CitySprouts' School Garden Celebration!

Last Saturday, I volunteered at CitySprouts' School Garden Celebration (formerly the Harvest Festival), which was a blast!
Despite the rainy weather, we had a fabulous set-up indoors, which still allowed us a view of the Graham & Parks school garden.

I had the opportunity to work at the Stone Soup station with JJ Gonson from Cuisine En Locale.

The kids did a wonderful job chopping up the vegetables for the soup, the majority of which were a generous donation from Parker Farm!

Photo courtesy of Susan Young

Although most of the festival was indoors, we cooked the stone soup outside. The soup, which was mostly vegetables, salt and pepper, and just a little bit of stock, came out delicious and warm and was perfect for the cold, rainy day.

At the celebration, each of the schools set up tables, held activities, and sold various items to help raise money for their gardens.

Photo courtesy of Susan Young

Activities during the day included pumpkin decorating by the Haggerty School, and apple cider pressing!

Photo courtesy of Susan Young

There were various informational booths at the festival, including one with School Nutritionist Dawn Olcott. Dawn coordinates the Tasty Choices program in the Cambridge Public Schools, which helps to bring more local foods into the school lunches.

In addition, the King Open School will be involved with the program Food to Flowers, part of an environmental iniative by Compost That Stuff and the City of Cambridge.

And how could I not take a picture of this gorgeous broccoli?

Despite the rainy weather, the School Garden Celebration was very well attended by children, parents, and the community.

CitySprouts' is a nonprofit that now maintains gardens in ALL of the public schools in Cambridge, and helps to incorporate these gardens into the school curriculum. Read my previous post about interning with CitySprouts. Interested in volunteering? Find out more information here!

All photos taken by Annabelle Ho unless otherwise noted.

Gaining Ground and Time For Lunch!

On Labor Day, I had a wonderful time with Slow Food Boston at their Eat-In at Gaining Ground in Concord.

The pavilion

Begun in 1994, Gaining Ground grows fruits and vegetables using organic methods. ALL of Gaining Ground's produce is donated to food pantries and meal programs within 20 miles of the farm, and within 24 hours of harvest!!! With a small staff and most of the work on the farm performed by volunteers, it's great what Gaining Ground is able to accomplish! And anyone can volunteer - read more details about volunteering here.

What a huge scale!

Onions galore

Drying the garlic

Love the bees!

Slow Food Boston's volunteer day at Gaining Ground involved 1-2 hours of farm work, with plenty of weeding!

The Crew

Afterward, we broke for the Eat-In portion of the day with a delicious potluck that included potatoes with home-cured bacon, red quinoa, a beet salad, and much more! The Eat-In was a part of Slow Food USA's Time for Lunch Campaign.

The Child Nutrition Act, which governs the National School Lunch Program, is reauthorized in Congress every 4-5 years. Since school budgets have been cut, schools have been struggling to give children the real food they need. And because the Children Nutrition Act is being reviewed this fall, it's time to tell Congress that real food needs to be in school lunches! If you are concerned about the food that is in school lunch, sign the petition and read more about how to get involved!

CitySprouts (and The Food Project)!

This summer I had the fabulous opportunity to intern with the organization CitySprouts. Based in Cambridge, MA, this nonprofit will maintain gardens in all of Cambridge's public K-8 schools by this fall.

During the academic year, the CitySprouts' garden coordinators work with the Cambridge school teachers to incorporate the gardens into the school curriculum. Additionally, during the summer, CitySprouts runs a middle school intern program, in which middle school students learn, among other things, how to grow, harvest, and prepare food in an urban environment.

During my internship, I was able to assist two of the garden coordinators with their middle school intern programs, and I held two of the school garden drop-ins while the middle school intern program was in session. I also had the opportunity to work in the CitySprouts office, allowing me to see both sides of the organization.

















Working with the CitySprouts staff, and interacting with the other college interns, parents, students, and volunteers in the community was definitely an amazing experience! I would highly recommend volunteering with CitySprouts and volunteering at the CitySprouts' drop-ins, which are held at the various public schools all over Cambridge, from the end of April until mid-November.

And, as you can see, I also had a wonderful time taking plenty of photos during my internship. I am working on creating an online photo album with all of the pictures that I took- I simply could not resist taking pictures of all the beautiful vegetables, flowers, and plants that were in the gardens!!!

And if you do not live in Cambridge, there are plenty of other organizations to volunteer with to get your hands dirty, including The Food Project! The Food Project's mission is to "grow a thoughtful and productive community of youth and adults from diverse backgrounds who work together to build a sustainable food system." During certain times of the year, individuals can volunteer at their drop ins at their Lincoln and Roxbury locations on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. In May, I had the opportunity to volunteer at The Food Project in Roxbury with a group that I am involved with, Slow Food BU. Read about SFBU's experience at The Food Project here!

I cannot believe that classes are starting again and that it will already be September. But that also means that cranberries, pumpkins, and winter squashes will be in season!

Have a great week!

Get Your Ferment On - Fermented Veggies, Food Preservation, & Live Active Cultures!

Today's post is dedicated to the wonderful world of fermented veggies.

To start off, here are a few definitions to clear up some initial confusion:

• Lacto fermentation- "using salt to suppress spoiling bacteria while fostering growth of beneficial lacto bacillus bacteria, which are present on vegetables and produce the preservative lactic acid." (1)
  
• Pickling- "Using vinegar to preserve vegetables or fruits along with spices and herbs."
• Hot water bath canning- "using a boiling pot of water to push air out of sealing-lid glass jars containing high acid foods." (1)
• Pressure canning- "Using a pressurized canner to create even higher temperatures (steam) that pushes out air and seals the lid of glass jars containing low acid foods." (1)
• Culturing- "Using microorganisms to transform the sugars or lactose of various liquid foods into other kinds of nutritious and tasty substances." (1)

Vegetables usually ferment best when using a brine, which is basically salt dissolved in water (2, pg. 38). In some vegetable ferments, such as sauerkraut (aka fermented cabbage), the salt draws water out the vegetables via osmosis (2, pg. 38). Meanwhile, in other vegetable ferments, such as cucumber pickles, a brine solution is mixed separately and then poured on the vegetables (2, pg 38). The salty environment prevents strains of several harmful and pathogenic bacteria from growing, while it encourages the growth of certain desired strains of bacteria- in particular, Lactobacilli (2, pg. 38-39).

In addition, the more salt you use (2, pg. 39):

• The slower the fermentation process
• The more acidic/sour the product
• The longer the product will store for
  

Fermentation vessels include crocks or simply large, glass wide-mouth jars. A smaller glass jar can be placed inside a wide-mouth jar to put pressure and weight on the fermenting vegetables.

And fermenting vegetables can be as simple as this:

• Make a brine by dissolving ~3 tbsp salt in 4 cups water (or to taste)
  
• Put 1.5-2 lbs of cut up vegetables (for ex., cabbage, carrots, beans, squash, radish root vegetables, a combination, etc.) into crock(s) or jar(s). This can be done with or without the addition of spices or herbs (for ex., whole peppercorns, mustard seed, caraway, dill, etc.)
• Pour the saltwater brine over the vegetables, making sure that the vegetables are submerged in the liquid.
• Put a plate or weight on top of the vegetables to weigh the veggies down.
• Put a cloth or towel over the container, and let sit at room temperature for 2-4 days (to taste)
• When the vegetables are ready, store in the fridge
  

Helpful hints:

• It is important to make sure that the vegetables remain submerged, because fermentation is an anaerobic (without oxygen) process. If there are vegetables above the liquid, they will be exposed to oxygen, and can encourage the growth of mold.
• Try to remember to check on your fermented veggies everyday and make sure that they are submerged under the brine, and also taste them to see if they are ready for refrigeration. If there are any moldy veggies on top, you can just remove them (the mold only grows on the surface). And if there is water loss by evaporation, simply add more brine to your fermenting vegetables.
• Fermentation occurs more quickly at higher temperatures.
  

By making your own fermented vegetables, (including sauerkraut, sour beets, kimchi, and more), you can control the saltiness and sourness/acidity of your fermented food!

In addition, there are many benefits of fermentation and from eating fermented foods:

• Fermentation preserves nutrients, and "breaks them down into more easily digestible forms" (2, pg. 6)
• Fermentation creates new nutrients, such as B vitamins (ie. folic acid, riboflavin niacin, thiamin, and biotin) (2, pg. 6)
• Fermentation "removes toxins from foods" (2, pg. 7)
• "Many fermented foods can be consumed live...and alive is the most nutritious way to eat them" (2, pg. 7)
• "Many commercially available fermented foods are pasteurized," such as commercially sold yogurt in stores, "which means [that they are] heated to the point at which [beneficicial and nonbeneficial] microorganisms die." (2, pg. 8)
• "Lactobacillus fermentation inhibits the growth of diarrhea-related bacteria such as Shigella, Salmonella, and E. coli." (2, pg. 8)
• Fermentation is another way to preserve foods.

After you've done it once, you'll find that fermenting vegetables is actually very easy! Look at my sample recipe above or links to some recipes below.

For more information on fermentation from Sandor Ellix Katz, read his book Wild Fermentation, or take a look at his website for recipes on how to make sauerkraut, pickles, and more!

In addition, Gabriel Cousens from the Tree of Life Rejuvination Center provides a little information on fermented foods in his book Conscious Eating. Preview Conscious Eating here through Google Books, and go to page 743 to read the section on Fermented Vegetables and also to find a few recipes.

In his book, Gabriel Cousens notes:

• "Sauerkrauts are fermented foods that help re-populate the colon with health-promoting, lactic acid-producing bacteria. Raw sauerkraut has these healthy bacteria, but store-bought, pasteurized sauerkraut does not." (3, pg. 743)

And although I already went through some definitions, I would like to reiterate that room temperature vegetable ferments are not the same as pickled vegetables made and stored in vinegar (when you put the vegetables directly in the fridge for preservation/to develop flavor). Although both are food preservation methods, vegetables fermented at room or warm temperatures for several days or weeks rely on the bacteria lactobacilli to create lactic acid. Thus, these fermented vegetables contain live active cultures. Read a little more info on this subject here.

If you would like some more reading on sauerkraut fermentation, look no further.

And on another note, the other day I was at the Russian grocery store Bazaar in Brookline, and I tried a pickled apple! I probably won't be getting one again, but it wasn't bad! (It was sweet and sour at the same time!)

Happy Friday everyone! :)

Sources:

1. Ben Grosscup. "9-19-09: Date of Food Preservation Workshop Near You." NOFA - Massachusetts News - August-October 2009, p. 4.
2. Katz, Sandor Ellix. Wild Fermentation. White River Junction, Vermont: Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 2003.
3. Cousens, Gabriel. Conscious Eating. Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, 2000.

The Farmers Markets (@ Lexington, MA, and elsewhere!)

Hello everyone,

I wanted to express my love for the Lexington Farmers Market (and all farmers markets, in general!)

The Lexington Farmers Market has a diverse array of farmers and vendors, including gelato from Giovanna Gelato, rotational artisans, and fresh, daily caught fish from Globe Fish Co.

To honor the bikers, the first 100 people to ride to the Lexington Farmers Market and check in with the Bike Valet receive a $2 Market Gift Certificate, which can be used to purchase any food items at the LFM!

There was even music entertainment on the day that I stopped by the farmers market (June 16th).

And at the LFM, I was very glad to meet Charlie from Rad Urban Farmers, who farms and maintains the land at homes in Arlington, MA and Lexington, MA, in order to sell goods at farmers markets. In exchange, the host families/individuals are provided with fresh produce that was grown in their own backyard! This concept is great!

I tried some carrot cake muffins from Glutenus Minimus, which sells gluten-free baked goods, and they were delicious! (You can see that I ate the muffin top on the right before I took this picture :) )


And I could not help but buy some fresh baby spinach from Butterbrook Organic Farm. I love baby spinach! MmMm...


I am continually impressed with my hometown's farmers market, and I love visiting! I would encourage anyone to stop by if they are in the area- the Lexington Farmers Market runs every Tuesday (6/6-10/27) from 2-6:30 pm, at the corner of Mass. Ave. and Fletcher Ave. You can check out the LFM's Calendar of Events here.

On another note, I am very happy to announce that Boston University (which I am currently studying at) has begun a farmers market with local vendors and farmers for the first time! Read more about Boston University's Farmers Market.









More and more farmers markets are popping up everywhere, which I am very excited about! If you do not currently have a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), or if you already have a CSA and would like to supplement it with more locally produced food items, look at Mass Farmers Markets, LocalHarvest, MassGrown's listing, and Edible Boston's listing for farmers markets that are in the area.
In addition, see when various fruits and vegetables are in season, and watch Edible Boston's video and tour of Opening Day at Copley's Farmers Market.
Have a good week, and enjoy the farmers markets while fresh produce is in season!

The Future of Food Conference & Michael Pollan!

My apologies for not posting in awhile...I always seem to get busy no matter what time of year it is!

In any case, I had a wonderful end to finals week with the conference The Future of Food: Transatlantic Perspectives on May 8th and 9th. And the next Tuesday, I finally saw Michael Pollan speak at the West Roxbury Branch Library!

The Future of Food Conference, organized by the Institute of Human Sciences, was meant to encourage people to think more consciously about the food they buy and eat. It discussed some of the present problems regarding our food systems and sustainability, and also presented some potential solutions to these problems.

The two day conference began with the workshop "Wild Fermentation," which featured Sandor Ellix Katz, author of the books Wild Ferementation and The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved. Katz taught us about fermentation and how easy and simple it is to make sauerkraut. In vinegar or acetic acid fermentation, yeasts convert carbohydrates -> alcohol + CO2, and bacteria subsequently convert the alcohol -> acetic acid + water, producing vinegar (1).

After Katz, Bryant Terry, whose latest book is Vegan Soul Kitchen, talked to us with a lecture, cooking-demo, and dinner. Terry, also an eco-chef and food justice activist, spoke with us about his experiences; and the menu included recipes featured in his book, such as citrus collard greens with raisins.

Next up was a free screening of King Corn, with an introduction by filmmaker Ian Cheney and subsequent discussion with film director Aaron Woolf. The film discusses how corn has become a commodity and is in almost everything we eat. Additionally, corn is one of the U.S.'s most over-produced and over-subsidized crops. If you have not seen this film yet, I highly recommend it!

Saturday was comprised of five panels and two keynote addresses. The presenters included Satish Kumar, editor of the magazine Resurgence; Mark Winne, author of Closing the Food Gap; Benedikt Haerlin, president of Save our Seeds; Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the Fair Trade Foundation; Michael Ableman, farmer and author of Fields of Plenty, and many more!


Numerous thought-provoking facts and comments were made, such as:

• 40% of greenhouse emissions are food related
• 30-50% of food produced in the U.S. is thrown away
• 30-40% of the cereal production in India is rotting after harvest
• The food crisis is the product of cheap food/food subsidies
• Many genetically modified plants are marked with antibiotic-resistant marker genes, which has led to some controversy.
• In the Union of Concerned Scientists report "Failure to Yield" by Doug Gurian-Sherman, genetically engineered crops actually do not increase yields! See the press release here.

There were many great discussions, questions, and comments made on Friday and Saturday, and hopefully videos of the entire conference will be up on the Institute of Human Science's website soon!

For another take on this conference, read Slow Food BU's blog post or my friend Elizabeth's post.













Last year I had made a trip to Brown University in Rhode Island to see Michael Pollan, only to be told that the room was packed and that I could not get in. So on Tuesday, May 12th, I was very excited to finally see him in Roxbury!

Michael Pollan highlighted a few topics from his books, which include "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and "In Defense of Food."

In short, Michael Pollan suggests that we should "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." A few other things that Michael Pollan touched upon:

• Nutrition science- it started in the 1830's/1840's, so it's not very strong yet, and it's arguable at best. Most often, they are based on food frequency questionnaires, which are not the most reliable.
• Nutrition labels- can be off by ~20-30%!
• Companies/committees can say to eat less of a nutrient but not less of a food.
  -This caused the Senate Select Committee on Nutrition to recommend to ''Choose meats, poultry and fish that will reduce saturated-fat intake," and to not to give their original recommendation to "reduce consumption of meat," due to uproar from the meat and dairy industry (1).

The traditional Western Diet, which includes everything but vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, often leads to chronic disease. Thus, we need to rethink about what we're eating, and so Michael Pollan is currently collecting Food Rules to make this transition for Americans easier. Some rules he has already collected include:

• Don't eat anything you've ever seen on TV
• Eat all of the junk food you want, as long as you make it yourself
• The Japanese quotation: "Eat until you are 80% full"

If you have any other helpful food rules, e-mail them to Michael Pollan at foodrules[at]michaelpollan.com!

And if you would like to read another recap of Michael Pollan's visit to Roxbury, read my friend Elizabeth's blog post here.

For those of you in the area, hope you've enjoyed the long weekend and the lovely weather!

Raw Vegan Carrot Cake

This past Sunday, I attended a Boston Localvores potluck. There were so many good eats and I had a great time!

I decided to make a raw vegan carrot cake based off of this recipe, and it received rave reviews! At first I was worried that the cake was too sweet, but I found out there is no such thing! Here are the ingredients and directions that I used, and as you can see I just made a few substitutions (pecans instead of walnuts, and dates instead of prunes) and doubled the original recipe so I could fit the cake into a 9 by 5 inch pan.

Cake

1/2 cup pecans

1/2 cup pinenuts

1/4 cup cashews

1 tsp cinnamon

pinch cloves

1/4 tsp ginger

3 dates, soaked for 5-10 min. in warm water

6 dried apricots, soaked for 5-10 min. in warm water

1/4 cup raisins, soaked for 5-10 min. in warm water

2 tbsp unsweetened, shredded coconut

3 medium carrots

*A pinch of nutmeg and/or allspice would work great, too!

Grind up the nuts and spices in a food processor, blender, or Magic Bullet until it's crumbly. Add the rest of the cake ingredients and blend until everything is a sticky mass. (Don't be afraid to do some mixing by hand, as well!) Oil a 9 by 5 inch pan and fill with the cake filling. You can put the cake in the fridge to cool while you make the frosting.

Frosting

1/4 cashew butter

1 1/2 tbsp agave nectar

2 tsp coconut oil

-Process/blend/mix the ingredients until it's well combined. If you only have cashews on hand that can also work, but the frosting may not come out as smooth.
-Frost the cake.

Caramel Sauce

2 tbsp agave nectar

1/4 tsp. vanilla

pinch of cinnamon

~2 tbsp pecans, as desired

Mix together the vanilla, agave, and cinnamon. Stir in the pecans to coat. Place the pecans on the cake and drizzle the cake with caramel.

Makes 1 (9 x 5 inch) cake.

Yum!

Agave is a nectar made from various species of agave plants, most often Blue Agaves- spikey, desert plants that resemble cacti but are actually more closely related to the plant aloe vera (1, 2). Agave tastes sweeter than sugar, and is made by extracting the juice from the agave core, and then filtering, heating, and treating it with enzymes to convert the carbohydrate inulin into sugars (1).

Many people love agave for its taste. Some also choose to use agave because it has a low glycemic index, meaning that when it's eaten alone, it has a low effect on your blood sugar levels (1, 2). (When you start combining and cooking foods, the effects of them on your blood sugar levels are a whole other story). Although agave is a popular sweetener among raw foodists, there may be some controversy over whether or not agave is raw when it's labeled as such. (In the raw foods world, the enzymes in foods that can benefit digestion are destroyed at 112°F).

I am not a raw foodist, although I love and am really interested in the concept of raw and living foods! Look for more posts in the future about raw foods!