Buggy Barn, a photo by mm_berndt on Flickr.

Who wants to see us do an outdoor quilt show at the orchard!?

Roasted Veggies

I am not very good at eating vegetables.  I’m just not a fan.  BUT I’m doing weight watchers and most veggies are zero points.  Which means – I can eat all of them I want to, until I’m full, with no guilt!  So, I need to find some more creative ways that make vegetables taste better without using fatty dips. 

At one of my weight watcher meetings someone mentioned roast vegetables and I thought I’d try it – and it was so worth it!

Preheat the oven to 350-degrees.

All you do is cut up whatever vegetables you have (I happened to have cauliflower, broccoli and snap peas in my frig) put them in a bag or a sealable container.  Add enough olive oil to coat the vegetables and whatever seasoning you want (salt, garlic, etc).  Seal the container and shake the veggies in the oil and seasoning so they’re evenly coated.

Put the veggies in a roasting pan, with the lid off bake for 45-minutes.  Remove and Enjoy!  This was seriously a treat!

Later I’ll give you a great way to use whatever veggies you have left to make a delicious soup!

I spent my morning representing farmers on the ‘Farm To School Advisory Committee’  As I listened to the different groups reporting in to all the work that is being done to not only get our locally grown and produced food into the schools, but also making sure the kids EAT the food I had a realization.  These kids NEED to be exposed to more fruits and vegetables at home – at as young of an age as possible.

We really need to expose our children to fruits and vegetables in the home.  One of the study’s showed that students who already had at least a year of the ‘farm to school’ program under their belt were more likely to take the fruit and/or vegetable and try it than the schools just starting with the program.  This says to me that if we can familiarize our children to fruits and vegetables before they are in the lunch line, afraid to try something they aren’t sure thy like.  And I don’t mean just feeding them the same old broccoli, cauliflower, beans and potatoes.  I mean we need to expose them to all kinds of fruits and vegetables, in all different forms, and cooked differently.  Maybe then when they see it in line they won’t be afraid to try it – heck, they might be excited to try it. 

Yes, it’s winter here in Wisconsin so fresh fruits and veggies are not plentiful.  But, let’s work with what we have.  Let’s find ways to eat more healthfully year round.  I’ll be the first to admit – I’m not an adventurous eater, not a huge fan of fruits and vegetables – but I am trying.  And I plan on continuing to try, to experiment and show my kids that eating fruits and vegetables is just as satisfying as eating sweets.

But I need YOUR help!  Do you have a favorite way to prepare a fruit or vegetable?  A great recipe you want to share with us?  And I’m not necessarily asking how you ‘hide’ these things in your kids food so they don’t know they’re eating it. 

I (and Diane) will be sharing our findings with you in the weeks and months to come and hopefully I’ll be able to share some of your stories as well!  And even if we can get a kid to discover one new fruit or vegetable that they actually like – well, I will consider that a success!

I’ll be vending at the 5th Annual Valentine Craftacular at the East Side Club in Madison, WI tomorrow from 10 to 4.  Please stop by to visit me if you’re in the area!

Above is a sneak peak of a few of the new items I’ve created for the show.  I will also have my candy drop jewelry, flower jewelry, typewriter rings, a few quilts, some fun hair accessories, apple butter, NEW Chocolate Raspberry Topping and MORE! 

Hope to see you tomorrow!