Nyssa wants you be in the know about BEANS!

The following guest blog post is from Nyssa Collins, the Garden Instructor for an OFL Adult Cooking class at the YWCA in Raleigh. Nyssa is a horticulture major at NCSU, and this is the second session of OFL classes she has taught. Now that our classes at the YWCA are half over, we’ve finally made it through the lesson and cooking with time at the end to sit down and eat together. It hasn’t been easy! We have a small class of about eight wonderful ladies, but it might as well be double; everyone has stories and questions. It turns out that other students have an answer, about just as often as we do, to questions like, “What do I do with my eggplant?” (That we sent with the students in their take-home bags the first week). Last Wednesday, as we ate roasted chicken and greens, I had a question for the group of my own: “Who here eats beans at least twice a week?” Nobody raised his or her hand. “Once a week?” A couple of brave volunteers.

My name is Nyssa Collins, and I am a devout believer in the church of beans. Nobody loves beans like I do. I eat beans three times a day, and then sweet bean dumplings for dessert. Every morning I have a big bowl of bean and vegetable soup, otherwise lunch feels about a million hours away.

Why do I love beans so much?

Beans are a nutritional power food: They are a slow burning carbohydrate that gives a lot of energy for a long time. Beans are the best singular source of cholesterol-lowering fiber – 15 GRAMS in a cup of cooked beans! (Remember, we need between 21 and 35 grams of fiber daily.) The fiber also keeps us full – if you’re trying to lose weight, fill up on bulky beans! They are an important source of trace minerals like potassium, iron, phosphorus, and magnesium. Some beans, like lentils, are the closest plant source to a complete protein and can replace meat in some meals. Other beans need only be combined with a whole grain, dairy, or nut or seed in a meal to make a complete source of protein that our body can use. They are also naturally low in fat and a good source of quality calories.

Beans are very economical. (*Meaning cheap!) A pound of dried beans has about twelve 1/4 cup servings is usually under $3. Buy an even bigger bag or from a bulk bin and the unit price goes down. WAY down. Unlike most items in the center of the grocery store – the snack foods and cereals – beans don’t have a brand name and no one is trying to trick you into buying them. Beans are a staple of the grocery store for their own tried and true virtue.

It is easy to use beans in every day cooking and for every taste. Recipes are plentiful online and …don’t be afraid… in Vegetarian Cookbooks. (But keep in mind beans ARE for meat-eaters too!)

Here are a few of my favorite bean meals and snacks:

Soups – (I cook them all in my crock pot and the leftovers freeze really well.)

• White Bean and Ground Goat soup with toasted bread
• Black Bean and Sweet Potato soup with sliced avocado, salsa, tortilla chips, and plain yogurt
• Split Pea and Carrot soup
• Veggie Chili-any mixed of beans, tomato sauce, barley, corn, squash, broccoli, etc
• Miso Soup – Miso broth, a few noodles, tofu, and scallions

Sandwiches

• Tofu Salad- Tofu drained and mixed with a little real mayo, Cajun spices, and green apple chunks
• Bean Pizza-Toast a tortilla, top with hummus or bean spread and cooked vegetables like mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, broiled eggplant, corn, or broccoli
• Hummus Pita-with fresh, crunchy vegetables
• Burritos and Tacos-Replace the meat with fat-free refried beans or whole beans

Salads and Appetizers

• White Bean, Garlic, Avocado, Diced Bell Pepper, and Crab or Tuna
• Mix beans or hummus with vinegar and a little oil for a salad dressing
• Make your own hummus or bean dip, or enjoy a prepared one, with fresh vegetable sticks and whole grain crackers or chips
• Roasted Chickpeas – Sprinkle with cumin OR chili powder and light sugar and put under the broiler, tossing often, until beans are dried and crunchy. This is a snack food that will fill you up! (Or mix into salads)

Bakes

• Shepherds Pie – Replace ground meat with lentils and layer on the root vegetables and mashed potatoes, topped with cheese
• White Bean Pie – with caramelized onion and whole grain crust, or no crust!
• Enchiladas or Enchilada casserole – roll up or layer beans, vegetables, cheese, tortillas, and enchilada sauce
• Baked Beans – bake canned beans with honey (or try it with a little beer!)

Now you know all my bean secrets, so I hope you’ll think of me when you eat beans this week! Also post comments if you have your own great bean recipes or any delicious variations to mine!

Test Your Taste Buds: Try Something New!

The following is a blog from NCSU student Kate Towery. It is the 2nd in a series of 5 blog posts (read her post from week 1 if you haven't already!) she will be writing chronicling her experience as a Nutrition Instructor for a OFL Class she is teaching. Kate is teaching OFL as part of a Service Learning Class that has teamed up North Carolina State Students with the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s OFL/Nutrition Program. Through this partnership the IFFS and NCSU hope to engage students in service learning and community nutrition while expanding the reach of its OFL program. Hi everybody, and welcome back to Operation Frontline’s “Side by Side” class, where we aim to help kids and families make healthier choices together. As you recall, my team from NC State University has started our second series of classes with all new participants. This week we had three more first-timers join us as we made White Bean Chicken Chili and homemade tortilla chips. The kids were a lot of help wiping down the tops of canned foods and cleaning the table. They also squeezed limes, measured and poured ingredients, and spread tortilla slices on cooking sheets. Since we were working with raw chicken Chef Will went over some great food safety tips and warned the kids about Mr. Sal (salmonella) and how to keep him away.

Another big thing we focused on this week, and we encourage everyone reading to make this a family goal, was the willingness to try something new. Tastes change with age so it is important to keep you kids trying both unfamiliar and familiar food items, even the same ones in different forms! Like the last series we had the kids do a mini taste-test with all kinds of fruits, veggies, and wheat breads, which is always a hit. We had hummus too, which the participants liked so much we plan to make an easy version of our own in a later class. The group was very open and excited to try new things outside of their normal diets. During mealtime I asked everyone what he or she thought of the chili recipe and Edith shared with us,

I really like the chili. It uses many of the same ingredients I cook with, such as rice and beans, but here they are used in a completely different way and give off a completely different taste."

Edith and her daughter Allison, as well as a few other participants, who typically enjoy traditional Latino cuisine not only showed some willingness in trying new things, but also expressed excitement in continuing this in future weeks! Let’s try and follow their great example this week!

Lastly, we aimed to focus on different forms of produce, seasonal buys, and growing or buying our own local foods. We had some great lessons on these topics, incorporated them into our recipe, and even planted our own pea plants! This activity, led by Gardner Cadi, gets the kids really excited to take care of their plants while learning about basic gardening. By planting our own produce we save money (seeds are cheap, sun and water are free!), and are able to eat our own yummy, healthy vegetables. It doesn’t get any fresher folks!

See everyone back in a few weeks for Lesson Three!

Getting The Kids Involved

The following is a blog from NC State student Holly Starks. It is the 2nd in a series of 6 posts she will be writing chronicling her experience as a Nutrition Instructor for a OFL Class she is teaching. If you haven't already, read the 1st Week. Holly is teaching OFL as part of a Service Learning Class that has teamed up North Carolina State Students with the Inter Faith Food Shuttle’s OFL/Nutrition Program. Through this partnership, the Food Shuttle and NC State hope to engage students in service learning and community nutrition while expanding the reach of its OFL program. Our second week with our new Side by Side class at the Crosby Head Start center was packed full of fun and activities this past Tuesday. The kids were encouraged to try new fruits, vegetables, and whole grains during a taste test activity while the parents discussed different approaches for handling eating problems during mealtime. The participants were also able to practice picking out different colors of fruits and vegetables and associating the colors with their health benefits. Afterwards, the teams became “whole grain detectives” and determined if certain foods were actually whole grain or not. During the gardening lesson the families were able to plant their own kale in a pot to grow at home. With the arrival of warm weather, we are all excited to hear about the progress in the growth of their plants in the upcoming weeks!

Salena, our class manager, was especially intrigued by the involvement and enthusiasm of the kids during this class. Salena helped the kids with the taste test activity  and noted, “The kids loved all the fruits, but I found that they were more interest in the ones that were more foreign to them i.e. the kiwi and papaya.” The kids continued to explore their interest and curiosity in the foods by asking questions about the seeds, shapes, and colors. They were also eager to try the different foods multiple times, which is beneficial when introducing new foods since it usually takes kids many times of trying the same foods before they may like it. Salena also helped the kids put the tomato sauce on the English muffins for the mini pizza recipe. “They love spreading the pizza sauce on the English muffins! Interestingly enough, Dorian is a perfectionist and each piece had to have the correct amount of sauce and had to cover the entire bottom.” It’s great to see the kids’ personalities shine through as they are developing skills and healthy habits for later in life. Kids love to have tasks during cooking because it engages them and helps the meal be more meaningful to them when they have the opportunity to help create it. The kids were also given the task of putting the spinach on the mini pizzas. Salena stated, “I gave them directions and showed them how to do it and after that they went off. They repeated my directions word for word and did exactly what I asked.”  Overall, Salena is amazed by the children’s willingness to cooperate and eagerness to be involved in the lessons. It was also great to see the parents working with the kids and encouraging them to learn and participate during the lessons.

The participants’ interest and involvement has reinforced the goal of the Side by Side curriculum to get the parents and kids learning, cooking, and eating healthy together. This class helps to build skills that are both beneficial for the kids and the parents and also encourages family time and bonding, which can be critical to healthy living and development. As I like to say, families that eat healthy together, live healthy together. I encourage you all to get the whole family involved in cooking, while allowing the kids to do fun, age appropriate tasks.

Join us next week to see what else the families’ will learn about and cook!

Mini Pizzas : Fun for the whole family!

The following is a blog from NCSU student Kate Towery. It is the 1st in a series of blog posts she will be writing chronicling her experience as a Nutrition Instructor for a OFL Class she is teaching. Kate is teaching OFL as part of a Service Learning Class that has teamed up North Carolina State Students with the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s OFL/Nutrition Program. Through this partnership the IFFS and NCSU hope to engage students in service learning and community nutrition while expanding the reach of its OFL program. We are trying some new healthy and delicious recipes with all new parent and child participants.  This week however, we just had to repeat an old favorite, the Mini-Pizzas and fruit salad.  These food items were a real hit and even had the kids trying mushrooms, onions, and peppers as toppings!  What a great way to get those veggies into our diets while preparing meals as a family.  Our other dish, fruit salad, provided yet another food group for our meal and is an easy, budget-friendly dish: simply buy seasonal fruit (canned and frozen are cheap options too!) and cut into bite size pieces!  During our mealtime we reviewed material covered in the nutrition lesson.  Our main topics revolved around the MyPyramid.  We discussed how colorful the food groups are and how we want to eat from all of these groups each day to stay healthy and strong.  The kids also placed ingredients from the recipe into their proper food groups with help from their parents.  Kids weren’t the only ones learning this week!  Earlier in the class Erick and Gloria went over some great knife rules and techniques with chef Will and got to dicing!  While the kids watched on they reminded parents to use “the claw” – a safety technique used to avoid slicing fingers when cutting produce.  Will, Cadi, Caitlin, and I look forward to building on these techniques and tips over the next few weeks.  Since we are taking next week off, I am leaving you with a few pointers we cover during this series of our “Side by Side” class.

To make cooking and eating as a family easier try out these easy tips:

1. Clean as you go.  Less mess later means more play time for everyone!  Kids are often eager to help, just make it fun!  Give them “big kid” tasks like wiping down or setting the table.  Measuring and mixing are also fun and safe jobs.
2. Make time to cook together.  If this can’t be done during a busy week, chop or prep ahead of time and keep frozen or refrigerated.  When kids take part in planning or making a dish they are often much more likely to try it!
3.  Find ways for your kids to help cook, no matter what age!  You’ll be surprised at what they can do, and are creating less work for yourself!

Pictures from Day 1 with Will Allen

As we've been talking about recently, urban farmer Will Allen (CEO and Founder of Growing Power, Inc.) came to town yesterday to teach workshops to students at Longview High School and will help kick-off Inter-Faith Food Shuttle's Community Garden at Alliance Medical Ministry! Yesterday afternoon, Will Allen flew in to Raleigh and headed to Longview High School where he did a slide show presentation about Growing Power and a quick demo outside about vermicomposting. He even commended Steven Horton (our Farm Assistant) on what a great job he's doing with the worm bins! Afterwards, Will Allen joined some Food Shuttle staff, volunteers and supporters for a nice quiet dinner on the IFFS Farm.

Take a look at some of pictures from yesterday at Longview and the dinner at the Food Shuttle Farm.

More to come tomorrow on Will Allen's visit and the community garden reception tonight! If you'd like to meet Will Allen and celebrate with us as we kick-off the new community garden, open seats are still available! RSVP to cece@foodshuttle.org or call 919-250-0043.

National Poetry Month, Opening Day and Will Allen

It's a big Monday here at the Food Shuttle.  Of course we are excited about Will Allen coming to town and will be keeping you updated via Twitter and on the blogs about how that's going.  You can still RSVP to cece@foodshuttle.org if you want to attend the reception for Will on Tuesday Evening. Hope to see you then. We're also excited about continuing to celebrate National Poetry Month on the Behind-the-Scenes-Blog.  Because as Aristotle said:  Poetry is finer and more philosophical than history; for poetry expresses the universal, and history only the particular.

And on top of all that, it's Opening Day! The green of the grass, the crack of the bat, the overwhelming sense of renewal-baseball is back and spring can now begin( Yes, we know there was a game last night, but come on, today is Opening Day). So here's "Casey at the Bat" to help start  your week.

Casey at the Bat
by Ernest Lawrence Thayer
The outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day: The score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play, And then when Cooney died at first, and Barrows did the same, A pall-like silence fell upon the patrons of the game. A straggling few got up to go in deep despair. The rest Clung to the hope which springs eternal in the human breast; They thought, "If only Casey could but get a whack at that-- We'd put up even money now, with Casey at the bat." But Flynn preceded Casey, as did also Jimmy Blake, And the former was a hoodoo, while the latter was a cake; So upon that stricken multitude grim melancholy sat, For there seemed but little chance of Casey getting to the bat. But Flynn let drive a single, to the wonderment of all, And Blake, the much despisèd, tore the cover off the ball; And when the dust had lifted, and men saw what had occurred, There was Jimmy safe at second and Flynn a-hugging third. Then from five thousand throats and more there rose a lusty yell; It rumbled through the valley, it rattled in the dell; It pounded on the mountain and recoiled upon the flat, For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat. There was ease in Casey's manner as he stepped into his place; There was pride in Casey's bearing and a smile lit Casey's face. And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly doffed his hat, No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Casey at the bat. Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt; Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt; Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip, Defiance flashed in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip. And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air, And Casey stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there. Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped-- "That ain't my style," said Casey. "Strike one!" the umpire said. From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar, Like the beating of the storm-waves on a stern and distant shore; "Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted someone on the stand; And it's likely they'd have killed him had not Casey raised his hand. With a smile of Christian charity great Casey's visage shone; He stilled the rising tumult; he bade the game go on; He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the dun sphere flew; But Casey still ignored it and the umpire said, "Strike two!" "Fraud!" cried the maddened thousands, and echo answered "Fraud!" But one scornful look from Casey and the audience was awed. They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain, And they knew that Casey wouldn't let that ball go by again. The sneer is gone from Casey's lip, his teeth are clenched in hate, He pounds with cruel violence his bat upon the plate; And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go, And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow. Oh, somewhere in this favoured land the sun is shining bright, The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light; And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout, But there is no joy in Mudville--mighty Casey has struck out.

Food Shuttle 5 - top moments on the web this week

• Will Allen - urban agriculture specialist is coming to Raleigh on Monday and Tuesday! Read all about it here.

• Our Co-Founder and Executive Director, Jill Staton Bullard, will be on Clayton Hinkle's radio show - The Progressive Pulse this Sunday at 7:30 am. Watch the preview below:

• The Operation Frontline and Farm and Community Gardens staff finally saw the light  and set up Twitter accounts: Follow them for the latest news: FoodShuttleOFL and IFFSFarmGardens

• The talented kids from Mayview made a great rap about their community garden. Watch it below:

• National Poetry Month is here and we're celebrating on the blogs! Read about it here and watch our moving interpretation of "Monologue for an Onion" below

Frugal Fridays: Matt’s Recipe Remix

For the last two years I have been serving as an AmeriCorpsmember in Vermont with a youth outreach organization and now at the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle in North Carolina with Operation Frontline. As AmeriCorps members we learn to live on a limited budget in our year and in my case two years of service. Sometimes as AmeriCorps members we face challenges similar to those of our class participants in creating meals that are both tasty and nutritious on a limited budget. Since coming to the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle and working with the OFL program, I have had the benefit of having access to the phenomenal recipes that are in the OFL curriculum. I love to cook and do so almost every night, so I decided to utilize these recipes in my daily cooking. Working with the OFL recipes, I learned some great things that have helped me to continue to eat healthy while doing what I love, which is cooking yummy meals and sharing them with my friends. Below is a meal I put together the other night for my monthly “game night” using variations of the OFL recipes. This menu served me and seven of my friends, and cost me under $20 to make this meal for 8; keeping in mind I had the spices and oil already. The weekend is upon us so try this at home and see how easy it is!

Quick Note: You do not have to go out and buy spices for these recipes if you don’t have them, I always use what was in my cabinet until it is done. I am a big fan of Jane’s Krazy Salt.

Homemade “Faux” Hummus/Bean Dip

Inspired by OFL Eating Right, White Bean Dip recipe

Serves 8, Cost $3.50-$4.50

• 2 cans of garbanzo beans (or chick peas) - $1.38 for 2 cans
• 2 cloves of garlic – $.50 for bulb of garlic
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil - small store brand $2.99 *
• ¼ cup of water (I have also replaced this with non-fat skim milk; it creates a creamier dip) - milk $1.09 *
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice - 1 lemon $.51
• Fresh or dry parsley *
• Pinch of black pepper *
• Pinch of all spice *
• Pinch of chili powder *
• Dash of Jane’s Krazy Mixed-Up Salt (www.janeskrazy.com) *

*I already had these ingredients at home.

Directions: Blend all ingredients in a blender and serve. Top with parsley for looks.

Homemade Whole Wheat Flour Chips

Inspired by: Eating Right, Homemade Corn Tortilla Chips recipe

Serves 8-10, Cost $3.00-$4.00

• 2 packages of store brand tortillas - $1.69 per package
• Olive oil or vegetable/olive oil cooking spray*
• Pinch of salt or Jane’s Krazy Salt*

*I already had these ingredients at home.

Directions: Cut tortillas, very lightly spray or coat with Oil, sprinkle salt. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or until brown and crisp.

Chicken, Spinach, and Bean Pasta

Inspired by: Eating Right, Pasta with Beans and Collard Greens recipe

Serves 8-12, Cost $10.00-$13.50

• 2 packages of boneless chicken breast or chicken tenders - $3.01 per package (purchase what ever is on sale that week; I got mine buy-one-get-one-free)
• 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil *
• 1 package of whole wheat pasta - $1.99
• 1 package of spinach - 3.49*
• 1 clove of garlic * (you have already have purchased it for the dip)
• 2 onions (red, white, or yellow depending on your preference and the price) - $1.29
• 1 green pepper - $.50
• 1 fresh tomato or can of diced - $.75 can w/ coupon
• 1 package of mushrooms – $1.99
• Fresh or dried basil - Picked from my windowsill herb garden
• Dash of salt or crazy slat*
• 1 can of beans (white, northern, pinto, or kidney), drained and rinsed - $1.70 for a can of organic pintos
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice * (you have already have purchased it for the dip)
• ½ teaspoon of pepper *
• 1 teaspoon of salt *
• 1/2 cup of water or white cooking wine *

*I already had these ingredients at home.

Directions: Cook the pasta, cook the chicken, and while chicken is cooking chop and put all veggies, except spinach and mushrooms, in a pan with oil and heat on a medium low. Once chicken is finished cooking, cut it into sizes of your liking and add along with mushrooms and beans to pan with veggies. Add water or cooking wine and bring to a simmer. You’re almost done, now add the spices and basil, mix and let simmer for 1-2 min. Finally, serve over the cooked paste and mix in the uncooked spinach to freshen the taste.

I hope you found this helpful and if you want to learn more about Operation Frontline at the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle keep visiting our OFL blog with recipes, videos, class stories, and more.

National Poetry Month

Just as we mentioned yesterday, we will be celebrating National Poetry Month on the blog in April! No, this is not an April Fool's joke either. Since the Food Shuttle is in the business of getting perishable wholesome food out to our hungry neighbors, we will be showcasing different poems about fruits and veggies throughout the month. To start things off, take a look at this video! Chef Terri Hutter and CeCe White make up the dynamic due in a video interpretation of "Monologue for an Onion."

Will Allen - back in Raleigh Monday and Tuesday!

You might remember back in November when Will Allen gave a lecture at the CEFS event on sustainable agriculture at the McKimmon Center. Well, now Will Allen, founder and CEO of Growing Power, Inc., is coming back to Raleigh on April 5 and 6 to hold urban farming workshops for students at Longview High School, and kick off Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s Community Garden at Alliance Medical Ministry! Here's a video about Will Allen and his work with youth and communities for urban agriculture.

On Monday and Tuesday, Will Allen will teach workshops to local students from Longview High School about urban agriculture. Topics will include urban farming, vermiculture composting and intensive gardening. His work with local foods and urban agriculture has inspired communities and organizations across the country and we are thrilled to have him join us in Raleigh on Monday to work with the Longview students!

Kick-Off and Reception Details for Community Garden at Alliance Medical Ministry

• April 6, 2010 from 6-8pm
• Will Allen will speak at the kick-off and answer questions for area students and those interested in urban agriculture.
• Food for the reception will be provided by Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s Catering With A Cause.
• The kick-off and reception is free and open to those who RSVP by emailing cece@foodshuttle.org or call 919-250-0043

Find out more about Alliance Medical Ministry here.