Caroline's Lunchbox

Food for A Family Backpacking Trip

2009-08-06T07:42:00.010-04:00

Before we moved to Michigan in 2004, Geoff and I spent many weekends together backpacking along the west coast. On short trips, we brought ingredients to make pancakes and scrambled eggs for breakfast, bagel sandwiches for lunch, spaghetti or Indian curries for dinner, and s'mores for dessert. If we had space in our pack, we threw in a bottle of wine. On week-long trips, we were happy to eat trail mix, granola bars, and instant oatmeal on days 4, 5, 6, and 7. Tomorrow, we are headed to North Manitou Island for our first backpacking trip in Michigan and our first backpacking trip with our 3-year old. Of course, I've been thinking for days about what we'll bring to eat. Since we'll be carrying Caroline's gear in addition to our own, space will be at a premium. But it's only a 2-day trip and the hike in to our campsite is not more than a few miles. What should we bring? So far, I've gathered ingredients for hummus (instant), cucumber, and cheese sandwiches, whole wheat rotini pasta with garlic and cherry tomatoes, and s'mores (always s'mores). Plus, I've packed bread, instant oatmeal, granola, crackers, dried apples, blueberries, cherries, hot chocolate, tetra packs of milk, coffee, and tea. What am I missing?

I just learned that the weather forecast predicts rain for Saturday, which to me is just additional motivation to carry good food. Eating instant oatmeal on a beautiful morning is one thing. But who wants to sit in a tent eating instant oatmeal for 2 days? Come to think of it, who wants to take a family backpacking trip when the weather forecast predicts rain?! Me.

Simple and in-season: White Bean and Corn Croquettes

2009-08-04T21:12:00.005-04:00

Sweet corn is in-season! We bought half dozen ears from Kory Krueger (Sweet Spot Orchards) at the farmers' market on Saturday. They were $0.50 a piece. We usually eat sweet corn as corn-on-the-cob but tonight, I cut the kernels off of one ear and added them to my recipe for bean croquettes.

I use an easy and versatile recipe for bean croquettes: First, I mash together 2 cups cooked beans (any kind), 1/2 cup onion (minced), 1 egg, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, salt and pepper to taste. (Tonight, I added corn to the bean mixture). I like my croquettes with a little bit of texture so I mash them using a potato masher. For a smoother texture, you can put the bean mixutre through a food processor. Next, I cover the bottom of a large skillet with vegetable oil and turn the heat to medium-high. Using my hands, I shape about a 1/4 cup of the mixture into an oval-saped cake. I repeat this step with the remaining bean mixture. Finally, I cook the croquettes in the hot oil until golden brown on each side (about 3 minutes per side). They are best when served hot or warm.

Simple and in-season: Roasted vegetable sandwich

2009-07-29T21:42:00.004-04:00

One of our family's favorite summertime meals is a simple roasted vegetable sandwich and a green salad. I made these sandwiches for dinner tonight using eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, and cucumbers that I picked up at the farmers' market today. I cut the eggplant and zucchini lengthwise into 1/2 inch slices, brushed both sides with olive oil, and cooked them under the broiler for a few minutes per side. I placed the vegetables on one slice of toasted bread from Avalon International Breads (Detroit) and spread neufchatel cheese on another and put the slices together to make a sandwich. I ate my sandwich as is. Caroline disassembled hers but ate all the pieces.

Happy Birthday Caroline!

2009-07-29T21:32:00.006-04:00

We celebrated Caroline's 3rd birthday yesterday with this beautiful buttermilk cake from Zingermans!

Fruit flies be gone!

2009-07-28T23:25:00.000-04:00

Since we started composting our fruit and vegetable scraps, I’ve noticed that the amount of garbage our family generates per week has decreased from about five grocery-size bags to one. I’ve also noticed that we have a significant fruit fly problem. We put our fruit and vegetable scraps into a plastic container and dump the container out into our compost when it gets full, or about every other day. The container has a tight-fitting lid but it still attracted fruit flies, so many of them that even Caroline said to me one day, “We have a fruit fly problem!” I hate to kill bugs of any kind but seeing the tiny flies buzzing round the kitchen all day really gave me the creeps. So, I started poking around the internet. How do you get rid of fruit flies? The most obvious way is to remove the source, or in my case, the plastic container. But I’m a busy mom and I like to save myself trips to the compost if I can. After another minute or so on the internet, I came across on-line stores that sell a full suite of fruit fly eradication options: pest control sprays, fly traps, gels, baits, traps that use pheromone sexual attractants. For about $100, you can even buy your own professional ultraviolet fly trap. I passed on all of these options and opted for a simpler trap made of materials that I had on hand: plastic food wrap, rubber band, small glass jar, apple cider vinegar. I put about a 1/8 cup of apple cider vinegar in the jar and covered it with a piece of plastic food wrap secured in place with a rubber band. I then poked several holes into the plastic food wrap (using a fork) and placed the jar on the kitchen counter. The fruit flies, attracted to the apple cider vinegar, quickly made their way through the holes in the plastic food wrap. But they couldn’t get out.

Our family returned from a 10-day vacation on Sunday night and I’m pleased to report that we came home to a kitchen free of fruit flies.

Keta salmon on sale!

2009-07-13T20:51:00.004-04:00

We love wild salmon but because it's so expensive, we only buy it when it is on sale. This week, Keta salmon is on sale at Whole Foods Market. The price? Only $6.99 per lb. I had never heard of Keta salmon until Sunday morning when Caroline and I went to Whole Foods Market to buy our groceries. I wasn't sure what it would taste like but for $6.99 per lb, how could I go wrong? I bought a pound and we ate it for dinner tonight. Unlike King or Sockeye salmon, Keta salmon (alson known as Chum or Chub) has a very mild flavor and light colored flesh. Keta salmon has a lower fat and omega-3 fatty acid content than other species of salmon. For example, 3 oz of King salmon has about 11.5 grams of fat compared to just 4 grams of fat in the same amount of Keta salmon. But it is high in protein and, well, it's salmon and we love salmon. To cook it, I placed it skin-side down on a broiler pan, brushed the flesh with melted butter, rubbed it with Alder smoked coarse salt and broiled it for 6 minutes. I served it for dinner with brown rice and a side of sauteed yellow squash cut into rounds. The salmon had a nice flavor. So nice that I think I will go back to Whole Foods Market later this week to pick up some Keta salmon to freeze and eat later this summer. Keta salmon is on sale until July 21.

Where Our Milk Comes From

2009-07-11T19:49:00.004-04:00

For the last two years, we've been buying Calder Dairy milk. I'm lactose intolerant so I've never tried the milk but Geoff tells me it tastes great. Calder Farm is a family owned and operated farm in Carleton, which is located about an hour south of Ann Arbor. The farm has a relatively small herd (110 milk cows) of Holstein, Brown Swiss, and Jersey cows. Artificial hormones are not given to the cows to enhance their milk production. I've always wanted to meet the cows who produce the milk that Caroline drinks everyday so this afternoon, Caroline and I drove out to Carleton with our friends Katherine and Julia. I had never been to a dairy farm so I wasn't sure what to expect. We arrived at 3:00 pm, just in time for Caroline to have a chance to help give a bottle of milk to a 7-day old calf. We spent the next hour walking around the property (and eating ice cream from the on-site ice cream parlor) and at 4:00 pm, we watched the cows being milked in the milking parlor. The farm has a small milking parlor with only 8 electronic milking machines. It takes about an hour and a half for all 110 cows to be milked. The milk is stored in a refrigerated tank and then taken to Calder Dairy in Lincoln to be pasteurized in small batches and bottled in recyclable glass bottles. After watching so many documentaries exposing the underbelly of the conventional and industrial food system, I was heartened by our visit to this farm where cows are treated with respect and where the employees seem to take pride in their work.

Needle Lane Farms CSA

2009-07-07T20:32:00.004-04:00

When our friends Leslie and Steve asked if we could use their CSA (community supported agriculture) share while they were out-of-town, of course I said "yes." They are members of Needle Lane Farms CSA (Tipton, MI) and pick-up their share at Morgan and York on Tuesdays. I love the CSA model. Members subscribe to a farm by buying shares of the farm in advance to cover the anticipated costs of the operating the farm. In return, they receive a share of the harvest throughout the growing season. Before Caroline was born in July 2006, we were members of the Michigan State University Student Organic Farm CSA (community supported agriculture). Every Wednesday we went to the farm to pick up our share of fruits and vegetables for the week. We never knew what we would get in our share from week to week and that was part of the fun. I loved the challenge of making meals from surprise ingredients. After Caroline was born, we found that we didn't have time to go to the farm to pick up our share and I didn't have the energy to accomodate surprises. So we dropped our membership. I miss being a member of a CSA so when it came time to pick-up Leslie and Steve's share today, I hurried to Morgan and York. Their share of vegetables -- broccoli, lettuce, kohlrabi, chard, cabbage, red potatoes -- looked ultra-fresh and delicious. Dinner tonight? Whole wheat pasta tossed with sauteed garlic, broccoli, sun-dried heirloom tomatoes, toasted pinenuts, and parmesan cheese and served with a side salad. Thanks Leslie and Steve!

Don't toss the beet greens!

2009-06-30T22:43:00.003-04:00

Beet greens are delicious. They can be used as a substitute for spinach, chard or kale.

Caroline's new favorite vegetable? Beets!

2009-06-29T23:09:00.006-04:00

Last year, Caroline would barely touch my roasted beets. This year, she can't get enough of them. She likes golden beets and Chioggia beets (the pink and white stripped variety) but her favorite beets are the red ones. She likes the taste enough to eat them but what she loves most is the way that they make her tongue (and everything she touches) that deep red-purple color. Sometimes, she rubs the roasted red beets along her lips and says, "Look Mama! Lipstick!" I don't encourage food play but I let Caroline get away with a few applications.

I roast a bunch (or a couple of bunches) of beets on the weekend, store them in a covered container in the refrigerator, and use them throughout the week in salads, as a side dish, or just as is.

Roasted beets

Ingredients:
Beets

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 450F. Trim beets and scrub clean. Small beets can be roasted whole. Large beets should be cut in half or quartered (depending on their size) if they are going to be roasted alongside small beets. Place beets, cut-side down, in a oven-proof dish. Add a splash or two of water. Cover dish tightly with foil. Place in the oven and roast for about 30-40 minutes or until beets are easily pierced with a sharp knife. Peel beets while they are still warm by using fingers to rub off the skin.

Strawberry (or other fruit) jam salad dressing

2009-06-28T22:06:00.002-04:00

We bought a flat of strawberries at the farmers' market a few weeks ago and ended up turning about half of it into jam. I love strawberry jam but we probably have more of it now that we can use up in the next year. While tinkering around together in the kitchen last week, Caroline and I made strawberry jam salad dressing. The recipe is simple: 1:1 ratio of olive oil and Agro Dolce vinegar (or champagne vinegar) and strawberry jam to taste. If you like sweet salad dressing, add more strawberry jam. For more subtle hints of strawberries, add less.

What happened to our lettuce? And our broccoli?

2009-06-28T15:37:00.008-04:00

Saturday afternoon was my first trip to our community garden plot since returning home Friday after an overnight trip to DC. When I saw that the tips of our lettuce leaves had been broken off, I have to admit that my first thought (or maybe I said it out loud) was, "Doesn't Geoff know how to pick lettuce?" But then I saw that the tip of one of the broccoli leaves also had been ripped off. It seemed strange that Geoff would have tried to harvest a broccoli leaf. When I got home, I asked Geoff, "Um, did you pick some lettuce while I was gone?" When he shook his head, I panicked. What had gotten into our lettuce? When we planted our garden, we put up a fence around our entire plot. We even buried it and used metal stakes to secure it into the ground so that critters wouldn't be able to eat our food. When I checked my email later that afternoon, I saw that I had a message from Katherine, one of our community garden sages. She wrote, "So I was just out in the garden and it looks like a groundhog got into your garden." I felt my blood pressure rise as I kept reading. It turns out that a groundhog got into our plot through slits in our fence, probably made by the University of Michigan Northwood grounds maintenance crew who weed-wack around the fence. Katherine, who also happens to be a friend, repaired our fence for us by patching the slits with pieces of fencing material and garden-variety twist ties. I was thankful and thought that our groundhog problem had been resolved. But when I went to check on our garden this morning, I saw that the bottom of our "door" had been pushed aside and found our broccoli plant standing near-naked with its leaves eaten away. I am not happy.

First Raspberries!

2009-06-27T22:03:00.004-04:00

Our first stop at the Ann Arbor farmers' market this morning was Tantre Farm located next to Hollander's and near 4th and Kingsley. These days, we start our Saturday morning farmers' market shopping at Tantre Farm because they have a large variety of produce; whatever we can't buy there, we buy from other vendors. This morning, they had yellow/gold and red raspberries! Caroline loves raspberries so we bought a couple of half-pint containers of the red variety. The USDA certified organic raspberries were $4 for a container. I don't always buy USDA certified organic produce but when it comes to berries, which are so hard to clean, I almost always buy them from vendors who do not spray their berries with chemicals. Caroline loved the raspberries and ate a full half-pint container as we walked through the market.

How to Talk to Woodchucks

2009-06-26T22:10:00.004-04:00

Geoff: Caroline, what would you say if the woodchuck came up and wanted to eat our flowers? I would say, "Get away, woodchuck!"

Caroline: No, Daddy. That would not be nice. I would say, "Woodchuck, please don't eat the flowers because Mama will be cross."

Simple and in-season: Summer squash quesadillas

2009-06-24T15:52:00.006-04:00

It's 90F outside and too hot to cook anything that requires turning on the stove or oven for long periods of time. I contemplated getting take-out sushi for dinner but since it's a farmers' market day, we'll have something simple and in-season tonight: quesadillas made with summer squash and Monterey Jack cheese and salad made with lettuce from our garden. Dessert? Mulberries.

My carrot came up!

2009-06-23T21:44:00.007-04:00

About a month ago, Caroline started singing a song about carrots. "Carrots grow from carrot seeds, I planted one today. I watered it, I
pulled the weeds, carrots grow from carrot seeds." The song is based on Ruth Krauss' 1945 book, The Carrot Seed. Caroline's teachers, Sandra and Erin, are both interested in food and nutrition so I wasn't surprised when I walked into her classroom one day and saw the row of red flower pots, planted with carrot seeds, lined up on the window sill. Mya's carrot seeds germinated first. Others slowly followed. Until today, Caroline's pot looked like it was filled only with dirt. But she wasn't discouraged. "Not yet" she would say in a sing-song voice when we checked on her pot in the mornings. When I picked her up today, she was very excited to tell me that her seed had germinated. "My carrot came up!" she said. We looked into her pot and sure enough, a tiny plant had poked its way through the dirt. We have a garden at home but I love that Caroline gets a chance to grow food with her teachers and friends. Growing food allows Caroline to learn how to care for a plant and exposes her to the work that is involved in planting a seed and nurturing it to maturity. And it teaches her the value of patience...It will still be a couple of months before the carrots are ready to harvest and to eat.

Parsley House

2009-06-21T21:47:00.010-04:00

Uncle Butch made us this "parsley house" to keep the woodchucks out of our pots. It's made out of chicken wire and a bamboo stick. The chicken wire was bent to form a tube and wire cutters and pliers were used to cut and bend the wire together along the long sides of the tube.The bamboo stick, which runs along the bottom of the pot through two holes in the chicken wire, is meant to prevent the woodchucks from knocking over the house. Clever.

Ah ha! It's a woodchuck!

2009-06-21T14:40:00.003-04:00

Here is one of the woodchucks that has been eating our parsley! It turns out a family of 5 live two doors down beneath our neighbor's back porch.

Halibut and...

2009-06-20T22:33:00.010-04:00

When we headed out to the farmers' market this morning, I had planned to buy asparagus to serve for dinner tonight alongside the halibut that I bought yesterday. Uncle Butch, our favorite uncle from Portland, Oregon, is visiting for the weekend and I had hoped to show off some Michigan asparagus. I was disappointed to learn however, that asparagus season is over. Unbeknownest to me, I ate my last bite of this year's fresh Michigan asparagus this past Tuesday night. I mourned about the end of asparagus season for about a minute or two and then quickly turned my attention to the strawberries , cucumbers, greens, peas, and everything else that is now in-season. I began thinking about a new menu for dinner tonight. Frog Holler Farm had cone cabbage and cilantro and Tantre Farm had yellow summer squash (pictured here) and beets. And I knew I had a package of La Jalisciencse whole wheat tortillas at home. New menu? Halibut soft tacos with roasted yellow summer squash and cone caabbage cilantro slaw. Roasted beets with fennel oil on the side.

Friday morning at SELMA

2009-06-19T09:03:00.009-04:00

When my alarm went off at 6:00 am this morning, I was tempted to hit snooze so that I could get another hour of sleep. With the thunder and heavy rain, I tossed and turned in bed for most of the night. I was tired and in a bad mood. But instead of pulling the pillow over my head, I got out of bed, took a quick shower, and got dressed. It was Friday morning and I promised Caroline last night that I would take her to SELMA for a special breakfast. I don't know if she would have been upset if we skipped it (or if she even remembered my promise) but it's important to me that I keep my word. Plus, I knew that being around friends would do more for my mood than a couple of extra strength Tylenol. SELMA is a volunteer-run local-foods breakfast salon on the Westside of Ann Arbor. Every Friday morning, Lisa Gottlieb and Jeff McCabe open their home to their community to join them for breakfast made with seasonal and local ingredients. I met Lisa yesterday at the Food System Economic Partnership conference in Adrian but I first heard of SELMA from my friend Julia earlier this week. We arrived at Lisa and Jeff's home at 7:00 am and before we even got to the front door, I could smell something delicious. Bacon? Once inside, Lisa greeted us and welcomed us into her home. We signed-in, wrote our names on masking tape name tags, and made our way to the kitchen where people were mingling, eating, cooking, and serving. The menu was posted on a piece of butcher paper taped to the wall: tortilla espanola with potatoes and onions, tortilla flamenca with peppers, potatoes, and onions, frittata with Jeff's homemade coppa, waffles with fruit and bacon, yogurt granola parfait with fruit. Guests are invited to make a donation for their meal; money raised is used to support the local food community. Caroline and I sat on bar stools at the huge kitchen island. Baby Sophia, her doll, sat on the island, propped up against the pepper grinder. My friend Julia was one of the many SELMA volunteers working this morning. She served me a very good cup of coffee and brought a special breakfast for Caroline: pizza fritte drizzled with chocolate and served with fresh strawberries and a mint leaf (pictured here). Carolyn, who I met for the first time today, took my order: frittata with coppa served with greens. We ate our breakfast slowly and savored every bite. The frittata and greens were delicious. And Caroline loved the pizza fritte. We left SELMA around 8:00 am with me feeling relaxed and Caroline with chocolate on her lips...and on her forehead!

Dig a hole and bury it!

2009-06-16T21:54:00.004-04:00

It's almost 10:00 pm and Geoff is outside digging a hole in our backyard for our fruit and vegetable scraps. Why? About a month ago, we decided that we wanted to start composting. We had been generating so much garbage but most of what was getting thrown away was food. But we didn't want to invest a lot of time on building a composting system or a lot of money on a fancy turning unit. So, when our friend Joan told us that she gave up her 3 compartment composting system for the old "dig a hole and bury it" method of composting, we thought...why not give it a try? Since then, Geoff has been digging small holes in the backyard and filling them with our fruit and vegetable scraps. The amount of garbage that we generate has decreased and hopefully, we are improving the quality of our soil. There's one problem...we are running out of places where we can dig our holes.

What happened to our parsley?

2009-06-16T12:24:00.004-04:00

Before heading out the door every morning, Caroline and I water the herbs we planted in the pots on our small back patio (which is really just a small slab of concrete). We grow rosemary, edible flowers, curly parsley and until this morning, Italian flat leaf parsley. The stems of the flat leaf parsley are still in the pot but the leaves aren't. What happened to our parsley?! Caroline had an idea. "The woodchuck ate it" she said. I think she is right. A woodchuck (a rather plump woodchuck, I might add) has been hanging around our backyard for about a month now and has been munching on the dandelions. Has he moved on to our parsley?

Strawberries and Joan's Granola

2009-06-13T22:24:00.005-04:00

When we visited our friend Joan a few weeks ago at her home in Piermont, NY, we went to the nearby farmers' market early one morning for the season's first strawberries. Joan served the strawberries with plain yogurt, maple syrup, and her famous homemade granola. It was delicious. Caroline liked the strawberries and plain yogurt but she loved the granola. It's made with rolled oats, wheat germ, sesame seeds, powdered milk, sliced almonds, ground hazelnuts, honey, and vegetable oil, and is probably more nutritious (and more affordable) than the typical store-bought variety. In Michigan, strawberries are now in season. We bought an entire flat this morning from Sweet Spot Orchards for $32. When we got home, Caroline and I made granola using Joan's recipe; the recipe is published in her book, "This Organic Life." Caroline loved scooping out the ingredients and then mixing everything together in a big bowl using her hands. Breakfast tomorrow: Sweet Spot Orchards strawberries, Joan's homemade granola, plain yogurt, and Michigan maple syrup.

Cherries in DC!

2009-06-08T23:49:00.004-04:00

It was Caroline who spotted the cherries first. "Mama! Cherries!" she said pointing to a huge display of the season's first cherries. They were bright red and on the small side as far as cherries go. I grabbed a quart and gave them to Caroline to hold as we waited in line to pay a steep $8 in exchange for a taste of the season's first cherries. It's still too early for cherries in Michigan. But we were in DC over the weekend and within a 150-mile radius of DC, cherry season is just beginning. Our Sunday morning ritual when we are in DC is to visit the Dupont Circle farmers' market and buy smoked blue fish empanadas from Chris' Marketplace to eat for breakfast. On Sunday, we found a shady spot on the east side of the market where we sat down to eat our empanadas and cherries. Within minutes of sitting down, Caroline's white tank top was stained red-purple from the cherry juice that dripped from fingers as she tried to remove the pits and down her chin as popped each one into her mouth. It won't be long now before we'll be able to enjoy cherries here in Michigan.

Snapping and Eating Asparagus

2009-05-29T21:58:00.001-04:00

Instead of going to work early this morning, I volunteered in Caroline's class. Since asparagus is in season, I decided to teach the eight 2-ish year olds how to cook asparagus. I arrived at 9:00 am with a bottle of olive oil, sea salt, an asparagus ink-stamp, and about 60 spears of asparagus. We prepped the asparagus by snapping off their tough ends. The children loved the sound of the snap and some of them snapped and snapped their spears until all but the tips were snapped into bits! We put the long spears and bits together in a bowl and tossed the asparagus with olive oil. Then, I passed around a small round box of sea salt so that each child could have a turn to put a pinch of salt into the bowl. We spread the asparagus onto a broiler pan and put it in the oven for about 5 minutes or so. The children were eager to try the asparagus and patiently sat around a kidney-shaped table waiting for me to pull the pan out of the oven. The spears and bits were placed into individual cups and so that each child could have their own serving. Some of the children, like Caroline, already knew and loved asparagus. Others had never tried it before. And one child was introduced to it at home but, according to her mom, wouldn't touch it. This morning, all eight children asked for more and eagerly ate all of the spears and bits. And then just for fun, I stamped their arms with my asparagus-ink stap.

Blackberry Ice Cream in a Pink Egg Cone

2009-05-10T21:46:00.003-04:00

Caroline loves ice cream. So when we visited her friend Maia (who has lots of fabulous toys) last month, I wasn't surprised when she went straight for Maia's Melissa and Doug ice cream set. This is absolutely the coolest toy: four (hard plastic) individual scoops of ice cream, two cones, and two scoops. Since all of the pieces are magnetized, you can actually use the scoops to pick up a scoop (or two or three or four) of ice cream and set it on a cone. It looks so real that if you close your eyes and think about being on the beach on a hot sunny day, you might actually lick it. Since Caroline and Maia's play date, I have seen the ice cream set at several toy stores. Each time, I pick up the box, look at the price (about $30.00), and think about how excited Caroline would be if she had her own set. But I haven't bought it. Until today, I couldn't quite place my finger on why. But I figured it out this morning when Caroline brought me a black rubber ball set inside one half of a plastic pink egg and said, "Here, Mama. I made this for you. It's a blackberry ice cream cone." In today's world of reality TV and toys that look like their real-life counterparts, children's imaginations seem fleeting. Maybe I'll buy the ice cream set for Caroline next year. But for now, I love her imagination.

Black Walnuts and Hickory

2009-05-09T23:02:00.004-04:00

I meant to buy black walnuts and hickory from Sweet Spot Orchard last week at the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market but I was so focused on buying their asparagus that I completely forgot about the nuts. So when we went back today, we bought a pint of black walnuts and hickory (and asparagus and green onions). When we got home, we tried to crack the nuts open using our nutcracker...but they didn't give the slightest bit. I tried to break them open with my meat pounder but they still wouldn't crack open. Finally, Geoff took the nuts outside, placed them on our concrete steps, and used his hammer to break them open. We used our fingers to pull the meat from the shell and ate them right there on the steps. The nuts were delicious...sweet and full of flavor. Caroline loves nuts of all kinds and these were no exception. Unfortunately, I'm not sure when I will have a chance to crack the rest of the nuts so for now, they are sitting in a bowl on the kitchen counter.

Pizza: The Other American Pie

2009-05-06T22:30:00.014-04:00

I've had my eye on the pizza making class at Zingerman's ever since we moved to Ann Arbor last October. But I didn't think that the cost to take the class fit into our budget. Geoff surprised me last month with two spots for tonight's class. It was a great class and worth every cent. Shelby (pictured here cutting Pizza Bianca) was our instructor. He was funny, helpful, and skilled. We learned how to make New York- and Chicago-style pizzas and Pizza Bianca, a simple Roman-style pizza. We tasted pizza, made our own dough to take home, and came home with four pizzas we made in class. My New York-style Pizza Margherita is pictured here. It's made with homemade crust and sauce, Bel Gioioso fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and a little bit of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. We put two deep dish pizzas in our deep freezer to save for dinners later this month and a couple of New York-style pizzas (Pizza Margherita) into the fridge to eat for dinner tomorrow night. We'll use the extra dough to make pizza with Caroline this weekend. Like most toddlers I know, Caroline loves pizza. And these days, she also loves the spinach we buy from Brines Farm at the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market on Saturdays. Fresh spinach on pizza? Sounds like the perfect spring topping to me.

Asparagus Now In Season!

2009-05-02T12:28:00.006-04:00

For Geoff, spring training marks the start of spring. For me, it's asparagus. From now until the end of asparagus season (mid to late June), our family will be eating asparagus for breakfast, lunch, and dinner on as many days of the week as I can get away with. There will be asparagus in morning omelets and sauteed, broiled, grilled or steamed asparagus as a side dish for lunches and dinners. The asparagus season is so short that we never tire of eating the green spears. And since Michigan is the third largest asparagus-producing state in the country there will be plenty to eat over the next month and a half. We had sauteed asparagus alongside baked cod for dinner tonight. Caroline loved the asparagus and ate it by first biting off the tip before eating the rest of the spear.

What's up with the queue?

2009-05-02T12:21:00.003-04:00

Free compost at the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market! If we had known in advance, we wouldn't have rode our bikes to the market this morning. Alas, with two bikes and one bike trailer, we didn't have room (or the strength) to lug home a bag of compost.

Sunday Morning Pancakes

2009-04-26T08:12:00.004-04:00

Caroline and I make pancakes every Sunday morning. It's a ritual we've had since she began eating solid foods, more than two years ago. I assembly the ingredients and (with a little bit of help from me) Caroline does everything else: cracking the egg, measuring flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, butter, and buttermilk. We take turns stirring the batter and then let it rest for about 30 minutes before we pour it into circles on the hot griddle. Sometimes we add blueberries or thinly sliced apples to the pancakes. My friend Woody told me that when small bubbles begin to form and pop on the surface of the pancakes and the edges begin to dry out, they are ready to flip. The pancakes are resting now. In another 20 minutes, we'll eat them with real maple syrup.

Ingredients: 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, pinch of salt, 2 tablespoons white sugar, 2 large eggs (slightly beaten), 2 cups buttermilk, 2 tablespoons melted butter. Optional: blueberries or other fruit.

Directions: Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just moistened (the batter will be a bit lumpy). Let sit for at least 30 minutes. Have a hot griddle ready. Pour batter onto griddle using a 1/4 cup measure or small ladle. Add blueberries or other fruit. Flip each pancake over when edges begin to dry out and small bubbles forme on the surface begin popping. Cook until golden brown on both sides. Serve with real maple syrup.

Community Farm Kitchen

2009-04-26T00:01:00.009-04:00

I met Mary (pictured on the left) and Becky (pictured on the right) from Community Farm Kitchen this morning at the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market. Their stand is located at the end of the first row of vendors (or beginning of the last, depending on where you're coming from). They were tucked away and we probably would have missed them except that we were looking for Shannon Brines (who has become one of our favorite farmers) and he was located near the Community Farm Kitchen stand. It was the muffins, displayed on a glass cake stand, and the map of Michigan marked with pins pointing to where the ingredients came from, that caught my eye. The Community Farm Kitchen is a program that operates alongside the Community Farm of Ann Arbor, a local CSA that has been in operation for more than 20 years. Members of the Farm can also become members of the Kitchen. From June through November, members receive vegetables grown on the Farm and have the option of signing up to get their vegetables prepared by the Kitchen into soups, salads, stir-fries, and other healthful dishes. Mary Wessel Walker is the food entrepreneur who started the Community Farm Kitchen back in 2007. This year, she added a bakery to her Kitchen. When I met Mary, the first thought that crossed my mind was, "I wish I knew you when Caroline was born!" Fresh, home cooked meals made with local and sustainably produced ingredients is exactly what all new moms need. Caroline chose a bran muffin for her morning snack and we also bought a loaf of bread. The muffin was eaten within 15 minutes and we ate a few slices of bread for lunch. Delicious! To learn more about Community Farm Kitchen, contact Mary by email at info@communityfarmkitchen.com or by telephone at (734) 395-7782.

Food Inc.

2009-04-24T23:19:00.004-04:00

Coming to theaters this summer, Food Inc., by filmmaker Robert Kenner (filmmaker of Inconvenient Truth), exposes the underbelly of America's centralized, corporatized, industrial food system. I had a chance to watch Food Inc. at this year's Kellogg Food and Society conference held in San Jose this week. With the recent outbreak of a new strain of swine flu that has sickened hundreads and killed at least 20 in Mexico, the film's focus on food production is especially timely. The film made me cry and almost vomit. It's a must see.

Ted's Mahi Mahi Sandwich

2009-04-14T03:43:00.004-04:00

We spent most of today with Uncle Butch who took us on a windshield tour of Oahu's coastlines. Around noon, we drove past Sunset Beach, a beautiful beach up on the north shore. Across the street from beach is Ted's Bakery. The outside of the Ted's is painted with colorful murals and there are a handful of tables with umbrellas out front. It looked more like a place to buy surfboards and bikinis than a bakery. Ted's wasn't a planned stop but we happened to be driving past around lunchtime so we pulled into the small parking lot. Inside there are two surfboards that hang on the wall plus a refrigerator filled with pies and cakes, a glass counter with shelves of croissants, apple turnovers, and sweet buns, and a large menu board with everything from hot dogs to special plates with fried rice, spam, and eggs. I ordered a mahi mahi sandwich and a side of papaya to share with Caroline. After about 20 minutes (or was it longer?) our sandwich was ready. We took our lunch to Sunset Beach and found a shady spot under a palm tree. The mahi mahi sandwich - a piece of battered and fried mahi mahi, mesculun greens, sweet onions, tarter sauce, and tomatoes on a Waimea seseme bun - was delicious. Caroline loved it too. Mental note for future trips to Ted's Bakery: buy two mahi mahi sandwiches....they're too good to share.

Spam Musubi

2009-04-12T03:15:00.019-04:00

Hawaiians, including President Obama, love Spam. More than 4 millions cans of Spam are consumed in Hawaii each year. At the Saturday farmers' market, vendors were selling Spam in breakfast dishes (fried Spam, rice, and eggs) and as Spam Musubi - sliced, fried, and tied to a ball of rice with a strip of nori (seasoned seaweed). In Hawaii, Spam is sold everywhere: convenience stores, grocery stores, food carts, gas stations. How did Spam (developed by Jay C. Hormel in 1926) achieve iconic status in Hawaii? According to an article published in The Huffington Post, Spam made its way into the Hawaiian diet when military personnel introduced it during World War II. Because it's shelf stable, it became a standard K-ration for soldiers who ate it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For curious mainlanders, an instructional video on how to make Spam musubi is posted alongside the article. When I asked Geoff (pictured here) how his Spam musubi tasted, he described it as "salty" and "fatty" tasting. I think I'll stick with the papayas.

Aloha!

2009-04-12T03:09:00.006-04:00

We arrived in Hawaii last night. It was warm and misty when we got off the plane. It felt good. We are here with Geoff's family: parents, brother, sister-in-law, niece, and uncle. Unlike most of our vacations, I don't have much in the way of plans for our week on Oahu. That is, except for our trip to the farmers' market this morning where I had hoped to purchase most of the produce and breads for the week. Since we are still on eastern standard time, it was easy for us to wake up at 6:00 am to head out to the market with Uncle Butch ("Alan" is his real name but we lovingly call him "Butch"). The early morning start might sound like overkill but we wanted to get there before the vendors were cleaned out and according to a Hawaiian steward that Uncle Butch met on his flight to Hawaii from California, the pickings are slim after 9:00 am. We arrived at the market just before it opened at 7:15 am and it was already swarming with people. Although the market doesn't open until 7:30 am, shoppers can pick out and pay for their produce before 7:30 am and pick it up after it opens. The Saturday farmers' market is located at Kapiolani Community College, near Diamond Head . There are three farmers' markets on Oahu and they are listed on a website along with their locations and participating vendors. Our first stop was Ba-Le Bakery where we bought (purple) taro bread, granola, a couple of loaves of sandwich bread, baguettes, and apple turnovers. Our stomachs were growling but after we paid, we had to wait until the 7:30 am bell rang to eat them. It was worth the wait...the turnovers were delicious. By 9:00 am, we were stuffed from snacking on samples and eating the local foods like dango (Japanese dumplings coated with thick sweet sauce, grilled, and served on a skewer),homemade ice cream, and musubi (seasoned rice balls). Geoff even tried the Spam musubi, which is a slice of Spam tied to a rice ball with a piece of nori (seasoned seaweed). I'm an adventurous eater but...I draw the line at Spam. We left the market at around 10:00 am with an empty wallet and loads of food for the week: papaya, mango, avocado, pineapple, strawberries, tomatoes, bok choy, mesculun greens, lettuce, eggplant, zucchini, sweet peas, lavender infused salad dressing, chocolate sauce (for ice cream), seaweed asparagus, Auntie Nani's chocolate chip/macadamia nut cookies and macadamia nut shortbread, Hakurei turnips, longan, apple bananas, loquat (pictured here), carrots, mangoes. I love Hawaii.

And it Snowed

2009-04-09T21:38:00.004-04:00

It did end up snowing but not on Sunday as predicted. It snowed Monday and we got enough of the white stuff for Ann Arbor schools to be closed for the day. Here's a snow day picture of our yard (and part of our row house) on the University of Michigan north campus.

Early Spring Greens and Beets

2009-04-04T21:10:00.007-04:00

It's supposed to snow tomorrow but today feels like a beautiful spring day. It is 54F and sunny with blue skies. We started our morning at the YMCA where Caroline takes swim lessons that start at 8:30 am. By the time we made it to the farmers' market at 10:00 am, it was packed. The warmer weather means that spring greens like arugula, pac choi, spinach, mesculun greens and claytonia are plentiful. Stopping for greens at the Brines Farm table has become part of our Saturday routine. We bought seven bags of greens today including one bag of mesculun greens for our friend Christine who lives in East Lansing. We also stopped at the Goetz farm table (whose greens are pictured here) where we picked up two bunches of beautiful red beets. I'll roast the beets and serve them as is or in a salad with arugula and goat cheese. The (beet) greens will be chopped, sauted with chopped onion and mixed with brown rice and feta cheese. This rice dish is one of Caroline's favorites. I love early spring.

Greens!

2009-03-21T14:25:00.005-04:00

Spring is here! The warmer weather means (more) fresh greens grown by nearby farmers are now available at the farmers' market. When we arrived at the Ann Arbor farmers' market this morning, we headed straight to the Brines Farm table where Shannon and Priscilla (both pictured here) were busy bagging several different types of baby greens - pac choi, arugula, mixed greens (and others). Shannon is the proprietor of Brines Farm. He has a hoop house operation in Dexter, Michigan, which is about 10 miles northwest of Ann Arbor. I guess you could call him a hoop house harvester of sorts. A hoop house functions like a greenhouse but unlike a greenhouse, it is unheated. It has a series of hoops for a frame and it is covered by plastic...it looks like a long, white tunnel with a door. Virtually unheard of a few years ago, they are catching on in places like Michigan where the winters are long and cold. Thanks to hoop house harvesters like Shannon, it is now possible to eat fresh, locally grown greens on an almost year-round basis. We left the market today with a 1/2 peck of Braeburn apples from Alex Nemeth and from Brines Farm, a bag each of arugula, mixed greens, and pac choi .

Claytonia from Brines Farm

2009-03-08T21:11:00.006-04:00

Spring is finally approaching. It's not here but it is approaching. Tree buds have begun to appear, the snow has melted (finally), and vendors at the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market are selling more than apples, soap, and lamb pelts. Even though it poured rain on Saturday, there were more people at the market than there have been the past few weeks...or, has it been months? By the time I made it to the market, Alex Nemeth had run out of Fujis and Braeburns (my second choice variety). I was disappointed but ended up buying a half peck of Red Delicious apples. I don't care for the thick skin of Red Delicious apples but the flavor of these apples is quite good and the texture surprisingly crunchy for this time of year. For months now, apples have been my only market purchase. But on Saturday, I couldn't help but the notice the delicate salad greens the shape of small flower petals at the next stand over. Priscilla from Brines Farm in Dexter was selling Claytonia. I had never heard of Claytonia but it looked so fresh and beautiful so I bought a bag ($3 for about 6 ounces). I served it Saturday night as a side salad with paper-thin slices of roasted orange beets and lightly dressed with seasoned rice vinegar, olive oil, and freshly ground pepper. It was delicious. I did a quick Google search to learn more about this mysterious vegetable and learned that Claytonia is part of the Purslane family, a family of greens that many people treat as weeds. It was slightly tart and tasted almost like very young spinach. Caroline was interested in this new vegetable and nibbled at the pieces on her plate. With any luck, she'll eat more of it the second time around.

California Sunshine!

2009-01-23T23:29:00.004-05:00

As soon as I saw the return label on the package that said, "Ray's Organic Grove," I opened the box as quickly as I could. Inside, under a protective layer of foam was 13 lbs of beautiful, sweet smelling Meyer lemons. Uncle Ray and Aunt Pat live in Modesto, California. They live in a modest, unassuming house on a quiet street just off the main road that cuts through the city of Modesto. From the front, the house looks similar to the others on the block. But in the backyard is a small but productive orchard that Uncle Ray has tended for years. Uncle Ray grows the lemons (and he grows them well) and I'm sure that it was Aunt Pat who carefully placed them in the box and sent them to us via FedEx. I love Meyer lemons. They have wonderful flavorful that I can only describe as intensely lemon-y. I rarely see them in grocery stores out here and when I do, they are too expensive for our budget. It's not the first time Uncle Ray and Aunt Pat have sent us this box of California sunshine. But I never take this special treat for granted and use as much of each lemon as I can. So, what am I going to do with 13 lbs of lemons? I will make cakes (of course) and other lemon-y baked goods. That will use up a couple of pounds. The rest? I'll freeze the rind and juice separately in small containers so that I will have them on hand the next time a recipe calls for a tablespoon of lemon juice or a teaspoon of lemon rind.

A Lesson on Family Meals

2009-01-19T18:38:00.005-05:00

Since moving to Ann Arbor last October, family meals have become weekend affairs. Geoff commutes to Michigan State University for his job (a one-hour plus drive) so by the time he gets home at 7:00 pm or so, Caroline is in her pajamas and ready for bed. I eat dinner with Caroline on most nights but wait to eat with Geoff a couple of times a week. Tonight was an eat-dinner-with-Geoff night. I gave Caroline her dinner (zucchini and whole wheat penne pasta with pesto from our summer-time freezing stash) and sat with her while she ate. She took a few bites but then started goofing off. And the more I encouraged her to eat her dinner, the more she goofed off. Her fork kept "accidentally" falling on the floor. Oops, she bumped her head and needed an ice pack. "More milk please!" Finally, I became frustrated and said (rather firmly), "Caroline. Let's focus on your dinner." Her response? With an earnest look and wide eyes, she said, "Mama, why don't you eat with me?" Is that all? I served myself a small bowl of pasta and sat down with her. Not surprisingly, that is all it took. As soon as I started eating, Caroline stopped fussing and happily ate all of her meal.

Peanut Butter Dip and Apples

2009-01-18T22:28:00.002-05:00

The only locally grown fruit that I can find these days is apples. Every week I buy half a peck of Alex Nemeth's (pictured here with his lovely wife) super sweet Fuji apples at the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market in Kerrytown. Even though they were picked months ago, they are still very crunchy. Caroline likes apples but she doesn't love them like I do...except with peanut butter dip. When we moved to Ann Arbor last October, I discovered the most amazing peanut butter. It is called Cream-Nut and it is made by Koeze Company in Grand Rapids. I first tried Cream-Nut at Zingerman's when it was being sampled. At $6.99 a jar (17 ounces), it was a bit too pricey for our budget. But a few weeks ago, I found it at Whole Foods Market where it was only $4.69. I bought it right then and there and I've been in peanut butter heaven ever since. This morning, Caroline and I used it to make peanut butter dip. Here's the recipe. Add a little bit (about a teaspoon) of boiling water to a tablespoon of peanut butter. Stir like mad until creamy. Add more water if needed. Use as a dip for apples and celery or eat straight out of the bowl.

Cooking with Caroline

2009-01-11T15:01:00.003-05:00

Some of my favorite childhood memories are those that took place in the kitchen working side-by-side with my mom turning whatever was in-season, into a meal. These days, Caroline joins me more often than not when I am in the kitchen. I love watching her as she grows increasingly confident in her cooking skills and adventurous in tasting and smelling food. After making blueberry pancakes for breakfast this morning (our weekly tradition), Caroline and I made a batch of hummus. I put the ingredients and our cooking tools on the table and we went to work. When we cook together, we share tasks. I measured the tahini (6 tablespoons), water (1/4 cup), salt (1/2 teaspoon), and olive oil (2 tablespoons). Caroline poured and stirred. We took turns squeezing lemons for juice (3 tablespoons), pressing one clove of garlic through a press, and grinding the cumin (1/4 teaspoon). After all of the ingredients were prepped, we moved on to the Cuisinart, which hands-down, is Caroline's favorite small kitchen appliance. We start by processing the chickpeas (1 cup), garlic, salt, and cumin together for about 15 seconds. Then we add the liquids. Caroline loves to press the big, grey buttons (start and stop) while I push the mix of olive oil, lemon juice, water, and tahini through the top. We process the hummus until it is smooth and creamy and then turn it out into a bowl. Served with whole wheat pita bread and carrot sticks, it makes a great snack.

Eating Seasonally in Tuscany

2009-01-07T14:29:00.006-05:00

When we booked our winter vacation to Tuscany, we knew we wouldn't be eating fresh vine-ripened tomatoes. What we didn't expect is that our hosts Laura and Luciano at Il Canto del Sole would eat seasonally to the point of consuming almost no fresh produce in the wintertime. With the exception of Clementine oranges and persimmons from Sicily, and storage vegetables like carrots, onions, garlic, and pumpkin, our diets for our 11-day vacation (Christmas day through January 4) consisted primarily of homemade pasta, eggs, meat, bacon, cheese, pizza, bread, and of course, gelato (which, according to my definition, is always in season). Not that I'm complaining. The food was fabulous and we all loved the simple Italian meals that Laura and Luciano prepared daily for us. The pumpkin lasagna we had one night was especially wonderful. It was made with homemade noodles and melted in my mouth. Meals eaten out also were made with seasonal ingredients so ordering insalta mista (which was always on the menu but never available) was simply out of the question. Instead, we ate thin-crust pizza, like the one pictured here, throughout our travels in Tuscany.

Cup O' Soup

2008-11-24T20:03:00.002-05:00

Who doesn't love a meal made up of soup, salad, and crusty bread on a cold winter night? Caroline. It's not that she hates soup. She just doesn't care for it. Since she has been battling a cold all week (and has now passed it on to me and Geoff), I decided to serve chicken noodle soup for dinner tonight. Instead of serving it in bowls, I put the soup in mugs. It did the trick. Caroline drank her soup like a pro. "I do. I do. I do like the soup" she said mimicking the words in Dr. Seuss's Sam I Am.

Food Grouch

2008-11-22T20:55:00.002-05:00

Geoff just called me a "food grouch." Since moving to Michigan in 2004, our friends have sung the praises of Ann Arbor. "Oh, you'll never like East Lansing, Betty. I know you. But you'll love Ann Arbor." "There's better food in Ann Arbor." "Ann Arbor has better bookstores." Ann Arbor this, Ann Arbor that. After my food shopping experiences today, I am feeling less than chipper and pining for familiar old favorites like the Meridian Township Farmers' Market, Schuler's Bookstore, and the East Lansing Food Co-op. But here's why I'm grouchy. Our first trip this morning was to the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market. What drives me crazy about this farmers' market is that none of the organic farmers list food prices. So every week, I load up my bag with goodies, tell the farmer (or whoever happens to be working the stand that day) what I've got and some number spills out of their mouth. Today, it was $29. Last week I bought about the same amount of produce and it was $14. What's the deal?! I could ask what each item costs but why do I have to? I've never been to a farmers' market where products weren't labeled with prices. I want to pay a fair price for food but really, was the price of the vegetables we bought today really $29? I guess we'll never know. Our next stop was Zingerman's for our usual cup of coffee and pastry. Since my good friend Allison was coming over for lunch, I also hit the deli for some meat, cheese, and olives. I settled on nicoise olives ($18.99 per pound) and French sausage for $12. It was a splurge but Allison is moving to Italy and today was our last visit together for awhile. And honestly, since I haven't bought nicoise olives in a long time, I couldn't remember what they typically go for. Plus, if it tasted as good as it looked (or if you get what you pay for), why not? But it didn't. The nicoise olives weren't anything special and the French sausage was horrible and left me feeling sick to my stomach. After my food experiences today, I am wondering what all of the Ann Arbor hype is about...well, maybe that isn't a fair statement. There are some good things about food in Ann Arbor. Like Alex Nemeth's Fuji apples. I feel better just thinking about the big bag of Fuji apples in my refrigerator. They are the perfect size, crunchy, and sweet. Now those are good apples. And they're affordable too.

Inspired!

2008-11-16T13:10:00.003-05:00

Before leaving Portland, I bought myself a present: The Paley's Place Cookbook by Vitaly and Kimberly Paley. Paley's Place is a well-known restaurant in Portland's chic Northwest 23rd Avenue neighborhood. We've never eaten there but everyone I know that has just raves about it. I read the book on the plane back to Michigan while Caroline slept on my lap. With recipes like Chicken Roulade and Huckleberry Kuchen with Cassis-Huckleberry Sauce and Creme Fraiche, I doubt I'll be able to find the time to make most of the dishes in this book. But I didn't buy it for the recipes. I bought it for the stories. I laughed out loud when I read about Vitaly Paley's weekend with Fergus Henderson cooking pig trotteres and partridges. Reading the stories about the food and food producers of the Northwest reminded me of why I love to cook. Even though I spend a lot of time in the kitchen, much of it is spent preparing easy to prepare meals that I know Caroline will enjoy. The Paley's Place Cookbook inspired me to cook one of my favorite dishes tonight: chicken provencal. It is a recipe I found in an old Cook's Illustrated magazine from years ago and for some reason, I assumed that the flavors would overwhelm Caroline and she wouldn't like it. Instead of following my own advice (I can hear the annoying message now: Some foods may need to be introduced to children up to 20 times before they are willing to try it) I just avoided this dish altogether. I served the chicken with oyster mushrooms (Tantre Farms) sauteed with garlic and Israeli couscous. To my surprise, Caroline loved her meal. Thank goodness!

A Bouquet From Kaleng

2008-11-14T20:58:00.014-05:00

Life has been busy these days. We spent 10 days in California at the end of October and just returned to Ann Arbor from a trip to Portland, Oregon. We were back in Michigan for only a few days in between, just enough time to get over jet lag...before heading to the west coast again. Portland is our home. Before moving to Michigan, Geoff and I lived in Portland. We were only there for four years but during that time, we made many close friends, including Kaleng Moua (pictured here). Kaleng is a farmer and vendor at the Portland Farmers' Market. He grows and sells fruits, vegetables, and flowers. We became friends with Kaleng and his family years ago. We first met at the farmers' market but we became friends while working together to try to improve farm direct marketing opportunities for immigrant farmers. I visited the Moua's farm years ago and was so impressed with the diversity of the products they grew, how hard they worked, and their care for their land. At that time, Kaleng mostly grew flowers, vegetables, and hazelnuts. Over the years, he has started growing specialty foods like figs and jerusalem artichokes. We visit Kaleng at the Portland Farmers' Market about once a year. The market is so busy that we never get a chance to talk for more than a few minutes. I always bring him one of my favorite Michigan foods and he always gives me something from his stand to eat during my stay. This time, he gave me a bag of perfect jerusalem artichokes, a bunch of bok choy, and a bouquet of dried flowers. "For your office" he said as he handed me the flowers. I turned away and pretended to look at his figs so that he wouldn't see the tears rolling down my cheeks. Kaleng. He is always so kind to me. I thought of Kaleng earlier this week as I cleared a spot on my desk for the flowers. They look beautiful and even though they are dried, they smell lovely. I thought of Kaleng again tonight as Caroline and I prepared the jerusalem artichokes for dinner. It was my first time cooking with jerusalem artichokes (also known as sunchokes because they are the tubers that form under sunflowers). Caroline helped me to scrub them clean and after I sliced them into 1/2 inch rounds, we tossed them with our hands in sunflower oil and dried rosemary and roasted them in the over. They were delicious.

Surviving On Processed Foods

2008-10-27T23:18:00.005-04:00

Caroline and I have been in San Diego since last Friday. I am attending the American Public Health Association (APHA) conference (along with 13,000 other people). When I travel to conferences, Geoff usually stays home with Caroline. But this time, Geoff is also attending a conference...in Palo Alto. Since APHA provides on-site childcare (and several breastfeeding lounges....this is definitely the most progressive and family-friendly professional organization around) we decided that Caroline should come with me to San Diego. Camp APHA --the official name of the on-site childcare service -- is run by an organization called ACCENT on Children's Arrangements. For $15, parents can purchase a lunch for their child. Because I am the way I am, I decided to pack Caroline's lunches for her. Before the conference began, I hit a nearby food co-op called Ocean Beach People's Organic Food Market. The market had a great selection of fresh produce but since we are staying in a hotel and only have access to a very small bar fridge, we couldn't take advantage of most of the products. Instead, we had to stock up on processed foods and stick to foods that didn't need any preparation. What did we buy? Nancy's soy milk raspberry yogurt (which has nearly 10 grams of sugar less than fruit flavored yogurt made with cow's milk), whole wheat crackers, single serving applesauce, boxed soy milk, cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, Fuji apples, string cheese, sunflower butter, Village Mill Bread Company bread, and Bionaturae strawberry fruit spread. Today was Caroline's first day at Camp APHA. She loved it. And for the most part, she seemed to like what I packed for her lunch...especially the sunflower butter and strawberry fruit spread sandwich.

Rose Gold Potatoes

2008-10-18T20:02:00.008-04:00

Geoff and I ran to the farmers' market this morning wearing shorts. I don't know what we were thinking, especially since we had Caroline bundled up in a fleece sweater and a hat with ear flaps. We had a beautiful morning with blue skies and sun. But the air was crisp. Very crisp. So by the time we arrived at the market, the only things I could think about were coffee and soup. We bought a couple of butter croissants from Zingerman's (which are quickly becoming Caroline's favorite Saturday morning treat) and coffee from Sweetwaters. After warming up and listening to a man playing the washboard -- yes, it's really a washboard -- we walked through the market to buy our produce for the week. We picked up several things from Frog Holler Organic Farm and then headed to their neighbor, Garden Works. I was immediately drawn to the huge display of potatoes, which included several varieties I had never heard of before. With soup on my mind, I bought a couple of pounds of Rose Gold potatoes and then headed to Tantre Farm for a bunch of carrots and a head of Savoy cabbage. When we got home, I made a pot of potato soup with Savoy cabbage and leeks. I sauted one chopped onion, a large clove of garlic, 1 teaspoon of rubbed sage, and 1/2 teaspoon of dried rosemary in a few tablespoons of butter for about 10 minutes. I peeled and diced the potatoes and added them to the onions along with with 2 cups of homemade chicken broth (from my freezer) and 4 cups of water and brought it all to a simmer. When the potatoes were tender, about 20 minutes later, I used a potato masher to mash the potatoes and thicken the soup. I then stirred in about 2 cups of finely sliced Savoy cabbage, salt and pepper to taste, and continued cooking the soup on a gentle simmer for about 10 more minutes. I served the soup for lunch today with a loaf of Zingerman's farm bread (their bread of the month), fresh mozzarella cheese, and Frog Holler tomatoes. Perfect foods for a crisp fall day.

Roasted Beets

2008-10-12T19:30:00.004-04:00

Caroline likes beets! After refusing to eat them all of last season and most of this season, she now eats (and enjoys) red beets. I haven't changed the way that I prepare or serve them. Geoff and I love beets and when they are in season, we eat them as a side vegetable or in our salads. I guess that after watching us eat them, seeing them on her plate, touching them (and then looking at her purple hands), tasting them on occasion (and spiting them out), we finally reached that post-neophobia stage. Our favorite way to prepare beets? Scrub them, trim their tops, place them in a baking pan, add just a splash of water, cover the pan tightly with foil and roast them in the oven at 400 F for about 40 minutes or until they can be easily pierced with a sharp knife. Peel them as soon as you can comfortably handle them. The skins should slip off easily leaving you with nice, shiny, smooth beets. I serve them as is or toss them with seasoned rice vinegar and olive oil. Roasted beets are also wonderful on top of a mixed greens salad with toasted walnuts, goat cheese, and a balsamic vinegrette. And the beet greens? Use them in place of dark green leafy vegetables like spinach or chard. They are delicious.

Frog Holler Farm

2008-10-11T21:23:00.006-04:00

We had a beautiful fall day today. The temperature was in the 70s, the sky was blue, and the leaves were a bright mix of colors - crimson red, burnt orange, and canary yellow. Our new house is close to the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market so instead of driving our car to the market this morning, we put Caroline in her Chariot (baby jogger) and ran the two or so miles. Our first stop was Frog Holler Organic Farm. We bought some veggies from Frog Holler (Brooklyn, Michigan) last weekend and they were delicious...so we went back for more. Ken and Cathy King and their three sons (including Kenny, who is picture here) are the Frog Holler farmers. The farm is an institution at the Ann Arbor Farmers' Market having made their mark back in 1972 as the first organic vendors. Now, they are one of several vendors who selling organically grown food. We bought some tomatoes, salad greens, chard, and beets (though we forgot to put the beets in our bag!) from Kenny and continued shopping. Watermelon, apples, Barlett pears, prune plums, Hakurei turnips, and eggs made it into our bags. Needless to say, we didn't run home. Geoff carried Caroline on his shoulders and I pushed the food in the Chariot.

Last Times

2008-10-06T22:18:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow is Caroline's last day at her childcare center in East Lansing. It's hard to believe that it will be the last time that I try to mimic the childcare center's meals with seasonal and locally produced foods made with ingredients grown/raised without harmful chemicals. It was a great learning experience for me. For one thing, I found out how boring and repetitive school meals can be because after awhile, I found myself posting the same (or very similar) menus to this blog. I tried to mix up the menus with seasonal fruits and vegetables, but even I became tired of baked and marinated tofu, grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup, and lentil croquettes. Speaking of which, chicken nuggets are on the menu tomorrow so Caroline will be getting lentil croquettes for lunch. I would be lying if I said that I would miss packing Caroline's lunch everyday. Packing a nutritious lunch made with whole ingredients takes time, energy, and creativity. There were many days when I just didn't have it in me. At Caroline's new childcare center in Ann Arbor, no outside foods are allowed in the building so packing her meals is not even an option. I wouldn't have gone this route except that nutrition is a high priority for this center so all grains are whole grains, sweets (like brownies, cookies, monkey bread, etc.) are not served, and the administration has made it easy for most of our food needs to be met...though locally produced foods grown/raised without harmful chemicals are not on their radar (yet).

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, October 7: Breakfast - Bartlett pear (Ann Arbor Farmers' Market), corn muffin; Lunch - lentil croquettes, broccoli (Ann Arbor Farmers' Market), yellow watermelon (Ann Arbor Farmers' Market), Ed's mulitgrain bread (Saline); Snack - pumpkin carrot muffins (carrots and pumpkin from Ann Arbor Farmers' Market, Westwind Milling Company flour)

Childcare Center Menu, October 7: Breakfast - applesauce, blueberry muffins; Lunch - chicken nuggets, broccoli, kiwi, wheat bread; Snack - pumpkin carrot muffins (from Caroline)

Apple Picking And Eating!

2008-09-29T22:31:00.004-04:00

Kids love fresh apples. At least that's what I observed on Saturday when we were picking apples at Chudleigh's in Milton, Ontario. Chudleigh's is a stereotypical entertainment farm: straw maze, farm animals, playground, bakery, gift shop, hay rides, BBQ, and 100 acres of apples. My sisters (Sophia and Michelle) and their families visit Chudleigh's every fall as soon as the Honey Crisp apples are ready to pick. The kids love horsing around on the hay bales, seeing the animals, and eating grilled corn-on-the-cob. But most of all, I think they love to pick and eat the apples. Matthew (7 years old) and Olivia (4 years old) couldn't stop eating the Honey Crisp apples. It seemed like for every one they picked, they ate two. Caroline preferred the smaller Empire apples, which she could hold with two hands. As I picked apples, I listened to the conversations taking place around me. I heard small voices say, "Daddy, can I have another one?" and "I love these apples!" And when I looked around, I saw kids and their families munching away on apples. Anyone who has taken a child to a farm or garden to pick their own apple or peach or carrot (...or just about anything) knows that children will eat fresh fruits and vegetables. It's the out-of-season, mealy, flavorless stuff that they don't like. We can't take fresh fruits over the border so we left our bag of Empire apples with Michelle....to add to the 20 lbs of Honey Crisp apples that she picked.

We'll take Caroline apple picking again sometime this month. Clearview Orchard has several varieties of apples ready for picking. They are located at 1051 Barry Road in Haslett (517-655-1454). Like Chudleigh's Clearview Orchards is more than apples. They also have caramel apples horse-drawn wagon rides, and a pumpkin patch.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 30: Breakfast - watermelon, apple muffin; Lunch - cheese quesadilla, carrots (Anne's home garden) and zucchini (Owosso Organics); Snacks - multigrain bread, sunflower butter, Empire apple (Chudleigh's...uh, we brought back a couple of apples)

Childcare Center Menu, September 30: Breakfast - honeydew, wehat bagels, cream cheese; Lunch - chicken fajitas, grapes; Snacks - baked sweet potato, wheat crackers

Meal Time Accoutrements

2008-09-24T12:12:00.003-04:00

Since starting my new job earlier this month, Geoff has been taking on the lion's share of getting Caroline to and from her childcare center. I try to help by writing Caroline's menus and packing her food. We use a variety of meal time accoutrements to help us stay organized. For hot breakfast and lunch items, we use Thermos food jars. Thermos sells FUNtainers (food jars with designs) but we went with the plain old stainless steel style. The food jar works well and keeps Caroline's hot cereal, rice, pasta, and other hot foods steaming for hours. On a side note, Thermos also sells a fabulous guarantee spill-proof coffee mug. The food jars and coffee mug can be purchased on the Thermos website. We pack salads, vegetables, and other cold lunch items in her Laptop Lunchbox. This bento-style lunchbox is plastic, lead-free, and comes with five removable containers (two with lids), including one that can be used for salad dressing, utensils, and a user's guide. We bought three of the lunchboxes last year when Obentec was having a sale on mismatched compartments. We love them and use them everyday. There have been some problems with quality though. We've had several cracked lids and all of our utensils broke. Obentec has great customer service and replaced the lids right away. They replaced one set of the utensils but after the replacements also broke, I didn't bother with additional replacements. I pack the rest of Caroline's food - snacks like muffins, fruit, and yogurt - in 1/2 pint Ball or Mason glass jars with plastic, reusable lids.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 25: Breakfast - watermelon (Greenman Produce), apple bread (Rasch Farms apples); Lunch - cheese and summer squash quesadilla (Owosso Organics summer squash), corn-on-the-cob (Titus Farm), banana; Snacks - cucumbers (Cinzori Farms), 100% whole grain bread, sunflower butter

Childcare Center Menu, September 25: Breakfast - cantaloupe, pumpkin bread; Lunch - cheese and bean enchiladas, corn, beans, grapes; Snacks - smiley fries, cucumbers

September 24th Menu

2008-09-24T12:07:00.003-04:00

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 24: Breakfast - ten grain hot cereal, banana, raisins; Lunch - whole wheat rotini pasta with pesto, cherry tomatoes (home garden), watermelon (Greenman Produce), zucchini (Owosso Organics), broccoli, cheddar cauliflower (Cinzori Farms); Snacks - string cheese, corn muffin, Honey Crisp apple (Rasch Farms)

Childcare Center Menu, September 24: Breakfast - oatmeal, bananas, raisins; Lunch - chicken lo mein with red and yellow peppers, kiwi; Snacks - cheese breadsticks, pizza sauce, apples

Schuler's Quiche

2008-09-23T21:27:00.004-04:00

Caroline loves the spinach/basil/feta quiche from The Chapbook Cafe at Schuler Books and Music. It's creamy and packed with spinach. And if you buy it before 11:00 am, it comes with a mini muffin and a side of fresh fruit. Schuler's is a locally owned and operated bookstore with two locations: Meridian Mall (Okemos) and Eastwood Towne Center (Lansing). Geoff and I love bookstores so we usually make a trip to one of the two locations on the weekend. Quiche was on the menu today but instead of making a quiche from scratch, I opted to buy a slice from Schuler's. At $5.25 a slice, it makes for a relatively expensive toddler's lunch but since Caroline always eats every bite, it's worth it.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 23: Breakfast - corn muffin, pear (Threadgould Gardens); Lunch - spinach/basil/feta quiche (The Chapbook Cafe), broccoli (Cinzori Farms), watermelon (Greenman Produce); Snacks - whole milk plain yogurt, Honey Crisp apple (Rasch Farms)

Childcare Center Menu, September 23: Breakfast - pineapple and corn muffins; Lunch - broccoli and cheese quiche, salad, honeydew; Snacks - yogurt dip, apples

From Bad To Worse

2008-09-22T21:09:00.002-04:00

We are moving to Ann Arbor in a couple of weeks so we have been looking for a new childcare center. As much as I complain about the food served at Caroline's current childcare center, it is not as bad as some of the centers I have visited in Ann Arbor. Last week, I visited a center in downtown Ann Arbor and...to put it nicely, was disgusted. Besides the unprofessional attitudes among the staff (including the director), I was appalled by the condition of the toddler room. There was paint peeling off of the wall, there were no books to speak of, and the kitchen was in the toddler classroom. The rotating lunch menu - an optional meal that families can purchase for $3 per lunch - was cooked by the director and went something like this: Wednesdays - turkey hot dogs/Sun Chips/baked beans, Thursdays - Dominos pizza/Sun Chips, Fridays - chicken nuggets, mac n' cheese, fruit or vegetable. And we wonder why one in every four preschoolers in this country is either overweight or at risk of becoming overweight and why children have such poor dietary habits.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 22: Breakfast - O's, watermelon, cantaloupe; Lunch - zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli (Cinzori Farms), banana, rice with dill, chard, feta cheese; Snacks - whole grain crackers, carrot dip

Childcare Center Menu, September 22: Breakfast - orange juice, Cheerios, Life, Rice Krispies; Lunch - ground turkey and rice with tomatoes, California vegetables, bananas; Snacks - guacamole, taco shells

September 19th Menu

2008-09-18T20:49:00.004-04:00

I lost tomorrow's menu so I am just going to have to wing it.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 19: Breakfast - cantaloupe (Greenman Produce),pumpkin carrot muffin; Lunch - egg salad (Flying Goat Farm eggs), 100% whole grain bread, tomatoes (home garden), corn-on-the-cob (Titus Farm); Snacks - hummus, whole grain crackers, pear (Kismet Farm)

Sharing Food With Friends

2008-09-18T12:41:00.007-04:00

These days, our garden is overflowing with cherry tomatoes. Caroline is learning how to share and is practicing by sharing the tomatoes. We pick them in the morning (or sometimes in the evening) and she takes a big bucketful of them to share with her classmates that day. The kids love them and gobble them right up. Who needs brownies, cookies, and other sweets when you can have vine-ripened cherry tomatoes? When Caroline comes home from school, she says, "I sharing totatoes, Mama." This morning, my friend Anne brought over a beautiful bunch of carrots - tiny ones, long ones, short ones, and fat ones. Caroline took half the bunch to the childcare center this morning to share with her friends. She proudly grabbed them by their tops - I kept them on since many children have never seen carrots with their greens still attached - and took them into her classroom.

Update: Caroline's friends loved the carrots. When I asked one of her teachers if the kids liked the carrots, she said, "I can't believe it, but they ate them. They loved them...Do they really just grow like that?"

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 18: Breakfast -100% whole grain toast, sunflower butter, Flaming Fury peach (Clearview Orchards); Lunch - marinated baked tofu, rice, zucchini (Owosso Organics), pear (Kismet Farm); Snacks - trail mix (Michigan dried cherries, O's, sunflower seeds), cantaloupe (Greenman Produce)

Food Mistakes In The News

2008-09-16T21:12:00.004-04:00

I just finished reading an on-line version of the article, 6 Food Mistakes Parents Make, published in Sunday's New York Times. My friend Lori sent it yesterday but I only got around to reading it this evening. In short, the 6 food mistakes are (1) sending children out of the kitchen, (2) pressuring them to take a bite, (3) keeping 'good stuff' out of reach, (4) dieting in front of your children, (5) serving boring vegetables, (6) giving up too soon. One line in particular caught my eye. "Although obesity dominates the national discussion on childhood health, many parents are also worried that their child’s preferred diet of nuggets and noodles could lead to a nutritional deficit." This is a good article but it made no mention of the role of childcare centers in reinforcing the nugget and noodle diet. I realize that the article is focused on the mistakes that parents make. But when your child eats at a childcare center three times a day, five days a week, their role in cultivating children's dietary habits can't be ignored. Chicken nuggets, fish sticks, Ritz "cheese" crackers, cookies, brownies, pie, cake...these are all things that are regularly served at the childcare center. When children are eating these foods, it means that they are missing opportunities to improve their diets by eating one of their favorite healthful snacks or to maybe trying a new fruit or vegetable. For about a month or so early in the spring, the cook was menuing more fruits and vegetables and fewer processed and sweet foods. But when there is no oversight of the food program - the food and nutrition committee no longer exists - its easy go back to the same old, same old.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 17: Breakfast - ten grain hot cereal, currants, banana; Lunch - cheese and zucchini (Owosso Organics) quesadilla, carrots, cantaloupe (Greenman Produce); Snacks - Flaming Fury peach muffin (Clearview Orchards peach), cucumber (Owosso Organics)

Childcare Center Menu, September 17: Breakfast - cream of what, bananas, raisins; Lunch - veggie tacos, grapes; Snacks - pumpkin pie, cucumbers

Feeling Overwhelmed

2008-09-14T21:11:00.003-04:00

I am officially feeling overwhelmed by food. It is canning season and it seems like our boiling water canner has been on non-stop since last weekend. We've canned peaches, pears, and corn in the last couple of weeks and now we're canning tomatoes. I am grumpy tonight because Geoff and I have been canning tomatoes since last night and almost half of every batch (about 3 quarts) isn't sealing. Every batch needs to be processed for 85 minutes so it is maddening when I pull out a batch and 3 quarts have tomato juice spewing out of them. The quarts that don't seal have to be eaten, frozen, or reprocessed (for another 85 minutes). We bought the tomatoes - two bushels - on Saturday from Titus Farm for $15 per half bushel, or $30 per bushel. We have half a bushel left to process. Even though I am stewing now, I know that in the middle of winter, I will be glad that we went through the trouble to can our own tomatoes. Store-bought canned tomatoes tend to have added ingredients like salt, sugar, etc. and some of them leave a metallic after taste in my mouth. Each quart of our home-canned tomatoes have a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice (an extra measure to prevent them from spoiling) and nothing else. And they taste like tomatoes.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 15: Breakfast - peach (Clearview Orchards), O's; Lunch - mac n' cheese with chard and cabbage, broccoli (Cinzori Farms), banana; Snacks - plain yogurt, watermelon, corn bread (Titus Farm corn)

Childcare Center Menu, September 15: Breakfast - Orange juice, Cheerios, Rice Krispies, Golden Grahams; Lunch - macaroni and cheese, broccoli, banana; Snacks - pudding, crackers

Chocolate Chip Cookies and Celery?

2008-09-11T22:30:00.004-04:00

Caroline loves cookies. We went to my friend Mary's house for tea this afternoon and the first, second, and third things that Caroline wanted to eat were the cookies. She had one cookie but after that, I felt like that was enough. After whining for more cookies for a few minutes and realizing that I was not going to give in, she moved on to the rice crackers and cantaloupe. Chocolate chip cookies and celery are on the menu tomorrow for afternoon snack. I don't know very many two-year-old children who would choose celery over a chocolate chip cookie. In fact, I don't know very many children - or adults for that matter (including me) - who even like celery unless it is served with ranch dressing or used to add crunch to a salmon, egg, or tuna salad sandwich. But I digress. I am sure that Caroline will want one of those chocolate chip cookies tomorrow. And my guess is that if I observed her through the one-way mirror tomorrow during lunch, I would see Caroline munching on one. It's not that I don't think children should eat cookies. I just don't think cookies are appropriate snacks to serve at a childcare center. Children get plenty of opportunities to eat cookies outside of school. What their small bodies need are nutritious foods that are packed with vitamins and minerals. I'll pack a pumpkin carrot muffin in Caroline's lunch tomorrow. I hope she eats it but I won't be surprised if it makes its way back home in her lunchbox untouched.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 12: Breakfast - peach (Clearview Orchards), French toast sticks (Zingerman's bread and Flying Goat Farm eggs); Lunch - salmon salad, 100% whole grain bread, cucumbers (home garden), watermelon (Greenman Produce); Snacks - pumpkin carrot muffin, pear (Kismet Farm)

Childcare Center Menu, September 12: Breakfast - applesauce, French toast sticks; Lunch - tuna fish pitas, cucumbers, watermelon; Snacks - chocolate chip cookies, celery

Homemade Pizza Dough or English Muffins?

2008-09-10T21:40:00.004-04:00

Last night, Caroline and I made pizza for dinner. We made a whole wheat crust using my standby pizza dough recipe (makes two pizza crusts) and topped it with mozzarella cheese, a huge heirloom tomato we bought from Rebecca Titus last Saturday and chopped basil from our garden. On one half of the pizza - the half that Geoff and I ate - we also added minced garlic and freshly ground black pepper. The tomato was so sweet! Caroline surprised me when she said (or mimicked), "Oh my gosh, this tomato is soooo sweet." Instead of using all of dough for dinner last night, I used half. After kneading the dough (and before letting it rise), I divided the other half into four balls. I placed them on a cutting board and put the entire board in our deep freezer. When they were firm, I put them into a Ziplock bag and back into the freezer. Pizza is on the menu tomorrow. In the past, I've always used whole wheat English muffins as my pizza crust...but they don't even come close to tasting like a pizza. So tonight, I pulled out one of the frozen pizza crusts and put it into the refrigerator to thaw. Tomorrow morning, I will put it in a warm place (like my oven, turned off) to rise until it doubles in size. It will probably take about an hour and a half to double in size. And once it does, I will make a couple of mini pizzas for Caroline's lunch. Altogether it should take...two hours. What??! That means that I have to wake up at some crazy hour just to make @$#@%!$ homemade pizza for Caroline's lunch. Maybe I should have stuck with the English muffins.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 11: Breakfast - cantaloupe (farmer), 100% whole grain toast, sunflower butter; Lunch - pizza with heirloom tomatoes (Owosso Organics), zucchini (Owosso Organics), apple (Clearview Orchards); Snacks - hummus, whole grain crackers

Childcare Center Menu, September 11: Breakfast - cantaloupe, French bread, strawberry jam; Lunch - cheese pizza, carrots, apples, Snacks - hummus, pita bread

Who's That Farmer?

2008-09-09T20:24:00.005-04:00

I don't know his name but at the Saturday Meridian Township Farmers' Market, there is a farmer from Mason (I think) who sells a variety of fruits and vegetables at a stand just outside of the east entrance. His products aren't certified organic but he does not use sprays. Until last Saturday, I had never purchased anything from him. But last weekend, I bought a cantaloupe from him. Cantaloupe is on the menu later this week but the aroma was so lovely that I cut it open this morning. It was beautiful inside - firm, cantaloupe-colored flesh. And it tasted great too. I don't know why I've never patronized this farmer before. Well, it's probably because he's stuck in the corner and is easy to miss. Next week, I'll try to buy something else from him. And I'll find out his name.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 9: Breakfast - cantaloupe, French toast sticks (Zingerman's sandwich bread and Flying Goat Farm eggs); Lunch - cheese and zucchini (Owosso organics) quesadilla, corn-on-the-cob (Titus Farm), apple (Clearview Orchards); Snacks - tomatoes (home garden), fresh mozzarella cheese

Childcare Center Menu, September 9: Breakfast - pears, French toast sticks; Lunch - flour tortillas, cheese, corn, beans, apples; Snacks - sweet potatoes, grapes

Fruit in Season!

2008-09-07T20:40:00.002-04:00

There are so many lovely fruits in season right now - peaches, watermelon, cantaloupe, raspberries, apples, and pears. We bought some of each this weekend so we will be munching (or gorging) on fruit all week! Unfortunately though, I'll be throwing a banana into the mix tomorrow. Caroline's new teacher, Angie, told us last week that Caroline was asking for a banana after seeing the other kids eating one. I felt badly about her feeling left out so bought a couple of bananas at the co-op on Saturday. It's a shame that the childcare center serves bananas flown in from who-knows-where when we have so many different types of delicious fruits available to us right here in the Lansing area.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 8: Breakfast - Flaming Fury peach (Clearview Orchards), O's; Lunch - zucchini lasagna (Owosso Organics zucchini), banana, raspberries (Swallowtail Farm), Sun Gold and Yellow Pear cherry tomatoes (home garden); Snacks - whole grain crackers, watermelon (Titus Farm)

Childcare Center Menu, September 8: Breakfast - Orange juice, Cheerios, Golden Grahams, Rice Krispies; Lunch - turkey lasagna, mixed vegetables, banana; Snacks - pretzels, watermelon

Swallowtail Farm U-Pick Raspberries Now Open!

2008-09-07T12:57:00.005-04:00

This morning we headed to Swallowtail Farm in Mason to pick raspberries. My friends Anne and David (and their son Quinn) own and operate this small farm. It was lightly raining when we arrived at 10:00 am but we were able to pick several pints. The raspberries are $2.50 a pint. We took two pints home but paid for four since Caroline ate about two pints while we picked the berries! The farm is not certified organic the berries are not sprayed with any harmful chemicals. To learn more about the farm, visit the Swallowtail Farm website.

Clearview Orchards Peaches!

2008-09-07T12:37:00.003-04:00

Last year, I bought beautiful organically grown Queen's Lace peaches from Jane Bush at Appleshram Organic Orchards. But this year, her peaches got frosted out. I thought I wouldn't have any peaches to eat or can this year but found Flaming Fury peaches from Clearview Orchards at yesterday's farmers' market. Clearview Orchards is a family-owned and operated farm in Haslett, Michigan that grows peaches, apples squash, and asparagus. The apples and pumpkins are pre- or U-pick. They also have hay rides during the fall. The peaches aren't certified organic, but they are grown using IPM (integrated pest management), the next best thing. The peaches were last sprayed (very lightly) early in the summer and haven't been sprayed or treated with anything (biological or chemical) since. I bought peaches and apples from Clearview Orchards a couple of years ago and they were delicious. I ended up buying 3 baskets of peaches ($7 per basket) and a basket of apples on Saturday. Tonight, I'll can most of the peaches and eat the rest fresh. Yesterday may have been the last farmers' market day for peaches from Clearview Orchards but they will be available at the farm throughout the week and if we are very, very lucky, there may be a few leftovers next Saturday. To find out for sure, call the farm at (517) 655-1454.

Meridian Township Farmers' Market Picks: broccoli, Cheddar cauliflower (Cinzori Family Farms); corn, a huge heirloom tomato (Titus Farm); pac choi, Harukai turnips (Green Eagle Farm); mixed heirloom tomatoes, baby eggplant, flowers, zucchini, sweet red bell pepper (Owosso Organics); watermelon (Greenman Produce); Flaming Fury peaches, apples (Clearview Orchards, salad greens (Stone Cloud Gardens), cantaloupe (the nice farmer from Mason)

Back to School Supplies

2008-09-04T21:21:00.003-04:00

For weeks now, I have been ordering and receiving back to school supplies for Caroline: name labels, insulated lunch bag, SIGG water bottle and thermos food jar. They have been trickling in slowly. The insulated lunch bag (pictured here) just arrived in the mail. I bought it on one of my favorite websites Reusable Bags. These bags made using recycled juice boxes, are 100% lead-free and come in three different sizes - the medium ($19) is the perfect size for lunch. They are made by a women's co-op in the Philippines. The Phillipines is far away from Michigan but I loved the ideas of supporting a women's co-op and recycling old juice boxes. Plus, I love the surprise factor: each bag is unique and you don't know which one you're going to get until it makes its way to your doorstep. I had to laugh at the irony of a dietitian's daughter carrying around a lunch bag made using recycled chocolate milk boxes!

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 5: Breakfast - pearsauce, 100% whole grain toast, sunflower butter; Lunch - whole wheat pasta, fresh mozzarella, Sun Gold cherry tomatoes (home garden), watermelon; Snacks - pumpkin carrot muffin, cucumber (home garden)

Childcare Center Menu, September 5: Breakfast - applesauce, wheat bagels, strawberry jam; Lunch - chicken lo mein, watermelon; Snacks - banana bread, cucumbers

Ope's Veggie Burgers

2008-09-03T21:25:00.003-04:00

I found Ope's Veggie Burger Patties in the freezer section at the co-op on Monday. I was so excited to find these patties because I love burgers and because they are made in Kalamazoo, Michigan. I must admit though that I was a bit skeptical because most veggie burger patties that I've tasted are dry and bland. But we ate these for dinner tonight and they were very good - moist and tasted great. The ingredient list is relatively short - organic non GMO soy textured protein, organic grains (brown rice, oats), organic shredded vegetables (carrots, kidney beans, dried diced onions), organic vegetable gum. I served the patties with Zingerman's hamburger buns (also from the co-op), condiments (mayo and ketchup), sliced tomatoes (Titus Farms), and roasted potatoes. Caroline loved the burgers!

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 4: Breakfast - ten grain hot cereal, currants, peach (Heritage Acres Farms); Lunch - tomato soup (Titus Farms tomatoes), grilled cheese sandwich, carrots (Crane Centennial Farm); Snacks - egg (Flying Goat Farm), whole wheat crackers

Childcare Center Menu, September 4: Breakfast - cream of wheat, bananas, raisins; Lunch - tomato soup, grilled cheese, mango, carrots; Snacks - egg, saltines

September 3rd Menu

2008-09-02T21:21:00.003-04:00

Bread is on tomorrow's childcare center menu for breakfast and lunch and snack is pumpkin pie. I am going to rebel by sending O's with Caroline for her breakfast. If I was feeling more creative and had more time, I would make something with rice or with an ancient grain like quinoa or spelt but since I am in my new routine that involves 3 hours in my car commuting to Ann Arbor, boxed cereal will have to do.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 3: Breakfast - pear (Threadgould Gardens), O's; Lunch - 100% whole grain bread, hummus, cucumbers (home garden), watermelon (Greenman Produce); Snacks - carrot bread (Crane Centennial Farm carrots), Sun Gold and Pear cherry tomatoes (home garden)

Childcare Center Menu, September 3: Breakfast - pears, wheat bagel, cream cheese; Lunch - turkey sandwich, cantaloupe, cucumbers; Snacks - pumpkin pie, carrots

End of Summer Pesto

2008-09-01T21:21:00.006-04:00

In less than 3 hours, summer will be over. We just got home after a long weekend vacation on Mackinac Island. We had a lovely time. We rented a condo on the more secluded west side of the island. There are no motorized vehicles on Mackinac Island so we spent half of our time biking and riding around on a horse-drawn carriage and the other half exploring, eating, and watching the sunset. It was the perfect end to summer. We drove into town just before 5:00 pm and headed straight for the co-op to buy our week's groceries. The co-op was closed but there were a couple of working members inside and they let us in! We were hungry when we got home so I threw together one of my quickest summer meals: tomato drizzled with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, fettuccine with pesto, corn-on-the-cob. The tomato was a gorgeous heirloom variety that I picked up at the co-op and the corn was part of the bushel I bought last week from Rebecca Titus. The pesto is part of the 10 batches or so that I made a couple of weekends ago using my friend Anne's basil. Pesto is easy to make, freezes well, and defrosts quickly. We freeze small portions in old Gerber baby food jars or plastic 1/4 cup serving containers (from all that pearsauce that Caroline eats) and eat it all winter long...and on nights like tonight when I want something that's easy to prepare.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, September 2: Breakfast - O's, peach (Heritage Acres Farms); Lunch - garbanzo beans, corn (Titus Farm), brown rice with chard (Owosso Organics), dill, and feta cheese; watermelon (Greenman Produce); Snacks - graham crackers; sunflower butter

Childcare Center Menu, September 2: Breakfast - grape juice, Cheerios, Golden Grahams, Rice Krispies; Lunch - cheesy rice, corn, beans, bananas; Snacks - graham crackers, soynut butter

How Will I Do It?

2008-08-25T21:36:00.003-04:00

I woke up this morning with anxiety. For almost three months now, I haven't had to think much about how to mimic the childcare center's meals with nutritious breakfasts, lunches, and snacks made with ingredients grown/raised without harmful chemicals and sourced as close to home as possible. On most days, Caroline and I just open the refrigerator and pull out whatever seasonal fruits and vegetables we have on hand and pull together a last minute meal. On Monday and Wednesday nights, I grudgingly look over the childcare center's menus for the next day and make a feeble attempt to mimic the cakes, hot dogs, and smiley fries. I realized early this morning that next week will mark the start of my postdoctoral research fellowship at University of Michigan and a new year, and new classroom, for Caroline. University of Michigan is an hour away (an unsustainable commute) which will make finding time to prepare meals challenging. I'm not sure how I will do it just yet but I know that it will involve a lot of planning and advance meal preparation. I just hope that Geoff and I don't kill each other trying to make it work! I tried to get ahead tonight by freezing two 1-cup portions of our dinner leftovers: brown rice with chard, feta cheese, and dill. Tomorrow, I am going to try to take advantage of the Michigan harvest (while it lasts) and pack the fruits and vegetables I picked up at the farmers' market on Saturday, or in our home garden, in lieu of the grapes, kiwi, and California vegetables.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, August 26: Breakfast - pearsauce, French toast (Flying Goat Farm eggs); Lunch - brown rice, baked and marinated tofu, zucchini (Owosso Organics), tomatoes (home garden), Red Baby watermelon (Cinzori Farms); Snacks - blueberries (Threadgould Gardens), whole grain crackers

Childcare Center Menu, August 26: Breakfast - applesauce, French toast sticks; Lunch - sweet and sour chicken with rice, California vegetables, kiwi; Snacks - garlic bread, grapes

Saturday Farmers' Market Picks

2008-08-23T12:37:00.006-04:00

Our fridge is still full of food that we bought last week at the farmers' market so we only picked up a few things today: a bushel of corn for canning (Titus Farms), Red Baby watermelon (Cinzori Farms), okra and Thai basil (Crane Centennial Farm), and two beautiful bouquets of flowers. I love fresh flowers.

Training Week

2008-08-22T20:36:00.004-04:00

I just got home from a week in Washington, D.C. where I was reviewing grant proposals for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Before going on long trips, I usually prepare a bunch of dishes that Geoff and Caroline can eat throughout the week. I put the dishes -- lasagna, soups, salads -- in Tupperware containers and neatly stack them in the refrigerator. And I leave Geoff with the childcare center menus and notes on what to pack for Caroline's lunch. But this time I didn't do either. The days leading up to my trip were busy but more than that, I just felt that I didn't and shouldn't have to spend hours in the kitchen doing what I was sure Geoff was capable of doing for himself (and for Caroline). I thought of it as "training week" for Geoff. I must admit though that I was worried that I would come home to a recycling bin full of empty cans of Wolfgang Puck soups and empty boxes of Amy's frozen pizza, ravioli bowls and enchiladas. And what if I did? Would it really be so bad if Geoff and Caroline ate processed foods for four days? I guess not. But what if....but what if what? Did I think they were going to starve in a house full of food?! Of course, all of my worrying was all for naught -- Geoff was able to fend for himself (of course...what was I thinking?!) and they did just fine.

Saturday Farmers' Market Picks

2008-08-16T20:43:00.003-04:00

We arrived at the farmers' market later than usual this morning so when we got there, it was packed! But I was glad that we arrived when we did because I finally met Kate, a woman who posts comments on Caroline's Lunchbox from time to time. All summer long, I have been keeping my eye out for Kate, hoping that we would meet while buying sweet corn or other vegetables from Rebecca Titus, a mutual farmer/friend. We finally met today, not over peppers or eggplants as I had imagined. But at the playground next the market with our kids in tow...of course!

Meridian Township Farmers' Market Picks: watermelon (Greenman Produce); Buffalo tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, green pepper, cherry tomatoes, radishes, sugar snap peas, flowers (Owosso Organics); sweet corn (for freezing), cranberry beans (Titus Farm); Orange Blossom tomatoes (Wildflower Eco Farm); garlic, heirloom carrots (Green Eagle Farm); blueberries (Threadgould Gardens)

Watermelon For Dessert

2008-08-13T22:22:00.002-04:00

When desserts like pumpkin pie are on the menu, I feel compelled to pack something sweet in Caroline's lunch. This morning, Caroline and I went to the Wednesday Meridian Township Farmers' Market and found just the thing: watermelon! We are having friends over for dinner a couple of nights in a row this week so we picked up several things at the market: corn, green peppers, eggplant, tomatoes from Titus Farm, flowers from Threadgould Gardens and blackberries and watermelon from Dennis Greenman. We've never bought anything from Greenman Produce before but I was drawn to the large display of melons. Dennis Greenman functions as a farmer and a wholesaler. Not everything he sells is grown on his farm or even grown in Michigan. But the blackberries and some of the watermelon is. The blackberries aren't sprayed. The watermelon vine is sprayed before it bears any fruit. After that, it is not sprayed with any chemicals. We bought a yellow-flesh watermelon and will cut it open tomorrow...I hope it tastes as good as it looks!

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, August 14: Breakfast - blueberries (Threadgould Gardens), yogurt muffin; Lunch - salmon salad, 100% whole grain bread, watermelon, grilled zucchini (Threadgould Gardens); Snacks - cheddar cheese, whole grain crackers, cherry tomatoes (Titus Farm)

Childcare Center Menu, August 14: Breakfast - grapes, wheat croissants; Lunch - tuna fish on pita, salad, peaches; Snacks - pumpkin pie, cheese slices

Summertime Pizza

2008-08-11T22:55:00.005-04:00

After years of using Trader Joe's refrigerated pizza crust (which is quite good), I decided to go back to making my own...mostly because I love pizza in the summertime and Trader Joe's is in Ann Arbor, a one hour trek from Lansing. I dug out an old recipe for whole wheat pizza and Caroline and I made it this afternoon. My plan was to have Caroline measure ingredients, watch the yeast come alive, and knead the dough but since she was fussy and not interested until the very last minute, she only ended up poking the dough after it had risen to see if it was ready to punch. I topped half of the pizza with shredded mozzarella cheese (1/2 cup), thickly sliced Buffalo tomatoes, minced garlic (1 clove), a handful of basil (torn into small pieces) (in that order) and the other half with sliced zucchini. After the pizza came out of the oven, I added a pinch of salt to the half with tomatoes and spoonfuls of pesto to the half topped with zucchini. Caroline loved both sides.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, August 12: Breakfast - blueberries (Threadgould Gardens), whole wheat mini bagel with sunflower butter; Lunch - brown rice with egg (Flying Goat Farm), pesto (basil grown at Swallow Tail Farm last year), and Buffalo tomatoes (Owosso Organics); Snacks - zucchini muffin, carrots (Green Eagle Farm)

Childcare Center Menu, August 12: Breakfast - strawberries, wheat bagels with cream cheese; Lunch - cheesy rice, California vegetables, mango; Snacks - pound cake, carrots

Kids' Menus In The News

2008-08-10T22:22:00.003-04:00

Check it out! The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has just released its report, Kids' Meals: Obesity on the Menu, on the nutritional quality of kids' meals at restaurants like KFC, Burger,and Taco Bell. The results go without saying: kids' meals are not good for kids' health. The press release states that "Besides being almost always too high in calories, 45 percent of the kids' meals at the 13 chains studied by CSPI are too high in saturated and trans fat, and 86 percent are too high in sodium. That’s alarming, according to CSPI, because a quarter of children between the ages of five and ten show early signs of heart disease, such as high LDL (the "bad" cholesterol) or elevated blood pressure." Yikes! But it's not only at chains where kids' meals are not good for kids' health. And we shouldn't only evaluate meals based on calories, fat, sodium, or other nutrients. If nutrients were all we cared about, we might as well load up a Twinkie with vitamins and minerals. Kids, just like adults, need fresh, whole foods that taste like they should. And if its produced in a way that protects the health of our environment, chances are it will help to protect our kids' health too.

Saturday Farmers' Market Picks

2008-08-09T20:50:00.005-04:00

I wasn't feeling very well when I woke up this morning but I rolled myself out of bed so that I could get to the farmers' market. Being surrounded by good food, friends, and fresh flowers usually makes me feel better. When we pulled into the parking lot, the first thing I noticed was that the back of the Titus Farm truck was loaded with sweet corn (see photo, courtesy of Rebecca Titus)! I love sweet corn. And so does Caroline. We love the Titus' sweet corn and buy lots of it every year. We start with enough ears to eat for the week but as the season winds down, we buy it in bushels so that we can freeze it for the winter. Today we bought a dozen ears for $4.75. You can also buy them by the ear for $0.50 per ear. We ate three ears of sweet corn tonight (shucked and blanched for 2 minutes) along with a loaf of Italian Round from Zingerman's, sliced Buffalo tomatoes (Owosso Organics) and fresh mozzarella cheese, basil (home garden).

Meridian Township Farmers' Market Picks: flowers, Buffalo tomatoes, baby eggplant, swiss chard (Owosso Organics); Wolfmoon garlic, mixed onions -- White Winte, Copra (spicy), Alsa Craig Exhibition (sweet), Burger Master (red) -- ( Green Eagle Farm); sweet corn (Titus Farms); blueberries (Threadgould Gardens)

Market Bags and Eggplant Parmesan

2008-08-04T20:04:00.003-04:00

I am home with Caroline on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays now and I am loving this time with her. We go on outings to nearby playgrounds, the water park, library, and Michigan State University's 4-H Children's Garden. When we're at home, we spend a lot of time together cooking, gardening, creating art, and reading. Not surprisingly, a lot of our activities revolve around food. For a couple of weeks now, Caroline has been working on painting a large canvas market bag to give as a gift to her Great Uncle Butch. This morning, we watered our vegetable garden and Caroline picked the two Sun Gold cherry tomatoes that were ripe -- she popped them both into her mouth. And this afternoon, we made eggplant parmesan. With a little bit of help and a lot of supervision, Caroline grated the cheese, dredged the eggplant in flour, and helped put together the layers of tomato sauce, eggplant, cheese, and basil. As I write this, I am wondering if artists spend a lot of time teaching their children about art and if science teachers spend their summers doing science experiments with their kids. Or, if maybe I come off as a bit obsessive compulsive or a bit nuts (no pun intended) even to those who share my values. But Caroline doesn't get a chance to cook or garden when she is at her childcare center. If I don't teach her these basic skills, who will?

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, August 5: Breakfast - peach (East Lansing Food Co-op), zucchini muffin; Lunch - egg salad (Heritage Acres eggs), 100% whole grain bread, Sun Gold cherry tomatoes (home garden and Wildflower Eco Farm), cucumbers (home garden); Snacks - blueberries (Threadgould Gardens), carrot bread

Childcare Center Menu, August 5: Breakfast - peaches, croissants; Lunch - turkey sandwich, cucumber, watermelon; Snacks - blueberry yogurt, vanilla wafers

Saturday Farmers' Market Picks

2008-08-03T21:39:00.004-04:00

We usually get to the Meridian Township Farmers' Market at around 8:00 am so that we can beat the crowds. We got there at 8:15 am and it was packed! After we did a quick walk-around of the market, we bought food for the week and for our neighborhood brunch that we hosted this morning. There was so much to choose from including these beautiful, juicy, sweet blackberries that we bought from Cinzori Farms. At $4.00 for a 1/2 pint box, these berries were pricey. But our splurge was worth it and we finished off the box before we got home.

Meridian Township Farmers' Market Picks: blackberries, garlic (Cinzori Farms); flowers, Buffalo tomatoes, sugar snap peas, purple bell pepper, zucchini (Owosso Organics); eggplant, Jacqueline Lee potatoes (Titus Farms), Sun Gold cherry tomatoes, fingerling potatoes (Wildflower Eco Farm); blueberries, spearmint (Threadgould Gardens)

Food Bribes

2008-07-30T14:10:00.003-04:00

Lately, I have been feeling conflicted about how I feel about food bribes. I know that food should never be used as a bribe as in, "If you finish your vegetables, you can watch T.V. (or have dessert, or play with your friends, etc.)." But are all food bribes equally bad? Lately, I have caught myself bribing Caroline with food. I was especially disheartened this weekend when eating dinner at my sister's place up in Toronto. It was Caroline's (and her cousin's) 2nd (and her cousin's 7th) birthday celebration and my sister Michelle made a fabulous meal: pork ribs, steak, bean and corn salad, potato salad, tortilla chips, and guacamole. Michelle's kids ate everything but Caroline was only interested in the chips. I love tortilla chips and guacamole so I know where she was coming from. I gave her more chips but insisted that she first eat the salads. Later that weekend, I found myself saying things like, "You can have another tomato if you take a bite of the egg salad." I hate to admit this but in the past, I've even coaxed Caroline into eating another bite of egg salad (or whatever) by giving her only half of a cherry tomato and bribing her with the other half. Did I really just admit that? What?! Am I crazy? Does it really matter if Caroline wants to eat a pound of tomatoes but not her egg salad? Or zucchini instead of yellow summer squash? I asked my sister Sophia about how she handles these types of situations with her three kids. She had good, practical advice. Let your kids eat as much of the healthful foods as they want -- don't get in the way of them gorging on fresh, peaches, carrots, tomatoes, and even pasta. If you're serving treats like chips or French fries with dinner and you think they've had enough just say, "That's enough chips (or French fries)," and put them away. Simple. No more food bribes.

And Food From Friends

2008-07-28T22:24:00.004-04:00

We missed the farmers' market again this weekend because we were up visiting my sisters and their families in Toronto. But my friend Colleen picked up some tomatoes for me at the Meridian Farmers' Market on Saturday. She tossed in a couple of cucumbers from her share at the Michigan State University Student Organic Farm and another friend, Ginger, threw in some fava beans from her garden. Thanks, Colleen and Ginger! Salad is on the menu tomorrow but since lettuce is not abundant this time of year, I'll make a zucchini and heirloom carrot slaw for Caroline's lunch. The zucchini is from our friend Christine's garden. Thanks, Christine! And I picked up the carrots from Steve (Green Eagle Farm) at the Meridian Farmers' Market last weekend. The slaw is nothing fancy, just a handful of shredded zucchini mixed with a handful of shredded carrot. Caroline munched on this combo today and was eating it off of her fingers so I am assuming that she liked it!

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, July 29: Breakfast - French toast (Flying Goat Farm eggs), pearsauce; Lunch - lentil croquettes, cucumbers (MSU Student Organic Farm), zucchini (Christine's garden) and heirloom carrot (Green Eagle Farm) slaw, 100% whole grain bread; Snacks - grape tomatoes (Meridian Farmers' Market), fresh mozzarella cheese

Childcare Center Menu, July 29: Breakfast - French toast, applesauce; Lunch - chicken nuggets, kiwi, bread, salad; Snacks - sweet potatoes, apples

Where to Buy Organically Grown Blueberries

2008-07-24T22:56:00.006-04:00

Organically grown blueberries are hard to come by but they do exist! My friend Anne went blueberry picking at Pleasant Hill Farm in Fennville, Michigan last weekend. John Van Voorhees and Joan Donaldson grow certified organic blueberries and sell them as u-pick or frozen ($15 for 5 lbs and $85 for 30 lbs). Anne and her family picked 9 lbs of berries (big and beautiful) and also bought 5 lb box of the frozen blues (smaller). Contact Pleasant Hilll Farm at (269) 561-2850 for more information.

I am tempted to buy blueberries from John and Joan since theirs are available right now but I am trying to hold out a couple more weeks for Bruce Walton's blueberries (Walton Orchards). Bruce is a farmer up in Benzie County. I guess I could buy from both but I buy Bruce's blueberries by the lug (25 lbs), which is more than enough for our family of three. I have been buying his blueberries for years. His berries are huge (the size of my thumb) and delicious. And they are Demeter certified - organic certification plus biodynamic standards that include a biodiversity land set aside and processing standards that emphasize minimal product manipulation. It is a certification that is based on sustainable, not just organic, farming. Bruce's blueberries are $4.25 per lb - pricey but worth every penny. For more information, contact Bruce at (231) 645-7679.

Michigan Blueberries!

2008-07-24T22:15:00.002-04:00

Blueberries are in-season! Last weekend, we picked up a quart of blueberries ($6 per quart) from Sue Threadgould (Threadgould Gardens). The Threadgould's don't grow their own blueberries but sell blueberries that they buy from another farmer. Since Sue wasn't sure how they were grown, I contacted the farmer myself. The farmer (I didn't get his name) was a very nice man who told me in detail how he grows blueberries, what he sprays and when. Bravo and Indar (fungicides) are sprayed before the fruit develops and two other chemicals, which I didn't quite catch, are sprayed when the blueberry is still in its green fruit stage. Geoff and I ate the Threadgould's blueberries but gave Caroline berries from the pint of local and organically grown ones that I picked up at the food co-op last weekend. I did a bit more research on blueberries and according to the Environmental Working Group, blueberries tend to have low pesticide residues making them a good choice when buying fruit grown with chemical sprays. They even made it onto their list of cleanest 12 foods, or foods that are lowest in pesticide residues. Organically grown blueberries are hard to find and I have to admit that when I can't get my hands on local and organically grown blueberries, I feel comfortable (though still a bit conflicted) about giving Caroline blueberries that have been grown by a smaller scale (versus industrial scale) Michigan farmer. We ran out of the local and organically grown blueberries earlier this week so today, I sent a small handful of the Threadgould's blueberries with Caroline to eat for her afternoon snack. Even though they weren't organically grown, to me, they beat the red bell peppers --which rank right at the top of the dirty dozen list -- that were on the menu today.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, July 24: Breakfast - oatmeal, prunes; Lunch - salmon salad, 100% whole grain bread, cucumbers (Wildflower Eco Farm), carrots (Green Eagle Farm), Celebrity tomatoes (Wildflower Eco Farm); Snacks - blueberries (Threadgould Gardens), yogurt muffin

Childcare Center Menu, July 24: Breakfast - cream of wheat with raisins and bananas; Lunch - fish sandwiches, cucumbers, apples; Snacks - brownies and red peppers

Flying Goat Farm Eggs Now Available!

2008-07-20T12:13:00.005-04:00

Flying Goat Farm eggs are now available for $3.50 a dozen! The Hamm's have more eggs than they can use and are looking for a few new customers. The eggs are not certified organic but the hens are fed organic feed and also have lots of room to roam around outside. I have been buying eggs from the Hamm's for almost 4 years. Some of the eggs are brown or blue or green or speckled reflecting the many breeds of hens raised at Flying Goat Farm. The yolks are a beautiful bright yellow-orange color and give the eggs a creamy, rich texture and great flavor. If you're interested in buying eggs from the Hamm's, contact Mike Hamm at mhamm@msu.edu.

Saturday Farmers' Market Picks

2008-07-19T20:02:00.008-04:00

The farmers' market is bursting with color! Chiogga beets, red beets, green beans, dark green leafy greens, tomatoes, cukes, blueberries...Since we were planning to meet friends at Nordhaus Dunes for a camping trip this weekend, we thought we'd have to skip the farmers' market today. But we got rained out and changed our plans at last minute and went to the Grand Rapids Children's Museum. Before heading out, we hit the market and loaded up with food for the week. Geoff will be in charge of cooking for the first half of the week (I'll be in Atlanta at the Society for Nutrition Education conference) so we didn't buy as much as usual. We ate the chard for dinner tonight in an easy chard and potato dish. The chard melted in my mouth like butter. It was wonderful.

Meridian Township Farmers' Market Picks: blueberries (Threadgould Gardens); Boothby's Blonde cukes, heirloom carrots, zucchini, yellow summer squash, Cousa squash, chard, orange beets (Green Eagle Farm); mixed cherry tomatoes (Owosso Organics); Celebrity tomatoes, Jade cukes (Wildflower Eco Farm)

First Tomatoes

2008-07-16T21:54:00.005-04:00

The first tomatoes of the season are here! Caroline and I went to the Allen Street Farmers' Market this afternoon and we were both excited to see that Jane Bush (Appleschram Organic Orchards) had tomatoes. She only had a few and they were expensive but they looked perfect and delicious so we bought 1 medium ($1 each) and 2 large tomatoes ($1.50 each). I'll pack a tomato for Caroline's snack tomorrow along with fresh mozzarella cheese and wholegrain Melba toast crackers. Caroline has gone back and forth on the fresh mozzarella cheese. Last summer, it was my go-to food. A couple of weeks ago, she wouldn't touch it. Today, she couldn't get enough of it. I am learning - yes, it's about time - that this is just the way children eat (or don't eat).

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, July 17: Breakfast - quesadilla with whole wheat tortilla and cheddar cheese, strawberries (Threadgould Gardens); Lunch - brown rice with feta cheese, onions, chard, dill; Snacks - tomato (Appleschram), fresh mozzarella cheese, Melba toast crackers

Childcare Center Menu, July 17: Breakfast - flour tortillas with cheese, strawberries; Lunch - chicken lo mein with red peppers and onions, watermelon; Snacks - trail mix, cucumbers

Pink n' Pretty Fruit Medley and Other Favorites

2008-07-14T22:18:00.002-04:00

One of the first books my mom bought when she immigrated to Canada in 1971 was The New Purity Cook Book: The Complete Guide to Canadian Cooking. My parents moved from Japan to Lethbridge, what was then a small town in southern Alberta. Ingredients to make traditional Japanese meals were scarce and expensive back then so my mom had to learn how to cook with what was available locally. In addition to its easy-to-follow recipes, The New Purity Cook Book includes a seasonal calendar for fruits and vegetables and step-by-step instructions on how to preserve them for the winter. Cooking terms like “fold,” “simmer,” and “whip” are defined and hand drawn illustrations show how to measure flour and grease a cake pan. It’s here where my mom learned how to make holiday treats like almond crescents and snowballs and salads like pink n’ pretty fruit medley, a combination of fruits set in a raspberry flavored jelly powder mold. During the day when my dad was at work, my mom also learned how to cook “Canadian” food from a German woman (or Russian…she can’t remember) who had a daily cooking show on the Lethbridge television channel. The woman’s recipes were available at the local meat market where my mom would pick them up after the show and try to replicate them in her kitchen.

When I was about 3 years old, my family moved to Vancouver. Six years ago, my parents moved back to southern Alberta. Lethbridge is a much bigger city now with a thriving Japanese community. Even though Japanese cooking ingredients are easy to find now, my mom still uses her old cook book. The book’s binding fell off years ago and the hard cover and pages are now held together with Scotch tape but it’s in here that you’ll find some of our family’s favorite recipes, each marked with my mom’s familiar handwriting.

Caroline and I have been visiting my parents for the last two weeks. We head back to Lansing tomorrow morning. Whenever I come home, my mom makes my favorite foods, both Japanese and Canadian. She didn’t make the pink n’ pretty fruit medley (we haven’t had that for years) but Caroline did get a chance to try her Chicken à l’Orange and other dishes that I love. Some of the recipes are in The New Purity Cook Book but most are in her head. I’ve posted a few on Caroline’s Lunchbox Recipes.

Growing Food

2008-06-26T22:18:00.005-04:00

When I was growing up, my dad and I grew zucchini and rhubarb in a small plot in our backyard and tomatoes in large containers on our patio. We always grew more than we could eat and ended up sharing our harvest with friends. That was more than 20 years ago. Since then, I have grown little in the way of food and have grown increasingly disconnected from the process. Last year, I challenged myself by growing herbs in pots on my front porch. My parsley and thyme grew like weeds but my rosemary, oregano, marjoram, cilantro, and basil died before I could enjoy eating them. Feeling intimidated, I was reluctant to try growing anything this year. But with the help of two friends, Christine and Barb, we now have three garden plots in our backyard. Back in May, Barb helped us design our plots and gave us transplants from her own garden. Geoff and I felt so inspired that we dug the plot pictured here while Caroline was napping. Christine, who has an incredible vegetable garden, also split some of her plants and gave them to us to grow in our garden. And I bought vegetable plant starts at the farmers' market and I added them to our plot. It's been almost one month now and all of the plants are still alive! The tomato plants are growing tall and the first squash blossoms on our zucchini plant bloomed just a couple of days ago. And today, Caroline picked the lettuce for her egg salad sandwich. The mosquitoes were swarming so it was anything but a Kodak moment. But I did get a chance to take this "after" picture of our vegetable garden.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, June 26: Breakfast - blueberry muffin (frozen blueberries from Walton Orchards), strawberries (Crane Centennial Farm); Lunch - egg salad (Heritage Acres), lettuce (homegrown), 100% whole grain bread, spinach (Titus Farms) with currants, cucumber (Wildflower Eco Farm); Snacks - whole wheat Melba toast, string cheese

Childcare Center Menu, June 26: Breakfast - apple muffin, peaches; Lunch - egg salad sandwich, oranges, cucumbers; Snacks - cheese sticks, wheat crackers

Sugar Snap Peas!

2008-06-23T21:43:00.007-04:00

My uncle used to have a black part-Pekingese dog named Diva who loved peas. She would walk through his garden eating them right off the vine. She was known to boogie for peas and would get noticeably upset if she found you munching on one without offering one to her. I can't blame Diva for her penchant for peas. I feel the same. I love all peas - English shelling peas, snow peas, sugar snap peas, frozen green peas, dried split peas, and wasabi-flavored dried green peas. But fresh, sugar snap peas are my favorite...and they are in-season. I bought some this weekend from the Vang's at Crane Centennial Farm. They are organically grown and were $3 for a basket. They can be lightly steamed or stir-fried but I like to eat the pod and pea raw. Caroline is getting used to the pod but she likes the peas inside. At almost 23 months, she doesn't have quite the dexterity to crack open the shells herself but with a little bit of help, she can grab the peas.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, June 24: Breakfast - strawberries (Crane Centennial Farm), French toast (Zingerman's sourdough bread, Heritage Acres eggs); Lunch - brown rice with kale (Green Eagle Farm), feta cheese, dill (Crane Centennial Farm), onions; Snacks - peas (Crane Centennial Farm), hummus, whole wheat Melba toast

Childcare Center Menu, June 24: Breakfast - strawberries, French toast sticks; Lunch - turkey and rice, green beans, grapes; Snacks - smiley fries, watermelon

Strawberry Jam!

2008-06-22T21:28:00.006-04:00

There are few things that taste better on an early summer afternoon than a slice of fresh sourdough bread with butter and homemade strawberry jam. This weekend, my friend Wynne and I made a couple batches of strawberry jam with berries that we bought, for $23 a flat (8 quarts), from the Vang's (Crane Centennial Farm) at the Meridian Township Farmers' Market. The strawberries are not certified organic but the Vang's do not treat them in any way with harmful chemicals. They are sweet, juicy, and simply delicious. Caroline helped make the jam by crushing the berries with a potato masher (and her hands) and by stirring them as they cooked down. Wynne and I followed a traditional strawberry jam recipe that calls for pectin. Caroline and I made a third batch of jam using my friend Marge's strawberry jam recipe which is great when you only have a small amount of fruit and no pectin handy.

Saturday Farmers' Market Picks

2008-06-21T22:28:00.003-04:00

There is so much at the farmers' market now! The asparagus season will be over soon but dark green leafy vegetables, lettuces, radishes, and sugar snap peas are in-season now. Caroline tried something new today at the market - spring rolls! She munched on the fried egg roll wrapped around bean threads and carrots in the car on the way home. The spring rolls are the perfect size for a toddler's small hand. And they are delicious!

Meridian Township Farmers' Market Picks: rhubarb, asparagus, broccoli (Threadgould Gardens); crunchy butter lettuce (Owosso Organics); Red Russian Kale, curly kale, spearmint (Green Eagle Farm); Easter Egg radishes, spinach, chard (Titus Farms); cucumber (Wildflower Eco Farm); strawberries, sugar snap peas (Crane Centennial Farm)

Hiyashi-chuka

2008-06-19T22:06:00.006-04:00

I come from a family of cooks. My mom is one of the best cooks I know and my older sister, Michelle, is a close second. When we were in Toronto last weekend, Michelle made Hiyashi-chuka, one of my favorite picnic dishes. Hiyashi-chuka is a cold noodle salad. You can be creative with the noodles and toppings but Michelle's Hiyashi-chuka is usually made with a bed of somen noodles (very thin Japanese noodles) topped with thinly sliced eggs, ham, and cucumber. The dressing is simple: 3 tablespoons white vinegar, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil. Caroline loves Michelle's Hiyashi-chuka. Pasta salad was on the menu today so I decided to pack Hiyashi-chuka in Caroline's lunch. Since I didn't have somen noodles, ham, eggs, or cucumber, Caroline's Hiyashi-chuka was made with buckwheat soba noodles and topped with Tohono O'odham Trading Company Tepary beans (a gift from my friend Cheryl), carrots, and lettuce (Owosso Organics). It wasn't as pretty as Michelle's Hiyashi-chuka and the noodles were a bit too starchy but Caroline liked it just the same.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, June 19: Breakfast - strawberries (Threadgould Gardens), 100% whole grain toast, cardamom apple butter; Lunch - Hiyashi-chuka (buckwheat soba noodles, carrots, lettuce (Owosso Organics), Tepary beans; Snacks - whole wheat pita bread, hummus (Eden garbanzo beans)

Childcare Center Menu, June 19: Breakfast - strawberries, wheat French bread, strawberry jam; Lunch - pasta salad with pinto and garbanzo beans, red and yellow peppers, apples; Snacks - sweet potatoes, wheat crackers

No More Blueberries

2008-06-16T21:56:00.003-04:00

We didn't lose very much in our refrigerator and freezer when we lost power for 4 days last week but our blueberries did thaw out. I could have put them back in the freezer after our electricity came back on but rather than lose the quality that comes with freezing, thawing, and refreezing, Caroline and I made blueberry muffins last Friday. We ate a couple of them last week and froze the rest. These were the last of the blueberries that we bought last summer from biodynamic farmer, Bruce Walton.

We spent the weekend in Toronto, so we missed the farmers' market on Saturday. But my friend Wynne picked up a few things for us: strawberries and asparagus (Threadgould Gardens) and lettuce (Owosso organics). Thanks, Wynne!

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, June 17: Breakfast - whole wheat blueberry muffin (Walton Orchards blueberries), pearsauce; Lunch - lentil croquettes, brown rice, asparagus (Threadgould Gardens), carrots; Snacks - strawberries (Threadgould Gardens), string cheese, whole grain Melba toast

Childcare Center Menu, June 17: Breakfast - applesauce, wheat croissants; Lunch - lentils, rice, California vegetables, apples; Snacks - cheese breadsticks, watermelon

Strawberries Are Here!

2008-06-12T22:30:00.006-04:00

This has been our first week of part-time child care for Caroline. It was nice not to have to think about how I would try to mimic the child care center's meals...although I must admit that I have not been doing a very good job of mimickng. We had a long winter and I simply cannot resist sending Caroline the fresh, locally grown foods that are now available. Last weekend, we bought four quarts of strawberries from Crane Centennial Farm. They are not a super sweet variety but they still taste delicious and we have been eating them everyday. I packed a few in Caroline's lunch today even though the lunch fruit was honeydew melon. Caroline likes strawberries but doesn't love them like her cousin Matthew. I remember one summer years ago when Matthew, who was about 3 years old at the time, ate so many strawberries...that he threw them up on to his dinner plate. It actually wasn't as gross as it sounds and is a good reminder that it is possible to overdo anything, even strawberries!

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, June 12: Breakfast - buttermilk currant muffin, pearsauce; Lunch - brown rice with kale (Owosso Organics), feta, and dill (Crane Centennial Farm), strawberries (Crane Centennial Farm); Snacks - hummus, whole wheat pita bread

Childcare Center Menu, June 12: Breakfast - corn muffin, applesauce; Lunch - BBQ chicken with corn on the cob, honeydew, wheat bread; Snacks - hummus, pita bread

No Power: Day 4

2008-06-10T14:29:00.004-04:00

It's been four days now that we haven't had power. I attended the Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Society conference in New Orleans last week and returned home to Lansing on Friday night. On Saturday morning, we visited the farmers' market as we do every Saturday morning. By the evening, dark clouds covered the sky and we knew that a storm was coming. We lost power that night and have been without electricity ever since. What have we been eating? We're eating our way through the perishables in our fridge that we don't need electricity to make into a meal: yogurt, vegetables, bread, cheese, strawberries (from Crane Centennial Farm), cold tofu, dried fruit, sunflower butter. Last night, my friend Wynne who lives two doors down the road got her power restored so we went to her house and grilled asparagus and made pasta. I packed the leftover pasta and asparagus in Caroline's lunch today.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, June 9: Breakfast - rhubarb muffin (Threadgould Gardens rhubarb), strawberries (Crane Centennial Farm); Lunch - pasta, tomato sauce (canned last summer), asparagus (Threadgould Gardens); Snacks - blueberries (frozen, Walton Orchards), whole milk plain yogurt, whole wheat graham crackers

Locally Grown Corn-on-the-Cob in June?-

2008-06-03T20:50:00.006-04:00

Now that I have defended my dissertation, I am hoping to spend more time in the kitchen and the garden with Caroline. My research took a critical look at farm to school programs in the United States. Caroline has been my inspiration and motivation for the last two years. The long days and nights were unbearable at times but I kept my eye on the prize - more time with Caroline. She will still go to the childcare center on Tuesdays and Thursdays but starting next week (or the week after...I can't remember what I requested) Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays will be time for just us. Until then, we will still pack her lunch five days a week.

In her lunch tomorrow, Caroline will get a little taste of summer. Last year, we froze corn-on-the-cob that I bought from Rebecca Titus at Titus Farms. Geoff and I sat on our front porch and shucked corn for an hour before we blanched it and vacuum-packed it with our Food Saver. Rebecca's corn is always sweet and delicious. Caroline loved eating the corn right off the cob even when she was only 13 months old. In fact, her enthusiasm for corn-on-the-cob inspired the childcare center cook to start buying it for the other kids!

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, June 3: Breakfast - ten grain hot cereal, prunes, banana; Lunch - marinated and baked tofu, brown rice, corn-on-the-cob, bok choy (Owosso Organics); Snacks - string cheese, whole grain crackers

Childcare Center Menu, June 3: Breakfast - Oatmeal, raisins, bananas; Lunch - chicken lo mein with soy sauce, watermelon, corn-on-the-cob; Snacks - red an yellow bell peppers, saltines