Do you every have one of those “driveway” moments, when you sit in your driveway just to finish listening to a radio show?  Recently, I had one of those when I was listening to a wonderful Fresh Air interview on NPR.  Terry Gross was interviewing Paul Greenberg, the author of Four Fish, The Future of the Last Wild Food.

I thought I would share it with you – it is food for thought (pardon the pun) about the seafood industry and will make you think twice about the seafood you purchase for your family.

If you don’t have a flash player, this link should work.  Otherwise, you will find the media player below.

Many thanks to Zoey (age 7!) for today’s post.  She is already quite an accomplished chef and shares her experience making a new dessert with us.  I nearly cried when I read her story – perhaps because she is so close in age to my own son.   I also want to thank Janelle, Zoey’s mom, for encouraging her in the kitchen!  I hope this story inspires you to play with your children in the kitchen like Janelle does.

I have always liked cookbooks. And, now I’m old enough to really get cooking. I decided I wanted to try different desserts from around the world. And then I found a recipe that sounded very good. It said it was good enough for a queen. The recipe was from India and it was for Maharani Cupcakes – a coconut cupcake with lemon curd and sweet basil cream.

First we made the sweet basil cream. We put basil leaves in hot cream and let it steep for an hour. Then it had to chill for three hours. Then we made the lemon curd. We juiced a lot of lemons and shredded some of the peel on a grater to get zest. I didn’t know that we could eat the peel. After we made the curd, that had to chill for 3 hours, too. Then we made the cupcakes. We used a white cupcake mix and added shredded coconut. Then we put them in the oven.

It took a long time to wait for the cream and lemon curd to chill. I kept asking my mom if it had been 3 hours yet. Finally, when everything was ready, we got to decorate the cupcakes. First, we put some lemon curd on top of the cupcakes. Then we put on the sweet basil cream. And then we put on fun sprinkles.

They really did look like they were fit for a queen. And they tasted delicious. But, I think I’ll skip the lemon curd next time.

I wonder what I’ll make next. I’ve made French Chocolate Truffles, Egyptian Mango Cup, Japanese Honey Butter Toast – and now Indian Maharani Cupcakes. I have a recipe for New Zealand Pavlova that sounds yummy. I’m sure whatever I choose, I’ll have fun making it. I love cooking!

Does your child have a story they’d like to share about an experience with food or in the kitchen?  How about you?  My readers love to see how parents interact with their children in the kitchen.  The more stories we can share about cooking with kids, the more likely it is that other people will try it, too.  I post these stories every Monday and would love to share yours!

Just because I haven’t posted about our efforts at local school lunch reform lately doesn’t mean that we haven’t been busy.  In fact, things are hopping!  I recently joined Project Lunch, a new project sponsored by an incredible organization called Teens Turning Green.  How could I resist joining when the invitation started like this…

My name is Carly Wertheim and I am a 2009 Redwood High School graduate. For the last four years I have been involved in the non profit organization Teens Turning Green. We work to educate our peers about environmentally and socially responsible choices for individuals, schools, and communities. We seek to promote global sustainability by identifying and eliminating toxic exposures that permeate our lives, often unknowingly, yet threaten public and environmental health.

In follow up to Michelle Obama’s recent White House gathering of 1,000 chefs and her call to action that each chef mentor another school to develop a healthy lunch program, Teens Turning Green has an idea.

TTG is launching Project Lunch with the goal of ensuring that every single child in every single school has the opportunity to eat healthy food at lunch, and to understand the vital connection of health food to a healthy mind, body, and earth.

We plan to do this by bringing together many members of our community who are out there doing amazing work; to share resources, best practices and mentor schools in our community and beyond. As a magnificent and strong community of change makers, this is a vital focus for all of us and for our future generations.

Inspiring? Absolutely.  Especially with my background as a high school teacher and history of getting my students engaged in REAL issues.  I am so impressed – not only with the teens that are involved in this program, but also by the response from our community.  We have been joined by some amazing energy and influence – Miguel, the food service director for the Novato Unified School District; Scott, the manager of the gleaning program through Marin Organics; Leah with the Marin Agricultural Institute; Jason, the chef at Marin Country Day School; Heidi, the owner of the infamous Insalata’s restaurant in San Anselmo; Sunita, food service manager at Walker Creek Ranch; Al, the co-owner of Good Earth…along with middle school and high school students, their parents and many others…The enthusiasm, alone, at each meeting is fuel for change.

Project Lunch Stakeholders

Interested in joining our efforts?  Do you have ideas for how to develop a green, healthy and tasty lunch program in schools?  Let me know in the comments section below.  In the meantime, save these dates:

November 12:
Students, faculty, administration, school chefs, purveyors and business leaders will come together for dialogue and discussion. TTG campaign members will moderate panels with esteemed thought leaders in the healthy school lunch space. Following the panels will by a series of hands-on workshops. The evening will conclude with a communal dinner prepared with specific criteria by local companies working with students. The meal will demonstrate healthy lunch offerings using locally-grown, sourced and organic provisions as well as within a budget range.

November 13:
A day-long event hosted at the recently opened Whole Foods Market Novato in Marin County. The “Lunch Line” will be an inspiring, educational and fun event where celebrity and school chefs, thought leaders, farmers, business leaders, community leaders, and sustainable food purveyors will engage in dialogue, tastings, an educational forum, and Eco Top Chef Cook Off.

Nothing Like Fresh Berries

By Patrick, 6 years old

Portland, Oregon

It was a sunny day and my family and I went to pick berries. We picked strawberries and raspberries. It was hard to find just the right strawberries because they were hiding in the plants. My sister and I ate a lot of raspberries as we picked them and thankfully did not get a tummy ache.

We picked five pounds of raspberries and ate half of them by the next day. Raspberries taste like heaven. We love them. We hope mom gets more soon.

The next morning we made smoothies with the strawberries which were delicious. I helped measure and pour the milk, add the berries, peel and drop in the banana, and power the blender until it was done a ready to drink. After I finished my glass, my mom let me have what was left in the blender.

I thought it’d be fun to share this acrostic too.

F – fruits

O – oh no, the eggs broke

O – organic

D – delicious

Patrick’s Berry Banana Smoothie

Makes approx. 16oz.

Ingredients

12 Really ripe strawberries

1   Cup frozen blueberries

1   Banana

1   Cup milk

4   Tsp raw oats

2   Tbsp almond or peanut butter

1   Splash of vanilla

1. Making the smoothie
2. In the blender, grind up the oats – they help thicken the smoothie. Wash the strawberries and remove the hats. Peal the banana.
3. Put all the ingredients in the blender. We learned the hard way not to put the milk in first – all the fruit splashes!
4. Blend well. Pour in your glasses and drink up.
5. You could also add in 2 or 3 ice cubes (my sister doesn’t like it too cold or too thick) or substitute the milk for yogurt.
6. I tried all day long to have more fruit but mom was pretty sure we had enough for the day. They’re just so good.

P.S.  Patrick is the son of my good friend Gina. Her new blog, Feed Our Families, is designed to support you in feeding your family well.  Be sure to check it out!

Does your child have a story they’d like to share about an experience with food or in the kitchen?  How about you?  My readers love to see how parents interact with their children in the kitchen.  The more stories we can share about cooking with kids, the more likely it is that other people will try it, too.  I post these stories every Monday and would love to share yours!

Hi,

Just a quick note to let you know that I haven’t fallen off the face of the earth.  I have been really busy working on my book, which is due on September 1st.  Things are heating up, so to speak.  The publisher just informed me that they have named the book, formerly called, “It.”  I was starting to feel like a bad mother, calling my third child “It” all the time.  I am waiting to get the clearance from the editorial team to tell you the new name…I think I like it.  It’s a little strange to have someone else name the project after I have put in so much time.

Oh, and tomorrow is our first photo shoot!  I hope to take some photos of the photographer (Matt) and the stylist (Jen) in action.  I am super excited about this part, especially because there will be pros in the kitchen (and in the garden, chicken coop, and wherever else there is good light to be found).

Of course, all of this is being juggled with the kids being home for the summer.  It has been a real adventure.

Anyway, I should sign off and get some sleep.  I just wanted to say hello and tell you that I miss you.

Love,

Michelle

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