Open Arms of Minnesota

Weekly Recipe #50: Cassie's Granola

2012-01-31T12:22:00.000-06:00

Nothing beats pulling a pan of crispy, fragrant, golden-brown granola from the oven. Whether you pair it with yogurt for breakfast or munch on it for a snack, granola is tasty, convenient and nutritious. Sous chef and baker Cassie Mead created the following recipe for the Open Arms kitchen, and we think it's a winner.

Customize this granola with your favorite combination of nuts and dried fruit. When Cassie made a batch for our clients last week, she used dried papayas and bananas, cashews and delightful chunks of dark chocolate. Mmm! The dried ingredients she used, including the grains and seeds, were donated by Second Harvest Heartland -- our thanks to them for their help in getting nutritious food to our clients!

Cassie's Granola

(Makes about 18 cups)

2/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup honey
3/4 cup oil
1/4 tbsp. salt
1/4 tbsp. cinnamon

8 1/2 cups oats
2 cups oat bran
2 cups flax seed
3 cups nuts

Dried fruit and chocolate to taste

1. In a sauce pan, mix brown sugar, molasses, honey, oil and spices together. Heat on stove until the mixture comes to a slow boil and the sugar is all dissolved.
2. Combine oats, bran, flax seed and nuts in a large bowl. When sugar mixture is ready, carefully pour over the oats. Mix together until everything is coated and divide amongst two or three baking sheets lined with parchment.
3. Bake at 300 degrees for 5 minutes. Rotate pans and mix granola. Return to oven for another 5 minutes and check for doneness. The granola should be toasted and crispy.
4. When granola is cool, mix in dried fruit and chocolate.

Weekly Recipe #49: Broccoli Gribiche

2012-01-24T10:34:00.003-06:00

This dish is ideal for January -- it's warm and comforting, and full of healthy ingredients to help you keep plugging away at those resolutions. Plus, it practically cooks itself!

Roasted Potatoes & Broccoli Gribiche

Adapted from Super Natural Every Day

(Serves 2-4)

1 1/2 lb. of small potatoes, cut into 3/4" cubes
1 lb. broccoli, cut up into florets
kosher salt & olive oil for roasting the vegetables

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a large baking pan with parchment.
2. Spread the potatoes out on the pan, drizzle with olive oil and salt and roast for 15 minutes.
3. Remove the pan and add the broccoli. Roast until veggies are browned (about 15-20 minutes more).
4. While the vegetables are roasting, make the sauce below.
5. Transfer the warm potatoes and broccoli to a large bowl and toss with the sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Chop the three hard-boiled eggs and one white into rough pieces and add to the veggies and sauce.

Gribiche Sauce:

4 hard-boiled eggs
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
handful of chopped parsley
1 tbsp. chopped fresh tarragon
2 small shallots, minced
salt & pepper

1. Start by taking one egg yolk and mashing it with a fork in a medium size bowl.
2. Slowly add the mustard, vinegar and olive oil to the egg yolk and whisk until glossy and the sauce is emulsified.
3. Add the herbs to the sauce.

Weekly Recipe #48: Dreamy Hot Chocolate

2012-01-17T09:05:00.000-06:00

This week, I made myself forget about the teasing, spring-like interludes we've been having and instead focused on hunkering down for actual chilly temperatures. My winter nesting habits involve lots of warm beverages, so I decided to try making some great hot chocolate. This recipe is made up of ingredients that are probably already in your pantry, and it's easy to make -- just warm the ingredients in a saucepan and whip them up. Ta da! Coffeehouse-quality hot chocolate in your kitchen.

The addition of vanilla extract comes from my days slinging sweet drinks at a Northfield coffee shop. Vanilla was the top-secret ingredient in our mochas and hot chocolates. (Shh, don't tell!)

Use the best bittersweet chocolate you have, as its flavor carries the show. In my book, the darker the chocolate, the better, so I used a 72% cacao bar.

I am spoiled by my roommate's little automatic milk frother, but an immersion blender or regular blender will work just fine.

The perfect accompaniment to a cozy chair and a novel.

Dreamy Hot Chocolate

Adapted from Orangette

(Serves 2)

1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 1/2 tbsp. water
1 1/2 tbsp. granulated sugar
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, water and sugar. Place over medium heat and whisk occasionally until the sugar is dissolved. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture just to a boil.
2. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the chocolate.
3. Blend the mixture. If you have an immersion blender, do this directly in the saucepan; if not, transfer it to a traditional blender. Either way, blend for 1 minute (on high speed, if using a traditional blender -- and be careful, as hot liquids expand when blended). The finished mixture should be very smooth and frothy. Don’t be tempted to forgo the blending step -- the texture that it creates is key.
4. Serve immediately.

Weekly Recipe #47: Panettone Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce

2012-01-09T11:45:00.001-06:00

On the historic side, this rather boozy dessert famously kept Sir Ernest Shackleton's crew toasty warm and content as they drifted on the ice-bound Antarctic seas, waiting out the interminable winter aboard the Endurance in 1915.

Okay, that story is simply not true. However, I am very fond of this particular bread pudding because it combines two of my favorite foods with my drink of choice: Panettone, toast and bourbon. If I had to spend a very dark winter stuck in an iceberg on a wooden boat, it is exactly the kind of food I would want to eat every night before tucking into my bunk.

Panettone Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce

(Serves 6-8)

Bread Pudding:

1/2 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup brandy, heated
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 lb panettone, sliced
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups half-and-half
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 with rack in the middle.
2. Soak raisins in hot brandy for 15 minutes, then strain the brandy off.
3. Meanwhile, butter panettone on both sides and toast it in batches in a large heavy skillet over medium heat until golden on both sides.
4. Whisk together remaining ingredients and set aside.
5. Tear panettone into bite-size pieces and spread evenly in a shallow buttered 13- by 9-inch baking dish. Scatter raisins over top, then pour in egg mixture. Let stand 30 minutes.
6. Bake until pudding is golden and just set, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm with a spoonful or two of bourbon sauce.

Bourbon sauce:

2 egg yolks
1 stick salted butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup bourbon

1. Beat egg yolks, butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
2. Add vanilla and 1/2 cup bourbon.
3. In the top of a double boiler, cook the sauce until temperature reads 165 on a thermometer, beating constantly.
4. Remove sauce from the stove and strain.
5. In a mixing bowl, beat sauce until it is slightly cool, adding the remaining bourbon in batches. Spoon onto bread pudding.

Weekly Recipe #46: Roasted Chicken with Pancetta and Olives

2012-01-03T12:28:00.001-06:00

As the real winter weather sets in, warm dishes become essential. In this recipe, chicken is roasted with a savory trio of garlic, pancetta and olives, along with a dose of spice. A shallow bath of white wine keeps the chicken moist.

Although we do not like to boast, friends have told us this chicken recipe elevates the fowl in their estimation -- a worthy contender in the battle of cow vs. all for center of the meat-eater's plate.

Roasted Chicken with Pancetta and Olives

Adapted from a recipe from Gourmet

(Serves 4)

1 chicken (about 3 1/2 lb), backbones cut out and cut into 12 pieces*
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 tbsp. chopped thyme
1/2 tbsp. chopped rosemary
1/2 tbsp. fine sea salt
1/2 tsp. hot red-pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. Spanish paprika
5 garlic cloves, peeled
1 (1/4-inch-thick) slice pancetta, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup dry white wine
12 oil-cured black olives

1. Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in middle.
2. Toss chicken with oil, thyme, rosemary, sea salt, red-pepper flakes and paprika, rubbing mixture into chicken.
3. Arrange chicken, skin side up, in one layer in a sheet pan. Scatter garlic and pancetta on top and roast until chicken begins to brown, about 20 minutes. Drizzle wine over chicken and roast 8 minutes more. Scatter olives over chicken and roast until skin is golden brown and chicken is cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes more. Let stand 10 minutes and serve.

*To cut a chicken into 12 pieces, remove wings and cut each breast half into 3 pieces, then separate drumsticks and thighs. Backbones can be used to make chicken stock.

Potluck Recipe #45: The Best Cookies Ever

2011-12-27T09:41:00.000-06:00

I don't care if you are tired of cookies this season -- get the mixer back out and make these immediately! Open Arms Chef Cassie made these little gems for our clients a few weeks ago, and the rave reviews haven't stopped coming. Airy and light as meringue, these chocolate cookies are absolutely divine.

Mocha Chocolate Cookies
From Open Arms Chef Cassie

Step 1 Ingredients:
1 cup walnuts, toasted
1 cup pecans, toasted

Step 2 Ingredients:
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. coffee concentrate*

Step 3 Ingredients:
4 oz. butter, melted
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate
9 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

Step 4 Ingredients:
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt

Step 5 Ingredients:
8 oz of high-quality semisweet chocolate chips or chocolate bar, cut into pieces

1. Toast nuts on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper at 325 degrees for about 8 minutes or until nuts are fragrant and lightly golden brown. Set aside to cool.
2. Place eggs and sugar into a mixer fitted with a whip attachment and whip the eggs and sugar until it resembles a light meringue that will loosely hold its shape. The mixture will become fluffy and pale yellow in color. When it reaches this point, add vanilla and coffee concentrate. Whip the coffee and vanilla into the mixture until they are incorporated. Turn off mixer and set aside.
3. Combine melted butter, unsweetened chocolate and semisweet chocolate chips in a double boiler and stir until all chocolate is melted and butter and chocolate emulsify. Remove from heat. Turn on mixer with egg/sugar meringue and SLOWLY add in the hot butter and chocolate mixture as to temper the eggs.
4. When all of the chocolate mixture is added, change to a paddle attachment or switch to mixing by hand. Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix just until incorporated.
5. Lastly add in the toasted nuts and high-quality semisweet chocolate chips or pieces. Mix just until incorporated, as the dough will be hot and over-mixing at this point will cause the chocolate chips to melt into the dough. Place in the fridge and chill for 15-30 minutes or until dough is set up enough to keep its shape when scooped.
6. Scoop dough using a small ice cream scoop or spoon and drop onto parchment-lined cookie trays. Bake at 325 degrees until the cookies crack like a brownie on top, roughly 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool so they set up, and enjoy!

*You can make your own coffee concentrate by brewing a small amount of very strong coffee. You can also use instant espresso powder.

Potluck Recipe #44: Apple and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese

2011-12-20T15:11:00.002-06:00

Amid all the meat-heavy meals and rich desserts of this season, all I'm craving right now is something green! This salad fits the bill -- it's light, tangy, the tiniest bit bitter and full of freshness. Best of all, it's easy to throw together, making it perfect for quick meals on busy evenings.

Apple and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese

Adapted from a recipe on Delish.com
(Serves 8-10 as a side)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. honey
1/2 tsp. chopped thyme
salt and freshly ground pepper
5 oz. baby arugula
3 apples, peeled, cored and very thinly sliced
1/2 cup salted roasted pumpkin seeds
3 oz. fresh goat cheese, crumbled
sea salt

1. In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil with the lemon juice, honey and chopped thyme. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
2. In a large bowl, toss the arugula with the apple slices and pumpkin seeds. Add the dressing and toss well.
3. Top with the crumbled goat cheese, sprinkle lightly with sea salt and serve right away.

Potluck Recipe #43: Stuffed Dates

2011-12-08T13:32:00.001-06:00

Every year, around this time, Medjool dates turn up in the market. Huge and soft, they are the most lush of all dates, so honey-sweet it almost hurts. They are well nigh addictive.

There are about a million Medjool date recipes combining the delightfully chewy fruit with everything from peanut butter to bacon, citrus, ancho chilies and foie gras. However, I like them best with a little cheese and something salty to smooth out and counterbalance all that sweet goodness.

Take this little ditty to your next holiday party or potluck!

Stuffed Medjool Dates with Pistachios

(Serves 4 to 6)

1/4 cup goat cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup shelled, salted pistachios

1 tsp. of lemon zest
Fresh ground black pepper

16 Medjool dates

1. In a small bowl, mix together the cheeses, nuts and zest. Season with pepper.

2. With a knife, make a lengthwise incision in each date. Gently open the dates slightly and remove the pits.

3. Spoon about a 1/2 teaspoon of cheese mixture into each one. Close the dates around the filling.

4. Arrange the stuffed dates on a platter and serve.

Season Extension at Open Farms: 14 Degrees Outside and 60 Degrees Inside

2011-12-06T16:02:00.001-06:00

By Ben Penner

After a year of extremetemperatures -- extreme snow, extreme rain and extreme heat -- it was nice tohave a mild fall. Up until recently the weather has been great for extendingthe growing season. At Open Farms, we’restill going growing nutritious vegetables in our hoop house, also known as ahigh-tunnel.

I built the hoop house myselffrom a partially donated previously used hoop house plus some old pipes, andlots of plastic and plywood. A hoop houseis similar to a greenhouse with a few big differences. For example, a hoop house is usually powered exclusivelyby the sun with no additional heat source though some farmers may use supplemental heat to keep the plants alive during especially cold times of the year. In a hoop house plants are grown right in thesoil floor of the structure whereas a greenhouse often utilizes a concretefloor.

As I write this the temperature in the hoop house is a balmy 60 degrees even though it is only 14 degrees and snowy outside. The temperature inside the hoop house is conducive to growing “early” green vegetables such as lettuce mix. We have several hundred feet of nourishing kale and salad mix – our third crop of greens this year -- getting ready for a harvest in a few weeks. As long as we continue to have sunshine and our nighttime (or daytime) temperature stay above zero, these vegetables should be heading to our kitchen sometime later this month.

Potluck Recipe #42: Focaccia Bread

2011-12-06T09:50:00.001-06:00

I learned to bake focaccia bread from a chef named Rosie in Portland, Oregon. We worked at a wonderful Italian deli that featured, along with amazing take-out food, a gourmet grocery, meat counter, pasta shop and a giant cookbook store. It was a fun place to work because we could use any of the resources in our cooking, which led to daily invention.

Rosie taught me an important lesson about baking bread: how to feel when the dough has had enough flour and kneading. Instead of giving me a recipe for the focaccia, she gave me the recipe for the sponge and then had me knead the flour in until the dough felt right. I'm no artisan baker, but that "feeling" for dough has stuck with me as I've learned to make more complex bread recipes -- with satisfying results -- at home.

In the recipe below, I've included the rough flour amounts. For one loaf, it's not really necessary to make a sponge. Rather than simply adding the two and a half cups called for in the recipe, add just enough to form a sturdy dough and then turn it onto a work surface dusted with flour. Then, knead in just as much flour as you need to achieve a dough that is dry -- not sticky -- and feels elastic and smooth in your hand, springing back when you press a thumb into it. By adding flour this way, you avoid creating an unworkable dough that is too dry or too wet.

If you do not enjoy olives, rosemary is also delicious.

Focaccia Bread

Adapted from the Green's Cookbook

1 package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
pinch sugar
1/2 cup pitted black olives
2 1/2 cups unbleached white flour or a mixture of whole wheat and white
Coarse sea salt

1. Preheat the oven to 450F.
2. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water with the salt, olive oil and sugar. When it is fully dissolved -- it should bubble a little -- stir in the olives.
3. Add in just enough flour to form a sturdy dough and turn it out onto a board dusted with flour. Knead for 5 to 8 minutes, adding just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking. When the dough is smooth and bounces back, form it into a ball and set it in a lightly oiled bowl. Turn it over once, cover and put it in a warm place to rise until it is doubled in bulk, about 30-40 minutes.
4. After the dough has risen, turn it out onto an oiled baking sheet or a peel and pat it out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut a few slits in the top, brush with olive oil and sprinkle the top with sea salt. Let the dough rise for 20 minutes.
5. Bake the bread in the top third of the oven for 20-30 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown. (If you have a pizza stone, use it -- your crust will thank you.)
6. Remove from the pan immediately and serve or cool on a rack.

Potluck Recipe #41: Cranberry Upside Down Cake

2011-11-29T09:47:00.001-06:00

Oh cranberry, cranberry, how do I love thee? From the brilliant blush of your ruby red cheeks to the puckering, sweet-tart taste of your berries, I love you the breadth of one cake pan and the height of my grammy's tarnished cake server.

Cranberry, you are sweet in granulated sugar and clover honey, but I love you best dressed in maple syrup and pie spices and seated, like the red queen, high atop a tender cake of marzipan and cornmeal.

Cranberry Upside Down Cake

Based on an ancient Martha Stewart recipe

(serves 6 to 8)

12 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
2 3/4 cups fresh cranberries
9 tbsp. pure maple syrup
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. all spice
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 tbsp. yellow cornmeal, preferably coarse
1/4 cup almond paste
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
3 large eggs, separated
1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. pure almond extract
1/2 cup milk

1. Butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan; set aside. In a large skillet, heat 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat until it sizzles. Add cranberries and cook until shiny, 2 to 3 minutes. Add maple syrup and cinnamon. Cook, stirring frequently, until cranberries soften but still hold their shape, about 5 minutes.
2. Remove cranberries with a slotted spoon and transfer to a baking sheet to cool slightly. Set skillet with syrup aside. Arrange cranberries in the prepared pan.
3. Return skillet with syrup to medium heat and cook until syrup boils, 3 to 4 minutes; do not overcook. Immediately pour syrup over cranberries and let cool, about 10 minutes.
4. Place rack in center of oven and heat to 350 degrees. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Mix in cornmeal with a fork. Set aside.
5. Place remaining 6 tablespoons butter in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Crumble in almond paste and, using the paddle, beat on medium speed until well combined, about 30 seconds. Gradually add 3/4 cup sugar and beat until creamy. Add egg yolks and beat until well combined. Beat in vanilla and almond extracts. Add flour mixture alternately with milk in two batches. Set aside.
6. In a clean bowl, use the whisk attachment to beat egg whites until foamy. Slowly add remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and beat until soft peaks form. Whisk a third of the whites into batter, then fold in remaining whites.
7. Spread batter over cranberries and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 2 hours before inverting onto a serving plate.

SNAP Challenge: What we learned

2011-11-23T15:47:00.001-06:00

By Susan Pagani

There must be a million love songs about the fact that you never really know what you've got until it's gone. It seems the same is true of food: Reading through the round-up of final thoughts on the SNAP Challenge, we have collectively experienced insight into both hunger and our own wealth, be it modest or vast. The comfort of knowing that food -- the right food, in the right amounts -- will be there when you reach for it is easy to take for granted if you never (or seldom) experience otherwise. As the song goes: how can I miss you if you won't go away?

Of course, we recognize that a single week of food insecurity doesn't provide complete insight into the lives of hungry Minnesotans, but it's a start. Looking back on the conversations we've all had this week, the SNAP Challenge has definitely been successful in raising awareness of that hunger.

We are so grateful to everyone who participated in the SNAP Challenge. A special thanks, too, to the folks who shared their thoughts here and their own blogs; you helped to keep the conversation lively and public. The Open Arms blog has so far received around 1,300 page views this week and that's something we can all feel proud of as we sit down to a turkey dinner tomorrow.

Here are some final thoughts from our SNAP Challenge participants:

"I think food justice is more than that. When I think about the role food plays in my own life -- and it's a big one -- I have to believe that when people don't have access to healthy, nutritious, good tasting food, the result isn't just poor physical well-being. It's emotional/social/psychological well-being. More simply, if people struggle to get enough food or the right food, how can they possibly be happy?" -- David Plante Read more>>

"You can eat reasonably healthy food, BUT it doesn't taste of anything, and is time consuming, on a very limited budget the tasty stuff is high in fat, salt and other nasties." -- Martyn Crook

"Continuing on this plan would cause me to be at increased risk for heart disease, cancer, anemia, and a myriad of other diseases. ... Food insecurity is horrible ... I am more motivated than ever to help others survive with it in my professional life. " -- Gwenda Hill Read more>>

"No matter where you come from, at the end of the day, food security is a human right." -- Ellen Klahn Read more>>

"The SNAP Challenge was a humbling experience. Once I survived the first few days (who knew lack of Diet Coke could impact vision, hearing, and general irritability?) my body adjusted to the lower calorie intake. However, the main thing I noticed was the mental impact, and what I take for granted. When I'm thirsty, I grab a Diet Coke -- when I'm hungry, I go grab something to eat. I'm so blessed that I'm able to do that -- really makes me thankful for all I have this Thanksgiving." -- Ross Johnson

"I've never really been wasteful, but I was extra careful with food this week. I really focused on making the most of the food we had. Our refrigerator is pretty much empty right now. And portion control has been a huge takeaway from the challenge. When you can't go back for seconds, you really start paying attention to portions. Overeating just isn't possible!" -- Kent Linder

"Our SNAP Challenge experience ... has been a positive experience ... We both recognized how food has become a habit and how we don't always eat for nutritional purposes. We eat because we have an abundance of food around us, we eat because think we are hungry, we eat because we came home from work, it's morning, movie time or we're bored. This awareness of how the two of us eat, the amount of food we eat, how we view food, as well as how society views food has been the most rewarding part of the challenge. We like to eat, eating makes us feel good and we have to eat to survive. Also, food is a social activity ... We have become more aware of how food is a symbolic activity for us and our society, and how food affects society. Also, we have become more mindful of the choices we make." -- Mark Sauerbrey and Dennis Taylor Read more>>

"A week later, we have several pounds lost between the two of us and entire evenings devoted exclusively to the preparation of food. When I was working two jobs, 70 hours a week and still lived on the constant precipice of not having enough food in the kitchen, this was a luxury I could never have afforded." -- Michelle Los Read more>>

"Until this week, I didn't realize how much I've come to prioritize convenience in my food choices ... There certainly are cheap, convenient foods available, but not many cheap, convenient, healthy foods. I know there are plenty of people on SNAP who are busier than me working to make ends meet or caring for children. I'm not sure I'd choose to put in the extra time to find healthy food if I had to do this for more than a week." -- Elizabeth Polter Read more>>

"I knew it would be a challenge -- and it was -- but I was actually surprised how far I could stretch the allowed amount by planning my meals and taking advantage of reduced price produce, bulk bins, sales, etc. It certainly wasn't easy, but it also wasn't as 'hard' as I thought it might be. I have worked with families and individuals using food stamps and food banks etc. around their nutrition and making their dollars truly count to get the most nutrition bang for their buck, so I was able to actually put my own advice to use this past week!" -- Courtney Blair

"Our Thanksgiving feast will be haunted by our neighbors who are on the SNAP program every week ... do they have a turkey and the fixings from a food shelf? Are they going to a congregate meal at a center or church? And what about tomorrow and the day after that?" -- Kay Mitchell Read more>>

SNAP Challenge: Final Day

2011-11-23T14:39:00.001-06:00

ByMichelle Los

Ofcourse, a week ago I had the best of intentions and planned to check in here onthis blog far more often than I have, but the week seems to have gotten awayfrom me. In truth, my own personal blog hasn't received this much attention this week either. This highlights my biggest take-away from theSNAP challenge – how much time and energy my self-imposed tight food budget requires.

Thishighlights one of the many privileges I have enjoyed this week that someone whowas actually living in a food insecure reality might not have enjoyed – I havethe time to prepare decent food. Although it hasn’t been entirely healthy (I miss fresh vegetables),Peter and I sacrificed calories and convenience for nutrition and time. A week later, we have several pounds lostbetween the two of us and entire evenings devoted exclusively to thepreparation of food. When I was workingtwo jobs, 70 hours a week and still lived on the constant precipice of nothaving enough food in the kitchen, this was a luxury I could never haveafforded.

Alsoon the list of privileges, a vehicle and money to put gas in the tank. After seven days, Peter and I have visited 4(four!) different grocery stores. Thebulk of our shopping was done at Aldi on Franklin Avenue, supplemented by avisit to the Quarry Rainbow. Halfwaythrough the week, we satisfied a serious sweets craving at Target (Central Ave,just south of I-694) with a very cheap box of generic brand cookies. Finally, we picked up additional fresh fruitat Mike’s Discount Foods on University Avenue, way up north in Fridley.

Mike’sis a bargain shopper’s dream – they sell food that is past its sell-by date forridiculously low prices. We picked up afew apples, a container of fresh blackberries, a pound of red grapes and a bottle of 100% juice forabout $6.50. But given that the store withthe greatest selection is outside the city’s perimeter and the hours are fairlylimited compared to a big box grocery store, it just wouldn’t be accessible formany people living on food stamps. It’salso worth considering the fact that you do run additional risk buying food atMike’s – you may end up wasting your money (I’ve had fresh fruit go bad in 24hours before) or even make yourself sick (the food is past its date, after all).

Alsohigh on the list of privileges was that I continued taking my prescriptionmedicine all week. I have asthma, whichworsens when the weather gets colder. Afew years ago, I was prescribed Advair to reduce my dependence on a rescueinhaler. It isn’t available as a genericand, even with health insurance, a three-month supply puts me back about$200. Asthma is found at higher rates inlower-income populations (and there are many, many, many reasons why), but the medicine I take would be completely unfeasible (even justthe co-pay, much less trying to purchase it without insurance) in tougher economiccircumstances.

Tomake matters worse, albuterol inhalers containing CFCs were removed from the market by the FDA (even though inhalers were only 0.01% of the US CFC output). Naturally, the CFC-free inhaler is still not available as ageneric. My cost for an inhalerincreased from $3 to $40. Imagine theburden that would put on a lower-income family – potentially with no healthinsurance – and a child who couldn’t breathe.

So,at the end of this ramble – it is all interconnected. Food insecurity leads to poorer health andreiterating the cycle of poverty. Youfind yourself forced to make choices between nutritious food and food that willlikely worsen your health – although it is unlikely you’ll be able to affordgood medical care, should that happen. Italso eats away at your mental state – the constant concern about whether or notthere will be enough food at the end of the week. Although I could have easily broken the challenge andreplaced it, I still found myself close to tears when I spilled theremainder of my half-gallon of milk all over the floor yesterday. Then it struck me how much more scary itwould have been if I had been planning to feed someone other than myself with thatmilk.

Thanksgivingis one of my favorite holidays of the year – and I’m making a point to be especiallythankful for how fortunate I am as tomorrow approaches.

SNAP Challenge: It's time for a HAPPY Thanksgiving!

2011-11-23T14:35:00.001-06:00

By David Plante

Today is the last full day of our SNAP challenge and Icannot wait for it to be over. In fact, this morning I cheated. I made a pieceof toast with chunky peanut butter and blueberry preserves; I simply could notface another bowl of oatmeal. At that moment nothing could have made mehappier.

And that gave me pause. It helped me remember that one ofthe things I love about being an adult with some disposable income is that if Ihave a craving for something, I can almost always satisfy it, with few exceptions.

The SNAP challenge has been an exercise in understandingfood justice. Before I started it, I had already agreed wholeheartedly with thenotion of food justice, and defined it quite simply as this: in a nation asrich as ours no one should go hungry. Further, I assumed the net result of foodinjustice was poor nutrition and, ultimately, poor physical well-being. To besure, I’m also aware that insecurity takes a toll on people’s overall health.

But I think food justice is more than that. When I thinkabout the role food plays in my own life—and it’s a big one—I have to believethat when people don’t have access to healthy, nutritious, good tasting food,the result isn’t just poor physical well-being. It’s emotional/social/psychologicalwell-being. More simply, if people struggle to get enough food or the rightfood, how can they possibly be happy?

Some of the happiest moments of my life involve food. Someare simple, like always getting a bagel from Murray’s whenever I’m in NYC andbeing reminded of the first time Kent and I went to the city together. Some arecomforting, like making one of my grandma’s recipes and feeling that somehow she’sstill looking over my shoulder while I’m doing it. Some are exciting, like exploring by mealevery new city we visit, and feeling somehow more connected to the people thatlive there. And some are humbling, like being able to buy a hungry woman andher child groceries in Cape Town.

The SNAP challenge has made me realize that food justice isabout much more than physical well-being. What if instead we measured successagainst injustice not only in terms of physical well-being but also some sortof measure of happiness? How differentwould the world be?

Happy—and I really mean HAPPY—Thanksgiving!

SNAP Challenge: Food revelations

2011-11-23T13:28:00.001-06:00

By Mark Sauerbrey and Dennis Taylor

So we are one day away from finishing the SNAP challenge and we have to say it went quite well. Aside from spending more time and energy fretting, planning and strategizing before the challenge ever started, the challenge was very eye-opening about our habits of how we eat as a couple and as a society. I worried that Dennis was going to be grumpy because he would be hungry all the time and I worried that I, as a vegetarian, wasn't going to get enough protein to keep my energy levels up.

Another fear was going to the grocery store and what would our choices be. It was interesting to see how we strategized what we wanted, what we could afford and what we had coupons for. After two hours in the grocery store with coupons in hand, we still had to swap out can of beans for a bag of tortillas, exchange a smaller jar of peanut butter for a potato, and skip the milk for another dozen eggs. We ended up with a $1.78 left over for “emergency” supplies and splurged on coffee with the $5.00 off coupon for any purchase of $50.00 or more at Cub that week.

A little dread set in when we left the grocery store with three small bags of food and the thought of being hungry all the time. Then we both looked at each other and shrugged, "Ehh, we’ve both been poor before, had to skip a meal or two and learned how to stretch one meal into the next ... and not just during our college days." I remember on some Friday nights the kids asking what’s for dinner and my response would be LOSMTWT (leftover from Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday). We participated in the Fare Share program, gardened, canned and froze just about everything. Old and bruised fruit went in the freezer for smoothies and stale bread made for some great egg bakes (a recipe Abbey and I have perfected). Questionable yogurt went into the banana bread and all vegetable trimmings became vegetable broth. We both said we could do this and it would be okay.

We determined if we made a big pot of veggie soup, we could take the veggie trimmings and make broth for a bean soup the next day and that could be come chili at the end of the week. Chicken with rice became red beans and rice, which became breakfast burritos (see, putting that can of beans back on the shelf and getting more tortillas was a good choice). Carrots and mini shredded wheat have become snacks and -- who knew? -- Raisin Bran mixed well with yogurt. Frozen veggies are quite nice as roasted veggies and those left over went back into the soup or could have been an egg bake if we needed. Most days we started off with a hard-boiled egg, toast and cereal or yogurt and cereal. For lunch, we had soup, beans and rice or chili and for dinner we had chicken or beans, rice of some sort and veggies. Our meals have been simple, nutritious, hearty and plentiful. We are recycling one meal to create another, thus eliminating any and all waste.

So, Dennis and I are thinking, we must have done something wrong. We do realize and are grateful that we have the luxury of preparing our own meals. Because of our past hunger experiences, we know how to capitalize on a working stove and oven, ample refrigerator/freezer space, abundance of cooking utensils and the skill set to prepare the food. But we still have food left over in our pantry and refrigerator!

Honestly, we have put off blogging about our SNAP Challenge experience because this has been a positive experience for us and we didn’t want to come off as not truly understanding the challenge or coming only from a place of privilege.

We both recognized how food has become a habit and how we don’t always eat for nutritional purposes. We eat because we have an abundance of food around us, we eat because think we are hungry, we eat because we came home from work, it’s morning, movie time or we’re bored.

This awareness of how the two of us eat, the amount of food we eat, how we view food, as well as how society views food has been the most rewarding part of the challenge. We like to eat, eating makes us feel good and we have to eat to survive. Also, food is a social activity. We eat together, we share our meals with our family, friends and co-workers, and we share in the distribution of food to help those in need, parent to child, visitors or strangers. We have become more aware of how food is a symbolic activity for us and our society, and how food affects society. Also, we have become more mindful of the choices we make.

Awareness can be translated into mindfulness. Being mindful in one’s day-to-day life and maintaining as much calm as possible. Being mindful of one’s body, mindful of others and mindful of the connections between the nourishment we want and the nourishment we need. We now have a better understanding and are more mindful of how hunger affects our lives and the lives of those around us. Becoming mindful of all that food has to offer has been the best reward of this challenge. Now the challenge will be to remain mindful of all that we have to offer around food.

SNAP Challenge: A dietitian's challenge

2011-11-23T12:47:00.001-06:00

By Gwenda Hill

I hate ramen noodles. They are squishy and salty and I don’t like them.

I ate ramen noodles on Monday and Tuesday for lunch. I saved more than half of the flavor packet to use on my beans/rice/veggies dinner the past two nights. I am grateful that all of my ramen is gone and that I am having a peanut butter sandwich and raw carrots for lunch today.

I am bored with the repetition of meals. I’ve had peanut butter toast and a glass of milk for breakfast each morning. I’ve had beans, rice and frozen vegetables for each dinner. I was fortunate to have one piece of fruit for a snack each afternoon. Those are decent meals that I might have from time to time on my normal diet, though they are not nearly as tasty or fun to prepare as something similar ... like jambalaya ... with andouille sausage. Yum.

My nutrient total averages for the three days: 1,450 calories, 60 g protein, 205 g carbohydrate, 21 g fiber, 43 g fat, 13.7 g saturated fat. I was about 500 calories short of my 1,950 calorie target to maintain my current weight. Every week of maintaining this caloric intake would equal to one pound of weight loss ... but please keep in mind that not all weight loss is healthy weight loss. I could stand to shed a few pounds, but I certainly would not do it by being so restrictive with my calories. But that’s another discussion...

I met, exceeded, or was close to meeting recommendations for: protein, carbohydrate, total fat, fiber, vitamin C (on the orange day), vitamin A, all B vitamins, zinc, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium and calcium. I met the dairy and grain recommendations set forth by the USDA.

I also exceeded my sodium recommendations with an average of 2,800 mg each day, which is not a good thing. I did not add any salt to meals. It came purely from the packaged food that I ate.

I was short on: calories, omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, vitamin E, vitamin C (on the banana days), iron, and potassium. I fell short on fruits, vegetables and meat/beans from the USDA recommendations.

Continuing on this plan would cause me to be at increased risk for heart disease, cancer, anemia, and a myriad of other diseases.

During this challenge, I have been surprised by how much I’ve thought about food. I am usually pretty good at not snacking at work. I have an emergency food drawer at work- peanut butter, rice cakes, raisins, and Triscuits- but I rarely dip into it. This week, I’ve been very tempted to eat “just one rice cake.” The reason I don’t think about food at work is that I usually start out my day with a bowl of Greek yogurt and Kashi Go Lean granola, which has lots of protein and fiber to keep me satisfied until my next meal. In the afternoon, I am treated to a variety of food from our very talented culinary team for lunch. At dinner, I am often spoiled with delicious food prepared by my husband, who is a wonderful cook. And I almost always meet the USDA dietary recommendations for the five food groups. I rarely have to think about food in the way that I’ve had to the past few days.

I thought that doing this challenge for only three days would not be enough time for me to get the point. I was REALLY wrong. I get it. Food insecurity is horrible. Food insecurity with an illness that has a diet associated with it is probably a lot worse. I’m glad I don’t have to be reminded of this everyday in my personal life ... but am more motivated than ever to help others survive with it in my professional life.

SNAP Challenge: Well...

2011-11-23T12:10:00.001-06:00

By Ellen Klahn

... I failedthis challenge because I essentially have no self-control when it comes tofood. Add in two days of being sick, a really stressful work week, and lots ofdelicious food being cooked and eaten in my home by my roommates, and the temptationwas just too much! Sadly, I made it for only one day without cheating (which ishonestly really pathetic -- it's alright if you think that!). I snuck in extraproduce, a martini, pumpkin bread from Open Arms, copious amounts of soup andbread that someone made for our house, some snacks at Butterball and afew bits of sweets here and there.

But, at the end of the day, me nottaking the SNAP Challenge as seriously as I should have does not mean that Idon't grasp the serious nature of food insecurity. According to the UnitedNations, a billion people face food insecurity everyday. Furthermore, high foodprices and food price volatility are expected to continue in the years ahead,continuing to affect families in both high-income and low-income states.

This issue affects us all. Even if we ourselves have never known the true pangsof hunger, we should still care and still want to do something about it. Nomatter where you come from, at the end of the day, food security is a humanright, defined as such in Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of HumanRights adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948: "Everyone has theright to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himselfand of his family." That's something we should all stand behind.

SNAP Challenge: Thanksgiving

2011-11-23T11:23:00.003-06:00

By Kay Mitchell

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and the end of the SNAP challenge for me and for my Open Arms friends. There is irony in ending a week of conscious food planning and scarcity with the most abundant holiday of the year.

As a part of the team that raises the dollars to create the meals that feed our clients, I value the ingredients that go together to bring nutrition and hope and comfort to those who need it, so Thanksgiving is filled with more conscious gratitude this year for me. I am thankful for the hundreds of turkeys and fixings that our clients will prepare and share with their families and friends, as well as the freshly prepared meals that we will be delivering to hundreds of clients who chose that option. I am truly thankful for all of the volunteers who swell our ranks daily, making it possible for us to prepare and deliver nutritious, delicious food to all seven counties in the Twin Cities area.

Thanksgiving is a warm family day focused on food and friends and comfort-- a little like every day at Open Arms aspires to be. Yet our Thanksgiving feast will be haunted by our neighbors who are on the SNAP program every week ... do they have a turkey and the fixings from a food shelf? Are they going to a congregate meal at a center or church? And what about tomorrow and the day after that?

Food justice is an issue that touches the heart as well as the stomach, and once you acknowledge that it exists around us everywhere, you have changed the way you see food forever.

SNAP Challenge: Time, Money and Convenience

2011-11-23T10:17:00.003-06:00

By Elizabeth Polter

The SNAP challenge has made me think a lot about the tradeoff between time and money.

This semester is my first as a full-time student and full-time employee at Open Arms. While I’m definitely not the busiest person I know, my days are full. Until this week, I didn’t realize how much I’ve come to prioritize convenience in my food choices. Most of my meals lately have been individual servings of yogurt, string cheese, fruit, and food from restaurants around campus.

It wasn’t too difficult for me to plan a fairly complete and nutritious menu for the week, but I’ve been amazed at how much time it’s taken, from remembering to soak beans the night before, to waking up early to prepare breakfast and pack a lunch, to not having the neighborhood Chipotle to fall back on when I haven’t planned well enough for the day (yesterday I spent most of my 1:00 class staring wistfully at a cold, spoonless Tupperware of chili). There certainly are cheap, convenient foods available, but not many cheap, convenient, healthy foods.

I know there are plenty of people on SNAP who are busier than me working to make ends meet or caring for children. I’m not sure I’d choose to put in the extra time to find healthy food if I had to do this for more than a week.

SNAP Challenge: That Stinks

2011-11-22T19:27:00.000-06:00

About this time last year in my SNAP Challenge, around Day 6, I opted to eat less, rather than trying to swallow some truly unappetizing food. Last year, I struggled with eating a pound of ground turkey (.99 from Aldi’s) that I swear was part turkey and part sawdust. This year, I’ve been struggling with quick oats. After having my three-egg omelet, enhanced with canned green beans for my Day 6 dinner, the oatmeal looks good again.

I’ve had no vegetables during this SNAP Challenge. I bought the can of green beans because I could purchase it for .69 at Walgreens (with a coupon). When I opened the can and the kitchen filled with the aroma of the briny beans, I knew I had to do something to make my only vegetable of the week palatable. Having eggs left, I decided to toss some green beans in an omelet. Instead of making the green beans tastier, I made the eggs more disgusting. Fortunately, I had a crust of bread that I could toast and I had a half a can of syrupy fruit cocktail to enhance the entrée. When my partner walked into the dining room and looked at my dinner he said, “That stinks.” He meant that it literally smelled, which it did.

At this point, I’ve eaten my yogurt and have no peanut butter or cereal left. I have two slices of bread, one ounce of raisins, a pack of ramen noodles, a couple swallows of milk, some coffee, oatmeal and the remainder of my can of green beans. It’s plenty of food for my last day, but just like last year, I might opt to go hungry. Having just finished my green bean omelet, that sounds better than another meal with canned green beans.

Potluck Recipe #40: Quick Curried Chickpeas

2011-11-22T11:41:00.005-06:00

In my search for SNAP Challenge-friendly recipes, I headed to Budget Bytes, a blog dedicated to eating well on a budget. With each post, writer Beth M. posts a recipe, a shopping list with a breakdown of prices and photos of the whole process. She shops conventionally, but I think her recipes and approach — plan your meals, cook from scratch, portion and freeze your leftovers -- translate well using organic ingredients. For two meals this week, I cooked up her Quick Curried Chickpeas. Preparing the recipe with organic ingredients cost me roughly $1.03 a meal -- fifty cents more than the conventional list she had quoted on her website, but still quite affordable.

A simplified version of the Indian dish Chana Masala, the dish is full of flavor, fiber and protein. This week, there was no cilantro in the budget, but I added some rainbow chard for color and nutrition. For those of you who eschew long-winded cooking projects at the end of the workday, this no-fuss curry requires only 10 minutes of hands-on time and a single pot.

You'll find the recipe for Quick Curried Chickpeas on the Budget Bytes website, along with dozens of others. Bon appétit! See the recipe>>

SNAP Challenge: Freedom

2011-11-22T11:24:00.005-06:00

By Kay Mitchell

If I had not acknowledged it before, the SNAP Challenge experience has made me keenly aware that I am a snacker, a grazer, a eat any time, any where kind of gal. Most of my meals are the size of snacks at least in comparison to the food volume that I used to eat before weight watchers informed my food choices.

I generally eat more fruit and vegetables, nice raw crunchy fruits and vegetables than I could afford with my $30.25 budget. I did a good job of planning for protein -- both chicken and meatloaf made my weekly menu -- and I am using half of the meatloaf to add meatballs to pasta and marinara sauce tonight. I spent $1.99 on a ten lb bag of russet potatoes (Rainbow), and so far, I’ve baked potatoes and roasted them. I will mash a few on Wednesday evening…if I have enough milk left.

So I have full moments everyday. I am thankful that I grew up in a big family and that my mother knew how to s-t-r-e-t-c-h the food. But I am tempted to overeat to fill my tummy and I definitely miss my snacks! I did buy crackers to eat with my can of soup at lunch (I know, more carbs) and I bought three clementines which I have eaten when I am desparate (they are long gone!). I bought a $1 bag of salad that I have divided into four meals. Obviously I have given this a lot of thought. I always give food a lot of thought (weight watchers again), but I usually don’t base my food choices on dollars.

I am selfishly happy that the SNAP Challenge is only for a week even though the food challenge is a forever one.

Freedom to eat when I want, where I want and obviously what I want is a freedom that I have taken for granted for far too long. Like all freedoms, I am not free unless all individuals are free as well. This Thanksgiving I will give thanks for all the freedom I have and for the families and neighbors across the globe who deserve that freedom as well. May a few individuals in Minneapolis, who are conscious and aware, share that consciousness about food and justice and full tummies with the world through their thoughts and actions.

SNAP Challenge: A little bit of hunger and a lot of gratitude

2011-11-22T10:14:00.001-06:00

By Jeanne Foels

Here’s how I’m viewing my week on the SNAP Challenge: I ended up with a weight loss diet. In my quest to plan an organic menu with enough nutrition (particularly protein, veggies and fruit), I didn’t focus enough on calories. My diet had lots of healthy things in it, but I would end up losing a pound or two every week if I stayed on it – hardly a sustainable proposition!

Taking the SNAP Challenge this week has made me thankful for many things. Thankful that I can afford NOT to obsessively plan my menu every week; thankful that I have the time, energy and knowledge at this point in my life to cook healthy meals for myself; thankful that I don’t have three kids and two jobs that would make eating well on a tight budget nearly impossible.

Most of all, it has made me thankful for Open Arms. Realizing just how much time, effort and money it takes to eat delicious, organic meals made me appreciate the work we do all the more.

Our clients may not have hours to plan out a week of nourishing meals. They might not have the energy to cook every night of the week. They may not have the knowledge or drive to make healthy choices for their illness. Add in financial strain, and the odds are stacked high against getting really good nutrition in the face of a life-threatening illness.

I’m thankful for the countless volunteers, donors and staff members who work hard to make sure these clients don’t have to worry about their diet while they’re facing the fear, stress, cost and loneliness of living with a serious illness. I’m grateful that we can ease their burdens and aid their health by reaching out with real, delicious, high-quality food. I’m thankful that we can tell them: We are here so you can focus on healing, not groceries.

SNAP Challenge: After all...this is America

2011-11-21T20:04:00.014-06:00

By Samantha Nelson

Wow. What an experience this challenge has been so far. I have certainly been busy to say the least. With Thanksgiving on Thursday, my professors have deemed it necessary to cram in exams before everyone heads home for the holiday. As a result, my blogging has fallen by the wayside the past few days. I apologize. Organic Chemistry, Advanced Human Nutrition and Biochemistry have consumed my every waking hour.

So here is a quick recap of my week thus far:

I ventured out in the cold, snowy weather to buy my groceries at Festival Foods. Due to lack of time to head to the grocery store (from the endless hours of studying), I started my challenge on Saturday morning. I factored this into my budget calculations, resolving that I had approximately $21.65 to spend. With my phone in hand, calculator app up, I was ready to roll. I had the preconceived notion walking in that because I had a list and a budget, shopping would be easy. In all actuality I quickly became anxious about whether or not I was making the most nutritious decisions with every dollar.

As I weighed my food, calculated the price, put back a potato and started the process over again, I found myself wondering what the people around me were thinking. Were they judging me? I most certainly got some interesting looks. Come to think of it, I can't remember the last time I actually saw someone use the scale in the produce aisle. I suppose I would give myself a strange look as well.

My anxiety hit its peak when I ventured down the coffee aisle. With the potent aroma of the fragrant whole beans, I knew I simply had to make room in my budget. After all, how am I supposed to pull all-nighters without a little caffeine? So out went two packets of ramen and in went one sample size of vanilla hazelnut blend coffee. It certainly isn't Starbucks, but I have no complaints. Coffee is coffee.

I headed for the checkout and, $20.77 later, I had my food for the next 5 days. I was on my way home, relieved to be out of the store, to make my muffin and coffee for the morning. Oh yeah, with one more minor pit stop along the way. My boyfriend, Troy, put in a request for Chipotle, you know, since I would be out and about. So after the adventure of debating whether to buy one green pepper or two, I picked him up a chicken burrito bowl. $8.00 was spent on one meal, for one day. After spending $20.77 on 5 days, 15 meals, I was floored. I felt a bit ashamed at how often I, without thought, have dropped $8.00 on a single meal.

"The Spread"

Array of coffee choices

With two exams down and one to go, my body is begging me for rest. This got me thinking how those on SNAP can thrive at school and work on such little food. My biggest worry going into this week was how a reduced intake of energy and nutrients would effect my school work. As I mentioned in my first post, I have never known hunger. Not truly at least. And while I am still consuming enough energy to get me through the day, anything beyond that has become a strain. I wake up and go to bed with my stomach hurting, a feeling that is certainly not conducive to studying. I have had a total of about four hours of sleep the past two nights, something that in and of itself is not healthy, but when combined with the challenge has left me completely run down.

While walking in between classes this morning, I turned to Troy and said, "For the first time I can honestly say I am hungry. I am really hungry. All I have been thinking about is food and right now nothing else matters." He looked a bit surprised and replied that this was first time he had ever heard me crave food, and not in a 'Gosh, a Potbelly sandwich sure sounds good right now' kind of way, but rather in a 'I would seriously eat anything you put in front of me right now' kind of way. Talk about an eye-opening moment. So this is what hunger feels like. I slightly feared this moment going into the challenge. I was afraid to be hungry. I was afraid that it would make me vulnerable.

In the midst of my day, focused on food rather than Organic Chemistry, I thought back to the research I had done for this SNAP Challenge. In my quest to find information on challenges other organizations had done, I came across the Congressional Food Stamp Challenge. Four brave Congressmen took the week long challenge, and much like ours, tracked their experience through blogging. While it was interesting to read their daily tales, the powerful response comments posted by those living on SNAP truly captured my attention. One man posted that he would often go several days with out food to ensure that his children had something to eat. He proclaimed that their allotted amount just was not enough to make ends meet so he made necessary sacrifices. He was a proud man and felt ashamed that it had come to this. I am sure to this man, the decision to give up his food was one that required little to no thought. He was protecting the ones he loved. For me this SNAP challenge is about bringing to light the fact that millions of Americans are making sacrifices, much like this man, every day. In comparison, I have been hungry for a blink of the eye. I can not fathom living a life where hunger is the only reality.

This is the United States of America. The land of opportunity. Where we have the freedom to pursue our dreams, express ourselves freely and prosper through hard work and commitment. These are just a few fundamental freedoms we have as citizens, and just part of what attracts so many to our land. Yet my question is this: How are we to prosper if we lack the basic necessity of life, nutritious food? How can that man successfully provide for his family if he himself goes without? The United States, the most powerful country in the world, is in a food crisis. And what many fail to realize is that it is in our own backyard.

If there is one thing I have realized thus far from the challenge, it is how truly blessed I am. My family has always provided a loving and safe environment for me to grow and prosper. It is because of my Mom and Dad that I have never experienced hunger. I have never had to live without. I have never had to worry or be afraid. Not all Americans can say that. And for that I am humbled and thankful.

SNAP Challenge: Worried about food

2011-11-21T17:11:00.000-06:00

By Susan Pagani

As a food writer, I spend a healthy portion of my days thinking about what I will eat and drink next -- but not worrying about it. These last few days have been an eye-opening lesson in food anxiety and the scrimping that results.

On Friday, I worried that I would make a mistake with the honey wheat bread recipe and ruin all that beautiful flour. And then, of course, what would I do for food? Once baked, I worried about cutting the slices too thick and running out before I'd made all my lunches and snacks.

On Saturday, I was worried about feeling hungry whilst working the Butterball Party -- a fund-raising party of which we are the beneficiary -- so I held my lunch until late afternoon and took dinner with me. Once at the party, I was determined not to eat my dinner because I knew we'd get out late and I was worried about trying to fall asleep at two o'clock in the morning on a grumbling stomach. On Sunday, I was exhausted from said party and drank several cups of my tea, worrying all the while -- would I regret it at the end of the week? -- but feeling my resolve to portion dissipate with every warm cup.

These past four days, I have been so parsimonious with my raisins that today I was able to put a heaping quarter cup on my cereal, no longer worried about the wee bag lasting seven days. The substantial feeling of chewing and chewing and chewing up all those raisins was as fleeting as their sweetness but wonderful.

But for all that worry, have I been hungry? Yes and no. I certainly haven't been starving, but I have felt the kind of nagging hunger that makes it hard to focus on work and easy to obsess about food. I'm eating really good food, but not quite enough of it. I've also made some poor choices in my shopping that have contributed to my hunger. For example, the bread was lovely and tasted delicious, but it didn't provide a lot of protein, and I couldn't afford spreadable or sliceable proteins to put on it -- or even fat, for that matter. So, an hour or two later, I'm thinking about food again.

However, I was able to take a loaf of the bread to a brunch with friends. I felt good setting it on the table with the other food -- a bowl of apples, a sun-dried tomato frittata (12 eggs, 4 people, the luxury!), butter and endless cups of coffee. For a seven-day food justice experiment, the choice to eat a few lean meals in order to have food to take to a potluck is an easy one. Long term, I know I'd have to swap that loaf of bread for a bag of beans or a cup of peanut butter. Yet, without the bread, would I feel comfortable going to a friend's house for a meal with nothing to contribute?

Later this week, I'll be sharing the Thanksgiving meal with some very dear friends. I am so thankful, not only for all the delicious food I will eat, but also for the food I will be able to share with peace of mind, not worrying about portions or where my next meal is going to come from.

SNAP Challenge: I'm SNAPing.

2011-11-21T15:17:00.003-06:00

By Gwenda Hill

I’m SNAPing. And I’m only four days late. To be fair, I adjusted my allowance to $12.96 for 3 days ($30.25/7= $4.32 per day * 3 days= $12.96). My grocery list from CUB is below- just four cents short of the max.

2 bananas $0.44
2 bags ramen noodles $0.50
1 orange $0.71
2-15 oz can black beans $1.94
1 lb carrots $0.99
Dollar Aisle peanut butter $1.00
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables $1.69
24 oz bread $1.69
14 oz instant rice $1.77
½ gallon skim milk $2.19
Total $12.92

Shopping wasn’t too difficult for me, as I’ve been preparing for this challenge for the past few weeks and have put together and reviewed multiple different meal plans. The difficult part is why I didn’t participate the first four days.

On 11/11/11, my grandpa passed away. He was ill and passing was expected, but it was still emotional and difficult to accept. In the days leading up to the funeral, all of my aunts, uncles, cousins, and brothers from all over the country came to our hometown. The last time we were all together was in 2007 at grandpa’s home for our then annual Christmas Eve celebration. It was heartwarming to see everyone again.

There are two things that happen when the Gazdiks get together. 1) We eat. We make lots of yummy food and we eat. 2) We celebrate almost every occasion with a drink (or two...). That’s how my grandparents did it, and we continue to uphold the tradition. When I found out the funeral was on the Friday of the SNAP challenge, I thought I would still participate. However, as soon as I got to my mom’s home, she offered to take me and my brother out for pizza (which, by the way, is NOT a vegetable). At that moment, I knew there was no way I would be able to keep true to the SNAP challenge and refuse all the yummy food I knew was coming over the course of the weekend. I decided to forget about participating until Monday, but still thought about food insecurity over the weekend.

I am fortunate- I come from a family with aunts and uncles who spoil all of the nieces and nephews with food and drink. Even though I’m just shy of 30 and have a great job, my relatives insist on paying for everything when we’re out together. I only spent about $10.00 on food in the past five days (for 1 burger), and I still ate like a queen the entire time. I know they would treat me the same regardless of my financial situation and it’s comforting to know that if I am ever in a pinch, I have a family who finds joy in supporting its relatives.

Though I had an abundance of food at my fingertips, I know there are families who either can’t or don’t want to support their relatives. I wondered how my weekend would be different in that case. Would we have hosted an open luncheon for ~200 people in the community after the service? Would mom have had all of the ingredients for the baked goods we prepared for the luncheon? Would we have gone out to eat multiple times over the weekend? Would mom have been willing to buy all of the ingredients to prepare breakfasts and dinners each day? Would my cousins and I have congregated at the local taverns every night? I’m guessing not. I’ve become accustomed to having food and drink at the heart of most of my social activities. The thought of not being able to have the experiences I did this weekend due to financial constraints saddens me. What I did, how I ate, and what I drank would have been vastly different if I were a SNAP recipient. The analysis of the past weekend opened my eyes and reminded me not to take the experiences I had, and will have, for granted.

With a shot of Brandy, we send grandpa on his way. And we are all reminded of how lucky we are to belong to such a loving and fortunate family.

SNAP Challenge: Thinking about Nourishing Food

2011-11-21T12:13:00.001-06:00

By Ben Penner

Today is Day 5 of the SNAP Challenge. As Open Farms Director at Open Arms ofMinnesota I grow organic vegetables for the Open Arms Kitchen. Along with many of my co-workers and friendsat Open Arms we’re taking part in this year’s SNAP Challenge. As part of the challenge my wife and I areboth eating on $30.25 apiece for the week leading up to Thanksgiving Day. We’re both following a meal plan (with a fewmodifications) constructed by the Gwen Hill, Open Arms' Dietician.

The first few days were the hardest as I got used torationing everything. Truth be told I don’t think I would get along on $30.25 for very long orvery well. But a funny thing happened along the way. I am not that hungry onthis menu though as a farmer I can’t help but notice that the fresh vegetablesconsist mainly of a carrot and an orange here and there. I suspect that I’m nothungry because I substituted the chicken on the menu with a 20 lb. turkey atthe local grocery store that went for about $12. That’s a whole lot ofmeat. Though I’m already getting tiredof turkeysandwiches and turkey everything at nearly every meal I think I’ll actuallymake it.

The point of the challenge, however isn’t only to see howcreative you can get about your shopping dollars and then brag about it. I’ve noticed something happening to me during thechallenge. Though I grew up for a timeon Food Stamps and free and reduced lunches at school, I recently haven't thought much about my own ability to pay for good food. But for many too many people eating good food consistently is anything butnormal. Now I realize – again – that thestruggle to access and pay for good, nourishing food week in and week out is often the reality of life. At Open Arms and at Open Farms we’re joining the conversation about FoodJustice this Thanksgiving week and every week. I hope you’ll join us.

SNAP Challenge: Food Justice

2011-11-20T16:36:00.000-06:00

The following are comments from talks I gave at St. Joan of Arc in Minneapolis on Sunday, November 20.

I came to my work for very personal reasons.

I needed to try to make sense of the AIDS crisis. I had watched my friends get diagnosed with this new disease in the 1980s and saw how they lost their jobs, and their homes, and filed for bankruptcy, and became estranged from their families and were sometimes condemned by their faith communities.

For the world to make sense to me, something good had to come from HIV/AIDS.

One of the good things was Open Arms where I got to see – every day – how a community can come together to show true compassion by making sure people who were living with HIV/AIDS had nutritious food to eat and weren’t forgotten.

One of the good things that has come from the AIDS pandemic is our work in Africa which began with a trip to Cape Town in 2000 and where, ever since, Open Arms has assisted efforts to feed people living with HIV/AIDS in Guguletu.

Another good thing that has come from this is Open Arms’ decision to serve people living with other chronic and progressive diseases. We realized if nutritious meals were important for people with HIV/AIDS, it was just as important for people confronting cancer, or MS or ALS.

And then we got to thinking about the food itself. If healthy, organic, locally sourced food was important for those of us with the resources to purchase it, wasn’t it just as important – maybe even more important – that our clients facing disease eat those same healthy foods? And we started spending a lot more money on food – working with local farmers and even growing our own produce on two acres of certified organic farmland in Belle Plaine, to make sure people who are ill in the Twin Cities have the healthiest food possible.

Eventually, what I realized, is that our work at Open Arms wasn’t really about making something good come from a terrible disease – it was about justice. Specifically, it’s about food justice. It’s about the right food, in the right amount, for everyone, for healthy living. It’s about making sure that someone with AIDS, or cancer, or someone who is poor, or elderly, or a shut-in, or is young, doesn’t go hungry.

But it’s not enough to just fill the stomach with empty calories. It’s not enough, when some group announces a food drive, to pull the dustiest, dented can of food from your shelf and put it in a food bin and feel good about feeding the hungry. It’s not enough to be shopping at a grocery store and buy the least expensive item you can and give that to a food shelf.

Our response to hunger in this country is perpetuating obesity and diabetes and heart disease and cancer. We see it every day at Open Arms. We are not engaged in a health care debate in this country, we are having a debate over how we pay for sickness and disease. If we truly care about health, we would strive to make sure that everyone – everyone – whether, as Hubert Humphrey once said, they are “in the dawn of life, the children; the twilight of life, the aged; or the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped,” have access to the same kinds of food – fruits, vegetables, protein; locally grown, organic, sustainable – that those of us with resources eat ourselves and that we share with our families.

This is the second year that Open Arms has encouraged people to take the SNAP Challenge. SNAP is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – formerly known as food stamps. We ask the community to join us for a week or even a few days, and live on what an average food stamp recipient in the state of Minnesota would receive – about $4.30 a day. Our weeklong SNAP Challenge began last Thursday and will conclude on Thanksgiving.

Wanting to acknowledge that some people on SNAP might not have a grocery store in their neighborhood or might lack transportation to a grocery store, this year I did all of my grocery shopping for the week at my nearest convenience store – Walgreens. Here’s a typical day of meals for me this week: Breakfast – oatmeal, milk, coffee; Lunch – a peanut butter sandwich; Dinner – Ramen noodles; and for a Snack – one ounce of raisins. You notice what is missing from my diet this week – fresh vegetables, fruit and healthy sources of protein. And those items are missing from my diet because they aren’t readily available at convenience stores and they are more expensive than processed foods.

For Open Arms, the SNAP Challenge is an opportunity to raise awareness of the record number of people in this country who are food insecure. For me, it’s a choice I make one week a year to live on food stamps. For the 46 million Americans who receive SNAP assistance, including the 583,000 Minnesotans who don’t always know where their next meal is coming from, this is all too real.

There is not a more basic justice issue than food. Christ knew it. In Matthew, he said, “For I was hungry and you gave me food.” But if Christ were here today, and he saw what we eat and especially what the poor, and the young, and the elderly, and the sick and the needy and the handicapped, eat in this country, I think he would ask for a rewrite. I think Christ would say, “For I was hungry and you gave me nutritious food.”

I came to Open Arms because I believed then, and I still believe, that HIV/AIDS is a defining issue of our time. I’m going to San Francisco, not because I believe the battle has been won, but because I believe we can take all of what we have learned in 30 years of the AIDS pandemic and use that knowledge and experience to be part of an even broader movement – a food justice movement which could actually prevent people from ever needing the services of organizations like Open Arms in the first place.

If we are successful in that endeavor, this would end up being a really good thing that has come from a terrible disease, HIV/AIDS.

SNAP Challenge: What if Christ Lived on Food Stamps?

2011-11-19T09:40:00.000-06:00

This is a posting from my "Your Voices" blog for the Minneapolis StarTribune.

This year, like last year, I’m living on food stamps for the seven days before Thanksgiving. It’s a good way to draw attention to the increasing rates of food insecurity in the country and in Minnesota. More than that, it’s an annual reminder for me of just how fortunate I am that for 51 weeks of the year, I don’t have to think about where my next meal might come from and how much money I have to spend on food.

The challenge of having to stretch every dollar to buy as much food, and as much nutritious food as possible, is nothing compared to some of the criticism those of us who take the food stamp challenge receive.

A number of my friends and co-workers are also living on $30.25, the average amount that a Minnesotan might receive in SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) support, for one week. You might think that no one would be upset by this activity, but you would be wrong.

There are those in our community who live in a Reaganesque world where no American goes to bed hungry at night. (They are probably the same ones who support the decision this week defining pizza tomato sauce as a vegetable for the school lunch program.) They tell us that people just need to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and get a job. The assumption, of course, is that everyone has bootstraps. And we all now how easy it is to get a job these days. These critics live in a land of plenty where food shelves are overflowing with food and government programs, like SNAP and WIC, just encourage laziness.

Some of these critics, in the course of a conversation or an e-mail exchange, identify themselves as Christians. While I don’t doubt their devotion to their faith, I realize we sit in different pews.

I’ve always understood the verse in Matthew, “For I was hungry and you gave me food,” to mean just that – that Christians are called to feed the hungry. Just in case we miss the message, when the righteous question Christ as to when he was hungry, he responds by saying, “As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.”

All I can say is, it’s a good thing Christ wasn’t living on food stamps. He would have been disappointed in some of his followers.

SNAP Challenge: Nice! Raisins

2011-11-18T17:01:00.000-06:00

I had never shopped at Walgreens for groceries before this SNAP Challenge. Who knew that there was a food product line distributed by Walgreens called Nice! I bought the Nice! brand of quick oats (cooks in about one minute), as well as the Nice! brand of creamy peanut butter and Nice! raisins. Of all the items on my week’s menu, these are some of the healthiest foods I will be eating, though not necessarily my favorites.

I ate too much oatmeal as a kid – not the yummy steel cut oats that I spend an hour making on Sunday mornings in the winter – but the cooks in three minutes on the stovetop kind that glops into a bowl when served. As a teenager, I vowed to never eat oatmeal as an adult, and I didn’t until I discovered steel cut oats. Now, with this SNAP Challenge, I’m back to eating the kind of oatmeal I detest. With each spoonful, I make the same yucky face that I did when I was a boy. Still, it’s filling.

Walgreens Nice! peanut butter, on the other hand, is creamy and delicious. I had been eating it by the spoonful the past two days, until I looked at the nutrition facts and realized that every tablespoon is 100 calories. I guess that’s why we normally don’t have peanut butter in the house.

I’ve never cared for raisins. As a rule, I don’t like things that can’t decide what they are – like the month of April. April doesn’t know if it’s winter or spring. And raisins can’t decide if they are more like a grape than a prune. Who needs that? Well, actually, for the next six days, I probably do. About 4:00 in the afternoon, my one-ounce serving of Nice! raisins looks pretty nice. And they taste pretty good, too.

Re-living the SNAP challenge decades later

2011-11-18T13:48:00.002-06:00

By David Plante

Today is Day 2 of our SNAP challenge. I will admit that I was reluctant to participate in the challenge, not because I was afraid of it, but because I lived it when I was a kid. My family survived during much of my childhood because of the safety net in place—including food stamps--for families like ours: six kids (five of them growing boys), mom had her hands too full and, because of the late 70s/early 80s economy, my dad was underemployed.

But my experience with the challenge thus far is so very different than it was then. At the time I never knew we weren’t rich. I thought every family ate the same thing for dinner night after night. I knew that we received reduced-priced lunches, but never thought twice about it—we were one of many families in my northern Minnesota hometown living the same way.

My experience with the challenge thus far is just how desperate it makes me feel, a feeling my parents shielded me from growing up. I miss running to Starbucks and grab a latte, especially when everyone around me worships the coffee cup in their hand as if it’s magic potion. I’ve never appreciated more the fact that we don’t pay particular attention to how much we spend on groceries, or worry about running out of something because there’s always more at a store five minutes away.

I’m not especially hungry at the end of the day, but I am completely bored with what I’ve ingested. Today’s lunch was rice & beans, the third time I’ve eaten this meal in 26 hours. Make no mistake, I am grateful for every meal. I am grateful that I have the luxury of being bored with what I’m eating. I know in less than a week I’ll be done with this challenge, but for so many—including families just like the one I grew up in—the challenge doesn’t end.

I’ve often thought about what my parents went through to keep us fed and clothed, and maintain a roof over our head. What I hadn’t thought about was how desperate and frightened they must have felt, wondering if they could make it each month, and how courageous they were as they sheltered us, mostly, from all of that fear and insecurity. I can only imagine how difficult it is decades later for families in a world that is seemingly so much harsher.

SNAP Challenge: 1003 Tasty Calories

2011-11-18T12:30:00.000-06:00

By Susan Pagani

Like Jeanne, I opted to shop co-op style for my challenge. Seward Co-op is within walking distance of my house and offers a pretty good selection of bulk items -- spices, tea, legumes, flours, oils, sweetners, eggs etc. -- which, taken in tiny increments, helped me stock up for the seven day challenge. They also, I was surprised to find, offer small amounts of meat, so that I was able to buy a meal's worth of free-range, local pork! In the end, my bill was 40% local. Here it is:

Pork stir fry $2.38
4 eggs $1.00
Whole wheat flour $1.39
Rainbow chard $2.49
Spinach bulk $1.14
White flour $3.15
Safflower oil $1.00
Carrots $2.49
Lemon $ .75
2 Apples $2.15
Sea salt $.15
Raisins $.93
Chili pepper $.21
Pepper $.16
1 potato $.74
Garlic $.24
Honey $1.34
Split peas $.74
Onion $.81
Short brown rice $1.74
Bakers yeast $.34
Hot cereal $1.99
Garbanzo beans $1.06
Irish breakfast tea $1.47

Total: $29.86

I am fortunate to have worked as a cook, a baker and a food writer, and this strong interest in food has given me a good knowledge of how to buy food and prepare it. In addition, my family received food stamp benefits when I was a kid, and my folks did their best to put healthy food on the table by cooking from scratch. Back then we ate a lot of beans -- and this week I budgeted for lots of beans.

Thinking back on my mom's wheat bread, I also spent quite a bit of my budget on flour. From the five pounds of flour, I plan to make at least two loaves of bread. The first loaf of bread is for me -- I love toast! -- and the second is to take to a potluck brunch this weekend. I had to sacrifice peanut butter and tomatoes for this flour, but it will be worth it to share a warm meal with friends -- or so I tell myself now! I will also use the flour to make four generous servings of homemade pasta.

Yesterday, I ate Linda Watson's Ready Up Rice & Lentils for breakfast and lunch. I had to use considerably less rice and lentils, less salt and none of the syrup or tahini, so it was not as tasty or filling as she intended, but it did the trick. I made it to the next meal without eating my coworkers. I did, however, note that a single bowl of lentils goes down in a flash. I found myself looking about for more food. There wasn't anything.

At dinner time, I was hungry and tired. Cook? Meh. However, beyond the oatmeal I needed for breakfast, I had nothing that was ready to eat. If I had to sustain this budget for weeks, months, a year, would I continue to roll out noodles after work? Not sure.

But last night I bucked up and made myself some homemade noodles in safflower oil, garlic, onion and red pepper flakes, with a side of carrrots. I wished for a little Parmesan cheese, but the delicate noodles were still delicious. Red pepper makes everything better.

All in all, I enjoyed every meal. I was, however, a wee bit hungry at bed time and even more so this morning. I put all the food I had eaten in a food diary database -- 1003 calories. In consideration of my height and weight, and a run earlier in the day, that's not enough. The database told me I'd lose 1.8 pounds a week if I continue to eat a 1003-calorie-a-day diet, and admonished me with this message: Too few calories. Consuming too few calories can decrease your metabolism.

SNAP Challenge: Wrapping up day one

2011-11-17T20:32:00.003-06:00

By Michelle Los

It's almost 9pm and the sun set a long time ago here in Minnesota.

The first day of the SNAP challenge is almost done. I'm glad to have the first day behind me - the anticipation, nerves and build-up are all past and now it's just about focusing on the reasons I'm doing this and opening myself up to the lessons it has to teach.

My partner, Peter, and I are doing this challenge together, so our shopping budget was $55.51. We headed to Aldi and Rainbow to stock up - you can see what we were able to bring home by checking out the YouTube video here. We've still got about $8 left in our budget, but we're planning on using that half-way through the week to pick up some fresh produce.

Truth be told, when I first heard that the budget for a single person was $30.25 a week, I didn't think that was so terribly bad - my budget for a month of groceries is about $125-$150 (for myself).

Then I realized that I eat out. A lot. Once that hit me, I knew that living on a SNAP budget was going to be a great deal tougher than originally anticipated.

This morning we started the day with a serving of oatmeal and a cup of instant coffee. I added a portion of applesauce to my oatmeal to sweeten it, but I noticed right away that I'll have to cut that to a half portion if it is going to last an entire week.

Lunch was beans and rice with a couple of corn tortillas. Dinner was tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich, with pineapple for dessert (a very special treat, as the only reason we were able to afford this was because it was 50% off).

All in all, I'm a little bit hungrier that I usually would be at the end of the day, but it wasn't terrible. My biggest concern is that I may have greatly overestimated how long I will be able to stretch some of the things I purchased. Essentially, I suppose, I'm worried about finding myself eating unsweetened oatmeal by the end of the week. But...more on the privileges I bring to this challenge in a later post.

SNAP Challenge: Shopping Organic

2011-11-17T11:39:00.005-06:00

By Jeanne Foels

I chose to take a different focus for my SNAP Challenge: to spend my $30.25 at my local co-op, purchasing only organic items.

This approach may sound a little bourgeoisie. Our knee-jerk reaction is to label co-ops and organic food as accessible only to those with wealth, certainly not the province of the typical SNAP user.

I believe, however, that food is a social justice issue, and organic food – food raised without the use of chemicals – should be accessible to everyone. It’s better for each of us (avoiding ingesting chemicals that could have adverse effects on our health) and it’s better for all of us (protecting our environment, both flora and fauna, from chemical harm).

So I set out to see just how feasible it is to eat organic on a limited budget. And good news: My shopping trip was successful!

I headed to the Wedge Co-op, which is less than a mile from my house, with $30.25 to spend. Thanks to the bulk aisle and some great sale items, I left with enough organic groceries to feed myself for a week – with a few dollars to spare!

I’ll be eating a simple, vegetarian diet with good amounts of protein, whole grains and veggies. My caloric intake for the week will probably be lower than what I’m used to, but it will be good to reassess my typical portion sizes. I’ll hopefully have a full nutritional analysis of my diet before the end of the week.

Disclaimer: There are many, many privileges built into my challenge. Just to name a few: I live near a co-op, I feel comfortable shopping there, I know how to navigate the bulk aisle; I know how to purchase and use whole produce, I feel knowledgeable and comfortable enough to cook, I have a kitchen equipped with necessary tools to cook from scratch, I have the time to plan and cook from scratch; I enjoy eating fresh, whole foods, I do not have food allergies or diet restrictions. I don’t want to minimize these obstacles, because they definitely play a huge part in how people feed themselves.

I realize that organic food can be a hot-button issue, so I look forward to the conversations that might come up this week! I think robust discussion of our food system is a good thing, no matter how you feel about certain issues.

SNAP Challenge: Shopping at Walgreens

2011-11-17T06:41:00.006-06:00

By Kevin Winge

Day one of my second annual SNAP Challenge is off to a good start. Knowing that some SNAP recipients have transportation issues, this year I’m shopping for all of my food at my nearest convenience store – Walgreens. My SNAP week is off to a good start, not because of the kind of food I was able to purchase at Walgreens, but because – with careful shopping and coupon clipping – I was able to really stretch my $30.25.

Open Arms’ registered dietitian did a great job of creating a Walgreens menu. What she didn’t know, however, is that many of the items on my menu would be on sale this week. For example, a gallon of skim milk was $2.99 instead of $3.49. Although I really dislike canned green beans, and probably haven’t eaten any since elementary school back when Lyndon Johnson was President, I was excited to see that a single can was only .69 with a coupon compared to its usual price of $1.79.

The bottom line is that I spent $8.09 less than I thought I was going to. That meant I could splurge on a box of Grape Nuts cereal and still have $5.30 remaining in my budget for the week. I’m holding off until Walgreens coupons come out next Sunday to see what else I might buy for later in the week.

Here’s my grocery list so far:

Ramen Noodles (6 pack) - $1.89

Coffee - $3.99 on sale (not food, I know, but I gotta have it)

Gallon of Milk - $2.99 on sale

Dozen Eggs - $1.89

Wheat Bread - .99 on sale

Yogurt - .69

Oatmeal - $2.59

Peanut Butter - $2.99

Can of Green Beans - .69 with coupon

Can of Fruit Salad - $2.19

Raisins (1 oz. 6 pack) - $1.00

Grape Nuts Cereal - $2.79 on sale

Now it’s time to enjoy my first SNAP breakfast: a cup of coffee, 8 ounces of milk and one cup of oatmeal.

SNAP Challenge: And so it begins...

2011-11-16T21:46:00.001-06:00

By Ellen Klahn

T-minus two and a half hours until the start of the SNAP Challenge. I'm currently enjoying my "Last Supper": veggie burgers with cheese and lettuce on whole wheat tortillas and oven fries with olive oil, rosemary and garlic. Also, I enjoyed a chai with chocolate and espresso earlier this evening. YUM! Hopefully that will sustain my chocolate craving for the next week [doubtful].

Here's where I'm coming from:

-I went grocery shopping earlier this evening at Target and Cub Foods with a rough list and no real plan. I have a feeling I will regret this later as I have very few options for meal variety.

-I spent $30.45...I'll allow myself the extra $0.20 because I happened to find a quarter in my jacket pocket.

-I had to make the decision between fruits and vegetables [which I currently eat approx. 8 servings per day of] or protein. I chose produce. The only protein sources I purchased were peanut butter and black beans...oops.

-I live in an intentional community of six women [via my volunteer program] and although we only have a monthly food budget of $600 (coming out to be $25 per person per week), we still manage to eat pretty well. We rarely eat meat and instead receive our protein from beans, lentils, quinoa, tofu, TVP, etc. If we do happen to eat meat, it's because grass-fed/cage-free chicken is on sale at our co-op or because someone's parents donated us venison or something of the like. It also helps that we buy in bulk, bargain hunt like mad, and get extra produce from our plot in a community garden or from generous friends of our program who have more produce than they can manage to consume themselves. However, this week is still going to be a great challenge for me! Growing up an athlete, I have always had a larger appetite than normal and as I still run and stay relatively active, I have managed to maintain a pretty high metabolism. I am a bit worried about maintaining my weight this week and becoming distracted with hunger.

Anyway...good luck to everyone this week! I'm eager to learn of everyone's experiences as we go through this together!

SNAP Challenge: Setting the Table for the Next Week

2011-11-16T13:28:00.002-06:00

By Kevin Winge

Let’s get a few things about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) on the table right away.

Yes, the fact that the word “supplemental” is in the title implies that the SNAP program, formerly known as food stamps, is intended to be just that; a supplement to assist Americans who are hungry.

And, yes, $30.25 a week is just an estimate of what an average Minnesotan receives in SNAP assistance per week. Some individuals receive more, some less.

And, yes again, a person can live on that amount, $30.25, a week for food.

But it’s not that simple.

More than 583,000 Minnesotans do not always know where their next meal is coming from. According to the United States Department of Agriculture and the Census Bureau, 49 million Americans live in food insecure households. No doubt, many of these people probably have access to some other source for food. Maybe there is food in their kitchen pantry, or they have some money to spend on groceries, or there is a neighborhood food shelf, or friends and family assist them. But, there are others who rely on SNAP for the majority, or all, of their food.

There are many reasons for this. The shelves and refrigerators in some kitchens are bare. Many people lack transportation to food shelves. Others live a great distance from grocery stores. Some are elderly, some are dependent children, some are ill and many are unemployed.

It’s possible to eat healthy on $30.25 if you live near a co-op, or a farmer’s market or a grocery store and if you have a basic understanding of nutritious food and how to stretch your budget. It’s also possible to live on $30.25 by filling your belly with empty calories that don’t provide energy and contribute to obesity and diabetes. It’s possible to do this for a single week as part of a social experiment. Doing it for real, week after week, is the real challenge.

The purpose of the SNAP Challenge, living on the equivalent of $30.25 for one week, is to raise awareness of food insecurity in the United States. It’s also a great way to experience, in a very small way, what those 49 million food insecure Americans go through every day.

Just like last year, I will be taking the SNAP Challenge and living on $30.25 from November 17 until Thanksgiving morning. This year, I’ll shop as though I don’t have transportation and have to rely on my nearest convenience store, Walgreens, for my food for the week. Between now and Thanksgiving, I’ll once again be blogging about my experiences living on SNAP. If you’ve never gone hungry, or had to worry about where your next meal might come from, you should join me and take the SNAP Challenge yourself.

SNAP Challenge: T-minus 2 days

2011-11-15T10:35:00.005-06:00

By Samantha Nelson

And so the countdown beings. In less than two days the Open Arms of MN SNAP Challenge will begin. For one week's time, a number of people, including myself, will dedicate their time to living under the constraints felt daily by millions of Americans. However, unlike me, these people do not have the luxury of sitting down to a feast on Thanksgiving morning or sipping their Grande Skinny Latte from Starbucks on Black Friday. For those living on SNAP, their ability to simply survive in this world is dependent on their allotted monthly food allowance. With this realization, my preparation for the upcoming week has been 99% mental. It is still a struggle for my to wrap my brain around the fact that nearly 600,000 Minnesotans live on SNAP. Keeping this in mind, the woes of my daily life seem to pale in comparison. Sure, I might complain of hunger when I eat my lunch at 3 p.m. rather than at noon, but in all actuality my grievance is trivial.

I do not know hunger. I have never known hunger. And unlike those 600,000 Minnesotans, food is at always at my disposal. Entering into this SNAP challenge I have a single goal in mind: It is my hope that this experience (and the hunger pains I am sure to feel) translate into an even deeper realization of the food crisis in America. I hope for this not only for myself, but for those in my community, my friends, my family and maybe even someone with enough power to institute a change in our country. My eyes have been opened and with a heavy heart I now realize the struggle faced by so many of my neighbors.

Let me provide a quick synopsis of my life in hopes that it will provide a personal touch to my blogs as the week progresses. I am 21 years old and in my senior year at the University of Minnesota majoring in Nutrition Science. I am a medical school hopeful, a lover of athletics and a passionate photographer. I was first introduced to Open Arms MN while attending high school about 20 min outside Minneapolis. The organization has a captivating and inspiring mission that caught my attention. I began my work at Open Arms as a volunteer in the kitchen and continued in that position until I left for college in San Diego, CA. Long story short, I transferred back in Minnesota and have returned to volunteering

Between classes, research, and training for a marathon I have worked closely with Gwen Hill, the Registered Dietician at Open Arms, to see the SNAP Challenge develop from ideas on paper to a much-anticipated event. I am excited for the upcoming challenge and encourage all who are participating to truly reflect on their experience. While only seven days in length, I believe this challenge will make a lasting impression.

Good luck to all participating! I look forward to sharing the ups and downs and this experience with you all.

Potluck Recipe #39: Linda Watson's Ready Up Rice & Lentils

2011-11-09T09:15:00.009-06:00

Although I love huevos rancheros — a layering of black beans, salsa and eggs on a corn tortilla -- I have to admit it had never occurred to me to eat rice and beans for breakfast. However, I found this simple recipe on the Cook for Good website and, suddenly, adding that complete protein combo to my morning makes complete sense to me. Looking back at the blogs from last year, one of the challenges of the SNAP Challenge seemed to be maintaining enough energy to get through the day in good spirits.

At 16.8 grams of protein, I'm thinking this dish will not only stick to my ribs, but also keep me in fine fettle throughout the morning. It's also inexpensive. Check back in a week: I'll let you know if it's working!

Linda Watson's Ready Up Rice and Lentils

From Linda Watson's Cook for Good website

(Makes four 2-cup servings)

1 cup long grain brown rice, preferably basmati
1 cup French or green lentils
1/2 tsp salt
4 cups water
2 carrots
maple syrup or tahini, optional

1. Pick through lentils, removing any small stones, twigs, or anything that is not a lentil. Rinse well and put in a rice cooker or medium pot. Rinse rice well and add to the pot. Add water and salt.
2. Cut carrots lengthwise into quarters and then across into 1/4-inch pieces. Add to lentil mixture.
3. Cook according to rice-cooker directions on brown-rice setting. If using a pot, cover, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low, simmer for about 45 minutes, then turn off heat and let pot rest undisturbed for 10 more minutes.
4. To serve, stir and then enjoy hot or at room temperature. Reheats well using a microwave and a microwave-safe dish. Keeps for four days in the refrigerator or frozen for up to a year.

SNAP Challenge: Senator Franken Supports SNAP

2011-11-08T13:07:00.001-06:00

Minnesota Senator Al Franken has signed a letter urging the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction not to cut anti-hunger programs. Senator Franken joins 15 other signers in specifically asking that the committee protect the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), calling it “a true safety net for America’s lowest income and neediest families.”

The letter, sent to Senator John Kerry, points out that neither President Obama’s National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform nor the Senate’s bipartisan “Gang of Six,” have recommended cuts to SNAP. With 49 million Americans living in food insecure households there has, as the letter goes on to say, “never been a more important time to protect SNAP, the critical anti-hunger program that makes sure all Americans in need can have food on their dinner tables.”

If those alarming statistics aren’t enough, there is an added benefit to SNAP. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that there is a $1.79 return to the economy for every SNAP dollar spent.

A program that helps reduce hunger and contributes to our economy sounds like a win/win to me.

Potluck Recipe #38: Carrots with Cranberries

2011-11-08T09:35:00.005-06:00

This tasty side dish would be an excellent addition to your turkey day table. The combination of cider and cranberries gives the carrots a delicious zing, as well as a beautiful color. Host a pre-Thanksgiving potluck and try it out before the big day!

Carrots with Cranberries

Adapted from a recipe from The Old Farmer's Almanac

(Serves 6)

1 pound carrots, washed and peeled
1 cup cider
pinch of salt
1 cup fresh whole cranberries
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 1/2 tbsp. dark brown sugar, packed

1. Chop the carrots into 1" chunks.
2. Put the carrots and cider into a medium skillet and bring to a boil.
3. Add the salt and reduce the heat. Cook at a low boil, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, until the liquid is reduced by half.
4. Add the cranberries, butter and brown sugar. Cook several more minutes, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are tender but still slightly firm and the remaining liquid in the pan is syrupy. The total cooking time should be about 12 to 14 minutes -- make sure the carrots don't turn mushy. Serve.

SNAP: We Support Congressional Food Stamp Challenge

2011-11-02T12:37:00.005-05:00

Open Arms’ congressional representative, Keith Ellison, and our former board member, Rev. Larry Snyder, are doing their parts to draw national attention to the increasing issue of food insecurity in the United States. Beginning on November 2, Rep. Ellison is taking a Food Stamp Challenge organized by Fighting Poverty with Faith. The congressman from Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District will join eight other congressional Democrats and live on approximately $4.50 a day.

By living on the average amount of money a recipient of SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) receives, Rep. Ellison is reminding all of us that more than 500,000 Minnesotans struggle with hunger every day. Nationwide, over 40 million individuals and 19 million households used SNAP (formerly food stamps) in 2010.

Rev. Larry Snyder is president of Catholic Charities USA, a co-sponsor of Fighting Poverty with Faith. In the 1990s, Rev. Snyder was on the board of directors of Open Arms. Speaking of the increasing rates of food insecurity in the United States, Rev. Snyder said, “It is simply unacceptable that one in six Americans are living in hunger. We have a moral responsibility to urgently address the need for a permanent and financially sustainable solution to this growing tragedy.”

We applaud Rep. Ellison and Rev. Snyder’s efforts to highlight the critical importance of feeding programs in the United States. Open Arms will join the effort on November 17 when we launch our second annual SNAP Challenge.

To follow Congressman Ellison’s experience this week go to: http://twitter.com/#!/keithellison.

Potluck Recipe #37: Chili Con Bison AND BEANS

2011-11-01T14:27:00.002-05:00

There are those who believe that chili con carne should not include beans -- or if it does, that it should go by another name, such as stew. I heartily and most wholesomely disagree, and so does the dictionary:

Chili con carne |kän ˈkärnē; kən|
nounA spicy stew of beef and red chilies or chili powder, often with beans and tomatoes.

I'll add that without beans, chili can be very tasty, but eating it feels a little like spooning up a pasta sauce, such as a spicy bolognese. It's just not right. This recipe features bison, which is lean enough to be healthy but flavorful enough to stand up to all the spices and cream.

Chili Con Bison & Beans
Based on a recipe once published in Bon Appetite
(Serves 4 to 6)

2 pounds bison meat, ground
2 cups chopped onions
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups kidney beans, cooked
3 tbsp. ground cumin
3 tbsp. chili powder
2 tbsp. chopped canned chipotle chilies in adobo sauce
2 1/2 cups (or more) water
1 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro (or parsley, if you are cilantro averse!)

Grated cheese
Sour cream
Additional chopped onion

1. Sauté the bison, chopped onions and garlic in large Dutch oven over high heat until the bison is cooked through, stirring often and breaking up the bison with back of spoon, about 10 minutes.
2. Add beans cumin, chili powder and chipotle chilies; sauté 3 minutes. Mix in water and half the cilantro. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover partially and cook 1 1/2 hours, adding more water by 1/4 cupfuls if chili becomes dry.
3. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill. Bring to simmer before continuing.)
4. Add remaining cilantro into chili and serve, passing cheese, sour cream and additional chopped onion separately.

Potluck Recipe #36: Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

2011-10-25T12:05:00.001-05:00

Yesterday Operations Director Kent Linder brought these pumpkin spice cupcakes to our Food Day celebration, a delicious reminder of the sweeter side of good food. Kent used real pumpkin in the cupcakes, which made them even tastier. Of course, there's nothing "unreal" about canned pumpkin, but like most things in the food world, homemade pumpkin puree is so much more flavorful, it's like a different creature altogether.

To make your own pumpkin puree, simply cut your pumpkin in half, pull out the seeds and stringy bits, and bake the pumpkin halves in tinfoil at 325 degrees for one hour or until tender. Scrape the meat out and puree it in a blender; if you're dealing with the Great Pumpkin, you may need to do this in batches. And voila: You have the base for pie, pudding, bread, ravioli, soup -- and these fantastic cupcakes.

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

(Adapted from a recipe by Emeril Lagasse)

Makes 2 dozen cupcakes

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 cup fresh, pumpkin puree
½ cup buttermilk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
¼ tsp. ground clove
1 recipe Cream Cheese Frosting

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat 2 12-cup muffin pans with cooking spray.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. In a separate, medium size mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin puree with the buttermilk and vanilla extract and mix well. In another medium size mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg, and clove and mix well. In thirds, alternately add the flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture to the creamed butter, blending gently after each addition.
4. Using an ice cream scoop or a ¼ cup measure, divide the batter evenly among the 24 cupcake wells and bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle of each cupcake comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
5. Cool the cakes on a wire rack in the pans for 15 minutes. Remove the cakes from the pans and continue to cool on the wire racks until completely cool.

Cream Cheese Frosting

12 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
10 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1. Combine the cream cheese and butter and beat until smooth and fluffy.
2. Add the sugar and vanilla and mix on low speed until combined.
3. Beat on high speed until smooth and fluffy. (If frosting is too thick, thin with a bit of milk to obtain desired consistency.) Frost cupcakes and enjoy!

Potluck Recipe #35: Kale Chips

2011-10-18T12:22:00.004-05:00

In my book, kale is a superstar. It's easy to grow, hardy and PACKED with nutrients -- the British government even encouraged its citizens to grow kale during World War II to compensate for nutrients they might have lacked due to rationing!

I used to feel at a loss as to how to use this amazing veggie until a friend taught me the following recipe. Now kale chips are one of my favorite snack foods -- and a great conversation starter at potlucks.

Kale Chips

1 bunch flat-leafed kale
2 tbsp. good-quality olive oil
salt
freshly cracked black pepper
2 oz. Parmesan cheese (or to taste), grated

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. De-stem the kale and rip it into bite-sized chunks. Wash and thoroughly dry the kale, either using a salad spinner or blotting it with a towel.
3. Put kale into a large bowl and toss with the olive oil.
4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and evenly spread out the kale. Top with salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese.
5. Bake until the edges turn brown, about 10 minutes.

Potluck Recipe #34: Southwestern Pumpkin Hummus

2011-10-11T11:03:00.009-05:00

The combination of autumnal pumpkin with summery southwestern spice makes this week's recipe perfect for the warm fall we've been having. Pick up some chips and host a potluck for Open Arms to celebrate the change of seasons!

Southwestern Pumpkin Hummus

Adapted from a recipe from The Old Farmer's Almanac

4 cloves garlic
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup tahini
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 can (15-ounce) pumpkin
3 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 whole chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
pumpkin seeds for garnish

1. Combine all ingredients except garnish in food processor and blend until smooth.
2. Transfer to bowl and cover.
3. Refrigerate over night.
4. Garnish with pumpkin seeds and drizzle with extra olive oil before serving. Serve with vegetables, crackers or plain tortilla chips.

Potluck Recipe #33: Brazilian Baked Salmon

2011-09-27T10:09:00.004-05:00

Here's a zesty recipe from our new Latino menu. Simple and tasty, this salmon is a sure bet for your next potluck!

Brazilian Baked Salmon

(Serves 4)

4 salmon fillets
1/2 orange, zest and juice
1 lemon, zest and juice
salt
pepper
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. chili powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Place salmon fillets in a shallow baking dish.
3. In a small bowl, combine the orange and lemon juices, salt and pepper to taste. Pour over salmon and turn to coat well. Cover with cling wrap and set aside for 20 minutes, turning the fillets once.
4. Meanwhile, in another small bowl, mix together the orange and lemon zest, brown sugar, chili powder and minced garlic.
5. Rub the marinated salmon with the sugar mixture and then place it on the baking sheet. Drizzle it with oil and bake it in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. Serve warm.

We've Got Greens - Even After the Freeze

2011-09-21T13:49:00.000-05:00

Last week’s freeze cut our hoped-for primary growing season short by a few weeks. Most of the heat-loving vegetables, such as tomatoes and peppers, have turned from green to black. In any given year, a freeze of this magnitude is possible on or around September 15, but it is still a bit of a letdown — perhaps more so because our spring didn’t really arrive in earnest until almost June 1! That’s a short season. Nevertheless, we have already produced over 17,000 pounds of nutritious produce for our clients. The other good news is that we’re not even close to finished. We’ll be harvesting several thousand pounds of hearty greens --spinach, arugula, bok choi, broccoli, and cabbage -- well into October, if not later, using season extension techniques. So come on out to Belle Plaine and help us bring in the fall harvest!

Potluck Recipe #32: Pasta with Butternut Squash and Sage

2011-09-20T13:02:00.005-05:00

We had fledgling squashes growing in our garden, but they are frozen in their lilliputian state because of the recent frost -- their leaves are black and the vines have all dried up. They will likely never be good for eating, but they still look great, so we will probably bring them inside for fall decoration. Luckily, the co-op and farmers markets have all kinds of squash right now, perfect for fall-tinged recipes like this one.

This pasta recipe plays on the natural partnership of sage and butternut squash. For a more savory flavor, toss a little sautéed pancetta or bacon into the pasta.

Pasta with Butternut Squash and Sage

(serves 4)

1 lb. butternut squash, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. olive oil
3/4 cup chicken broth
3 tsp. fresh sage, chopped
1 lb. gemelli or penne rigate pasta
3 tbsp. fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup parmesan, freshly grated, plus additional for sprinkling
black pepper and salt
4 tbsp. chopped walnuts, toasted

1. Roast the squash at 450 degrees for half an hour. Finely chop squash pieces in a food processor.
2. Cook squash, onion and garlic in oil in a large nonstick skillet over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden.
3. Simmer covered, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until squash is tender. Add sage and simmer one minute more.
4. Cook pasta in a 6-quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup cooking liquid and drain pasta.
5. Return pasta to pot and add squash mixture, parsley, 1 cup parmesan and plenty of freshly ground black pepper, stirring until well mixed. Season with salt and add some of reserved pasta cooking liquid to moisten if necessary.
6. Serve sprinkled with additional parmesan and toasted walnuts.

Potluck Recipe #31: Cucumber Agua Fresca

2011-09-13T10:06:00.007-05:00

The fields at Open Farms are full of delicious cucumbers, so every client is receiving a fresh cuke in their bag! Here's a poem from our former poet laureate to celebrate this abundance, followed by a recipe:

POEM WITH A CUCUMBER IN IT
by Robert Haas

Sometimes from this hillside just after sunset
The rim of the sky takes on a tinge
Of the palest green, like the flesh of a cucumber
When you peel it carefully.

In Crete once, in the summer,
When it was still hot at midnight,
We sat in a taverna by the water
Watching the squid boats rocking in the moonlight,
Drinking retsina and eating salads
Of cool, chopped cucumber and yogurt and a little dill.

A hint of salt, something like starch, something
Like an attar of grasses or green leaves
On the tongue is the tongue
And the cucumber
Evolving toward each other.

Since cumbersome is a word,
Cumber must have been a word,
Lost to us now, and even then,
For a person feeling encumbered,
It must have felt orderly and right-minded
To stand at a sink and slice a cucumber.

If you think I am going to make
A sexual joke in this poem,
you are mistaken.

In the old torment of the earth
When the fires were cooling and disposing themselves
Into granite and limestone and serpentine and shale,
It is possible to imagine that, under yellowish chemical clouds,
The molten froth, having burned long enough,
Was already dreaming of release,
And that the dream, dimly
But with increasing distinctness, took the form
Of water, and that it was then, still more dimly, that it imagined
The dark green skin and opal green flesh of cucumbers.

Now it's your turn to "feel orderly and right-minded" -- this week's novel potluck recipe turns that chopped cucumber into a cool, frothy beverage, perfect for the end of the work day.

Cucumber Agua Fresca

Adapted from a recipe in Bon Appétit

(serves 8)

4 1/2 cups coarsely chopped seeded peeled cucumbers (about 4 medium)
4 cups cold water
2 cups ice cubes
3/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup fresh lime juice
2 large pinches of salt
additional ice cubes

1. Combine 2 1/4 cups chopped cucumbers, 2 cups water, 1 cup ice cubes, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup lime juice, and 1 pinch of salt in blender. Blend until sugar dissolves and mixture is smooth but slushy, about 2 minutes. Transfer mixture to pitcher.
2. Repeat with remaining chopped cucumbers, 2 cups water, 1 cup ice cubes, sugar, lime juice, and salt. Add to pitcher.
3. Place additional ice cubes in 8 glasses. Fill with cucumber drink.

Potluck Recipe #30: Peach Butter

2011-09-06T12:12:00.006-05:00

This is the perfect time of year to can, as the bounty of the season overwhelms us and the cooler temperatures make it appealing to heat up the kitchen.

Peach butter, with its delightfully smooth texture and pure peach taste, is a terrific way to preserve those fragile orbs. Save a few jars for a midwinter brunch potluck, when the butter can steal the show on toast, pancakes or muffins. This recipe has a delicate touch of peachy tartness -- taste the batch and add a bit more sugar if you like your fruit butter sweet.

Peach Butter

Adapted from a recipe on smittenkitchen.com

(makes 4 cups)

4 pounds peaches
1 cup water
2 cups granulated sugar
Juice of one lemon
1 vanilla bean

1. First, sterilize several half-pint jars and lids by boiling them in a large, deep pot of water for 10 minutes. The water should cover the jars completely.
2. Peel the peaches by cutting a small “x” in the bottom of each peach, dipping it into a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds and then into a bowl of cold water for a minute. The peel should slide right off. Halve the peaches and remove the pits, then cut into chunks.
3. Place peach chunks and water in a large pot and bring to a boil. Simmer until peaches are tender (about 15 to 20 minutes), stirring occasionally to ensure they cook evenly.
4. Puree the mixture in a food processor or blender. Return the peaches to the large pot and add sugar, lemon juice and the seeds from the vanilla bean.
5. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil and cook for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. To test for doneness, drizzle a ribbon of sauce across the surface. When the ribbon holds its shape before dissolving into the rest of the mixture, the batch is done.
6. To can your peach butter: Divide the hot peach butter between the jars, leaving a little room at the top. Wipe the rims clean with a dry towel and cover the jars with their lids. Submerge the jars in a large, deep pot of boiling water for 10 minutes, using tongs to dip and remove them. Let cool completely on towels for a few hours. If canned properly and stored at room temperature, the peach butter should last well throughout the winter.

Winding Down

2011-08-30T15:13:00.001-05:00

The cicadas’ steady chirping in the trees heralds a changing season. The heat of midday, strongest in July, has now receded a bit and reduced the number of necessary trips to the water well. This is the beginning of the summer wind-down. Make no mistake, there is still plenty of work to do, weeds will still grow even if more slowly, vegetables will still need to be harvested, but the rapid growth and energy necessary for leaf and stalk production is now going towards ripening the fruit.

Fall successions of greens, crops too fragile for the July heat, have been planted and will be enjoyed in September just as they were craved in June. The whole countryside, still green, has nonetheless taken on a different aura. The bottom leaves of stalks have begun to dry down, on grass, on corn, soybeans, and other crops.

Walking through the garden gives a sense of satisfaction – the memory of how much has already been accomplished. It is a daily reminder that our lives are but a part of this pattern. We should be satisfied with our work, even in the midst of it.

Potluck Recipe #29: Zucchini Cashew Bread

2011-08-30T10:25:00.006-05:00

It's that time of year: you turn your back on the garden for one minute and come back to find green giants lurking under the broad leaves of your zucchini plant. Eek! What do you do with these behemoths?

Have no fear, you've got lots of options: grill them, stuff them, shred them into a raw salad, throw them in ratatouille or casserole. Try zucchini fritters, zucchini pizza -- even zucchini brownies! My personal favorite is zucchini bread, and this recipe is moist and sweet, perfect for breakfast, snacks and dessert.

Zucchini Cashew Bread

Adapted from a recipe by Mark Bittman

(makes one loaf)

4 tbsp. butter
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 cup milk or orange juice
1 tbsp. grated orange zest
1 egg
1 cup zucchini, peeled and grated
1/2 cup chopped cashews

1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with butter.
2. Stir together the dry ingredients. Cut the butter into bits, then use a pastry blender or your fingers to mix it into the dry ingredients until there are no large pieces.
3. Beat together the milk or juice, zest and egg. Pour into the dry ingredients, mixing just enough to moisten. Be careful not to overdo it -- too much mixing will create large air pockets in the bread. Fold in the zucchini and nuts, and then pour the batter into the loaf pan.
4. Bake for about an hour or until the bread is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes before removing from the pan.

Potluck Recipe #28: Gazpacho

2011-08-23T14:05:00.003-05:00

Every evening after work, we wander around the garden checking on our veggies and come back to the house with armloads of tomatoes. Five plants seemed perfect in the spring, when they were small and we wondered, cynically, if the heirlooms would produce or once again leave us tomato-less and wishing we'd gone with Early Girls. I'm not complaining — I truly love tomatoes -- but I have reached a point where I'm no longer eating them like candy, by the handful, and it's time to branch out from salad.

Enter gazpacho. This recipe is based on one from Spanish cookbook author Penelope Casas. It includes bread, which I think is essential for distinguishing gazpacho from a V-8 or a Bloody Mary. I've added croutons to the top because a little toast is always tasty.

Gazpacho

(4 to 6 servings)

2 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes, quartered
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
5 slices of day-old, artisan bread, crust removed
2 tbsp sherry vinegar
2 tsp kosher or sea salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 cup mild extra-virgin olive oil

Soup
1. Place half the tomatoes, one slice of bread, and all of the garlic, pepper, vinegar, salt, cumin (if using) and sugar in a food processor or blender. Process until all the ingredients are integrated and, with the motor running, add the remaining tomatoes. Gradually add the oil, and process until smooth.
2. Pass the gazpacho through a food mill or strainer, pressing with the back of a ladle to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids.
3. Chill for several hours or overnight. Taste and add more vinegar or salt if needed. Serve with croutons.

Croutons
1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
2. Brush remaining pieces of bread with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste, and then cut the slices into crouton size squares and arrange them on a baking sheet.
3. Bake until golden brown and set aside to cool.

Potluck Recipe #27: Dan Dan Noodles

2011-08-16T08:00:00.007-05:00

As a college student, I ate these noodles several times a week. I bought them from a tiny stand in an open market and ate them, right from the takeout box, standing on the street corner. Later, I learned to make the sauce at home and saved a couple bucks, along the way developing a taste for udon and buckwheat soba noodles.

There is life after ramen, of course, but occasionally I crave the comfort of that spicy peanut sauce and the ease of a one-bowl meal. As a cold salad, they make a great summer potluck dish and travel well, provided you toss the ingredients together just before eating, so the noodles stay al dente.

Dan Dan Noodles

Peanut sauce

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup warm water

2 tbsp. chopped peeled fresh ginger

1 medium garlic clove, chopped

2 tbsp. white vinegar

1 1/2 tbsp sesame oil

2 tsp. honey

1 tsp. dried hot red pepper flakes

Noodles

3/4 lb soba, udon, ramen or rice noodles

4 scallions, thinly sliced

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/8-inch-thick strips

1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/4 strips (or to taste)

1. Blend all dressing ingredients together until smooth and then transfer them to a large serving bowl.

2. Cook noodles according to directions in a pot of salted, boiling water. Drain in a colander and, if eating warm, toss with dressing and vegetables. You can also eat these noodles as a cold salad. Simple rinse the noodles in cold water after draining and toss with sauce and vegetables. In either case, serve immediately.

Open Farms: The Harvest

2011-08-11T16:12:00.001-05:00

Open Farms is having a bountiful harvest this summer. Last month’s rain and heat have resulted in tremendous growth in all of the vegetables on the farm. As I write this our dedicated volunteers are harvesting the very freshest cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots and green beans for our 700 clients.

We’re having a good time out here. Even with the fast-cycles of planting, growth, weeding, pruning, and harvesting, we’ve had some time to sit down in the shade of the trees and talk about our work. It’s in those moments that we all seem to realize that while we may have a specific task at hand – weeding the chard, or harvesting the basil for example – we’re part of something much bigger. The food that we’re producing is local, fresh and sustainable, and with our experiences out on the farm, we’re able to join the global conversation about how to best feed those in our community and in the world both now and in the future.

The basis of our conversation comes from knowledge of what it feels like to hold a freshly picked cucumber, to hold the soil in our hands and to know that it contains more life in a tiny handful than we ever imagined. It is with these experiences that we join in the growing conversation about food and justice. Not only head knowledge, but with a heartfelt connection to the land that sustains us.

Potluck Recipe #26: Panko fried zucchini blossoms

2011-08-09T09:44:00.001-05:00

In Texas, where the growing season is very long — provided one waters religiously — I learned to sacrifice the first zucchini blossoms to my frying pan. Lightly fried, they are peppery and vegetal, the very essence of the zucchini they would have become had you not nipped them in the bud, so to speak.

Their ruffled, yellow petals are just lovely in a panko batter, making a very pretty summer presentation alongside your main dish.

Panko fried zucchini blossoms

Zucchini flowers
Egg yolks (one for each 1/2 dozen or less flowers]
1 cup sparkling water
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
Salt and pepper
Panko bread crumbs
Vegetable or a light olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Gently rinse the flowers inside and out and trim the stems. Set aside to drain.

2. In a medium bowl, beat egg yolks and add water, whisking until completely mixed. Whisk in flour, salt and pepper and then add just enough panko to create a creamy batter that will stick to blossoms.

3. Heat about 1 inch of oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high. Coat flowers in batter one at a time and add to the pan, frying them until golden brown on both sides — about two minutes total. Drain on a paper towel or bag. Sprinkle with salt and fresh pepper and serve warm.

Potluck Recipe #25: Onions, Three Ways

2011-08-02T14:04:00.009-05:00

In honor of the pounds and pounds of onions coming to our kitchen from Open Farms, here are three ways to prepare them. Why not host an onion-themed potluck for Open Arms this month?

Balsamic Red Onions

There are a lot of recipes for this concoction, many of which are a sort of confit featuring lots of butter and a more caramelized onion. I prefer the simple, bright sweetness of the balsamic alone. I love these onions on spinach salads, with Manchego cheese on a cracker, and atop burger or steak.

1 large red onion, peeled, chopped in half and sliced thin
1-2 tbsp of sweet, mellow balsamic vinegar
Pepper to taste

1. Heat the balsamic vinegar -- in as small a sauce pan as will accommodate your onion -- until it is almost simmering.
2. Add the red onion, cooking until it is soft and has absorbed all of the balsamic vinegar; do not allow it to brown.
3. Remove from heat and pepper to taste. If serving on meat, use warm; on salad, allow it to cool completely.

Fried Yellow Onions

These are not onion rings, these are crispy little onion strings that melt in your mouth. A Danish friend introduced them to me — on a hot dog, of all places. I have since discovered that they are tasty on top of vegetables, steak, fish, stew … well, pretty much anywhere. Sometimes, every last one of them is devoured before they get to the plate.

1 yellow onion, sliced into paper thin rings
Vegetable or canola oil

1. Dry onion strings between paper towels — it doesn't hurt to stack handfuls of onions between paper towels and weight them with a book. After a few hours, they should be relatively dry and ready to fry.
2. Heat 2-3 inches of oil on medium-high in a small sauce pan until it reaches 350 degrees.
3. Add a small handful of onions to the hot oil using a large slotted spoon, cooking until just golden (a minute or less)
4. Using the slotted spoon, remove onions to a paper bag or towels and allow oil to drain.
5. Enjoy!

Caramelized Onions

When you slowly cook onions over an extended length of time, their natural sugars caramelize, making them meltingly tender and sweet. Caramelizing takes a bit of time, but your patience will be well-rewarded. The flavorful results of your labor are awesome on pizza, especially when combined with gorgonzola cheese and thinly sliced pear.

2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper

1. Heat the olive oil and butter in a heavy skillet over medium-low heat.
2. Spread the onion slices evenly over the pan, sprinkle with salt and a little pepper, and let them cook, stirring occasionally. Depending on the strength of your burner, you may need to reduce the heat to prevent the onions from browning too quickly or burning. Add a little bit of water to the pan if they start to dry out.
3. Continue to cook and occasionally scrape the pan until the onions are tender, sweet, and a deep golden brown. This process usually takes about 25-30 minutes.

Potluck Recipe #24: Double-Ginger Sour Cream Bundt Cake

2011-07-26T15:13:00.007-05:00

This wonderfully moist cake sings with the tang of ginger. Serve it at an Open Arms potluck with a little extra sour cream and a piece of candied ginger or fruit for a memorable end to the meal!

Double-Ginger Sour Cream Bundt Cake

Adapted from Epicurious.com
(makes 12 to 14 servings)

Softened butter (for brushing pan)
1/2 cup raw sugar*
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
4 heaping tsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream
1 cup candied ginger, processed in a Cuisinart (or with a knife if you're handy), until it resembles a chunky paste

1. Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F.
2. Brush softened butter generously all over inside of 12-cup Bundt pan. Sprinkle raw sugar over butter in pan, tilting pan to coat completely.
3. Whisk flour, ground ginger, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl.
4. Using electric mixer, beat 1 cup butter in large bowl until smooth. Add 2 cups sugar; beat on medium-high speed until blended, about 2 minutes.
5. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in 1 egg yolk and vanilla, stopping to scrape down bowl as needed.
6. Add flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with sour cream in 2 additions, beating on low speed just until blended after each addition. Mix in ginger paste.
7. Spread batter in pan, being careful not to dislodge raw sugar. Bake cake until top is light brown and tester inserted near center comes out with a few small crumbs attached, about 55 minutes.
8. Transfer to rack; cool in pan 15 minutes. Gently tap bottom edge of pan on work surface while rotating pan until cake loosens. Place rack atop pan and invert cake onto rack; remove pan. Cool completely.

Potluck Recipe #23: A Brine for the Dog Days of Summer

2011-07-19T10:55:00.006-05:00

Summer is always about the barbecue, but in these days of 115-degree heat indexes, grilling is more than fun, it's just good common sense. Why tax your AC -- or lack thereof -- with a hot kitchen if you don't have to? I'm not suggesting eating outside. No, this is not the time to loiter about the barbecue with a beer in hand exchanging sauce recipes and rehashing old fishing stories. This is more of a grill and dash scenario ... toss, dash, turn, dash, done, dash, eat!

If you are inclined to prepare food ahead for simple weeknight meals, this brine is a winner. We use it on pork loin, but it would also work for pork chops, chicken breasts or a whole chicken, should you find yourself at a potluck (for larger quantities of meat, simply double the amount of brine). The pork loin is nice in that it requires a minimum of hovering.

Brine for Pork & Chicken

1/4 cup sugar

1/8 cup salt

5 coriander seeds

10 to 12 black peppercorns

5 juniper berries

2 to 4 bay leaves

2 to 3 sprigs each fresh thyme, marjoram, basil or other herb

1 gallons of cold water

1-2 pounds of pork loin

1. Add the sugar and salt to about two cups of boiling water, stir and let stand until completely dissolved.

2. Smash the herbs and spices in a mortar, and then add them and the gallon of water to a non-reactive pot and stir in the brine.

3. When the mixture is cool, add the loin to it. The meat must be completely submerged; I sometimes put a plate or bowl on top of it. Refrigerate the loin for 24 hours.

4. Fifteen minutes before grilling, remove the loin from the brine and pat dry, allowing it to come up to room temperature.

5. Grill the loin over medium heat for about 30 minutes or until its internal temperature reaches 137 degrees.

6. Let the pork loin rest, tented in tinfoil, for 15 minutes before serving.

Our New Tiller

2011-07-14T13:27:00.000-05:00

Most farmers love talking farm machinery, especially on the rare occasions that they get to purchase a piece brand new -- and I’m certainly no different. Open Farms is now the proud owner of a new BCS 853 Diesel Tractor with Tiller. Don’t know what a BCS 853 is? Well, don’t worry I’ll be happy to explain. As the salesperson pointed out to me, it's not just a tiller, it's a tractor. What’s the difference? A tractor can utilize all kinds of attachments, such as a rotary plow, a subsoiler, a cultivator, mower, a snowblower — AND a tiller. Since all of those attachments are fairly expensive to purchase, we opted for just the tiller to start. It'll turn our beautiful, loamy soil into a perfect seedbed in no time.

I've only used the tractor for a week, but already it has made a huge difference on the farm. With this new piece of machinery we've been able to turn the remaining fallow patches into beautifully seeded cucumbers and successions of green beans. In case you’re a farm nerd like me, here's an additional detail on the tractor: It’s a Diesel.
The diesel motor will last 2 to 3 times longer than a gas-powered motor if cared for correctly and it has more torque than gasoline motors. Plus, it just sounds cool. Farm intern Samantha says it sounds a bit like a helicopter and I couldn’t agree more. It sounds like it has a lot of power – and it does have a lot of power!

So, if you haven’t already, come out to the farm, pick some vegetables and check out the new tiller, er, tractor. I’ll be happy to tell you all about it.

Potluck Recipe #22: Lentil Veggie Biryani

2011-07-12T11:25:00.005-05:00

Our doyenne of spice, volunteer chef Carol Hancuh, served this savory Indian stew at lunch and had us all lining up for seconds. With nearly five teaspoons of curry spice, it is pleasantly piquant without burning all taste from your tongue. When she passed along the recipe, Carol noted that it is very forgiving; feel free to use substitutes for any of the veggies you don't have -- or don't enjoy.

On a nutrition note, combining lentils with rice is not only delicious, it creates a complete protein — add the egg and you've got a dish that packs an energy wallop! Serve this at a potluck and your guests will leave satiated and ready for action.

Lentils & Veggies Biryani

(Serves 6 to 8)

1/2 cup green lentils, rinsed and drained

4 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 onions, quartered and sliced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1-inch of ginger root, peeled and chopped

4.5 tsp. of curry powder or:

1 tsp. ground turmeric

1/2 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. ground coriander

2 tsp. ground cumin

3 tomatoes, blanched, peeled and chopped

1 eggplant, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces

6 1/2 vegetable stock, boiling

1 bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 3/4 cups basmati rice, rinsed and drained

1 cup green beans, halved

8 oz. of cauliflower

1 cup of mushrooms, quartered

1/3 cup unsalted cashews

3 hardboiled eggs, shelled and halved (optional garnish)

Cilantro sprigs (optional garnish)

In a large stew pot, heat the oil, then add the onions and cook gently for 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic, ginger and spices and cook gently, stirring frequently for one minute.
Add lentils, tomatoes, eggplant and 2 1/2 cups of the stock to the pan and stir well. Simmer, covered for 20 minutes.
Add the red bell pepper and cook for an additional 10 minutes, until the lentils are tender and all the liquid has been absorbed.
Meanwhile, bring rice and remaining stock to boil, adding green beans, cauliflower and mushrooms. Simmer for 15 minutes, until rice and vegetables are tender. Remove from the heat and set aside, covered, for 10 minutes.
Add the rice and cashews to the lentil mixture, mix lightly and pile onto a warm serving platter. Garnish with egg and cilantro sprigs — and serve hot.

Good or Bad, the Weather Affects our Farm

2011-07-06T08:51:00.003-05:00

Farm Director Ben Penner sent us a note about weather this morning. Now that we’re experiencing a more “normal” weather pattern for Minnesota, he thought it would be a good time to reflect on how weather affects our work at the farm.

Vegetables need a lot of water to grow, he writes, but if that water comes at the wrong time or in too great an amount, as it did this spring, then it can cause problems. For example, Open Farms is still playing catch-up from the late spring, when we weren’t able to get all of our crops in the ground in a timely manner due to all the snow on the ground. Then, when it finally did warm up, it REALLY warmed up. Back in May, we had a single 100-degree day, and it caused some of our broccoli (a cool weather crop) to go to seed -- fortunately, not the whole crop, but we probably lost 1/3 – 1/4 of our plants just because of that one day.

If you’re interested in more weather news for Minnesota, a good link to follow is Mark Seeley’s “Weather Talk.” Mark is the State’s climatologist, and he has a good perspective on weather trends in Minnesota.

In the meantime, out on the farm, Ben could use some help plucking weeds and stopping the march of potato bugs across our tubers. We now offer shifts just about every day of the week, so if you have the time and want to get outdoors, please come down to the farm!

Potluck Recipe #21: Mulberry Sorbet

2011-07-05T10:45:00.004-05:00

A confession: I wish it were possible to spay my mulberry tree. Every year it drops bland berries hither and yon, and it's impossible to clean them up to anyone's satisfaction. Outdoor dining is no fun, neighbors revolt, even complete strangers whine, stopping by the back fence to say things like, "You know, it's okay to cut down this kind of tree."

But the tree provides shade in the summer and hours of amusement in the fall, when squirrels imbibe the fermented berries in a bacchanalian fury and do a loopy dance across the top of our fence.

Why should they have all the fun? I'm not suggesting one should eat the fermented berries, but in the sorbet recipe below, a dash of fruit liqueur and lemon juice adds all the body and flavor mulberries lack. And if it's going to rain berries, you might as well get something tasty out of it.

Mulberry Sorbet

(Makes one quart of sorbet)

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 cup water

24 oz. fresh mulberries

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp fruit liqueur

1. Stir sugar and 1 cup water in small saucepan. Bring to boil over high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Boil 1 minute. Transfer syrup to large bowl. Chill until syrup is cold, about 3 hours.

2. Working in batches, puree mulberries with cold syrup in food processor until smooth. Strain into another large bowl; discard seeds. Stir in fruit liqueur and lemon juice.

3. Process berry mixture in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer sorbet to container; cover and freeze until firm, about 6 hours.

4. Serve with a jaunty sprig of mint.

Note: We have also made this without liqueur, instead adding a couple sprigs of rosemary to the simple syrup, which is then strained out with the berry seeds. In that case, an extra tablespoon of lemon juice is also nice. Delicious!

Potluck Recipe #20: Olive Oil Cake

2011-06-28T14:34:00.006-05:00

An impromptu potluck (at my house!) called for a dessert that could accompany another guest's abundant fruit share — oh, what to do with an excess of strawberries and blueberries? Such a problem to have! Whatever I made, I had about a half hour to get her in the oven and no butter or shortening.

Olive oil cake! Sounds funny, but the combination of olive oil and fluffy eggs renders a delicate cake only slightly heavier than angel food and perhaps even more tender. Overall, the cake is not too sweet and pairs deliciously with fresh strawberries and blueberries. That said, the little bit of sugar sprinkled across the top of the cake just before baking forms a very thin crust, which makes the cake a tasty treat on its own, no berries needed.

And yes, the prep time is just under 20 minutes.

Olive Oil Cake

(serves 8 to 10)

3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for greasing pan
5 large eggs, separated, reserving 1 white for another use
1 cup, plus 1 1/2 tbsp., sugar
1 cup cake flour
1 1/2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 cup cake flour
1/2 tsp. salt

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease springform pan with some oil, then line bottom with a round of parchment paper and oil it, too.
2. Beat together yolks and 3/4 cup sugar in a large bowl at high speed until pale yellow, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium and add olive oil and lemon juice, beating until just combined . Using a rubber spatula, add flour mixture in two batches, folding in until just combined.
3. Beat four egg whites with salt in another large bowl with cleaned beaters at medium-high speed until foamy, then add 1/4 cup sugar a little at a time, beating until the egg whites hold soft peaks, about 3 minutes.
4. Gently fold one third of whites into yolk mixture to lighten, then thoroughly fold in remaining whites.
5. Transfer batter to springform pan and gently rap against work surface once or twice to release any air bubbles. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar on top.
6. As it bakes, cake will puff up and turn a light, golden brown. Bake in the center of the oven for 45 minutes or until a toothpick poked in the center come out clean. Cool cake on a rack 10 minutes, then run a thin knife around edge of pan and remove the side. Cool cake completely before serving — top of the cake will flatten out as it cools and pan bottom and parchment should remove easily.

Notes: You can add lemon zest for a more lemony cake or skip the lemon altogether and sub in some almond extract. I also like to shake a little powdered sugar across the top of the cake for decoration.

Coming Up: Onions

2011-06-28T11:14:00.009-05:00

Mmmm . . . . just look at these onions! This morning, Farm Director Ben Penner forwarded this photo to us, wondering if anyone remembers the March 8 farm training, during which folks helped start tiny onion seeds in soil blocks.

If you attended that meeting, you planted these gorgeous onion rows! Don’t they look delicious?

These onions also look well weeded, an ongoing job for Ben, Sam, our farm intern, and volunteers. If you have time to help out, please sign up for a shift.

Summertime, and the Veggies are Growing

2011-06-23T14:51:00.019-05:00

Open Farms Director Ben Penner has been sending our kitchen crates of beautiful spinach, mesclun and arugula for our clients' salads. Today he wrote to tell us that, with the help of a mighty crew of volunteers, he and our farm intern Samantha have planted a healthy portion of the garden -- including some 1,400 tomato plants! -- but there’s more to come, including a giant field of fall vining plants.

"Now all we need to do is weed, weed, weed ... and then do some more weeding," he writes. Apparently, the veggies aren't the only thing flourishing in this month's rainfall!

If you'd like to lend a hand, check out the farm page for shifts.

Potluck Recipe #19: Orzo Salad with Grapefruit and Peanuts

2011-06-21T13:50:00.014-05:00

Last week I sat down to plan a meal for my housemates and found myself in that particular summer dilemma -- what to make when the weather is just too stifling to turn on the oven?

Enter the cold salad. Grab a grain or pasta, chop up whatever veggies are fresh, add some herbs and a bit of kick, and voila! A delicious dinner with minimal heat.

I seem to have some company on this particular train of thought. On The Splendid Table this week, Martha Rose Shulman joined host Lynne Rossetto Kasper to talk about summer salads. Listen to the show or check out one of the recipes they talked about.

I ended up preparing the intensely flavorful salad below, and received a rave review from one of my housemates: "Jeanne! Dinner last night was super-yummy! I felt like I was at a restaurant...if restaurants let you sit on a couch while watching Arrested Development!" Just think what your guests might say if you served this at an Open Arms potluck...

Orzo Salad with Grapefruit and Peanuts

Adapted from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman

(Serves 4-6)

1-2 small chilies, minced, or about 1 tsp. hot red pepper flakes
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 tbsp. packed brown sugar
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tbsp. soy sauce

8 ounces orzo
1 large grapefruit, peeled, sectioned and chopped
1 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
1 medium to large ripe tomato, cored, seeded and chopped
3 scallions, minced
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

1. In a small bowl, combine the chilies, garlic, sugar, lime juice and soy sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning. (This dressing may be prepared a day or two in advance; if anything, its flavor will improve.)
2. Cook and drain the orzo.
3. Mix the grapefruit, 1/2 cup of the peanuts, the tomato, scallions, mint and 1/3 cup of the cilantro together in a large bowl.
4. Toss the orzo in the large bowl with the grapefruit mixture and the dressing.
5. Divide the salad among serving bowls, garnish with the remaining peanuts and cilantro, and serve.

Potluck Recipe #18: Tarragon Vinaigrette

2011-06-07T15:21:00.003-05:00

What to do when spring showers bring bushels of two-foot tall tarragon? Tarragon dressing is delicious, not too labor intensive and provides a delightful companion to all the lettuce also popping up in gardens this time of year — including ours! -- these days.

If you are feeling extra-DIY, you can stuff several sprigs of the delicious herb into well-sealed jars of white-wine vinegar and squirrel them away for winter.

Tarragon Vinaigrette

(Serves 4. To make more servings, simply double the recipe.)

2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. canola oil
1 tbsp. champagne vinegar
1 tsp. dijon mustard
3-4 tbsp. fresh tarragon, roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Mix together vinegar and mustard in a medium size bowl.
2. Add oils, in a slow steady drizzle while whisking. Whisk until completely emulsified.
3. Stir in tarragon, salt and pepper.
4. Let sit for at least an hour, whisk it up and pour it over salad.

If all this whisking is too much trouble, you can also put all the ingredients in a jar and give them a good shake!

Potluck Recipe #17: Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote with Mint

2011-05-31T11:36:00.004-05:00

Rhubarb is one of those mysterious plants that makes one wonder how folks ever figured out the stalk was edible … and how many early gastronomes perished in the process. We will never know, but use of the plant is allegedly rooted in medieval Arab, Chinese and European medicine; yes, for more than 5,000 years it has been used as a laxative.

Most of us, however, know it for the sweet-tart taste of its crimson stalks, which is delightful under a blanket of pastry and a deep scoop of ice cream — so delicious, in fact, that rhubarb is often called pie plant. And this time of year, it grows like a weed in yards all over the Midwest.

As we all know, rhubarb is traditionally combined with strawberries. In the recipe below, strawberries team up with the mint to offset not only the vegetable's powerful tartness, but also its rather gray, mushy presentation once cooked. We enjoy this compote over ice cream, hearty toast, oatmeal and muesli. It is also divine over a simple pound or angel food cake -- a perfect end to an Open Arms potluck.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote with Mint

(Servings vary according to use)

1.5 lbs. of rhubarb
1 cup of sugar
2 tbsp. of Meyer Lemon juice (one lemon)
2 lb. of strawberries
4 tbsp. of mint

1. Cut rhubarb into 1-inch pieces.
2. Combine the rhubarb, sugar and lemon juice in a large, heavy-bottomed pan and cook until rhubarb is tender and just beginning to fall apart, about 20 minutes.
3. In the meantime, cut strawberries into thick slices and set aside in the large bowl.
4. When the rhubarb is tender, gently stir it and any syrup into the strawberries.
5. Allow the compote to cool completely before adding the mint.

Potluck Recipe #16: Roasted Asparagus

2011-05-24T11:24:00.004-05:00

Aside from the exit of winter — in some states! -- we love spring for the arrival of asparagus. A member of the Lily family, asparagus is a bit of a natural wonder: although plants take three years to produce a harvestable crop, once they do, healthy spears will push their way out of the soil at an astounding 10 inches per 24 hours.

For all that rapidity, the little buggers are also nutrient rich, providing potassium, fiber, thiamine and vitamins B6, A and C. Best of all, they cook up tender, make a great side dish and lend an earthy sweet flavor to soups and salads.

We like ours roasted, as shown in the recipe below — a quick and easy side dish or, with the addition of the egg, center of the plate star.

Roasted Asparagus

(Serves 6 to 8)

2 pounds of asparagus
olive oil
kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

1. Place asparagus on a baking sheet in a single layer. Coat with olive oil and a liberal amount of salt and pepper.
2. Roast the spears in the oven — set at 425 degrees, with the rack in the top third of the oven — or on a grill for about 25 minutes, turning every so often, until the spears are browned. We actually prefer them a little charred!
3. Serve warm.

Alternatively, the spears can be wrapped in prosciutto prior to roasting. After roasting, they are quite tasty tossed with a moderate amount of balsamic vinegar or served with a fried egg or two on top.

Potluck Recipe #15: Austin's Fried Potatoes

2011-05-17T13:41:00.005-05:00

Chef Austin brings us this week's recipe, a simple and delicious presentation of potatoes that's perfect for a brunch potluck benefiting Open Arms. The mix of nutmeg, cumin and coriander is the key to making this dish memorable -- the attendees of the Breast Cancer Ride kick-off event are still asking for this recipe weeks after Austin made it for them!

Austin's Fried Potatoes

(Serves 4)

8 to 10 baby red potatoes in 1/4-inch cubes
¼ cup vegetable oil or butter
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
1 yellow or green bell pepper, sliced
Ground nutmeg, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper to taste
½ cup parsley chopped (optional)

1. Melt butter in a pan over medium heat and then add the potatoes, cooking for a half hour or until soft.
2. Add the onions to the potatoes and cook until the onions are translucent.
3. Add the pepper and spices, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender and golden brown.
4. Garnish with parsley and serve. Enjoy!

Potluck Recipe #14: Vietnamese Pho

2011-05-10T11:14:00.008-05:00

Hot, delicious broth and fresh, julienned veggies make this potluck dish enormously satisfying.

Vietnamese Pho

(Serves 6)

4 quarts beef broth

1 large onion, sliced into rings

6 slices fresh ginger root

1 lemongrass stalk

1 cinnamon stick

1 tsp. whole black peppercorns

1/2 lb. bean sprouts

1 cup fresh mint leaves

1 cup fresh basil leaves

1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves

3 fresh jalapeno peppers, sliced into rings

2 limes, cut into wedges

2 8-ounce packages dried rice noodles

1 lb. sirloin tip, cut into thin slices

1/2 tbsp. hoisin sauce

1 dash sriracha hot sauce

3 tbsp. fish sauce

1. In a large soup pot, combine broth, onion, ginger, lemon grass, cinnamon stick and peppercorns. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for one hour.

2. Arrange bean sprouts, mint, basil and cilantro on a platter with jalapeno peppers and limes.

3. Soak the noodles in hot water to cover for 15 minutes or until soft. Drain and place equal portions of noodles into 6 large soup bowls, topping with raw beef. Ladle hot broth over noodles and beef. During the meal, pass platter with garnishes and sauces.

You can use diakon radishes, carrots, celery, cucumbers or zucchini for garnish. All veggies should be julienned thinly so they can be added raw and cook slightly when added to the bowl of soup.

Potluck Recipe #13: 7-Layer Bars

2011-05-03T10:13:00.006-05:00

In honor of Lucky Number 7 Moveable Feast, here's a potluck recipe sure to bring you good fortune (or a least a crowd of hungry admirers).

7-Layer Bars
Adapted from The Brown Eyed Baker

(Makes 18 bars)

1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
8 tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus 3 tbsp. for pan
9 graham crackers (5 oz.), crushed
1 cup finely chopped salted peanuts
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup white chocolate chips
½ cup butterscotch chips
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

1. Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat to 350°F. Brush a 9×13-inch baking pan with melted, slightly cooled butter. Line the pan with two overlapping pieces of foil or parchment paper, leaving overhang to act as handles for lifting the bars out of the pan. Brush with more butter.

2. Spread the coconut on a baking sheet and bake until the outer flakes just begin to brown, about 4 minutes. (Keep a close eye on it – coconut can go from slightly browned to burnt in a matter of seconds.) Set aside.

3. Melt the butter and combine with graham cracker crumbs in a small bowl. Toss with your fingers until the butter is evenly distributed. Press the crumbs evenly onto the bottom of the prepared pan.

4. In order, sprinkle the peanuts, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and coconut over the graham crumbs. Pour the condensed milk evenly over the entire dish.

5. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 25 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack to room temperature, about 2 hours.

6. Remove the bars from the pan using the foil or parchment handles and transfer to a cutting board. Using a sharp knife or bench cutter, cut into 2 by 3-inch bars.

Potluck Recipe #12: Apricot Almond Quinoa Salad with Orange Vinaigrette

2011-04-26T12:38:00.008-05:00

This tasty salad is abuzz with bright flavors, perfect for spring potlucks.

Make up your own amounts for the quinoa salad to suit your taste and batch size. The vinaigrette makes enough for 4-6 servings.

Apricot Almond Quinoa Salad with Orange Vinaigrette

adapted from a recipe by Today I Cooked

Vinaigrette:

zest of 2 oranges
juice of 2 small oranges or 1 large orange
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. honey
1 clove garlic, peeled
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1. In a blender, combine orange zest, orange juice, balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, salt, and pepper. Blend until smooth. With the blender running, add olive oil in a steady stream until combined. Put in refrigerator.

Salad:

dried apricots
dried cherries
quinoa
shallots
slivered almonds
olive oil
sea salt
white pepper

spinach
feta or other sharp cheese

2. Soak dried apricots and dried cherries in water for 1-2 hours. While soaking, rinse and cook quinoa.

3. Thinly slice shallots and add to a skillet with almonds and a bit of olive oil, sea salt and white pepper. Cook until shallots are translucent and almonds are fragrant.

4. Drain and slice apricots and cherries. Add to quinoa, along with nut/shallot mixture.

5. Dress quinoa salad with vinaigrette. Serve on a bed of spinach along with a sharp cheese, like feta.

Potluck Recipe #11: Coconut Peanut Chickpea Stew

2011-04-19T10:24:00.010-05:00

This delightful stew features the chickpea, a tiny legume with a whole lot of history. Its origins can be traced all the way back to the Neolithic period; 7,500-year-old chickpea remains have been found in the Middle East. Ancient people thought they were beneficial in treating kidney stones, and the Romans roasted them for snacks. They even made an appearance in Homer's The Illiad, in which arrows bouncing off of an enemy's breastplate are compared to chickpeas being thrown by a winnower.

Beloved by many cultures, the chickpea is also known as garbanzo bean, chana, Egyptian pea, ceci bean and Bengal gram. Chickpeas are widely used to make curries throughout India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and chickpeas preserved in syrup are eaten as sweets in the Philippines. Ground, roasted chickpeas are even used in Germany as a substitute for coffee.

The history-laden little bean takes a starring role in this rich stew. Make it for friends at an Open Arms potluck -- when made with canned chickpeas, this recipe is a quick and easy hit.

Coconut Peanut Chickpea Stew

(Serves 6 as a main meal; 8-10 as a side dish)

1 cup onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup bell pepper (any color), diced
1 cup carrots, sliced on a bias
6 cups chickpeas (if canned, drained and rinsed)
1/2 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut into halves
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 to 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
1 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. coriander (ground or whole seeds -- if using whole seeds crush them on your cutting board with the back of your knife before adding to the dish)
2 tsp. cumin
salt to taste

1. In a large pot, saute the onion and garlic in olive oil. Sweat them until they become translucent.
2. Add the carrots and saute for about 5 minutes.
3. Add the garbanzo beans and bell pepper and sauté for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Add the coconut milk and peanut butter, and then bring the ingredients to a simmer.
5. Add the cherry tomatoes, turmeric, coriander, salt and cumin. Simmer for another minute or so, releasing the aromatics.
6. Remove the pot from the heat and throw in the cilantro. Taste for salt and add more of any of the spices to your liking. Add a dash of red pepper flakes or cayenne if you like your dish to be spicy. If the coconut milk is thick, you can thin the stew slightly by adding water until you reach the desired consistency.

Potluck Recipe #10: Asei's No-Nonsense BBQ Burgers

2011-04-12T10:40:00.011-05:00

This week's recipe comes from our sriracha-loving sous chef Asei. Try it out on a warm spring evening for an Open Arms potluck.

Asei says:

"I love to barbeque, and this is a good way to incorporate some tasty veggies in and on top of your burger. I would recommend using local grass-fed beef and organic pork for the best flavor, such as Thousand Hills beef and Lorentz pork, which can be found at any local co-op. Also, the beef could be substituted for free-range ground chicken from Larry Schultz, also found at most local co-ops."

Asei's No-Nonsense BBQ Burgers w/ Pickled Veggies and Sriracha Mayo

(Makes approximately eight 8-ounce burgers [big guys!])

Pickled Veggies:
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 cucumber, thinly sliced
2 cups white vinager
5 black pepper corns
2 tbsp. mustard seed
1 cup white sugar

1. Dissolve sugar in vinegar, add veggies and let sit covered in the fridge for 24 hours. If you like it spicy, add a jalapeno.

Sriracha Mayo:
1 cup mayo
3 tbsp. sriracha
1 bunch cilantro, minced
1 tsp. lemon or lime zest
1 clove garlic, minced

2. Mix all ingredients and let sit for two hours in the fridge.

Burger:
1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef
1/2 lb. ground pork
1 onion, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
3 tbsp. salt
3 tbsp. pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch fresh parsley, minced
1 pickled jalapeno or pickled sweet pepper, minced
1/2 tsp. dry chipotle powder

3. Mix burger ingredients together. Shape into patties and cook on the grill at 155 degrees until medium done.
4. Assemble burger. Closed-faced: mayo on the bun, then burger, then pickled veggies. Open-faced: pickled veggies on the bun, then burger, then mayo, topped with some field greens for a gourmet presentation.

Potluck Recipe #9: Olive Oil Roasted Tomatoes and Fennel with White Beans

2011-04-05T09:53:00.014-05:00

This week's recipe features fennel, a versatile vegetable often found in Italian cuisine. Cultures around the Mediterranean have long revered this veggie for its medicinal and culinary uses, and it even made prominent appearances in Greek mythology.

In this recipe, fennel is sauteed with bacon and then roasted with tomatoes, beans, and spices for a supremely savory dish. This decadent number would be a sure hit at an Open Arms potluck.

P.S. If you're hesitating to embrace fennel because you don't care for anise flavors, have no fear -- roasting the fennel heightens its buttery, nutty flavor and curbs its anise taste.

Olive Oil Roasted Tomatoes and Fennel with White Beans

(Serves 6)

2 large fennel bulbs with fronds attached
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 slices of bacon
2 tsp. coarse kosher salt
2 pints grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
4 large fresh oregano sprigs
3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 tsp. dried crushed red pepper
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 15-ounce cans cannellini (white kidney beans), drained

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Chop enough fennel fronds to measure 1/2 cup. Trim fennel bulbs and cut in half vertically. Cut each bulb half into 1/2-inch-wide wedges, leaving some core attached to each wedge.
3. Heat oil in large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat until very hot (about 3 minutes).
4. Add bacon and fennel wedges; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon coarse salt. Cook until fennel begins to brown and soften, turning occasionally (about 10 to 12 minutes).
5. Add tomatoes, oregano, garlic, and crushed red pepper; sprinkle with black pepper and 1 teaspoon coarse salt. Fold together gently.
6. Transfer skillet to oven. Bake fennel and tomatoes until soft, stirring occasionally (about 30 minutes).
7. Mix in beans and 6 tablespoons chopped fennel fronds. Bake 5 minutes longer to heat through.
8. Transfer mixture to large shallow bowl. Sprinkle with remaining chopped fronds. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Potluck Recipe #8: Chocolate Crackle Cookies

2011-03-29T15:09:00.010-05:00

I’m going to let you in on a family secret: Chocolate Crackle Cookies.

Passed down by my grandmother, perfected by my mother, beloved by my brother and me, these cookies are truly time-tested. I remember making countless batches alongside my mom, learning to crack the eggs and level the flour – and sneaking more than a few tastes of the chocolate-y dough!

Now as a 20-something, I rely on these cookies as my go-to recipe for cheering up friends or bringing treats to gatherings. I can say from experience: don’t plan on having any left over if you bring them to a potluck – these little guys are always a crowd favorite.

P.S. Leave time for the dough to chill before you bake them. Make sure not to over-bake them – the soft, chewy center is the best part, especially when they’re still hot from the oven!

Chocolate Crackle Cookies

(Makes 4 dozen)

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups brown sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
powdered sugar

1. Melt chocolate. Stir in sugar and oil.
2. Add vanilla and eggs, beat well.
3. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt.
4. Chill dough until it is firm, about 30 minutes to an hour.
5. Make 1" balls, roll in powdered sugar and place on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Potluck Recipe #7: Spinach Pie

2011-03-22T10:57:00.006-05:00

Spinach pie has no season — it's as comforting a winter dish as any, but paired with a fresh green salad reminds us of the lighter café fare of spring and summer. Of course, you can also pair it with toast and call it brunch. Whatever the season, this quiche is great to share--especially at an Open Arms potluck.

Spinach Pie
Adapted from a Bon Appetit recipe (1991)

(Serves 6)

1 tbsp. butter
1 onion, chopped
2-3 cups fresh baby spinach, packed

1 9-inch pie crust
1 tsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (about 2 oz.) grated Monterey Jack
1/2 cup (about 2 oz.) grated Parmesan
4 eggs
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. dried dillweed

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Press your pie crust — homemade or store-bought -- to 9-inch-diameter pie pan, sealing any cracks. Trim edges.
2. Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 8 minutes.
3. Add spinach and cook until it wilts, about 3-5 minutes. Cool slightly.
4. Sprinkle both cheeses over bottom of crust. Top with spinach mixture.
5. Beat eggs, cottage cheese, salt, pepper, nutmeg and dillweed in large bowl to blend. Pour over spinach.
6. Bake until filling is set, about 50 minutes. Cool slightly. Cut into wedges and serve.

Potluck Recipe #6: Ham & Cheese Pasta

2011-03-15T15:18:00.011-05:00

Mother Nature may be lulling us into thinking that warm weather and green grass are right around the corner, but we all know we'll probably get a bit more snow and ice before spring truly arrives. Why not get one last hot dish fix in before the end of winter? And, as long as you’re making lots of food, invite some folks over for a potluck! This hearty casserole is sure to soothe your late-winter guests.

Find out how to host a potluck for Open Arms.

Ham and Cheese Pasta

(Serves 8-10 people)

2 cups bread crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tbsp. garlic, minced
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1 lb. spaghetti
1 1/2 lb. ham, diced *
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 cups broccoli tops
1/2 cup celery
1/2 cup onions
1/4 cup garlic

6 tbsp. butter
6 tbsp. flour
4 cups milk
2 cups cheddar cheese
2 cups parmesan cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and place rack in the center of the oven.
2. Stir together bread crumbs, butter, garlic, cayenne pepper, and parmesan cheese and set aside.
3. Cook spaghetti in water (don’t add oil) until done. Drain.
4. Saute diced ham in pan with a little water and the brown sugar until the ham absorbs the sugar. Set aside.
5. Saute onions, celery and garlic until soft. Add the broccoli and continue cooking the vegetables until the broccoli is bright green. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.
6. In Dutch oven, saute the flour in 6 tablespoons of the butter to create a roux; let the butter and flour brown and turn nutty. Add the milk and stir until thick. You can adjust thickness by adding more milk.
7. Add cheese, ham and vegetables, stir until coated and then put the entire mixture in baking dish and sprinkle with bread-crumb mixture. (This dish should fill a 9x12 pan or bigger.)
8. Bake for one hour or until breadcrumbs are toasty brown.

* You can make this a fantastic vegetarian dish by omitting ham and increasing the amount of veggies.

Potluck Recipe #5: Kale, Egg, and Sausage Bake

2011-03-08T12:57:00.007-06:00

Picture this: It’s a weekend morning and there’s nothing pressing on your to-do list. Friends chat happily around you, sharing the week’s news. There’s sunshine pouring through the window, a cup of coffee warming your hand, and a slice of savory egg bake waiting to be devoured.

Is this heaven? Almost…it’s brunch.

Brunch offers a wonderful, laid-back pause from the rest of the week. You can sleep late, join with loved ones for a meal, and have the rest of the day free. This week’s potluck recipe, a satisfying egg bake featuring apple sausage and kale, celebrates this cheerful meal.

Brunch also presents a low-key way to introduce your friends and family to the work of Open Arms. Find out how to host a brunch potluck for us—we’ll help you with invitations, ideas on what to share, and how to ask your guests to support our work.

Kale, Egg, and Sausage Bake

(Serves 8 people)

1 medium onion, finely chopped (1/2 cup)
4 tbsp. unsalted butter
2.5 lb. kale, stems removed and leaves coarsely chopped
1 lb. chicken- or pork-apple sausage, without the casing
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
8 large eggs

Special equipment: 8 (8-ounce) ramekins
Accompaniments: buttered toast

Preheat oven to 400°F.

1. Cook onion in butter in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes.
2. Add kale and sausage and cook covered, stirring 2 or 3 times, until the kale begins to wilt, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove lid and cook, stirring, until excess liquid is evaporated, 2 to 4 minutes.
3. Add cream, salt, and pepper and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Arrange buttered ramekins in a shallow baking pan and divide sausage and spinach among them. Make an indentation in center of each and carefully crack an egg into each indentation.
5. Bake in middle of oven until whites are just set, about 15 minutes.

Serve eggs in ramekins with a side of toast.

Potluck Recipe #4: White Bean & Halibut Stew

2011-03-01T13:12:00.009-06:00

The recipe for this robust soup flavored with bacon and saffron comes from our executive chef, Nick Collins. Nick recommends pairing this hearty stew with the fresh baked bread we prepare in-house for our clients. If that’s not an option for you, he suggests finding a chewy artisan bread from bakeries such as Patisserie 46 to go with the stew. Pair it with a Chilean or Spanish Andalusian white wine, he says, and—voila—you have a late winter success.

Want to try out this fish dish at your own Open Arms potluck? We’d love for you to get involved!

White Bean & Halibut Stew

(Serves 8-10 people)

8 thick-cut bacon slices, chopped (Nick likes Nueske’s)
1 cup shallots, sliced
6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
12 garlic cloves, chopped
30 oz. petite diced tomatoes in juice (Nick suggests you try San Marzano, from Broder’s Deli)
1/4 cup white wine, preferably pinot grigio
16 oz. clam juice
1 tsp. saffron
3 15-ounce cans small white beans (cannellini)
3 lbs. halibut or firm whitefish, cut into chunks

1. Sauté bacon and shallots in a large pot over medium heat until bacon is crisp (about seven minutes).
2. Add olive oil and garlic and stir for one minute.
3. Add tomatoes and their juice, wine and saffron. Bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes.
5. Add beans and fish. Cover and simmer until fish is just opaque (about five minutes).
6. Season to taste and enjoy!

Potluck Recipe #3: Tamale Pie

2011-02-22T10:06:00.006-06:00

Ever since we started talking about the idea of hosting potlucks to support Open Arms, I've been thinking about this recipe. It comes from my mother-in-law, Daphne Ahlenius, who is English but has taken to California fare like a native. She brings Tamale Pie to nearly every family event, and we love it for the savory tang of the tomatoes, moderate spice and, of course, the comfort of melted cheese. Enjoy!

If you like it, consider serving it at your own potluck -- we still have spots if your interested in getting involved.

Tamale Pie

(Serves 8-12 people)

2-3 medium onions chopped

1 lb. ground turkey

1 12-ounce can tomato paste

1 28-ounce can peeled tomatoes, chopped

1 14-ounce can cream-style corn

1 cup polenta (corn meal)

2 tbsp. chile powder

1/2 tsp. cumin

2 tsp. salt

1 cup milk

shredded cheese

black or Kalamata olives

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. In a large pot, saute onions in olive or canola oil until clear and soft.

3. Add turkey and cook until lightly browned.

4. Add tomato paste, tomatoes, corn, polenta, spices and milk to the turkey.

5. Pour ingredients into a large baking pan and bake for 1 hour in the middle of the oven.

6. Remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese and olives, and broil until cheese is melted -- just a few minutes should do it!

Potluck Recipe #2: B.L.T. Soup

2011-02-15T15:02:00.007-06:00

We’ve got soup on our mind this month, as the chill of winter persists.

The familiar BLT combo isn’t just for sandwiches anymore; this original recipe turns the favorite trio into a delicious soup.

Like all of the recipes in our potluck series, this one’s great for feeding a crowd. We still have spots for hosting a potluck—find out how to get involved.

B.L.T. Soup

(Serves 8 to 12 people)

1 lb. regular sliced bacon diced in 1” squares
3 cans diced tomatoes (28 oz. each)
2 tbsp. chicken-soup base (I use Better than Bouillon brand)
2 heads iceberg or romaine lettuce chopped in 1” squares
2 cups water
1/2 cup mayonnaise (or to taste)
Salt and pepper

1. In a frying pan or griddle, cook bacon until it is brown and crispy. Reserve bacon fat.

2. In a large soup pot, combine bacon, diced tomatoes, chicken-soup base, lettuce and water and bring contents to a boil.

3. Add the mayo and 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes or until lettuce is wilted.

4. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Note: If there’s not enough bacon flavor, you can add a little more bacon fat. If you like lots of mayo on your B.L.T sandwich, feel free to add a little more mayo to your soup!

Makes about 4-5 quarts.

Recipe contributed by Carol Hancuh, Open Arms volunteer

Potluck Recipe #1: Chilly Willy Chili

2011-02-08T15:59:00.005-06:00

The aroma of delicious food, the sound of laughter and the warmth of a welcoming table…for many of us that is Open Arms. This year, we're asking you to create that same atmosphere in your own home -- host a potluck and share the story of Open Arms and the important work we do.

Today we begin a new series of sharing: each week we’ll post a new potluck recipe from the Open Arms kitchen here on our blog. These recipes will give you a starting point for your own potluck.

This week, we’ve got an award-winning chili recipe from this year’s Toast! event. With its balance of sweetness and spice, this tasty vegetarian chili is sure to be a hit with your guests.

Chilly Willy Chili

1 lb. tempeh
2-3 tbsp. ancho chile powder
2 tbsp. cumin 2 pints of beer (Lagunita’s Copper Ale or another nice beer with malty sweetness)
15 oz. black beans
15 oz. adzuki beans
bay leaves
1/4 cup butter
3 onions, chopped
1-2 red bell peppers, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/4 cup masa harina (or flour)
1 tbsp. chipotle chile powder
2 tbsp. cocoa powder
1 qt. diced and/or crushed tomatoes
2 tsp. honey
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. cilantro, chopped

One day ahead:

1. Marinate crumbled tempeh overnight in 1 tbsp. of the ancho chile powder, 2 tsp. of the cumin and 1 pint of beer.

2. Cook black beans and adzuki beans with bay leaves the day before (or used canned beans).

Day of meal:

1. Heat a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat for 1-2 minutes. Add crumbled marinated tempeh and 2 tbsp. butter. Cook, stirring often, until tempeh is browned (about 10 minutes). Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

2. Sauté onions, red bell pepper, garlic and crushed red pepper in butter. In a small bowl, combine masa harina (or flour), chipotle chile powder, cocoa, and the rest of the ancho chile powder and cumin with enough liquid to form a paste. When the onion sauté is soft, add 2-3 tbsp. of the chili paste. Stir to combine well.

3. Add black beans, adzuki beans and tempeh. Sauté for 5 min, stirring frequently. Add tomatoes and the other pint of beer (or stock of your choice) to desired thickness.

4. Let chili stew for 30 min. before adding honey and cinnamon. Add chili paste to strengthen spiciness. Add cilantro just before serving.

5. Serving recommendations include: Whole Grain Milling Company yellow corn chips, sharp cheddar from the Caves of Faribault, and several dollops of sour cream mixed with avocado, lime and cumin.

This recipe was created by Rita Panton and Kay Mitchell for the chili cook-off at Toast! A Volunteer Appreciation Celebration, held on Jan. 13, 2011, at Open Arms of MN.

Pete: SNAP at last!

2010-11-25T09:30:00.000-06:00

First, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!
Second, I'm sorry for being tardy with my final blog post. I got home from work last night and realized I had tickets to the wild game so I quickly got ready and headed towards downtown Saint Paul.

My final day of the challenge consisted of oatmeal topped with brown sugar. I finished half a bowl and had to throw the rest away because my body could not handle anymore. There is something about the texture of oatmeal and makes my stomach nauseous. I would rather eat glue then another bowl of oatmeal. Lunch consisted of 1 cup of cooked rice topped with sweet chili sauce. Dinner was rice again, but instead of sweet chili sauce it was soy sauce.

Being at the wild game and smelling all the delicious stadium food almost made me end my challenge early and indulge in a footlong hot dog from the Sausage Haus. It got to the point where I wanted to push a small child over and take his nachos from him. Thankfully I had enough common sense and self control not to. I got home from the game and joined a bunch of friends at a local pub. I waited until midnight before I order a beer. I then decided that I was going to walk to Jimmy John's for a BLT and bag of BBQ chips. Me being the idiot I am, I didn't realize that the night before thanksgiving most kitchens close at midnight. So I ran around uptown last night searching for a food establisment that would serve me and no such luck. So I was left with plan b which consisted of me walking home and eating a cinnamon & raisin bagel and granola bar.

As I was finishing up my challenge a few things came to mind. If you really want to make this a challenge I think people should try this for a month and see how they hold up. That would be the real challenge. As we sit down with our family and friends and celebrate the abundance of food. What do people living on SNAP do for thanksgiving?

Final results:
Starting Weight: 186
End Weight: 181

Things I have learned on this challenge:

1.) People living on SNAP are extremely limited. They don't have the luxury of eating healthy food. They can't consume in mass quantity like the rest of us.

2.) People actually think I'm funny! To my sister: if you ever read this blog know that there are people in this world that think I'm funny. Sorry to break it to you!

3.) I'm as modest as I am ugly, which is to say I'm not modest at all and I am drop dead gorgeous. Those are irrefutable facts.

To use a phrase from coach Bill Belichick. I was served a piece of humble pie. As much as I complained and looked like hell. The challenge was a minor inconvenience for me compared to a daily reality for some folks. Thanks to everyone for the wonderful words of encouragement. I hope everyone has a great holiday!

Kevin:SNAP Challenge Day Seven

2010-11-24T19:24:00.000-06:00

As I wait for my brown rice to boil to prepare my final dinner of my SNAP Challenge, black beans and rice, I have a few minutes to reflect on my seven days of living on $27.65 – the average amount a low-income, single person would receive in food stamps for one week.

It's been a week of learnings – learnings about food, about other people and about myself – some of which I have blogged about throughout the week. I lost three pounds. By the fourth day of the challenge I found I didn't have the amount of energy that I usually do. I definately was sleeping more. I spent much more time thinking about food, grocery shopping, planning and preparing meals than I ever do when I'm not living on such a tight food budget.

And now that the challenge is nearly over, I find myself wanting to do something to recognize the week. Obviously, going out for a nice meal is out of the question as is a champaigne toast. I'm still living on $3.95 a day, after all, and this isn't an occassion that calls for a celebration. Rather, it requires a call to action for me and others who might want to do something to address hunger in Minnesota.

The first thing I did was make a donation in the amount of $27.65 to my favorite nonprofit that works to address nutrition and hunger in the Twin Cities. I specifically donated that dollar amount in recognition of one of the 440,000 Minnesotans who received food stamps in October.

The second thing I did was visit the website for Hunger-Free Minnesota, a collaborative campaign to end hunger in the state. Hunger-Free Minnesota hopes to get 25,000 people to sign a pledge that reads: "I believe that food is a basic and essential human right. I believe Minnesota produces enough food to nourish and sustain all who live here. And I support Hunger-Free Minnesota in its campaign to end hunger." It took me one minute to sign the pledge.

What I'm doing now is asking others to join me in making a donation in the amount of $27.65 to a local food shelf, hunger relief or meals-on-wheels organization. And I'm asking others to visit www.hungerfreemm.org to sign the pledge to end hunger in Minnesota.

The last thing I am going to do is enjoy every morsel of my Thanksgiving meal on Thursday and wish everyone a very happy Thanksgiving.

Pete: SNAP crackle pop

2010-11-23T23:05:00.000-06:00

Day 6.....

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Today I had half a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. If I had anything more than that I would have been in the fetal position praying to the porcelain gods. Lunch was a major upgrade that consisted of left over noodles and ragu- sweet tomato basil sauce. Dinner was a cup of rice cooked topped with the delightful sweet chili sauce.

I ran 4 miles after I got off work and actually felt really good. I actually felt so good that I went to LA Fitness and did a strength training workout after the run. Currently I feel surprisingly energetic and chipper and I can't really explain it. I'm not going to question why I feel this good since I have felt pretty miserable the past few days. We'll see how my body feels in the morning, but right now I'm on cloud 9.

25 hours and counting......

KEVIN: SNAP Challenge Day Six

2010-11-23T21:49:00.001-06:00

I didn't need to take the SNAP Challenge to realize that my gender and race afford me a certain amount of privilege. I've been aware of the benefits and opportunities that come with being male and white for a very long time. I was also aware of the added privilege that comes from having an education and a well-paying job. All of this allows me to take one week out of my life and feed myself for $27.65. And then, at the end of the week, to go back to shopping at expensive grocery stores and eating at fine restaurants

I embarked on this week-long challenge in hopes of drawing attention to the issues of hunger and food insecurity in Minnesota. It worked. I haven't engaged in a single conversation in over a week that didn't include a discussion about this challenge. I've had colleagues call me, old friends Face Book me and strangers send me e-mails. I've been interviewed on local radio and television stations. Today, I was speaking at an area college and met a young man who is a recipient of food stamps. He thanked me for doing the SNAP Challenge.

This young man, Freddie, is one of the 440,000 Minnesotans who received food stamps in October. He knows what it is like to live on food stamps for months – not just for one week as part of a consciousness-raising experiment. When I asked Freddie why he would thank me for doing what he lives, he said it was because he needs to live on food stamps but I chose to do this for one week.

Freddie is a real spokesperson for food insecurity in Minnesota, but no one has been talking to him about his experiences on food stamps this past week. I doubt people have been offering Freddie food or sending him encouraging messages. I'm happy to use whatever privilege I have to bring attention to this issue, but the people we really need to be listening to are those like Freddie, and the hundreds of thousands of other Minnesotans on SNAP who, unlike me, won't wake up on Thanksgiving morning and never again have to think about living on only $3.95 a day.

Pete: SNAP- Hungry why wait?

2010-11-22T22:48:00.000-06:00

Day 5......

Highlight of the day eating a PB&J sandwich. Low-light: ran out of bananas and realized that I only have 2 more pieces of bread left and 2 days left on the challenge. I was hoping to avoid the oatmeal, but looks like I have no choice, but to choke that stuff down.

Recently people have commented on the way I look. Normally, I welcome the comments, but lately they are down right brutal. My mom told me on Saturday that I looked really tired and lethargic. Later that day my sister told me that I looked like hell. Today a volunteer asked me who was doing my eye-liner, because I had bags under my eyes. I can't wait to see what I look like on day 7!

Snickers might give the most accurate description of what people act like when they're hungry. This is my personal favorite and I feel like I have acted like this since being on the challenge. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLrsCnBvQFo

KEVIN: SNAP Challenge Day Five

2010-11-22T18:21:00.000-06:00

Why is it that so much of what I've been eating the past five days is orange in color? I haven't had a box of macaroni and cheese for dinner since college. The half of a pear, including some syrup from the can, is as close to a treat as I've come all week.

Pete: SNAP out of it

2010-11-21T22:36:00.000-06:00

Day 4......

Breakfast: PB&J sandwich and a banana.
Lunch: 1 cup of rice cooked with soy sauce.
Dinner: PB&J sandwich with pasta shells covered in ragu- sweet tomato basil.

I ended my last blog posting talking about how my diet would affect my workouts. Friday and Saturday I did strength training workouts. I knew the workouts would be difficult, but I had no idea they would be so bad. I had to lower the amount of weight I was able to lift and I did few repetitions. I ended up cutting my workouts short because I was so fatigued. I actually came home and took an hour nap after each workout.

For those of you who think there are solutions or loops holes to this challenge let me just say that the following senarios won't work.

#1.) Nobody can buy me food or beverages. For those of you who say "well I've bought a beer or a burger for someone living on food stamps before" That is great, but that is considered cheating in my book since those people eat this way on a daily basis and I am doing it for a week.

#2.) You can't give me money and say "now you have a bigger budget" - still cheating.

#3.) No I can't sit down outside of a wal-mart with a cup and ask for donations. - still cheating.

#4.) Steal food. - absolutely not an option.

KEVIN: SNAP Challenge Day Four

2010-11-21T18:15:00.001-06:00

I don't know when, if ever, I have gone four days without throwing away some leftover food or table scraps. Since starting my SNAP Challenge not a single flake of raisin bran or a bite of scrambled egg has gone into the garbage. That may change, however.

I waited until the weekend to prepare the two entrees that I thought would be the highlights of my week. The first was ground turkey served over pasta with spaghetti sauce. The second was chicken drumsticks served with the exact same pasta and spaghetti sauce. I made both dishes at the same time getting three generous servings out of the ground turkey and two out of the chicken drumsticks. Having more portions of the pasta with turkey, I decided that would be my dinner and, as it was the weekend, I would make the meal a little extra special by melting a slice of American cheese over it.

I should have known when the "imitation" orange-colored cheese didn't actually melt that the meal might not live up to my expectations. The first couple of bites tasted fine. Not great, but as this was one of my most expensive meals of the week ($1.39 for a pound of ground turkey), I wasn't about to be put off by the awful aftertaste that followed each swallow. As a boy, I lived on a farm and would often feed our chickens a packaged feed. The ground turkey I was eating had an off-putting smell that I associated with the feed I used to give our chickens. Halfway through the meal I began to wonder if it wasn't going to make me sick. It didn't, but the thought of eating this same meal two more times was not appealing.

Fortunately, I had the servings of chicken and pasta all ready to be heated for my lunch today. It never occurred to me that this might actually taste worse than the turkey and pasta, but it did. Something about the spaghetti sauce, combined with inexpensive chicken drumsticks covered with fat and skin, resulted in a meal that was nearly inedible. Being hungry, I ate the entire serving. Five minutes later, in an effort to get rid of the lingering taste in my mouth, I ate one of my six-ounce containers of raspberry yogurt and had half a glass of milk.

Now, I'm faced with a dilemma. I have three leftover servings of turkey and pasta and chicken and pasta and the thought of eating this one more time, let alone for three more meals, makes me sick. I can probably stretch my rice and black beans to three meals. I have one can of vegetable soup and two overripe bananas left in the pantry. That, combined with my remaining eggs, a couple of slices of bread and a whole lot of carrots, should probably get me to Thanksgiving.

I won't throw my turkey and chicken leftovers away quite yet. In a couple of days, they might look appetizing again. But right now I'm happy to return to a meal consisting only of a peanut butter sandwich and a carrot. If only I had bought a second jar of peanut butter instead of the chicken drumsticks.

MARTHA: Unpacking Groceries - Inexpensive vs. Cheap

2010-11-21T14:24:00.001-06:00

After pouring over the supermarket ads in the Sunday paper, Paula and I decided to stick to the shopping list and make a few vegetarian substitutions. Armed with detailed lists and coupons, we shopped at five different stores: ALDI, Rainbow, Cub, Dollar Tree, and United Noodles (they sell tofu for .99/pound). This took well over two hours. But, we came in a little under budget and were able to splurge on some fresh spinach and squash from the farmer's market for $2.50. That makes six vendors.

I do most of the food shopping and cooking in our house, and I make everything from scratch (including soup stock). This is labor and time intensive, but our meals are super tasty, relatively inexpensive, and highly nutritious. I was amazed to see how many foods on our SNAP grocery list contain high fructose corn syrup. I expected to find this in the tinned fruit, but not in the bread, pasta sauce, raisin bran, tomato soup, and vegetable broth! I have trouble pronouncing some of the other added ingredients. What are they and where do they come from? Why so many additives?

Over the past few years, documentary films like Super Size Me, King Corn, and Food, Inc., have turned a critical eye on American agribusiness and the corporate food industry. These giant companies turn a profit by cheapening the nutritional value of food and selling it inexpensively. High fructose corn syrup and sodium are a major part of this process, from Big Macs to vegetable broth. It's one thing to eat these foods on occasion as a choice, but for folks using the SNAP card, this is the only option. Is it any wonder that diet-related illnesses like obesity, hypertension, and diabetes are epidemics, especially among poorer people? What are the long-range "costs" of eating this way?

Giant food companies are far more interested in marketing their products than in educating consumers about nutritional content. These companies' methods of advertising and packaging have mastered the art of seduction, and have even contributed to widespread confusion about fat, cholesterol, trans-fats, and calories (not to mention the long list of additives). Indeed, knowledge is power, but when your stomach is growling, how much time and energy do you really have to learn the facts about food content and detect nutritional scams posing as bargains?

I notice a great deal of outrage and judgment directed at people who use food stamps and are "subsidized" by our government. I do not notice the same criticism of government subsidies of agribusiness and the corporate food industry. Surely, these hidden subsidies deserve critical attention and should comprise part of the larger set of arguments around poverty and food justice.

When it comes to food, is there no moral imperative to produce healthy, desirable foods that SNAP card users can afford? Must quality food always cost more? How inexpensive is cheap food?

SNAP Challenge

2010-11-21T11:20:00.002-06:00

I began last Thursday at 10:00 am by going to ALDI and the Dollar Tree. I got everything on the list except yogurt, peanut butter, chicken drumsticks and ground turkey (deli turkey slices and ice cream drumsticks instead instead) and spent $21.73. I've never been a good shopper or eater so this was an interesting experience. I don't think I did so well on protein.

Today is day 4 and I find that I've been obsessing about food - how long to the next meal, will I have enough food for the week. I'm amazed at the anxiety this produces and wonder how people get through this every day of their lives.

So far I've been having cereal with skim milk (measured) and a banana in the morning, turkey or grilled cheese sandwich, 5 baby carrots and skim milk for lunch and dinner. Today I lived it up and had poached eggs for breakfast. I'm going to make spaghetti and pasta sauce for dinner tonight so I can take left overs to work tomorrow.

I miss pizza, pepsi and potato chips.

KEVIN: SNAP Challenge Day Three

2010-11-20T08:33:00.001-06:00

I've completed two days of my SNAP Challenge, gained one pound (probably from last night's pasta with ground turkey dinner) and experienced a low grade headache for most of yesterday, no doubt from the dramatically reduced coffee in-take. I'm spending much more time preparing meals than I normally do, though I can't call browning ground turkey, boiling a box of pasta and heating a can of spaghetti sauce cooking. It's been a great learning experience, but the most interesting part of this challenge hasn't been what I'm learning about food. It's what I'm learning about people.

Until deciding to live on $27.65 for one week, I had no idea how many of my friends and colleagues have, at some point in their lives, relied on food assistance. I've had conversations with friends who told me their families depended on food stamps while they were growing up. Others have said that an early marriage with children sent them to food shelves. After a layoff last year and no work since, a middle-aged colleague now finds herself using a SNAP card for the first time in her life to put food on the table for her child and herself.

People have sent emotional e-mails describing their embarrassment of going grocery shopping and having a cashier respond judgmentally when they presented their food stamps. Others have created elaborate explanations for why they can't join friends for meals at restaurants or contribute to neighborhood potluck dinners because they simply didn't have the money to participate in social activities that center around food.

This SNAP Challenge has generated other conversations as well. Many of us, it seems, have preconceived notions of the "kinds" of people who receive food stamps or visit food shelves. There are those that think it's only the chronically unemployed, under-educated, poor people who must rely on the generosity of public and nonprofit programs. It certainly isn't our family members, friends and neighbors. Man, are they mistaken.

Mike: Final day of our SNAP Challenge

2010-11-19T15:38:00.001-06:00

One meal to go and our SNAP Challenge is over, but even a week of eating on such a limited budget is telling. My family is tired of peanut butter sandwiches, and my wife and I will definitely welcome back our morning coffee. But for us, the inconvenience is almost over. Tomorrow morning I can go to the grocery store – any store that I choose – and buy the items I WANT to eat, not items that will stretch the farthest. I won’t need to think about who has the lowest prices, best sales, or store specials. I can choose quality, freshness, and variety. If my family relied on SNAP benefits, that wouldn’t be the case.

This experience has pointed out something I’m embarrassed to admit - we take food for granted. For those relying on SNAP benefits, food is not a luxury. And subsisting on a limited food allowance is not an inconvenience, but a way of life. Going forward (and for the first time in my life), we will have a food budget. It won’t be as restrictive as the SNAP benefits we lived on all week, but it will have a limit. More then this, we will begin donating a portion of the money we’ll be saving on groceries each week to local food shelves and organizations like Open Arms. These are the people and organizations who know the real value of food and the important role it plays in the lives of those in need. Best of luck to the rest of you taking the SNAP Challenge this week. I hope your experience is as eye-opening as mine.

Pete: SNAP Challenge - Gaining fitness

2010-11-19T11:16:00.000-06:00

Day 2 so far so good. I ate a PB& J sandwich and a banana for breakfast.

Lunch will probably be pasta and some left over ragu.

Dinner will be 2 cups of rice with sweet chili sauce.

For those of you who don't know me. I like to work out on a regular basis. which means I ususally work out 5-6 times a week. One thing I never considered before I accepted the terms of the SNAP challenge was how was my diet going to affect my workouts. I'm going to monitor my weight and how I feel during and after my workouts.

Basic info:
Height: 6'2"
Weight 186 lbs
Age: 25
Gender: male

My Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is 1994.58. What does BMR mean? BMR means the number of calories my body burns if I were to stay in bed all day. The BMR formula uses Height, Weight, Age, and Gender to determine how many calories your body burns. In order to figure out what my body burns on a typical day I need the Harris Benedict Formula to help me. Which means multiplying my BMR by the appropriate activity factor. Since I am moderately active (exercise 3-5days a week) my formula will look like this 1994.58 x 1.55 = 3091.59. Which means my body will need on a daily basis 3091.59 calories to function properly.

If anyone is curious how many calories they burn throughout the day I have posted a link to the webiste that has a BMR calculator. This same website has a link to the Harris Benedict Equation.
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

If you take a look at my post from last night you will notice that my total caloric intake was about 2030 calories. You will also notice that my diet consists of very little protein which is what your body uses to help repair muscles after you workout. Last night I went for a 4 mile run and finished in about 32 minutes. I felt fine during the run, but after I finished I felt light headed and very tired. Today I'm a little sore in my legs, but nothing too bad. Tonight I am schedule to do a weight training workout. I am curious to see how I will feel during and after the workout. Stay tuned!

KEVIN: SNAP Challenge Day Two

2010-11-19T06:13:00.001-06:00

There is a reason for the adage – a picture is worth a thousand words. My lunch on Thursday (pictured here) consisted of a peanut butter sandwich (.07 cents), a banana (.16 cents) and a carrot (.07 cents). For .30 cents, it was a pretty nutritious meal.

Next Thursday is Thanksgiving and this year Americans will spend, on average, $45.79 for a traditional meal for a gathering of 10 people. That's a 16-pound turkey with all of the fixings, including pumpkin pie with whipped cream, for $4.58 a person.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and I intend to enjoy every bite of my meal that day. We all should. That's what Thanksgiving is all about.

But what if every American donated just .30 cents – the cost of a peanut butter sandwich, banana and carrot – to meals on wheels or a local food shelf on Thanksgiving? If that were to happen, by the end of Thanksgiving Day more than $92 million would have been raised for hunger relief in this country. That would be one more thing to be grateful for.