The second day of Food Camp was a success!
Each camper was given a t-shirt as part of their registration and we took time to tie dye them! The shirts will be washed and dried and given back to the campers on Thursday so they can wear them on the last day of camp.
We also took care of the farm animals this morning and made sure they were given fresh food and water. Campers got a chance to milk our goat friend Isabella and then cleaned out the goat’s home! Each camper agreed that the goats will be much happier now.
Campers learned all about Alice the rabbit. They were taught the right way to pet her and how to pick her up and set her down without hurting her. Ask your camper what chores they did today! What animal did they learn about?
We had a busy day in Garden Kitchen! After picking broccoli and carrots from the garden yesterday, we made our own ranch dressing to dip them in.
We learned how to make zucchini muffins too!
Campers enjoyed spending time in the garden this morning. We washed our hands, picked garden fresh beans and then taste tested the beans! Did your camper like the taste?
Our campers continued working on their STEM project. Some groups made baked goods such as cookies, cakes and brownies out of their cocoa dough and talked about ingredients that would have gone into their baked goods if it was real. Other groups talked about how their food could be transported and distributed to buyers. Ask your camper about the process of transporting foods!
Campers also got a chance to learn where exotic foods come from and how far they travel to get here. Ask your camper what foods they learned about during food miles!
Peppers got to hike through the woods and talk about seeds. Ask your camper what they learned on their hike!
We had a great day at Food Camp working on projects and learning all about food! We can’t wait to see what the rest of the week has in store!
Tomato Paste
10 lbs. Roma tomatoes
2 Tbs. Olive Oil
2 tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. citric acid
Directions
1. Chop tomatoes in quarters
2. Simmer tomatoes in olive oil until they are soft and peels begin to detach
3. Pass tomatoes through food mill
4. Divide pulp between two large rimmed baking sheets
5. Bake tomato pulp until reduced to paste. Check every half hour, turning pans and switching when needed. Paste will reduce to a point where it doesn’t fill the sheet. Reduce to one pan.
6. Paste is done when it is shiny and brick colored. It will have reduced by half. This will take between 3 and 4 hours.
7. Put in jars and in hot water bath for long storage, or refrigerate or freeze ( I like to freeze it in 2 Tbs. increments in an ice cube tray, then remove from tray and store in a shallow cover dish with olive oil to cover cubes.
Homemade Ranch Dip/Dressing
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann’s or Duke’s
2 garlic cloves (or 1 large), minced (see note)
1 scant teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3/4 teaspoons dried dill
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Few dashes Tabasco sauce, optional
Directions
1. Combine all of the ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk well. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Chill until ready to serve.
2. Note: The dressing will keep well in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. The garlic flavor gets stronger the longer it sits, so you might want to cut back if you’re planning on making it in advance. The dressing will thicken up to more of a dip consistency as it chills.
Pizza Sauce
4 oz. tomato paste
1½ cup water
1/3 olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
Salt and pepper
½ Tbs. chopped oregano
½ Tbs. chopped fresh basil
½ Tbs. chopped fresh rosemary
Directions
1. Mix all ingredients, salt and pepper to taste. Heat if you choose but not necessary. Allow to sit overnight to allow flavors to blend
Zucchini Muffins
1 ½ pounds zucchini, shredded
1 ¼ cups packed (8 ¾ ounces) brown sugar
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups (7 ½ ounces) all-purpose flour
½ cup (2 ¾ ounces) whole-wheat flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¾ cup walnuts, toasted and chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Directions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease 8 ½ by 4 ½ -inch loaf pan.
2. Place zucchini in center of dish towel. Gather ends together and twist tightly to drain as much liquid as possible, discarding liquid (you should have ½ to 2/3 cup liquid). Whisk brown sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla together in medium bowl. Fold in zucchini.
3. Whisk all-purpose flour; whole-wheat flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg together in large bowl. Fold in zucchini mixture until just incorporated. Fold in walnuts, if using. Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
4. Bake until top bounces back when gently pressed and toothpick inserted in center comes out with few moist crumbs attached, 65 to 75 minutes. Let bread cool in pan on wire rack for 30 minutes. Remove bread from pan and let cool completely on wire rack. Serve.