Wow! Can you believe this March break weather. It has been so heart warming to hear the children’s voices as they happily play and run outside over the past few days. In fact as I sit at my desk preparing the food box order for March 20th I could see and hear the neighbour’s girls laughing and giggling as they swung back and forth on their swings. It truly turns your attention to your gardens and what is growing out there already. BUT we all know that no matter how warm it feels today that we cannot plant our veggies yet. We also pray that the fruit trees do not bud too guickly and then fall prey to an early spring freeze….mother nature is so unpredictable. Having worked with the food box program for 8 years now I know what an effect weather has on the quantity, quality and variety of fruit and vegetables we can procur for your eagerly awaited boxes each month.

This month being March we thought we would go for the greens…so your box will have broccoli, English cucumber (I highly recommend you make your own Tzatziki sauce), celery ($17 box); Romaine lettuce ($13 and $17 boxes), Kale ($13 and $17 boxes); and Shanghai bok choy. Then just to add some interest and still support local growers we have added beets, potatoes, apples, mushrooms ($8.00 box only), cooking onions, and carrots. Please watch for signs of decay in your root vegetables as this is nearly the end of the good storage cycle of our Ontario grown crops. Let us know if you have any issues.

Finally for a little pizzazz we added bananas, lemons, oranges, mangoes and plums.

Check out our newsletter in your box as it has an interesting tip about using your kale. It is highly recommended that you massage your kale like you knead bread to improve the flavour especially if eating it raw. Try it you will be amazed….to check for how long to knead simply taste before kneading and then after a few minutes. If it is tasting milder then you know it has worked. Quite something!!!

There is also information in our newsletter about the Halton Fresh Food Box evaluation we are just starting. There are at least 3 opportunities coming your way to provide input to how the program is operating and what we can do to make it better. These opportunities are listed on the front page of the newsletter.

Now for the best part – here is a quick and easy recipe for homemade Tzatziki Sauce just for our blog followers…it is soooo good.

The secret of great tzatziki is to drain the excess liquid out of both the yogurt and the cucumbers. This will give you a thick, delicious dip that is fresher tasting than anything you can buy ready made. The recipe covers two quantities – about 1 cup or 2 and 1/2 cups…make a little or a lot.

1 or 3 cups plain greek yogurt (low fat is fine)
2/3 or 2 medium cuucmber
1/3 or 1 tsp salt
1 clove garlic, squished
1 tsp. or 1 tbsp olice oil
1 tsp. or 1 tbsp. chopped mint, dill or chives
salt and pepper to taste

First, drain the liquid from the yogurt. The easiest way to do this is to take a paper coffee filter, place it into the filter holder balanced over a bowl or measuring cup, and dump the yogurt into the filter to drain. Let the yogurt drain, refrigerated, for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Meanwhile, peel or do not peel(chunkier if you do not) the cucember and grate them on the coarse holes of a grater. Place shredded cucumber in a bowl, add salt and let sit while you wait for the yogurt to drain (at least 1 hour for the cucumber). After 1 hour, drain the cucumber thoroughly and, if you want to be really fanatical about this, squeeze the remaining water out be hand. Plunk into a bowl.

Finally, dump the yogurt into the bowl with the cucumber, add garlic, olive oil and any seasoning you wish. Season with salt and pepper to taste; and serve as a dip with pita bread or fresh vegetables, or as an accompaniment to grilled meats or vegetables.

As always have fun with the produce in your box….it will enrich your meals incredibly.

The Food Box Guru

Hard to believe we are entering the fourth week of February. How time flies when you work for a not for profit organization like the Halton Fresh Food Box.

It keeps Jeanne and I just hopping each and every week to keep those food boxes going out the door. We have reached a real milestong this month….we will have packed and delivered 817 boxes. We have been flirting with the number 800 for awhile but this month we totally crashed through the barrier. It is so exciting for our many volunteers to see the communities response to all of their hard work. This number is a testament to their dedication…Jeanne and I are simply the supporting cast.

We are facing some real challenges with funding in the next few months. To stay at this level we need an infusion of cash….so if you have any great ideas about how to fundraise please share them with us. We are trying hard but for once in the lifetime of this program it is not coming easily. We have applied for grants but the competition is huge. If you are an innovative thinker or have some good connections we need to hear from you ASAP. Give us a call at 905-634-8645!

That being said we forge ahead and keep working hard.We hope you like the February box….to find out what is in your box this week simply read the blog titled Family Day Let’s talk food…your box is exactly the same.

We look forward to your comments…so please tell us what you think or send us a recipe you really like.

Cheers
The foodbox guru

Hello food box followers

The wonderful thing about the food box is it encourages a family dialogue about food….What is in the box this month? What is that? How are we going to serve this? What do you want for dinner tonight? How do I store that? I wonder what is Ontario and locally grown in the box this month? I didn’t know that local pears would still be available in February. I don’t see them in the stores!
These are all great conversations you can have in your kitchen as you unpack your box.

The food box is one way to keep connected with where your food comes from. You learn a little about healthy eating as we strive to put great healthy recipes in the newsletter each month. We encourage safe food practices by advising you to wash all your produce before using; encourage hand washing before preparing food; recommend using a clean cutting board that is just for vegetables and so on…it is so much more than just a box of fruit and vegetables.

We are thrilled to note that in February we will have grown to serving over 800 households a month through out Halton Region….we know that our little not for profit organization is truly a success story. Thankyou for continually affirming that we live up to our motto – Quality fruit and vegetables at a great price.

The food box you will be receiving on February 21st is a real mix of local/ontario and out of country produce. It will not be long before we have Ontario greenhouse produce PLUS we know our local growers will soon be outside getting their fields and orchards ready for another growing season…I can smell the fresh asparagus already!!

The fruit and veggies in the box are
Broccoli (USA), cauliflower (USA), grape tomatoes, spinach (USA), sweet potatoes (USA), English cucumber (maybe Ontario), apples (local), onions (ontario), celery, lettuce (USA), green peppers (USA), tangerines (USA), oranges (USA), Anjou pears (Local0, mushrooms (Local), lemons (USA), and carrots (Ontario)

Make sure you try the Lemon Salad dressing recipe in the newsletter…it works well on a Spinach Mushroom Salad.

The foodbox Guru

Hello to all of our followers – Yes it is time for the food box guru to choose her items for the February food boxes. As I was preparing the orders and writing the newsletter I was thinking about what I have heard over the past 7 years as to what makes a good food box.

Here is what I have heard. Please let us know if this is what you also think. Our customers want and expect – Quality fruit and vegetables; A good, fair price that helps many of them stretch their limited food dollars; Good variety in every box; A mix of fruit and vegetables; Some items that have to be eaten within a day or two; some that will last a few days and then others that will last a couple of weeks or so; Ontario and Local grown is very important for many of our customers; not too many beets and rutabagas or parsnips; variety of different apples and pears; something new and interesting now and again to spark up their diet.

So that is indeed what we try to do with every single box we pack. We can accommodate all of these requests. The only issue we cannot accommodate is personal likes and dislikes. So as I choose and try to stay within the money we have collected I just pray it will meet most of your likes and dislikes. If not share that item you don’t like with a friend or leave at the food box drop site for another customer who will love it!!!

Here is what you can expect in your box on Februay 7th….let me know how I did. $8.00 bag has small portions of apples, Anjou pears, carrots, broccoli, cooking onions, oranges, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, grape tomatoes, green pepper, English cucumber, blueberries, lemon

$13 box has more broccoli, apples, Anjou pears, carrots, oranges,sweet potatoes,lemons plus grape tomatoes,cooking onions, celery, green pepper, blueberries and mushrooms

$17 box contains iceberg lettuce, more apples, more pears, more oranges, carrots, more cooking onions, broccoli, mushrooms, more sweet potatoes, cauliflower, rutabaga, green peppers, lemons, blueberries, grape tomatoes and celery

There are still many local and Ontario items such as the apples, pears, mushrooms, onions, carrots and rutabaga. We will soon have Ontario green house items for the box also. Read your newsletter – there is a great Orange Chicken Fajita Recipe in it on page 3. Happy munching – Foodbox Guru