Good Taste

Taste Columnist

It’s hard to believe that school is already starting again! Where did the summer go? With all of the children back in school for the day, it’s time to plan for those after-school snacks to “hold them over” until dinner time. With the higher weights and higher cholesterol numbers among our children these days, it’s more important than ever to try and provide healthy snacks. Don’t let the word “snack” send you into frenzy. Snacks are an important and necessary part of a child’s eating habits. Children’s energy levels are high, and they cannot eat a lot at one time, so they really need to eat about every three hours. The key here is that you have control over when and what they eat. Try to plan your meals so they are served at nearly the same time every day, then your snacks will be given at set times, too. Give snacks long enough after meals, usually two to three hours, so that they know if they refuse a meal or snack, they learn that it will be a while before time to eat again.

Snacks should be nutritious as often as possible. Anything appropriate for a meal is fine for a snack. If you want it to last a while, it should have some protein, fat and carbohydrate in it. It also needs to be big enough to be filling for a hungry child.

Some nutritious snacks include grain products such as breads (whole wheat is best) served plain or with cheese, peanut butter or a glass of milk. Dry cereals (with less than 5 grams sugar per serving) are great, served with milk and even dried fruit. Popcorn is a nutritious snack, but try serving it with grated cheese instead of butter and salt. Home-baked cookies, (substitute part of the flour with whole wheat flour) especially oatmeal, molasses and peanut butter ones, are good choices. Experiment with using less sugar. No one will ever know the difference.

Serve vegetable and fruit juices in place of powdered fruit drinks. Real juice contains folate, fiber and other nutrients that children need. Milk is always good. For variety, make a milkshake by blending milk with a banana or other fruit or orange juice. You can add flavoring or even a little sugar sometimes.

Fresh, raw vegetables are a great snack. Be sure to cut vegetables in small pieces to prevent young children from choking. Serve broccoli, carrots, cucumber, celery, cauliflower, green beans or peas, turnip sticks or zucchini with cottage cheese, cheese, crackers or peanut butter. Add a glass of milk or fruit juice for protein and carbs.

Fresh apples, bananas, berries, apricots, grapes, grapefruit, melons, oranges, pineapple, pears, peaches, etc., served sliced or whole, are healthy and nutritious, too. Serve the berries and grapes frozen to make kids feel like they have a frozen treat instead of a healthy snack! Again, serve with peanut butter, yogurt, ricotta cheese, cottage or milk for added protein and fat. Remember that dried fruits and nuts are just as healthy as fresh. For a change of taste, it’s okay to serve potato chips occasionally. Just make sure they are baked, not fried. Baked tortilla chips are another yummy treat. Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon/sugar for sweet or with garlic powder or other favorite herbs for savory.

For this story, including recipes and more, pick up this week's Voyageur Press.

Taste Columnist

After reading in The Voyageur Press of McGregor about an upcoming community education class for parents and kids, I eagerly signed up my six-year-old great-granddaughter, Morgan, great-grandson, Ezekiel, one of my granddaughters, Ashley, and myself. It was being held on a Saturday morning at the McGregor High School in the Home Ec room. Sandra Aldrich, a McGregor resident who teaches cooking-related community education classes at McGregor and Aitkin High Schools, was teaching the class. She is also the author of the Strong and Healthy Coded Cookbook for Kids that I had purchased to keep my young cooks inspired.

When the big day arrived, it was hard for the young ones to contain their excitement. Upon arriving at the class, we were given packets containing the recipes we were making and other pertinent information. The children were also given their own personal spreader to take home with them after they used them to help prepare their food. They donned their aprons and were ready to start. The teacher took care to explain to the children that cleanliness when cooking was very important. We should always wash our hands with soap before we touch anything food related. When she asked the children why we should use soap, Ezekiel said, “So the germs can slide off!”

First on the agenda were homemade tortillas to use as the base for “wrap sandwiches.” The instructor demonstrated how to prepare the batter and then fried them on the griddle on the stovetop. Everyone was given one and, after spreading cream cheese on it, topped it with thinly sliced ham and/or turkey, bean sprouts and shredded cheese. Then, just roll them up and enjoy!

Next, English muffins were lightly toasted and spread with cream cheese by the students. Hulled and sliced strawberries, sliced kiwi and fresh blueberries topped the cream cheese. Then the children sprinkled flaked coconut on top. These were very tasty.

Finally, the best part for the children – dessert! Each student was given a freshly baked (cooled), chocolate chip cookie. They topped it with a cream cheese mixture and then a layer of chocolate pudding. Next, they sprinkled on chopped nuts. What a treat!

Needless to say, no one left hungry. This was a true learning experience for the children, and they still don their aprons to cook and talk about the fun class that they attended.

For this story, including recipes and more, pick up this week's Voyageur Press.

Taste Columnist

Some homemade salsas have been a favorite for years and even generations. Families have been handing down their own special family recipes to successive generations and kept a long tradition of making their own salsa.

It’s easy to go to the nearby corner grocery store and pick up a jar of salsa, but making your own at home can be lots of fun and quite rewarding! If you have had a productive garden and have an overstock of tomatoes and peppers, salsa is an excellent way to use them up!

Once you do this, you may find that making salsa and stocking up your pantry each year will be a regular goal of yours! You only need a basic supply to make salsa, a simple recipe and the process of making the salsa.

Typical salsa ingredients are variations of the following: tomatoes, green pepper, jalapeno, red chili pepper, garlic salt or powder, onion, cilantro, lemon juice. Don’t be afraid to experiment!

As you can see, homemade salsa is full of vitamins and antioxidants that are known to keep your body stay healthy!

Personalize to your taste – Adding more jalapenos and other peppers will make the salsa hotter. In the same way, reducing the number of peppers and adding more tomatoes will create a milder salsa.

The full flavor and strength of spices deteriorate over time, so make sure to use fresh spices. And always use fresh oils. Like spices, oils lose their flavor over time, and some can go rancid if kept too long.

To avoid chili pepper irritation wear rubber gloves or even small plastic bags over your hands. Don’t touch your face or rub your eyes while handling hot peppers.

When making and preserving your homemade salsa, you will need all the supplies that you typically need when you are preserving tomatoes. You will need canning jars, lids and bands, a hot water bath canner, a large pot to cook the salsa, strainer, jar lifter, large bowl, and the ingredients from your recipe. Thoroughly wash all the utensils you will be using and boil the jars and bands. Warm the lids but don’t boil them. Leave the jars and the lids in the hot water up until the time you are ready to fill them.

Alternatively you can store them in your freezer. After making a large batch of salsa, simply divide it into small containers and place them in the freezer. You’ll be able to enjoy fresh-tasting salsa year round!

For this story, including recipes and more, pick up this week's Voyageur Press.