Class Thursday, May 31, 2012

Hello,

Today is my  dad's birthday, so that's exciting. Second, we had a "locavore" lunch where the different groups brought a variety of locally made dishes. It turned out to be fun and all of the food was delicious. My group make kale chips, pasta salad, and a strawberry salsa with homemade cinnamon chips. Here are the recipes for the dishes:

Kale chips
1 bunch kale
1t sea salt
1t pepper
2T canola oil
2T shredded Parmesan cheese

Heat oven 350 degrees. Tear kale leaves off stem, wash, dry, tear into pieces and place on pan. drizzle with canola oil, stir o cover. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and cheese on kale. Bake for 6 minutes, stir around, bake for 4-5 more minutes. Enjoy!

Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

16 oz gluten free rotini pasta

Olive oil

4 oz feta cheese

2 large red bell peppers (diced)

1 medium tomato (diced and seeded)**

1 cup chopped fresh basil**

Directions:

1.       Cook pasta according to package directions.

2.       Strain pasta and add olive oil according to preference.

3.       Add the rest of the ingredients. Mix.

4.       Chill before serving.

Fruit Salsa

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups fresh strawberries (diced) **

1 cup fresh kiwi (diced)

1 cup mango (diced)

2 tbsp lime juice

2 tbsp honey

Directions:

1.       Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

2.       Chill before serving

**Local—purchased at farmer’s market

Class Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Hello,

Today we went to the dairy farm. It was actually really cool because I know the least about an operation like that so I felt I discovered a lot that I never knew before. I now know that it takes a lot of hard work, dedication, and organization to do the things they do at the farm. I often think about where my food comes from but until now, I realized I forgot about milk and how it gets to the stores so it was an overall new and fun experience.

Alex Z

Class Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Hello,

Today we did not have class but instead we met with our groups to talk about the final project/paper. We divided up the work in a pretty efficient manner and got to work! I have the workbook currently but I'm going to send it off to Mo tomorrow whenever I see her in class. That's about it! I'm happy that the quarter is wrapping up! :)

Alex Z

Class Thursday, May 17, 2012

Hello,

On Thursday we went out to Good Earth farm. It was really cool to see since I've only heard of it before. The man running the farm was very nice and knowledgeable about farming and food pantries. The farm has cows and sheep that are used for educational purposes and the cows produce milk for the house. The farm is run by donations and grants and fellowships and when the time comes, they just donate all of their produce to the local food pantries. The number of produce they are able to give out is increasing over the years. This was my favorite talk to far this quarter because it was "moving" and "inspirational"...  :)

Alex Z

Class Tuesday May 15, 2012

Hello,

Tuesday a dietician from WIC came to talk to us about the nutritional side of WIC. She talked about eligibility requirements for mothers and what steps they must go through to receive benefits from WIC. She said she mostly deal with paperwork and nutrition counseling for mothers who come in to see her.

I liked this topic because it's something that I've looked in to as an occupation when I graduate and become an RD.

Alex Z

Class Thursday, May 10, 2012

On Thursday we went to the Eco House and the Compost Plant located off of Dairy Lane. This was really cool to see because I've heard so much about composting but had not seen how it is done until then. The Eco House  seems like a cool place to live. I don't know if I would like it too much but I find peace of mind knowing that there are measures being taken on campus to raise awareness for safe and more efficient uses of energy. Reaching out to college level kids is a very good way to spread the awareness, in my opinion.

Alex Z

Class Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Hello,

Tuesday we went to the OSU Extension office where we learned about the history of the extension and the 4H division. Growing up, I knew others who participated in 4H but I never did. I just thought that it was for people who had farm animals but I quickly learned that there are several different projects that kids can take on that have nothing to do with farming. We did learn though, that 4H was initially started to keep farms alive by teaching the kids how to farm.

The extension office is includes 4 program areas: Agriculture and Natural Resources, Community Development, Family and Consumer Sciences (this program is dying), and 4H and Youth Development.

Alex Z