Gee Creek Farm

We have now started to receive deliveries from Gee Creek Farm out of Ridgefield, WA. The farmer, Lyle, will be bringing us an assortment of vegetables every week. You can find the Gee Creek Farm at the PSU Farmers Market on Saturday, the Peoples Co-Op Farmers Market on Wednesdays, and the Hillsdale Farmers Market on Sundays. Be sure to stop by and say hi to Lyle, and tell him that your a ChildRoots family or friend.

Patty Pan squash we had on Monday.

Red Swiss Chard from Wednesday.

Absolutely delicious Sungold Cherry Tomatoes enjoyed on Thursday
Purple Kohlrabi that will be prepared on Monday.

How to cut...melons

This time around I'll describe how I cut the melons for the kids. Melons are an excellent source of potassium, vitamin A, and folic acids.

To tell if a melon is ripe, it should have a good bright color and give just slightly when you push on it. Smell the melon, you should be able to notice a sweet smell on a ripe one. Also, I usually give them a good shake and listen or feel for jiggling seeds. not always the easiest method, but the most reliable.

As always start with a large cutting board and a good sharp knife.

Start by thoroughly washing the outside of the melon with hot water. Then place on the cutting board and cut off both ends, usually taking off about 1/2 an inch. then stand it up on one end and slice down the middle.
Then take a large spoon and carve around the seeds first, then scoop them out.
If you plan on taking the rind off the melon lay it flat side down on the cutting board and cut it down the middle, parallel to the ends.
Stand up the melon quarter on the widest side. Take your knife and follow the rind line with the back of the knife, don't worry too much about the front. Repeat that process several times to get off the rind, you may need to go back and do some clean up shaving.
You can then cut it any way you want, but for the smaller kids I slice it thin.
Then I turn it and cut that in half.
This gives me small manageable piece that are easy to chop.
For the older kids I leave the rind on and slice it down the length.
Then take a few slice and lay it flat on the board.
Cut the slice to whatever size seems appropriate.
The Pre-Schoolers get the largest slices.

How To Prepare...Tofu

Tofu, the ever popular soybean curd. The children get pretty excited on tofu day, I'll never forget one room jumping up and down screaming "tofu!" as I walked in with it. One child described it as clouds, and another called it "the other chicken".

I've had a lot of experience with many forms and types of tofu, for the most part firm or extra firm tofu is the way to go. The brand we use at CR (and I use at home) is Surata Soyfoods firm nigari tofu(made in Eugene, OR). Nigari is a form of salt that is used in the coagulation of the soymilk, it produces the firmest texture.

Getting people to eat tofu can be a challenge sometimes. the way I cook it at CR has proven to be a great way to introduce tofu to a skeptical crowd. It's all about changing the texture a little, and adding a flavor that is somewhat familiar...

Here's How:

Start by freezing the tofu in the packaging. Freezing the tofu causes in to take on a chewier consistency. Take the tofu our of the freezer and put it in the fridge, two days before you want to use it. After it's completely thawed, I give it a good squeeze. you don't want to dry it out, just get rid of some of the excess water. I do this over a strainer, so I don't lose any tofu bits down the drain.
I then stand it up and slice it into three slabs and place in a large tub. I then add no salt stock powder, salt and olive oil.
Then using gloved hands, I gingerly mash the tofu. I try not to break it up too much, unless you want a more granulated texture. During the mashing I also do a lot of tossing this helps to get the seasoning and olive oil mixed evenly through out. Once I have it well mixed, I move the tofu to a baking pan. I like to mound it in a thick layer.
I like the thick layer because then you get different textures after it's baked. I bake it till the tips of the top layer are a nice dark brown.
The tofu comes out with a "chicken" like consistency, and a savory flavor. At home you can use the baked tofu in scrambles, burritos, stir fries, and soups. I love to throw it into tomato sauce and use it over pasta.
I am working on a ChildRoots recipe book, that will have amounts, times and temperatures. The work to at home conversions are taking a bit of trial and error so stay tuned...

(I hope to have it worked out sometime in the next month or so.)

Kiyokawa Family Orchards

I'm pleased to introduce the Kiyokawa Family Orchards, located in Parkdale, OR, as one of the first of our farm friends. They can be found at the Beaverton Farmers Market on Saturdays, the Ecotrust Farmers Market (in the Pearl) on Thursdays, and the Hollywood Farmers Market on Saturdays. They will be supplying us with a wide variety of cherries and peaches for the rest of the summer, and apples and pears in the fall and winter.

These are the Lapins Cherries that the children have been eating.

How to prepare...Green Beans.

Welcome to the first in a series of posts explaining how I prepare the food at CR, another popular question.

The other day the kids had green beans from Montecucco Farms in Canby, OR. Green Beans scream summer to me, I grew up eating them raw and sun warmed from my mother's garden. They are an excellent source of vitamin A, complex B's, potassium and calcium. Interestingly you only get full access to the nutrients after they are cooked, if eaten raw a small percentage goes right through. This batch of green beans had a dark green color and a little bit of chewiness. That tells me that they got plenty of sun, but not enough water to keep up.

The first step is picking the stem end of the green beans, this would be a good time to involve a child. I pick them and put them into a strainer, so they're ready for the next step, rinsing thoroughly. If you ever need to pick 15 pounds of green beans quickly let me know, I can offer you some pointers.
This time I steamed the green beans for about three t0 four minutes, until just beyond soft but not mushy. There are many ways to steam veggies, it's a much better option than boiling them. When veggies are boiled some of the nutrients are left in the water and over cooking is easier. Then I portion them out.
Once I have the bowls set up I splash them with olive oil, sprinkle with kosher salt, and toss with some oregano. I always start off light on the seasoning - you can always add more, but you can't remove any. I recommend having some oil in a squeeze bottle (with a small nozzle hole), this will help with the portion control. I also like to use my hands (gloved or impeccably clean) for the mixing, you can do a more thorough job that way.

How to cut...a pineapple.

There are several questions i get from parents all the time, one of them is about how I cut the fruit. So I have decided to start documenting the process here. (Be warned: while I may know how to cut fruit, I am not a professional photographer so bear with me on the illustrations.)


Let's start with a PINEAPPLE.

To find out if a pineapple is ripe, tug on one of the leaves in the crown. If it comes off easily then you know it is ripe.

Always start with a good sharp knife and a large cutting board.

Grab all the leaves at the top of the pineapple, or the crown, and twist it off. Rinse the pineapple and lay it flat on a cutting board.
Cut off both ends of the pineapple. Usually only taking about 3/4 inch off each end. Then stand the pineapple up right on the cutting board.

Now you can quarter it by cutting the upright pineapple in half - one way and then the other.
Now comes the part that may take a little practice.
Lay one quarter with one of the cut sides down. Hold the pineapple steady by placing the palm of you non-cutting hand on the skin. Then holding the knife at a 45 degree angle, cut along the length of the pineapple quarter. Thus removing the hard fibrous core. *Don't throw the core away, we'll return to that later.
Now flip the de-cored quarter over so that the skin side is down.
Now slice it. When I am preparing pineapple for snack, here at the center, I would addjust the width of the slices depending on the age of the children I am serving.

*As for the cores, I usually put them in the breakroom for teachers to snack on. You can eat up and down the sides like an ear of corn. But if your really hardcore, you can eat the whole thing.
If you have a juicer, these pieces juice beautifully. You can also freeze them and throw them into soups, beans, or bbq sauce for some added sweetness!

The world of food at ChildRoots.

Hello everyone, Joseph here.
I just wanted to say that i will be posting all about the food that your child enjoys during the day at CR. I'll be giving away the secrets of our kitchen and information about the food.
Starting this week I'll be hitting the farmers market to look for some farms to partner up with. I'm hoping to establish some direct-from-the-farms connections that will help CR serve fresh seasonal food. Because of this we will be going to a weekly menu, instead of the former monthly version.

If you know a farmer or have a favorite farm please let me know by emailing me at childrootscook@gmail.com