For the Love of a Goat

                  Goats are very curios and extremely intelligent animals. They can be great company to farmers, since they are loyal, social and loving. Not only are they used for food purposes such as  milk and cheese, but they can also be used to pull around small carts and loads to help you on your travels. Their manure can be very beneficial in the fertilizing process. They also have no problem in clearing any weeds from your lawn, just be extra careful with leaving them in your lawn or grassy area for too long because they WILL eat EVERYTHING!!

Written by: Areza G&N Intern 

Raw food vs Cooked food

Find out how to prepare your veggies to get the maximum nutrition out of them.Some produce is most nutritious the "Raw" way, (which is any food that hasn't been heated above 115 degrees) while other need the heat to bring out there best.Here are some example of some veggies, each paired up with a quick recipe...

 1.Asparagus -(cooked)

  Steaming this it till bright green and tender ignites its cancer fighting potential. this low calorie stalk is rich in glutathione, a detoxifying compound that can help destroy carcinogens.

Recipe: under a steamer of boiling water, steam the asparagus for 3-6 minutes until easily pierced with a knife.take out, squeeze over lemon juice, and a pinch of black pepper and salt.enjoy!

2.Beets -(Raw)

 You lose 25% of their Folate .Folate is commonly knows as B-12 which plays a main role of cell repair for production of red blood cells, metabolism, and prevents obesity and various cancers in the body.

Recipe: Shredded beet salad: http://www.health.com/health/recipe/0,,50400000124813,00.html You can also add turnips! (for a vegan version exclude the yogurt)

3.Broccoli -(Raw)

   Heating broccoli, deactivated the enzyme in it, "Myrosinase" . that enzyme cleanses the liver from carcinogens. Carcinogen is a substance capable of causing cancer in living tissue.

Recipe: Clean the broccoli, chop off the florets and eat it with http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/yogurt-dill-dipping-sauce instead of ranch. or a hummus recipe! http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/easy-hummus-with-tahini .

4:Mushrooms -(Cooked) Heating mushrooms. Sauteing ,grilling ,baking ,steaming ,any way possible. It bring out the muscle-building potassium and protein you need. 

Recipe: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/portobello-burgers 

5:Onion -(Raw)

They’re anti-allergic, anti-histaminic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant,you'd deactivate most of this by cooking them.

Recipe: (super easy) 2 ripe avocados, sliced1/4 c thinly sliced white (or red) onion,a sprinkle of olive oil (about 1 tbsp) , juice of 2 small limes...Compile the avocado and onion. Sprinkle with olive oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

6:Spinach -(Cooked) Cooked spinach will let your body  absorb all of its calcium,iron, and magnesium immediately.

Recipe: Spinach sauce (for spaghetti) 10 oz of spinach, half a package of queso fresco,clove of raw garlic, olive oil (2 tbs)and salt and pepper to taste . Welt down the spinach  in a little bit boiling water. when thats done. in a food processor, throw in the everything and pulse until the sauce is thick but smooth.serve over any pasta and enjoy hot.

7: Red bell peppers -(Raw)

Their high in vitamin c,it breaks down when heated above 375 degrees. so safer to eat raw in my opinion. 

Recipe:You can eat these sliced with the dips under the broccoli recipes.

8. Tomatoes- (Cooked)

tomatoes include lycopene which prevents cancer and other chronic diseases, this vitamin becomes more intensified when they are cooked and a little oil is added.

Recipe: snack/appetizer... http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/roasted-tomato-bruschetta-recipe.html 

Up-cycling

Why spend a lot of money and time on shopping for new clothes when you can up-cycle your old clothes. You can add you own flavor to your creation

There is nothing wrong with donating your clothes, but you also save money when you have to buy new clothes for the new school  year. You're letting out your inner fashionista. But clothes is not the only thing that can be up-cycled,furniture can be renewed. 

  Give your old forks a new use. Hooks are always used around the house.

 Your cat might need a new bed, use a suitcase, and a pillow to create a wonderful new bed with out wasting a dime.

You dont have to spend millions at retail stores to get the elegant chic look that you crave; with only watching a few tutorials from any DIY website you will get inspired and become a pro in no time. 

Written by Jackie

Field Trip #2: Growing Power

Growing Power is a non profit organization that tries to educate communities on the importance of good tasting, fresh, and chemical free food. The only way to have a healthy community is to eat the right foods that you know are not contaminated with chemicals that are bad for your body. They not only sell fresh produce but they also raise healthy, virus free fish, that would probably be hard to find any where else.

                                         Left to Right: Rosalyn, Jacqueline ,Madeline, Areza, Samantha

Aquaponics: They not only sell fresh produce but they also raise healthy,virus free fish, that would probably be hard to find any where else!

We volunteered to help with projects that needed to be done such as weeding and moving compost.

We were also able to see the goats and chickens here!

-Written by: Areza, G&N Intern 2015

Children's Activities Have Started Once Again!

We had a wonderful time learning, planting and painting with the kids this past Saturday at Pete's Community Farm! They did a great job making signs to mark each plant and vegetable in the garden. 

Children's activities will continue throughout the summer, every other Saturday, from 10-11:30 am. Please  join us for some free educational and environmental fun! Or, join us during the week to spend time in the garden relaxing and enjoying the sun. Check out the pictures from Saturday, as well as our weekly open hours, below!

Stop by during any of the times listed above!

We had lots of help to plant all the bell peppers, hot peppers and strawberries.

What masterpieces! Now all can name which plants are growing in the garden.

Madelines International cooking classes

   On June 4th ,11th, and 18th our Garden and Nutrition intern Madeline gave a cooking class based on different cultures around the world. We made Vietnamese, Chinese, Mediterranean, American, and Peruvian food. Some vegan,some vegetarian, and others recipes with meat (used for only an optional choice).

 Madeline's second cooking class,

 In process of making the vegetarian burger patties from scratch with her .

A healthy burger choice packed with quinoa,black beans,kale sandwiched in between cucumber slices in stead of your average beef patty in a bun. Partnered with a three bean Mediterranean salad, replacing the fries.

                                          

       Madelines first cooking class

 First cooking class, Madeline mad fresh Vietnamese spring rolls made with raw vegetable and 3 dipping sauces.Next we cooked some vermicelli noodles dressed with spring onions ,ginger, and soy sauce. Also made a Chinese-Peruvian hybrid of fried rice.

- Written by Madeline, G&N Intern

Kompost Kids

Kompost Kids is a nonprofit organization which outreaches to help the public how to make compost, which eventually turns into dirt for the plants and by doing this act, it also helps the environment. The compost is known as "waste", but it's really food that has been used and just broken down as it slowly becomes into dirt. How exciting! Not as exciting of how it smells, because it honestly smells bad, but hey, that's the beauty of nature. You will get used to the smell, like I did.

Kompost Kids is also a safe environment where children and families can interact with each other, as they educate themselves to learn how to keep our earth clean, for example; reduce, reuse, and recycle. But other than that, I enjoyed myself when I went to Kompost Kids, because it was in the outdoors and I learned more about compost. That's also another thing, many people don't know about compost. So I think Kompost Kids is a great educational place to start. So personally, I think it would be a good opportunity to go to Kompost Kids so you can educate yourself and educate others.

-Written by Samatha, G&N Intern