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Real Kids Real Food Real Kids Real Food inspires children to eat plant-based, organic living foods by growing and preparing their own food. Each student aged 5 to 14 travels from their weekly, after-school club with a new recipe and the selfconfidence to create it at home, thus involving family members in their process. The children experience the seed-to-plant-to-fruit cycle over the school year by studying the biology and chemistry of soil and how the environment affects food growth. Visual arts, music and literature are utilized to support the children’s different learning styles. After graduating as a Health Educator from the Hippocrates Health Institute in West Palm Beach, FL, Betsy Bragg became the Executive Director of the non-profit Optimum Health Solution (OHS in Waltham, MA. The idea for Real Kids Real Food germinated when Betsy decided to help curb childhood obesity and malnutrition by teaching children to make healthy choices. She shared her goals with the adult students enrolled in her 10-week Eat to Thrive class, and they immediately volunteered to facilitate the program. The initial program, a 30-credit, teacher-training course, was launched at the Martin Luther King, Jr., School (K-8) in Dorchester, MA. Subsequently at the Elizabeth Peabody House in Somerville, MA the curriculum evolved into an after-school program. This year, thanks to a generous grant from the Somerville Health Foundation, OHS will be providing the Real Kids Real Food experience to students as part of the Mystic Learning Center’s after-school program.
Real Kids Real Food Staff
Betsy Bragg, Executive Director
Brian Axelrod, Team Leader
Marcus Gorman, Team Leader
Stacey Butler, Intern Salem State College
Carlyn Friedberg, Intern Harvard University
Aaron Darrell, Intern Bunker Hill Community College
Miryam Wiley PR, Photographer
Partners/Sponsors/Grantors/Contributors Ø Somerville Health Foundation Grant Ø Hippocrates Health Institute Ø Helping Hands Program Strategic Sponsors Ø Excalibur Dehydrator Ø Food for Free Ø Metro Pedal Power Ø Rockland Trust Ø JenXDesigns Ø Sacco’s Bowl Haven Ø Life Alive
Real Kids Real Food Club Members 2012-2013 Alberto Chaisson Andrea Lizama Aniana Cepeda Burten Dorvilier Chris Rodriguez Daniella Mendoza Darien Rodriguez David Lopez Ismael Pena Jacob Rodriguez Karina Morales Kaylie Dunbar Kelin Velasquez Kelly Alphonse Koryssa Chaisson Lenz Dodin Makaylah Barnett Melvin Fuentes Moise Zazaire Nevaeh Schanke Obby Camizir Rakin Bhuiyan Ronaldo Joseph Sam Cochran Silvia Arriaza
What Real Kids say about Real Foods…. David: “These are things I’ve never had ‘til now. I was surprised how good I felt right after I had them.” Ronaldo: “I really like and learned a lot about fruits and vegetables. Carrot, apple, ginger juice …yum, yum, yum, yum, yum.” Kaylie: “The smoothie gave me energy! Almond milk, strawberries, bananas never tasted so good.” Daniella: We need more real foods like these in school: sweet potato crisps, Ninja Smoothies and Ants on a Log. PS not real ants.” Jacob: “Whatever it is, I’ll eat it.” Ismael: “I could drink this every day.” Nevaeh: “Give me more beets. I want to cut them” A.J. : “ I bet I could drink the whole thing.”
Mystic Learning Center Real Kids Real Food Lesson Plan Topics and Recipes 2012- 2013 1. 2. 3. 4.
Oct. 2 Introductions to Real Kids Real Food & Ninja Smoothies Oct 9 Eating a Rainbow – Part I & Guacamole with veggies of different colors Oct 16 Eating a Rainbow – Part 2; Leafy salad with many colors Oct 23 Fun-damentals of Food (Natural vs. Processed, GMOs) & BAT (Bananas Apple & Tahini) 5. Nov. 13 Fabulous Fiber & Awesome Applesauce 6. Nov. 20 Powerful Protein and Enzymes & Kale chips with sunflower cheese 7. Nov 27 Phat Fats & Carob Mousse 8. Dec. 4 Learning to Read Labels & Zucchini Linguini with Marinara Sauce 9. Dec. 10 Family Holiday Party: Guacamole with carrots, celery, cauliflower, grape tomatoes; ants on a log; carob mousse and chocolate truffles 10. Dec 11 Composting with Herman the Worm Carbs & Banana Chips 11. Dec. 18 Holiday presents – Making Gift Boxes for Raisin Walnut Truffles and Brownies 12. March 11 Parent’s Program: Delicious Snow Peas; Red Pepper Marinara Sauce with Linguini Zucchini; Apple Pie 13. March 12 Welcome back – Eating goals and review – Chocolate Monster Smoothie 14. March 19 Sprouting & Crunchy Munchies & Potato Chips and Apple Crisps 15. April 2 Waking up Pea Seeds and Sweet Orange Salad 16. March 26 Gardening and Creating own Salads 17. April 9 – Soil Erosion and Apple Stuffed Apple(Aaron, Marcus & Brian) April 16 Field Trip to Enterprise Farm, Whately, MA & Survival, Amherst, 18. April 23 Artificial vs Natural Sweetners & Tasting Sweets 19. April 30 Intro to Juicing & Apple and Beet Juice 20. May 7 Garden Tour & More Juicing with carrots, apples & ginger 21. May 14 Juicing Bingo & Creating Own Juices 22. May 21 Post Test and Writing Letters to Superintendent with Suggestions to Improve School Lunches & Prep for Final Presentation 23. May 28 – Kids Create and Name their own Recipes from large selection of ingredients & Kids Share What They have Learned at Real Kids this year to their Families and Guests from the School Department etc at “End of the Year Cultural Potluck” 5:30 – 7:30 pm.
Ninja Smoothie Pineapple – Banana -‐ Kale Smoothie
Ingredients: ½ a pineapple 3 bananas Small handful of kale leaves pulled off stem 2 cups of water Directions: Put in blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
• 2 ½ cups raw cashews soaked • 4 cups filtered water • 4 cups fresh or frozen dark sweet pitted cherries • 4 small avocado • 2 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut • 2 - 3 Tbsp cacao powder to taste • 4 Tbsp honey • 2 tsp natural vanilla extract • a pinch of Celtic sea salt
Throw all of the ingredients in Vitamix and puree until smooth and creamy. Serves 2.
Easy Guacamole Recipe
Ingredients:
2 ripe avocados 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 2 tablespoons fresh lime or lemon juice 1/8 teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt or Himalyan Salt
Directions: 1. Peel avocados and remove the pit. 2. Mash the avocado in a bowl and then stir in remaining ingredients.
Growing Avocado Pits Push three toothpicks into each avocado about one-‐third of the way from the bottom (large end of the pit). Suspend the avocado over a glass (the toothpicks will hold it up). The pit should be in ½ inch or so of water. Keep the level constant by adding water as needed. DON’T change the water. First, small roots appear on the bottom side, then the pit cracks and you can see the developing stem. There may be more than one stem and these should always be left alone. When the stem reaches six inches, cut it back to three inches. This induces a bushy leaf plant. Plant them after about two and a half weeks. Remove or break toothpicks off before planting. The upper portion of the seed must be exposed to allow new stems to grow so don’t bury it all the way under the ground. The avocado should be potted in a large clay pot in a light, sandy soil mixture. Avocado plants need good light, but not too much direct sunlight. Let the plants dry out between waterings. Over-‐watered plants will begin to wilt and shed dry leaves (which leads a lot of people to think they need MORE water which kills them even faster). Keep them out of drafts. And enjoy while they last!
Ants on a Log
Ingredients
5 stalks celery 1/2 cup almond butter 1/4 cup raisins
Directions Cut the celery stalks in thirds or fourths. Spread with almond butter. Sprinkle with raisins.
Recipe of the day: Ingredients 1/2 c. cashews (pre-soaked overnight) 1 head of broccoli 1/2 avocado 1 tbsp fresh chives 1 small garlic clove 1 c. distilled water Cumin, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste Instructions: Drain the water from the soaked cashews. Place the cashews in the food processor and process until they have the consistency of ricotta. Then process the rest of the ingredients until smooth. Add a little bit of water and then taste to see if it needs any more seasoning.
Salad Ingredients • Mixed greens • Cucumber • Carrots • Red Pepper Hippocrates House Dressing Ingredients (Yield 1.5 cups) • 1 cup Extra Virgin Cold Pressed Olive Oil • 2 Tablespoons lemon juice (4 lemons each) • 2 Tablespoons Nama Shoyu • 2 teaspoons ground mustard seed • 1 Tablespoon honey Directions: 1. Put all ingredients in jar and shake 2. Drizzle over salad and toss
Ingredients: 7 Carrots 1 cup of raisins 3 oranges Pinch of salt Directions: 1.) Shred carrots however you want. You can use a spirilini or peeler. 2.) Once shredding carrots into a bowl you want to start juicing the 3 oranges by squeezing them and getting all the citrus out and into the same bowl. 3.) Add 1 cup of raisins and then mix all ingredients together for about 2 minutes. 4.) Add a pinch of salt for taste and the salt will bring more flavors out in the dish. Share with your friends and family and enjoy:)
Recipe for B.A.T. (Banana+Apple+Tahini) What is Tahini? A yummy paste made from grounded sesame seeds Ingredients: 1-cup raw (un-toasted, hulled) sesame seeds 2 cups water, to soak Instructions: Step 1: put 1 cup of seeds in a bowl with 2 cups of water for 4 hours Step 2: soak 3 dates for 4 hours Step 3: drain water out and rinse the seeds Step 4: put seeds in refrigerator to sprout for another 4 hours. . Step 5: mix seeds in blender until creamy and smooth. TASTE. Step 6: add dates to blender one at a time to taste if you want it sweeter. YUM! Why are sesame seeds so good for our bodies? Sesame seeds, rich in calcium and protein, are the oldest healthy oilseed in history dating back 5000 years. For this recipe, we soak the sesame seeds to activate them. Soaking nuts and seeds neutralizes a growth-inhibiting enzyme that’s found naturally in seeds and nuts and makes them harder to digest. So by soaking, we make the nuts and seeds easier to digest and more nutritious for the same reasons that sprouts are more nutritious have loaded with good enzymes that aid digestion To make B.A.T., mash 2 bananas in a bowl with 1 teaspoon of tahini and add chopped apple on top. Delicious!!! Draw the ingredients and what you used to make BAT
Zucchini Linguini with Marinara Sauce Ingredients: 6 Zucchini peeled 8 roma tomatoes (chopped) 1 cup sun dried (non-oil if possible)tomatoes (soaked for 2 hrs., save soaked water) 3 tsp. dried basil 1 tsp. dried oregano 1/2 tsp. thyme 2 tbs. olive oil 3 Medjool dates (pitted) 1 tbs. lemon juice Salt to taste Directions: 1. Put everything except zucchini in a blender, add the tomato soak water and blend till thick. 2. Peel zucchini and spiralize 3. Put zucchini in bowl (stir in 3 T virgin olive oil, oregano, basil and thyme of the same amounts as above) and then cover with marinara sauce “The Amazing Spirooli” Price: $19.95 - $39 online Features: • 3 blades with 1/8" (3mm) or 1/4" (6mm) spacing and Straight blade for ribbon cuts • Slicer Material: Plastic and metal blade • Cleaning and care: Dishwasher safe Warranty: 1 year
RED PEPPER MARINARA SAUCE Yields 1.5 cups Ingredients: 1 cup chopped red bell pepper 1 cup sunflower seeds (soaked for 2 hours) 1 clove garlic 1 T paprika 1T dried oregano ½ cup water 1T Nama Shoyu (raw soy sauce) or sea salt to taste 1 t fresh lemon juice (optional) 3 or 4 drops liquid stevia extract In a blender, combine all ingredients. Blend well and season to taste. (After making the zucchini linguini with the Spirooli, mix in olive oil, some oregano, basil, marjoram and let marinate for awhile. Then add sauce.)
DELICIOUS SNOW PEAS By Marcus Gorman Ingredients: 2 cups snow peas ¼ cup Nama Shoyu 1/8 t liquid stevia 1 T honey ½ t fresh or dried ginger ½ t fresh or dried garlic Dash of Cayenne pepper, to taste 1 heaping T sesame seeds If using fresh garlic and ginger, cut into small pieces and work a little sea salt in with each piece. Mash with the back of a knife into a soft paste. Add all ingredients, except sesame seeds, into a shallow dish so all snow peas are covered. Let sit for 30 minutes, stir twice while marinating. Five minutes before end, mix in sesame seeds. Pour off some of the marinade before serving and add to a side dish for dipping.
Ingredients for 100 (5 trays) crackers • 8 apples • 4 cups of pitted medjool dates • 4 cups of brown flax seed • Water to cover flax seed • 3 ½ Tablespoons of lemon • 3 teaspoons of cinnamon Directions • Put flax in large bowl and cover with a little water • Core and blend 4 chopped apples and 4 cups chopped dates. Pour over the flax seed • Add lemon, cinnamon and finely chopped 4 cored and chopped apples • Put on the teflex sheets in the dehydrator at 105 degrees • When dry enough, pull off the the teflex (usually 12 hours) and score (2) pieces a sheet; 4 cuts and 5 cuts • Put on net trays after cutting and dehydrate until dry
Prepared by Real Kids, Real Food
www.RealKidsRealFood.org
Ingredients: 1 lb of raw hulled organic unsalted sunflower seeds 2 ½ cups of water 1 red pepper( it can be dried or cut/ chopped) 2/3 cup of nutritional yeast 2/3 cups lemon juice from 5 lemons 2 tablespoons sea salt 48 stems of Organic grown Kale Spicy add: 1 ½ teaspoons of cayenne pepper. Directions: 1.) Place sunflowers seeds in a container with warm water to soak for 2 hours. 2.) Drain the sunflower seeds, and then place half of all the ingredients in a blender. Blend the first batch until it starts to look like a paste. 3.) De-‐stem the kale leaves by taking the eaves off the stem. The stems can be used and eaten just not for kale chips. 4.) Once the kale is de-‐stemed mix and massage with the paste. 5.) Set the dehydrator at 115 degrees. “Dry” the kale leaves overnight (10 to 12 hours) or until the desired level of crispness is achieved. 6.) Serve or eat right away, or for storage keep in a ziplock bag
Raw Crisps Sweet Potato Chips & Raw Cinnamon Apple Chips
3 organic Fuji apples (or your favorite variety), sliced thinly on a mandoline (mine were probably about 1/8 inch thick or so) 1-2 t ground cinnamon Lay apple slices in a single layer on the racks of your dehydrator. Sprinkle cinnamon over apples. Dehydrate at 110 degrees F for 8-10 hours or until apples are leathery. Store in a sealed container.
Makes about 1 quart of apple chips.
Sweet Potato Crisps Ingredients: 1 large sweet potato, about 1lb 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 2 teaspoons sea salt Dehydrator (or your favorite dehydrating method)
OMM OMM OMM Good.
Ingredients: • 5-‐6 dates, soaked for a few hours • 2 avocados • 1 teaspoon coconut oil • 2 heaping tablespoons carob powder • 1/4 cup date soaking water Directions: 1. Blend avocados, dates, coconut oil and carob powder in a food processor. 2. Thin mixture with soaking water from dates to desired consistency. 3. Serve with fresh, ripe fruit or berries of your choice. 4. Enjoy right away or refrigerate.
Brownies
Yield: 8 large brownies
Ingredients: • 1 ½ c raw walnuts, unsoaked • Dash of salt • 10 pitted medjool dates, unsoaked • 1/3 c unsweetened carob powder • ½ tsp vanilla extract • 2 tsp water Directions:
1. Chop ¼ cup of the walnuts and set aside. 2. Place the remaining walnuts and the salt in a food processor fitted with the s-‐blade and process until finely ground. 3. Add the dates and process until the mixture sticks together. 4. Add the carob powder and vanilla and process until evenly distributed. 5. Add the water, if needed, and process briefly. 6. Transfer to a mixing bowl and add the reserved chopped walnuts and mix well using your hands. 7. Pack the mixture firmly into a square container and cut into one inch squares and decorate each with a walnut.
Equipment: • Food processor • Rubber spatula • Small mixing bowl • Measuring cups and spoons • Smalquare container
Raisin Walnut Truffles
INGREDIENTS: 4 cups walnuts 3 cups raisins 3″ of a stick of vanilla bean chopped up 3/8 t sea salt 1/2 T cinnamon coconut flakes
INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Chop 1 cup walnuts in a food processor until well chopped but definitely not powdery! You want to keep some texture to them. Set aside in a bowl, then mix in the cinnamon. 2. Put the remainder of the walnuts and other ingredients into the food processor. Keep processing until it starts to form a wonderfully oily glob of a ball. 3. Hand roll this mixture into separate balls, about 20-25 of them. Roll the balls around in the chopped walnut mixture. 4. Then roll them around in the coconut flakes 5. Share! And make sure when people are mmm-ing and hmmm-ing that you inform them this is actually a health food. (Yes!) Â