2,500 Calorie Planetary Health Diet Meal Planning
| Food Group | U.S. Serving Size | Metric Serving Size | # of Servings | Food Choices |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breakfast vegetables | 1 to 2 cups | 120 to 250 grams | 2 | leafy greens (spinach, kale, mustard, turnip), sprouted beans, bok choy, broccoli, collards; choose fresh or frozen |
| fruit | 1/2 cup fruit juice, 1 cup fresh fruit cubed, fresh fruit fits in hand, 1/2 cup canned fruit | 125 ml juice or 150 grams fresh or 2 tbsp dried | 1 | any fresh fruit, dried fruit, canned in fruit juice or 100% fruit juice |
| soy milk | 1 cup | 250 ml | 1 | soy milk, rice milk (contains fat) |
| starchy veg & grains* | 4 slices bread, 4 biscuits, 4 pancakes, 4-6″ tortilla, 4-6″ chapati, 1 large naan, 2 pitas, 1 bagel, 2 cups hot or dry cereal | 72 to 164 grams | 4 | whole grain: bread, biscuits, buckwheat pancake, tortilla, chapati, naan, pita, or bagel; oatmeal (porridge), grits, whole grain dry cereal |
| fat | 2 tbsp tree nut butter or 3 2/3 tbsp peanut butter or 5-7 tree nuts or 40 peanuts or 1/2 cup avocado | 20 grams | 4 | nut butter, tree nuts, soy nuts, or avocado |
| Noon vegetables | 1/2 to 1 cup | 60 to 125 grams | 1 | artichokes, asparagus, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage (coleslaw), cucumber, eggplant, green & yellow beans, jicama, kohlrabi, leeks, mushrooms, okra, onions, snap pea or pods, peppers, radish, summer squash, Swiss chard, tomatoes, tomato sauce, water chestnuts, zucchini; choose fresh or frozen |
| soy milk | 1/2 cup | 125 ml | 0.5 | soy milk, rice milk (contains fat) |
| starchy veg & grains* | 1 1/2 cups to 3 cups | 155 to 270 grams | 3 | whole grain: pasta, brown rice, wild rice, barley, bulgur wheat, kasha, millet, polenta, quinoa, amaranth; corn, parsnips, peas, plantain, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, winter squash, yams |
| beans, peas, lentils | 1 cup | 162 to 198 grams | 2 | beans – black eye, black, broad, garbanzo, kidney, lima, mung, navy, pinto, soy, white, split peas, lentils, edamame, falafel, hummus, tempeh, tofu |
| fat | 3 tbsp oil type salad dressing or 3 tbsp seeds or 2 2/3 tbsp tahini | 30 to 48 grams | 3 | Caesar, ranch Italian, vinaigrette salad dressing or flaxseed, pumpkin, sunflower, sesame seeds |
| Snack vegetables | 1/2 cup to 1 cup | 60 to 125 grams | 1 | any vegetable eaten raw – broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, celery, peppers, cucumber, radish, zucchini; choose fresh or frozen |
| fruit | 2 cups fruit juice, 4 cups fresh fruit cubed, 4 fresh fruit fits in hand, 2 cups canned fruit | 500 ml juice or 600 grams fresh or 1/2 cup dried | 4 | any fresh fruit, dried fruit, canned in fruit juice or 100% fruit juice |
| starch whole grains | 2 slices bread, 10 crackers, 6 cups popcorn, 4 rice cakes | 40 to 56 grams | 2 | whole grain: bread or crackers; popcorn, whole grain rice cakes |
| fat | 2 tbsp tree nut butter or 3 2/3 tbsp peanut butter or 5-7 tree nuts or 40 peanuts or 1/2 cup avocado | 20 grams | 2 | nut butter, tree nuts, soy nuts, or avocado |
| Evening vegetables | 1 cup to 2 cups | 120 to 250 grams | 2 | artichokes, asparagus, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage (coleslaw), cucumber, eggplant, green & yellow beans, jicama, kohlrabi, leeks, mushrooms, okra, onions, snap pea or pods, peppers, radish, summer squash, Swiss chard, tomatoes, tomato sauce, water chestnuts, zucchini, rutabaga, sauerkraut; choose fresh or frozen |
| fruit | 1/2 cup fruit juice, 1 cup fresh fruit cubed, fresh fruit fits in hand, 1/2 cup canned fruit | 125 ml juice or 150 gms fresh or 2 tbsp dried | 1 | any fresh fruit, dried fruit, canned in fruit juice or 100% fruit juice |
| soy milk | 1/2 cup | 125 ml | 0.5 | soy milk, rice milk (contains fat) |
| starchy veg & grains* | 2 cups to 4 cups | 206-359 grams | 4 | whole grain: pasta, brown rice, wild rice, barley, bulgur wheat, kasha, millet, polenta, quinoa, amaranth; corn, parsnips, peas, plantain, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, winter squash, yams |
| fat | 16 tree nut halves or 4 tbsp pine nuts | 28 grams | 4 | pecans, walnuts, pine nuts |
*exchange 2 starches for 2 eggs or 1 ounce of meat or 2 ounces of poultry or seafood