACA Director of Education & Outreach Ali Cantrell will be working with NCBA this Friday on the Nutrition Seminar Program (NSP) to provide support for Marie Spano’s presentation at the Alabama Dietetics Association (ALDA) 2021 meeting! Marie Spano, MS, RD, CSCS, CSSD is a sports registered dietitian for the Atlanta Braves.  She plans to talk about Sports Nutrition Challenges and Solutions.

Below is a brief description of her presentation: Dietitians play an integral role keeping athletes well-fueled and in the game. While following research-based principles, the application of sports nutrition is often far from textbook and requires mixing science and behavior change into a variety of on-the-field solutions that produce results.Marie is supportive of beef and is definitely a truth-seeker when it comes to nutrition science so she will be a great fit for this audience and NCBA and ACA will be a proud sponsor of this talk.

Stopping in at Diamond Jim’s

Also happening on Friday, the checkoff staff will head to west Alabama where they’ll meet up with RVP Donald Means at Diamond Jim’s and Mrs. Donna’s Family Steakhouse in Livingston. The local eatery was a finalist in this year’s Bama’s Best Beef contest with its dish, the Famous Ribeye, and we will be attending to present a plaque acknowledging their participation and placement. We look forward to meeting the staff and trying out that ribeye, all while supporting a local Alabama restaurant!

Membership Update

As a reminder, the 2020 membership year will close on December 4, 2020. County secretaries are asked to HOLD all 2021 membership renewals until everything is closed. Membership Coordinator Jessica Kennedy will send the green light when inputs can be made for the 2021 year! The first renewal statement for members expiring January-June 2021 will be sent on Monday, December 7. Get ready to check your mailbox!

Coming Up: Junior Board Meeting Set

The Alabama Junior Cattlemen’s Board of Directors is set to meet first weekend in December for winter meeting. The board will discuss upcoming events such as ACA Convention March 4-6 and what youth activities will be available for Alabama’s youth. We look forward to hosting youth events in 2021! To stay up-to-date follow the blog and the Alabama Junior Cattlemen’s on Facebook and Instagram!

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