Celebration Dinner

Shannon D. and her peeps were over last night to celebrate the positive feedback we received from our interview but it also became a bit of a celebration of the kids. The grown ups in this project have had to do the brunt of the work this summer, but the little ones have had their share as well. Not only do they help out in the garden, and in choosing the vegetables at the Farmer's Market and at the CSA pick up, but they've had to accept change, and that's a big job for a child. Kids can be finicky and often texture and appearance are as big a factor as the taste when they decide if they like something. As a lunch supervisor in a Kindergarten class this past year, I can't tell you how many sandwich crusts and speckled bananas were thrown in the garbage! Some of the foods, especially the vegetables we've  been eating are crispier and crunchier than what they've been used to. We've also had to outlaw many of the foods they were happy eating...chicken nuggets, fish sticks, rice and mac n' cheese. Thankfully, I haven't really heard any complaints from my kids but I'm sure they miss them...I know I do. Shannon D. and I have been joking about hot dogs right from the start of this summer, she finally found them at Creative Meats, so last night we treated ourselves!


In the spirit of the project, I also made the buns. I substituted honey for the sugar, so everything but the yeast was local. The rising time was significantly longer, but bread always tastes better when it's had long rising time. I was very happy with the lightness and texture of the buns. They were beautiful! 


So, we gathered round the table and ate our local hot dogs, sliders hamburgers that Shannon D. brought over, my celebration broccoli salad (I actually liked the dressing better with honey than sugar...permanent change will be made to my recipe!!), and fresh corn from Dalew's. The kids ate their fill and then we topped them up with the Shannon D.'s strawberry cobbler from The Moosewood Cookbook (hopefully she will share that recipe on her next post!). We were STUFFED! The meal was so great and once again I am incredibly proud of how we turned what could have been a very unhealthy fast-food meal, in to something worth talking about!


Yesterday was definitely a day to be proud of in so many ways.


Shannon A.