Wacky Week 4, already!

Week four of the summer program is now upon us, and with it, summer's bounty is flourishing. The combination of these two occurrences means one thing: the food just keeps getting better and better! Produce has been abundant at the Farmers' Market and Donation Station, local farm stands, and the Chesterhill Produce auction!

This week is also spirit week at Kids on Campus. Yesterday was Crazy Hair Day; regretfully, I got no photos of anyone's crazy hairdos. Today was Wacky Day, and I saw some certainly silly ensembles!

Now that summer's harvest has begun to pick up, our plates are getting fuller and fuller. Yesterday, we served up hearty bowls of tomato soup, made with a combination of fresh tomatoes and last summer's canned tomatoes graciously donated by CFI's Ronda Clark. Ronda, along with many others at CFI and elsewhere, has been a tireless advocate for this program of real foods, and we owe a lot this summer to her efforts.... and now her tomatoes! Thanks, Ronda!

And what's tomato soup without grilled cheese? Luckily, we had whole-wheat bread from Crumbs Bakery, topped with cheese shredded by the kids, and paired with hard-boiled farm-fresh eggs and a slice of juicy watermelon. The most exciting thing about this is that the kids are coming back for seconds more and more!

Both breakfasts this week were repeats: yesterday, we served the ever-popular (SpongeBob) Squarecakes, made with spelt flour and topped with fresh berry syrup, and this morning, we had our Great Grains granola again, made with popped amaranth and served with a fresh plum. Again, I will express how lucky we are to have such abundant fruit right now - the students are eating just as much as we can give 'em!

Today, Tuesday, was a busy day in the kitchen. Lunch was a wacky monster's feast that took the whole morning to prepare (a few of the kitchen crew even had to hang back during breakfast to get started! what troopers!). The main dish, Monster's Mash-up, resembled meat loaf and was composed of savory brown lentils cooked with onions, carrots, potatoes, and spices, and layered with plenty of gooey cheese before being baked all morning - what great smells filled our kitchen! The kids chopped potatoes, green beans, and cucumbers for the sides - yes, we were fortunate to have three vegetable sides today, in the form of smashed potatoes, steamed green beans, and cucumber salad. Erin prepared a simple, fresh, delicious gravy to top it all off. The cafeteria was full of wild enthusiasm, and like yesterday, many kids came back for seconds.

While all of this was being prepared, Cindy and Dane also had time to work on several lessons with Team 3, the group we had today, discussing which nutrients can be found in which vegetables, and learning about eating a rainbow of foods. To further emphasize the importance (and deliciousness!) of including an array of fruits and veggies, Cindy whipped up green smoothies for the kids. Yum! Later, while pots of potatoes and beans simmered on the stove, our energetic bunch of 5th-6th graders helped roll out cinnamon rolls, which we'll bake fresh in the morning for breakfast! I can't wait!