Programs & Projects

Food waste=Wasted food

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1.
 
“According to research at the University of Leeds, recycling ranked low on a list of effective actions that an individual could take to fight climate change. Higher-ranked actions included living car-free, avoiding long-haul air travel, and reducing consumption of red meat….Plastics can only be recycled a finite number of times at best, sometimes only once, due to structural and composition breakdowns during the recycling process….several plastic types, especially those in electronic devices or those stained by food, often bypass recycling altogether. 
 
“…fundamentally, recycling isn’t as beneficial as reduction and reuse. 
 
“Again, the onus lies more heavily on corporations, whose environmental footprints vastly overshadow individual consumers. Several companies have been found to unduly overemphasize the impact of minor consumer actions (like choosing metal straws over plastic ones), to divert attention from their failure to minimize waste. In fact, in 2022, California’s Attorney General Rob Bonta launched an investigation into ExxonMobil, looking at whether the oil giant had oversold the promise of recycling.”
 
re plastics, have our cafeterias returned to reusable lunch trays? how can we get plastics out of PPS (likely that synthetic turf on our playing fields contains PFAS forever chemicals, btw).
 
2.
which of course gets us to individual agency.
how can each of us make a difference and empower students to do the same and carry those habits with them?
if we are looking to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C (2.7°F) by end of century (already looking unlikely),
we can teach/enable/model Nos 3 and 4 on Project Drawdown’s Table of 93 Solutions: Plant-Rich Diets and Reduced Food Waste
 
re No. 3, plants-rich diet: (same as eat less red meat, mentioned above)
we’re pedaling as fast as we can with the new food service company Pomptonian offers unlimited servings of fruits and vegetables of the day with each meal purchase!
and there are Edible Gardens at every campus and Edible Gardens Educators/Stewards there, too, to help faculty, staff, and administration along in finding ways to illustrate/amplify curriculum.
 
re No. 4, reduced food waste, that’s the work we need to concurrently and immediately focus on
 
(btw: on the effectiveness chart, recycling comes in at No. 36; recycling paper at No. 70, and composting at No. 78)
 
3. 
 
if you really want to reduce food waste and empower children as they face this increasingly perilous future,
consider this from ReFed. we can make the most difference by reshaping consumer environments.
From the site, some of the “challenges:
  • Consumers discard food for multiple reasons, and more research is needed to understand how to influence long-term behavior changes on reducing food waste.
  • Consumers do not recognize their own role in solving this problem.
  • It is difficult to measure and track the impact of campaign efforts due to the large audience of these efforts as such, funding might be hard to secure because it is difficult to measure return on investment.” 
4. 
No. 4, Reduced food waste is something everyone at PPS can implement every single moment.
How low can you go? How about zero? See, at right the EPA Food Recovery Hierarchy, with most preferred at the top of the inverse pyramid.
Ideas: No food waste in the garbage cans! Free table with coolers at lunch for unopened items; in cafeterias, after POS and before students touch trays, a table where unwanted foods go into another hot-lunch free spot for those who are extra hungry; students learn and conduct plate scraping & take turns serving their classmates…
add compost alongside every trash can, with clear directions at each site. if it grows, it goes. provide wipes so if ppl have to pull half eaten food out of a container, they don’t have to touch it
start at k and reinforce every day…
to be clear: composting has a place, and each of the Edible Gardens could use the product and it would teach all of us about the cycle of life
but note that it is No.5 most effective in the six layers of the hierarchy.
let’s start higher!
Here’s a new version of the information, Wasted Food Scale.
 
 

Littlebrook kids agree with chef: kale rules

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Eat More Kale as part of GSOYP 2012

By Assenka Oksiloff
Princeton Regional Schools

Fresh kale with salt and/or lemon, kale chips, kale soup – students at Littlebrook Elementary School sampled some ways to enjoy this earthy-tasting green in the latest series of tastings of the Garden State on Your Plate program.

The event featured recipes of Christopher Albrecht, executive chef of Eno Terra, in Kingston. For Annie Kosek, principal at Littlebrook, it was a way of using positive peer pressure in the opening of young minds – and whetting young appetites – in the discovery of new things. “We have a culturally diverse student body,” she said. “The children are used to seeing each other eat different things. The more they taste, the more they say, ‘this is good!’”

And that is exactly what occurred. Some of the most stalwart of skeptics were won over (in the words of one young taste tester: “The soup looks disgusting, but it actually tastes good”).

Jayme Feldman, a parent volunteer at the event, greeted the reactions with enthusiasm. “Any chance my daughter will try something new, I want to encourage it,” she said.

The tasting also allowed students to learn more about the foods they eat. Chris Turse, farmer at Double Brook Farm in Hopewell, who donated produce for the event, was there to answer questions. For him, the activity is a melding of two favorite pastimes. “I love growing plants, and I love teaching kids,” he said.

The adults learned too. Feldman, who said she had posted spies to observe what was accepted by the students, was eager to try the chef’s recipes at home (see the post directly below for his recipe for Tuscan Kale, Potato and Leek soup).

The Garden State on Your Plate program is funded by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Kale tasting at Community Park Elementary School

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Community Park Elementary School parents are invited to join their children for a lunchtime tasting on Tuesday, March 6, when Christopher Albrecht, executive chef at Terra Momo Restaurant Group (think Eno Terra), cooks up a fresh kale soup. He is using Tuscan (aka Lacinato or Dinosaur) Kale from the restaurants’ Canal Farm, in Kingston and from Whole Earth Center in Princeton (see photo, above), and Red Russian Kale from farmers Andrew Marchese and Chris Turse of Double Brook Farm, in Hopewell.

This tasting is the latest in-school event of PSGC’s Garden State on Your Plate, a program that brings chefs and farmers into schools to connect children to their food and their community. The program is funded by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Chef Christopher says there are three tips that will set you on the path to success with this hearty soup: First, to ensure that leeks are cleansed of grit, rinse them well under running water, then cut into coins and allow to soak in cold water for a couple of hours, agitating them occasionally. Second, after peeling and dicing potatoes, prevent discoloration by submerging them in cold water until time to add them to the soup. Third, kitchen twine, used to tie the herbs together, is untreated and is available from kitchen supply stores. If labeled kitchen twine is unavailable, simply add herbs to the pot and fish them out later. Do not substitute other twine.

Tuscan Kale, Potato & Leek Soup
Makes 6 quarts, or 24 one-cup servings

1 bay leaf
6 thyme sprigs
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 cup white onion, diced
2 cups leek rounds, ¼-inch thick, white and lightest green part only, cleaned, drained and patted dry
8 cups peeled and diced white potatoes
2 cups heavy cream (substitute half-and-half or milk for a lighter version)
Cold water
6 cups rough-chopped Tuscan kale
Kosher salt
Freshly ground white pepper to taste
Grated Parmesan or cheddar or crumbled gorgonzola) if desired

1.Using 12- to 24-inch length of kitchen twine, tie bay leaf and thyme sprigs together, leaving a tail to tie to the handle of the pot. Set aside.
2.Heat vegetable oil in an 8-quart heavy-bottomed pot. Add onions and leeks to pot with a sprinkle of salt. Cook over medium-low heat until they are soft and sweet but have not developed color.
3.Add potatoes and enough cold water to cover, then increase heat to medium until soup reaches a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes, adding more water to keep potatoes covered.
4.Meanwhile, in microwave or on stovetop, heat cream to steaming, then add to soup, stirring to combine.
5.Heat soup just until it begins to simmer. Remove from heat; discard herbs. Puree in a food mill or blender until smooth. Chill.
6.Reheat soup to steaming, remove from heat, add chopped kale and puree again, leaving some coarseness to the kale. Serve immediately, garnished with cheese, if desired. Refrigerate leftovers.

Spinach, strawberries star in June tastings

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Chef Alex Levine, of Whole Earth Center, treated students at Littlebrook and Community Park elementary schools to fresh spinach three ways as the final Garden State on Your Plate tasting: raw leaves, cream of spinach soup and with balsamic-glazed strawberries in a salad. Here's his recipe for the soup.

Chef Alex’s Cream of Spinach Soup (Alex Levine, Whole Earth Center, Princeton)

Makes 8 servings

  • 1/4 cup finely chopped celery
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped onion
  • 4 tablespoons butter, divided
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 3 cups hot vegetable stock or chicken stock
  • 1 cup milk, whole, 2%, or fat free
  • 2 cups cooked pureed or very finely chopped spinach
  • Pinch fresh-ground nutmeg
  • Salt
  • Fresh-ground black pepper.

Directions:

  1. Saute celery and onion in 2 tablespoons butter with a dash of salt.
  2. Meanwhile, make béchamel: Heat remaining 2 tablespoons butter in medium-size stock pot. Sift flour over butter, whisking to combine into a smooth paste. Slowly add stock to flour-oil mixture (called a roux), whisking constantly to retain velvety texture. Add milk. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  3. Add sauteed celery and onion, stirring to combine.
  4. Whisk in pureed spinach; add nutmeg.
  5. Season to taste. Serve hot.

Students find pea tendrils in their salads

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Princeton University Chef Rob Harbison, along with Stu Orefice, director of dining services there, hosted the April Garden State on Your Plate tasting, Here's the recipe for the bright spring salad they served to the children, staff and parents at the two schools.

Chef Rob’s Carrot-Apple Salad with Pea Tendrils

Makes 12 servings

  • 8 ounces pea tendrils
  • 2 medium carrots, cut into matchsticks
  • 1 apple, peeled, cored and cut into matchsticks
  • Vinaigrette
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup Terhune apple cider vinegar
  • Juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tablespoons)
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • Coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

  1. In a small bowl, whisk together honey, vinegar, lemon juice, and shallot. Slowly whisk in olive oil to form an emulsion.
  2. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Toss with salad and serve.

Chef Gary, Jersey corn and an Italian specialty star at April’s Garden State on Your Plate

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Chef Gary Giberson, of Sustainable Fare and Lawrenceville School, is cooking up New Jersey's famous corn from Oak Grove Plantation in Pittstown for April's Garden State on Your Plate events. 

Parents are invited to join their children for polenta tastings during lunchtime on Wednesday, April 6, at Community Park Elementary School, and on Wednesday, April 13, at Littlebrook Elementary School.

He will be serving two versions, a sweet and savory. He suggests topping the sweet version with fruit puree or jam, and the savory version with stew, tomato sauce or pesto. Here are the recipes:

Chef Gary’s Sweet Creamy Polenta (Gary Giberson, Sustainable Fare)

Makes 12 four-ounce portions

  • 4 cups water
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup cornmeal (yellow or white)
  • 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Directions:

  1. Bring water to a boil in a heavy bottom 4-quart saucepan.
  2. Add sugar and cream.
  3. Whisking constantly, add cornmeal in a slow steady stream until all is incorporated.
  4. Add butter, cinnamon and nutmeg and stir with a wooden kitchen spoon until well incorporated.
  5. Lower heat and continue cooking, stirring with spoon until consistency is dense but still pourable (around 10 minutes). 
  6. Serve by placing in a large bowl and garnish by drizzling with raspberry sauce or other fruit sauce.

Chef Gary’s Creamy Polenta

Makes 12 four-ounce portions

  • 4 cups water
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup cornmeal (yellow or white)
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

  1. Bring water to boil in a heavy bottom 4-quart saucepan.
  2. Add salt and cream.
  3. Whisking constantly, add the cornmeal in a slow steady stream until all is incorporated.
  4. Add butter, and stir with a wooden kitchen spoon until well incorporated.
  5. Lower heat and continue cooking, stirring with spoon until consistency is dense but still pourable (around 10 minutes). 
  6. Remove heat and stir in parmesan cheese.
  7. Serve by placing in a large bowl and garnish by drizzling with basil pesto or other savory sauces.

— Gary Giberson, Sustainable Fare & the Lawrenceville School

Elementary principal learns she loves beets, now big fan of gardens

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Monday, March 7, 2011. At a recent teacher-garden workshop hosted by the Princeton Public Library, Sharon Goldman, principal at Community Park Elementary School, explained her evolution to enthusiastic booster of the gardens and food-based learning. The workshop, conducted by Dorothy Mullen and Diane Landis of the Princeton School Gardens Cooperative, drew 80 participants from the mid-Atlantic region.

Congressman celebrates Farm to School at CP

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Congressman Rush Holt's visit to Community Park Elementary School was a delicious way to celebrate the passage of the child nutrition reauthorization bill and Mr. Holt's farm to school funding within that legislation.

With that modest beginning, our lawmakers have begun to reconnect our nation's children to the land, the farmers, chefs, the local economy – and to their own palates. Now, it's up to teachers, administrators, parents and community members across the country to apply for those funds and build their own programs that teach academic subjects, critical thinking skills, and a vocabulary of flavor beyond "awesome," "really good" and "nasty."