Guest blogger: (Over)thinking the SNAP Challenge

September is Hunger Action Month and one action we are encouraging people to take is the SNAP Challenge, where you try to live on the average SNAP food budget.  President of the GardenShare Board of Directors, Carol Pynchon, is undertaking the challenge and had these thoughts to offer as she starts this journey...


Gloria has suggested that I might be overthinking my participation in GardenShare’s SNAP Challenge, and I have to admit she’s right. And that has provided my first take-away from this effort to feed my family on the average SNAP allowance: I have time to think about the challenge and plan how I am going to manage. And I’ve been doing that. A lot! But not everyone has that opportunity.

I have been strategizing how to get the most for my food dollar and where I’ll get the best deals. I have time – and a car with gas in it – and will drive around to get the best prices. I don’t imagine that most people who find themselves requiring assistance have a lot of time to creatively think about and map out how they will feed themselves and their families for $4.60 per person per day. And they don’t get to choose when it’s most convenient – when having a strapped food budget won’t interfere with weekend plans, a birthday celebration, or a particularly full long day of work. 

So, I need to stop thinking about it and do it! We are going to take the challenge next week.  Stay tuned for further reports and consider taking the SNAP Challenge sometime during September, which is Hunger Action Month. Check out some suggestions from GardenShare for other ways you can take action here.

--Carol Pynchon

Two weeks until the Fight Hunger 5K!

It's the middle of the unofficial last weekend of the summer, but. we just need to remind you that it's also only two weeks to the third annual Fight Hunger 5K...

Have you signed up yet?

Can you organize a team from your church, workplace or other group?

These last two weeks will be prime time for asking friends, family, and co-workers to join you or to make a donation to support you!

Hope to see you in two weeks!

http://gardenshare.org/content/fight-hunger-5k-0

Veggie of the month: Eggplant!

Fun facts about eggplant:

•          Like tomatoes, eggplants are not actually vegetables they are technically berries
•          In Italy, eggplants were once known as “mala insana” which translates to crazy apple
•         Eggplant is rich source of dietary fibers, vitamins C, K and vitamins of the B group, and minerals such as copper, phosphorus and magnesium 
•           In order to see if an eggplant is ripe, press the skin with your thumb, if the indentation disappears it is ready to eat!

Recipe: Eggplant Ragu

This play on the classic Italian sauce replaces meat with the nutrient rich eggplant and tastes great with pasta or polenta.

INGREDIENTS

•     1 pound eggplant, peeled and cut across in 1/4 -inch slices

•     2 tablespoons kosher salt

•     1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

•     1 pound red bell peppers, cut lengthwise in 1/8-inch strips

•     6 cloves garlic, sliced thin

•     2 ¼ pounds plum tomatoes, diced

•     Freshly ground black pepper to taste

•     12 large leaves basil, shredded

PREPARATION

Sprinkle the eggplant with 1 tablespoon salt and drain in a colander for 30 minutes. Rinse, pat dry and cut in 1/4-inch dice.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over high heat. Add the eggplant, peppers and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes. Lower the heat to medium and cover. Cook for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tomatoes and cook, uncovered, stirring, for 5 minutes. Season with 1 tablespoon salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the basil and let sit for 5 minutes before serving with pasta or polenta.

Sources:

http://indianapublicmedia.org/eartheats/eggplant-facts/

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=22&tname=foodspice

http://www.softschools.com/facts/plants/eggplant_facts/1052/

http://www.thedailymeal.com/cook/12-things-you-didnt-know-about-eggplant

New AmeriCorps joins the team

Name:  Maggie Smith

Hometown: Long Lake, NY in the central Adirondacks

Role at GardenShare: AmeriCorps VISTA member

How long? August 2017 – August 2018

Why I do what I do at GardenShare: I grew up between the Adirondacks and the North Country. I will always call the Adirondacks home, but I think the North Country might be my future home. I started to appreciate local farmers in high school while attending the annual Adirondack Youth Climate Summit, where regional food systems and organic-style growing was framed as more sustainable in the face of the global climate crisis. In college (and during a summer spent apprenticing at littleGrasse Foodworks in Canton), I learned to see food and farming from other perspectives – including culture, socioeconomics, and practicality. St. Lawrence County has such a rich farming history, and the potential is there for that small-scale agriculture industry to revitalize. The North Country community has got to come together to focus on getting the good food of local growers into the mouths of the people who live here – both those who can easily afford it and those who can’t. In the short term, I believe we must address hunger. In the long term, I believe GardenShare’s many initiatives are addressing poverty itself.

Role outside of GardenShare: I’m a daughter, sister, partner, and friend! I also worked as a Summer Naturalist at the Wild Center in Tupper Lake this summer, work as a part-time farm or garden hand, and help out in my dad’s boatbuilding shop.

Hobbies: Exploring in the woods, travelling whenever I get the chance, climbing trees, gardening, doing arts and crafts, sailing trailer-sailboats with my dad, paddling canoes, knitting, biking, hiking, going to museums, and cooking or preserving food – especially fermentation!

Most recent accomplishment: Graduating from Hamilton College with a B.A. in Geosciences.

Favorite book? That’s a tough one. But Cannery Row, by John Steinbeck, is definitely one of my favorites. It’s short and memorable.

Last read? I’ve been re-reading the Harry Potter series, and am halfway through The Prisoner of Azkaban.

What one word would you use to describe yourself? Adventurous.

What are you most proud of? The wonderful friends I’ve made over the years, the love and support I’ve been able to offer them, and learning how to ask them for the same support when I need it.

What would I find in your refrigerator right now? Veggies, cheese, my mom’s cranberry-apple chutney, eggs, and venison (thanks to my brother). And everything must be labeled!

Eating Animals

On Sunday, I was privileged to be part to a panel presentation at the Clarkson University Convocation.

All incoming freshmen at Clarkson has red the book, Eating Animals, by Jonathan Safran Foer.
The book makes a strong case for a vegan lifestyle, although I did not feel it was too "preachy" on the subject.  It did provide examples of both animal farmers and slaughter operations that maintain high standards of animal husbandry and humane treatment and encouraged those of us who will eat meat to consider those options.

The panel responding to the book did not, interestingly enough, include any vegetarians or vegans.  We were all omnivores, a couple of whom might describe ourselves as "selective omnivores."

Fair warning if you do intend to read the book, the descriptions of conditions at many large factory farms and slaughterhouses are quite graphic and stomach-turning.  And, I am sure that the things described really do happen at large factory farms and large slaughter houses.  Which is why I count myself among those selective omnivores who wants to know where her meat is coming from.

Although I was not raised in any of these traditions, I feel a deep connection to the Jewish, Muslim, and Native American traditions as it relates to animals and meat.  I believe that when we do take an animals life for food, we need to treat it with reverence and as the gift that it is.  Offering a prayer of thanks to the spirit of the animal that is providing food for us has always seemed appropriate, indeed important, to me.

Sadly, our modern food system does not allow for that for most of us.

Which is just one of the reasons I want to see a vibrant, sustainable, local food system here in the North Country.

Gloria

Show some team spirit and support GardenShare

Teams are signing up for the Fight Hunger 5K!

What's a team?  It could be any group of friends, family, or co-workers who want to walk or run together in the the 5K.

So far, there are four teams signed up, with some great team names:

• Every Revolution Begins with a Spark (they are currently in the lead for fundraising!)
• CPHealthy (representing Canton-Potsdam Hospital, and they currently have the largest team)
• Team Tamera
• GardenShare friends team

While we'd love to have you take part in the 5K in any way that works for you - solo, with your family, or on a team - we hope you'll think about organizing a team to spread the word and engage more people in this important work.

And, don't forget, there is a prize for the top fundraising team!

Sign up here and the system will walk you through joining an existing team, starting a new team, or just registering as an individual.

Celebrating GardenShare's Sustainers Circle

Last evening, we gathered for a reception at The Grange at 1844 House to celebrate the members of GardenShare's "Sustainers Circle."

Sustainers, as we call them, are individuals, families, or organizations who have made a three-year or longer pledge to GardenShare.  These multi-year pledges are so important to GardenShare's stability and ability to keep doing our work year after year.

While not everyone could join us last evening, twenty-eight people were there to enjoy some good food and fellowship with like-minded people, along with some brief updates from GardenShare's President and Executive Director.

So, thank you, thank you, thank you to all the dedicated folks who have already signed up to be part of the Sustainers Circle.  Will you consider joining us?  A pledge of any amount for three or more years is all it takes to be part of this special group.

Special thanks to the 1844 House for hosting us last night.