Worldwide Day of Play: September 30th

Hello everyone,
Saturday, September 30th, is the official Worldwide Day of Play! It is a whole day devoted to play and exercise. Of course, both these things should be a part of every child's life. The point of this day is to encourage kids and families to "get up, get out and go play."
If you would like more information on this day including a "toolkit" of play ideas check out The Alliance for a Healthier Generation which is part of The Clinton Foundation's web site and ongoing activites. Let's encourage our kids to get some exercise and have fun doing it.
Adults, you go have some play-time as well. Play is good for the body and soul and adults need this too!
Best of health!
Patty

Tomatoes and Basil and Olives, yum...

Hi everyone,
One of the recipes I am teaching at The New York Open Center class next Friday as part of a healthy appetizer class is Olive Tapenade. I decided this morning to not serve it on the usual crackers, but on our beautiful tomatoes that are still so flavorful right now. I will take a cherry tomato and slice it in half. Then I'll spread it with some olive tapenade and then drizzle it with some basil dressing. It is so delicious and very good for you. Watch my recipe section of my web site for the recipes that will be posted very soon.
Olives are a very good source of monounsaturated fats and Vitamin E. Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin which has been shown to have significant anti-inflammatory properties. It is an antioxidant which scavenges free-radicals; compunds which are short of an electron and cause oxidative damage. Vitamin E has also been shown to help alleviate hot flashes in menopausal women. Always a good thing for eveyone...
Best of Health!
Patty

Kitchens in Classrooms

I will be teaching several times at local Indian Rancheria. First I will teach the adults simple ways to add nutritious foods to their everyday lives. We will cook and bake and chat about proper nutrition. Next I will go into the classrooms and teach the kids the same. Every classroom at the school has a kitchen! We should all learn from this. A simple sink and stove and a small counter top so as to make cooking/nutrition part of every child's education. As it should be. Can you imagine if all kids had a basic understanding about what foods are health-supporting and then they learn that "health" food is delicious? They would learn about cooking, baking and proper portions, as well as ways to make food beautiful through garnishing one's plate. I have found kids love to garnish a plate; something as simple as a twist of lemon or a sprig of parsley or simply arranging the food in a nice way on the plate. No power cooking, just good home-cooked meals. They would be healthier kids and therefore happier kids. When they grow up they would be healthier and, to be perfectly practical, less costly to society (insurance, medical costs, etc.) How can we not afford to consider this?

Healthy regards,
Patty

The Cupcake Crusade

Hello everyone,
Recently I was asked to help by supplying recipes for a great new project called The Cupcake Crusade. Rachel Tore along with Nancy Easton of Wellness in The Schools in New York have begun this project. In Rachel's words; "Our mission is to offer healtier options for birthday parties & other celebrations at school." What a great idea! Too often, cupcakes, cakes and other goodies supplied for school functions are the epitome of junk food. I have made many recipes with kids the last few years at my school with healthier ingredients that the kids love.
Check out the recipe section of my web site for a few of the recipes that they will be making. Great work Rachel and Nancy! See you later this month.
Healthy regards to you and your kids!
Patty