Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay in posts, the beginning of the school year is so busy it flies by. I can promise that there has been plenty of action in the gardens since the last post and we are well over 800 pounds of harvested produce for this year. Two weeks ago we made an appearance at the Go Green Galloway Farmers Market and received over $100.00 in donations for our produce. That day we featured tomatoes, peppers, farm fresh eggs, Swiss Chard, carrots, and an array of herbs. Thank you to all of the community members who came out to support us and learn some information about the garden.
Students began school ready to work and they have been busy; building new raised beds, cleaning out beds for winter, and planting our fall/winter crops. The hens are doing well and are producing over a dozen eggs a week. Today, October 3rd, we celebrated Farm to Schools month with two events at the school. First, we hosted a chef demo, farm discussion, and healthy eating lesson courtesy of the AtlantiCare Healthy Schools Healthy Children Chefs in schools program. This program brings local chefs and farmers to schools to discuss the importance of gardening, local produce, and healthy eating. We were honored to have Gami grad and local Chef Nicole LaTorre from Eat Clean Org on site to work with students to create a delicious Ratatouille dish. Students were reluctant to try some of the vegetables in the dish but many were asking for seconds after their first bite. It was another delicious dish prepared by Chef Nicole. In addition, Valerie Behrens from Impact Harvest joined us to discuss her work in the community growing and donating fresh produce to those in need. Finally, Christine Guzman from AtlantiCare was on site to review healthy eating habits and provide guidance on alternatives to the numerous unhealthy foods students are exposed to on a daily basis. All three presenters provided an awesome experience for our Urban Farming and AP Environmental students and they walked away with a great new recipe as well as information on volunteering in the community and getting involved with locally grown foods.
To continue our focus on farm to school, the culinary club and Chef LaRocca hosted the Gami After Hours students for a healthy eating demo using produce from our school gardens. Chef LaRocca made a delicious and filling Buddha Bowl featuring Quinoa, Swiss Chard, Spinach, Garlic, Scallions, and poached eggs finished with a drizzle of sesame oil and rice vinegar. As she prepared the meal, she reviewed the tenets of nutrition, engaged the students in conversation, and demonstrated easy cooking techniques that can be used at home. As this was not a dish many students had before, it was fun to see them trying something new and enjoying the new flavors. A special thanks to the culinary club for hosting today and we hope to see you again soon.
As you can see it has been a busy start to the year and we are only a month in. Stay tuned for some exciting new things that will be happening in our gardens this year and we hope to welcome some new residents come spring 2018!!
Don't forget to join us on Saturday October 14th for our Absegami Open House from 10-1. We will be offering garden tours and food samples in our culinary kitchen. We hope to see you then!
 |
| AtlantiCare Presentation: Chefs in Schools |
 |
| Buddha Bowl featuring Gami Fresh Produce |
 |
| Daily Haul from September 2017 |
No comments:
Post a Comment