By Kari Svenneby
I’m sure you are like me, loving the return of the barefoot season. Up in the north, I’m growing some my own produce both for joy and educational purpose for our family. I have to say I get quite a thrill out of picking my own produce. Though my yields are never large it is always quite magical to me.
The real sign of spring comes to our house with locally grown asparagus for dinner and rhubarb from my garden. Eating food that is in season is a great way to connect kids and adult with nature and food. Environmentally it is good for the planet, but maybe the best thing is it taste so good. Maybe that is why cooking with ingredients that are in season is a very important part of being a good chef. Even in a day when you can get all kinds of ingredients available all year around.
Visit a farm and pick your own
Whether you try to grow some of your own food or make a visit to your local farmers market to check out what grows locally where you live, there are numerous opportunities to get your kids minds thinking about the spirit of food and nature and how they are connected. Not only will they enjoy picking berries or whatever is in season, kids will eat things they were directly involved in picking. Serving healthy and fresh food on the table with the added benefit of special memories of being outside.
Find out what is in season where you live
Do a little research on what is around you. Depending on where you live and what is in season. A very good resource for finding out what is in season and where you can pick you own food can be found on Pickyourown.org’s website. This website offer also great recipes for canning and preserving.
