Hunger in America: Everybody's Problem!
Brand new report from the USDA shows that hunger in America--food security--is at 14 year high, with more and more working poor challenged to put healthy, nutritional food on the table. Hunger in America.
When our children go back to school, the house seems empty during the day. And as much as it may offer quality adult time to catch up, we cannot forget about maintaining the connection with our kids. Here are five back-to-school connection ideas!
July 2009 Potluck read & print sheet. Great ideas from the editor of greatgrandmother.org. Potluck guidelines and ideas that are sure to bring us all around the table--as family, as friends, as neighbors, and as communities. Summer 2009 Potluck Ideas!
Invite your children into the kitchen this summer! No time better than the summer to get your kids involved in picking and preparing your family meals, picnics, bar-b-ques, or afternoon snacks in the warm sun. Do your kids a favor--invite them to lend a hand. The editors of gg.org have prepared an easy read & print sheet for your summer convenience! Take a look.
Greatgrandmother.org editors provide you with 5 Easy Steps to Taking Back Your Table--the art of eating sustainably. We invite you to join an ever-growing community of people across our country and the world who are taking back their tables! Just click here!
You & Your Family's HEALth
Find ways to get moving, eat healthy, and stay motivated.
Granite Staters tell their stories and share ideas. You can locate and use New Hampshire resources to make a difference in your family's health. Then offer your own tips and experience in our comment section.
RECLAIMING THE FAMILY TABLE is an important thing to do in our lives, given our increasingly busy schedules. Even a couple nights each week spent together around the table (either at home or at a local restaurant) would be beneficial. Academic studies prove it! Just read this study available from the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University: http://www.yaleruddcenter.org/ Just look under the Center's Reports & Policy Briefs section to see how spending more quality time as a family reduces significantly risky behavior among children and teens.
Panera Bread Reclaims Dinner Time This link is my favorite restaurant-based site and to my knowledge, Panera Bread is the only national chain that has recognized the importance of family meal times.
A BIG PART OF LIVING, WORKING, AND PLAYING AS A COMMUNITY is the act of connecting. Community connectedness is important for healthy families and vibrant communities. Here's a great way for folks in Sunapee to connect: http://sunapeenews.com/
THE SLOW FOOD movement started in Italy with the food pioneer Carlo Petrini celebrating authentic traditions, flavors, and recipes. The Slow Food movement stands in opposition to everything that a fast-food meal represents: blandness, uniformity, conformity, the blind worship of science and technology. The Slow Food movement in the United States is vibrant, healthy, and growing. Visit them online at http://www.slowfoodusa.org/ Or visit the Slow Food Upper Valley chapter at http://www.slowfooduv.org/ for more information about joining the local movement.
There is a lot to be happy about right now. Our country is moving forward in a positive way, with a renewed sense of direction and true inspiration from all parts of our community.
We at greatgrandmother.org are committed to celebrating local life through social connectedness in our communities, neighborhoods, and families.
This page is dedicated to the wisdom of Alice Waters, owner of Chez Panisse Restaurant, founder of the Edible Schoolyard, and the spirit behind California Cuisine:
Cook together. Include your family and friends, and especially your children. When children grow, cook, and serve food, they want to eat it. The hands-on experience of gardening and cooking teaches children the value and pleasure of good food almost effortlessly.
Eat Together. No matter how modest the meal, create a special place to sit down together, and set the table with care and respect. Savor the ritual of the table. Mealtime is a time for empathy and generosity, and time to nourish and communicate.
Remember food is precious. Good food can only come from good ingredients. Its proper price includes the cost of preserving the environment and paying fairly for the labor of the people who produce it. Food should never be taken for granted.
Celebrating Thanksgiving on the farm, using local ingredients. 2009
Around a handmade harvest table, made by our woodworking friends in Wilmot, guests will arrive with wine, apple pies, and sugar pumpkins as contributions to our celebration. This year especially the focus is on friendship, family, and health. No amount of economic discord can take away the grace of these three important elements.
Tangerine glazed turkey: our local co-op grocery sourced regional, small farm-grown hens. I reduce a quart of tangerine juice (not local, I know) and add a bit of Unity-buzzed honey and Vermont butter to glaze the hen. 13-15 lb turkey is fine with us. Not too big.
Mrs. Glick's Potatoes: The co-op in Putney, Vermont has the most wonderful small, organic potatoes. They are mixed with fresh chives that are still growing in Schuyler's herb garden and some Cabot's Hunter Sharp cheddar, and local cream to create a delicious potato recipe that has become a tradition on my Thanksgiving table dating back to 1987.
Creamed spinach and Cippolini onions: Instead of the requisite pearl onions, I go with a locally-grown (Maine) Cippolini because they are squat and sweet. After slow roasting the onions, their natural sweetness is a great counter balance to the fresh spinach, butter, cream, and nutmeg. All but the nutmeg comes from within 50 miles of King's Grant Farm, with the spinach coming right outside in the kitchen garden.
Sausage and wild mushroom stuffing with sourdough bread: The sausage comes from New Hampshire's Star Lake Farm (available at Springledge Farm). The apples from our own King's Grant Farm trees. The wild mushrooms from the Concord Co-Op market (since I am not a certified mycologist). And the sourdough bread comes from the natural yeast floating around in my kitchen. Of course, we have tons of sage drying in the pantry.
Squash gratin: I would normally use sweet potatoes, but no good local or regional sources were found this year. So, I'm using a melange of squash from the Upper Valley Co-op to make a gratin with Will Levitt's wonderful maple syrup. I'm using several squash varieties: Carnival, Acorn, Butternut, Delicata, and Buttercup.
Cranberry delight: Since I'm keeping this local, my Massachusetts (Wareham) cranberries will not include oranges this year. Instead, I'm using a reduction of local apple cider and Roger's wild honey from Unity.
