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It's that time of year again to start thinking about canning.  What a wonderful way to enjoy the taste and quality of fresh produce all year long!  Last year, my partner and I canned 12 quarts of tomato sauce that we thoroughly enjoyed all year long....especially in February!  We tried a new way of canning (new to us) that a friend told us about.  You put the jars in the oven. It worked great.  Here's how it goes:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees

2.  Wash jars and lids in hot soapy water

3.  Fill jars.  Leave some head room

4.  Screw lids on tight.

5. Place jars on cooking sheet.  Make sure they are not touching.

6. Quarts cook for 30 minutes.  Pints cook for 20 minutes. Should see bubbles on top at the end.

I went to my first Veggie Van stop this week at the CDC Head Start location and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The moment you set foot near the Veggie Van you can feel the positive energy radiating from everyone around. The staff is extremely nice and very knowledgeable and the community members are exceptionally friendly and welcoming.

Last night Local Matters was represented at the Jack Johnson concert in Cuyahoga Falls!  We had our own table in the “Village Green” and we got to meet Jack Johnson and his wife! They played the “Name That Veggie” game at our table and talked to us about what we are doing in our community. While Jack Johnson was playing the game, he immediately recognized the fennel because his children love fennel. His children actually started a “Friends of Fennel” club. We also learned a fact from Kim Johnson about the Japanese eggplant we had as a part of our game. She said that the Japanese eggplant is the only type of eggplantthat grows in Hawaii.

My family and I recently had our annual burger competition where we each find a different recipe, cook the burger, and decide who wins the taste and presentation award. This year we decided to make the competition more exciting by only allowing one family member to use red meat.

As soon as we decided on that new rule, I immediately began looking through tuna burger recipes and found an amazing one by Emeril Lagasse. This recipe helped me tie with my Grandma for first place in the taste category and it has several ingredients that you can purchase fresh and locally. I hope you enjoy it and have as much fun making it as I did!

      Taking a vacation?  If you're a foodie like me, you know there is a lot of preparation ahead of time to get ready for such an adventure.  If you're not much of a foodie, here is a small glimpse into what some of us experience as we plan to travel.  Not only are my partner and I "picky" eaters who only want the finest quality foods and ingredients, but we also experience low blood sugar if we do not eat enough of the right foods at the right times.  Therefore, the morning we leave, we load up the cooler with everything from hard boiled eggs to baked tofu and gluten free bread (my partner also has a gluten allergy).  We also make sure we have some kind of eating utensils and yes....a crock pot....even though we are planning to stay at a hotel.  We justify this with our need to eat right before bed

Yesterday, The Trust for America's Health (in partnership with The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)  released it's annual report: "F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America's Future 2010".

Not surprisingly, the report found "troubling racial, ethnic, regional and income disparities in the nation's obesity epidemic":

     As a regular Comfest attendee, I am so pleased at the variety of food choices available.  I usually go to the festival for one day each year and am glad to know that there will be foods I can eat...and feel good about eating.  This year I went for a day and a half and was able to sample a variety of foods. On Friday, I was there midday and enjoyed a Sesame Spring Roll with ponzu sauce from Dragonfly and Del's Favorite Tofu Wrap from the Wellness Forum.  These two booths were convienently located right next to each other so I knew this would be a hot spot for me on Saturday. 

I have written before on our blog about how much I enjoy The New York Times' health blog "The Well", as it features really healthy recipes that are heavy on whole foods, usually call for few ingredients, and often feature seasonal produce. One of the writers for the blog, Martha Rose Shulman, was featured in an "ask the chef" column several weeks ago, and I just found it today. It has got some great answers to questions that many of us have about eating and living well. I have posted a sample question below from the colum...if you'd like to read more, click on the following link:

consults.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/20/insert-credit-martha-rose-shul/