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Growing Together:
Food, Family and Friends
This month we explore the first crops of summer, leafy greens, with fun activities. In the kitchen, enjoy leafy greens as a side dish, make smoothies and explore making homemade salad dressing.
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Julie Garden-Robinson, Ph.D., R.D., L.R.D., Food and Nutrition Specialist
Kim Bushaw, M.S., Family Science Specialist
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EAT
Try growing some leafy greens this summer. Leafy greens add color, flavor and nutrition to your meals. They contain vitamins C and A, along with natural plant chemicals ( called phytochemicals) shown to have health benefits. Many children and adults are short on green vegetables in their diet. Enjoy dark green leafy vegetables to maximize your nutrition.
Many types of leafy greens are available in seed packets individually and in mixtures. These include leaf lettuce, spinach and a colorful salad mix that often includes arugula, Swiss chard, leaf lettuce and others. Leafy greens can be grown in the spring and a second crop can be planted. See “From Garden to Table: Leafy Greens!” with growing tips and recipes from NDSU Extension to learn more.
Clean freshly harvested lettuce thoroughly in plenty of running water. Kids can help pick the lettuce, rinse it and dry it on paper towels and place itin a zip-top bag or airtight container in the refrigerator. Consider investing in a salad spinner, which kids can use to quickly remove the moisture from food. When children help grow and prepare food, they are more likely to eat it.
Learn more about growing, preparing and preserving a wide range of vegetables using our “Field to Fork” handouts and viewing our recorded training videos. See www.ag.ndsu.edu/fieldtofork for details.
Here’s a quick recipe that kids can help create. Use your imagination to create other smoothies!
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Green Monster Smoothie
1 1/2 cups strawberries, hulled
2 cups spinach
1/2 banana, peeled
1 tablespoon orange juice concentrate
1/2 carton single-serving low-fat yogurt, any flavor
1/4 to 1/2 cup milk, water or juice
Place first five prepared ingredients in freezer-safe bag. Push out air and lay flat in freezer. When ready to prepare, place frozen ingredients in blender with 1/4 to 1/2 cup milk, water or juice.
Makes two servings. Each serving has 160 calories, 2 grams (g) fat, 6 g protein, 32 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber and 95 milligrams sodium.
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Connect
Fresh leafy greens are some of the first plants to be ready to harvest in the spring. They may or may not require much water, depending on the weather. Other plants, however, will benefit from regular watering.
Assign Watering Duty
Preschoolers enjoy helping outdoors, and watering plants is an excellent way to involve them. To ensure they don’t overwater everything, use a quart or half-gallon plastic beverage container (small milk jug with a handle) as a watering “can.” Remove the cap and drill some holes in the screw-off top, fill with water, replace the cap and let your young children gently sprinkle the plants. (There will be plant casualties regardless of all your preparation. Plan for it.)
Try a Taste Test
Have your kids taste test a variety of greens from your garden, farm market or grocery store. Put each washed and ready variety on their plate or paper towel. Add a sticky note with the name of the variety next to it. Ask family members to describe the flavors: bland, spicy, bitter, sweet, etc. This is a great way to expand your children’s vocabulary. It also improves their descriptions. Who wouldn’t rather hear something is too “tart” rather than “yucky.”
Make Stepping Stones
Another way to help children be successful in the garden is to use stepping stones to guide them away from stepping on the plants. Make your own garden stones using thrift-store pie or cake pans, concrete powder, water, cooking spray and decorations. Start by collecting the decorations, such as beads, marbles, game markers and letter tiles, small toys, stones and shells. If you plan to actually walk on them, consider where you will place your decorations. Use a tool to add names. Handprints, footprints and coins to commemorate special years are also popular additions. Spray the pans, mix the concrete powder and water following the instructions on the bag, pour it into the pans, add decorations and let them cure.
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Many salad kits are available in grocery stores. If time is short, these are a convenient way to save time and help meet your veggie recommendation. Triple-rinsed salad mixes are ready to eat. You could save money by growing your own greens, though.
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