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Check Out This Weeks Recipe from Your Produce Man. Click Here.
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CANTALOUPE/HONEYDEW (Monday, Sept. 1): Many of you will be heading out today for your final picnic of the summer. It’s Labor Day, the last day for a dunk in swimmin’ hole, some bar-be-que ribs or hamburgers, and of course, some sweet, summer melons. Right now, Cantaloupe and Honeydew are the best value for melons, so they’ll make the perfect smiles at the picnic. To make sure those smiles last, be sure to observe food safety rules for melon. First, wash your melons before you cut them. Melons do grow in dirt, you know. If there is any bacteria in the dirt, and it gets on the melon rind, if you don’t wash that rind, then you would easily cross-contaminate the fruit with bacteria. Now, muskmelons or cantaloupe, not only need to be washed, but scrubbed. All of that netting on the rind is like “nooks and crannies” on those English muffins. Get a little scrub brush for your muskmelons. Once you have cut and served your melons, keep the remainder on ice. Ice is cheap. Get lots of it, and then ice down your cut melons. If you have cut melons, unrefrigerated for more than two hours, throw them out. Cantaloupes and Honeydews are super sweet right now. Don’t let them sour by not following a few simple food safety rules.
BACK TO SCHOOL (Tuesday, Sept. 2): School bells are ringing. School doors are opening. All around the country, kids are heading back to school. For kids, when they head back to school, it’s once again time for the 3 R’s, Reading, Writing and Arithmetic. For parents and grandparents, we also need to head back to school, back to the basic, back to the 3 R’s of healthy diets. The first “R” is “Role Model.” If want our kids to eat healthy, to live healthy, to exercise, then we have to model it for our kids. More is “caught” then “taught” when it comes to kids. It’s very difficult to teach your kids to eat healthier snacks when they watch you gain weight by not eating right, or eating too much of the wrong things. You, as the parent or grandparent, have to take this serious before your kids will. The second “R” is “Reduce Fats and Sugars.” There are a lot of little tiny steps you can do here without really turning your child’s world upside down. For example, why does your child need a whole donut, or a whole candy bar? They are about half the size of you. Why don’t you give them half of a donut, half of a candy bar? How about French fries? For our little Claire, we simply took her age, doubled that, and that became the number of French fries she could have. Ten French fries for a little 5-year-old is just fine. The third “R” is “Remember 5-a-Day and Exercise.” Less than 15% of kids in America eat five servings of fruits and vegetables every day. The average child in America today eats less than two servings of fruits and vegetables every day. Here we are, in the most industrialized country in the world, where the fruits and vegetables are the most plentiful, the cheapest and the safest, and yet, we are facing obesity as one of the largest health issues of the century. How does that happen? I talk to a lot of parents who tell me their kids don’t eat fruits and vegetables. Why are you making it an option? If your kids have to go to the doctor or the dentist, does the child have a say whether they go or not? Of course not. Take the same attitude in eating fruits and vegetables. It’s not an option. It’s mandatory. To help the process along, get your kids involved in what they eat. Take them to the grocery store and have them pick out the bananas for the week, the apples for the week. Have the produce manager give your kids samples of the different apples so your kids will begin learning some of the different flavors. And don’t forget exercise. It’s not an option. It’s mandatory. Walk more. Take the time for your kids to exercise. Sometimes it’s as simple as turning off those silly kid’s programs and turning the computer off. Get your kids involved in sports, either an individual or a team sport. Get back to the 3 R’s.
PEARS (Wednesday, Sept. 3): There is more to the world of pears than just the Bartlett. I love this time of year. There are so many pear varieties coming into the supermarket. Try a new pear each week. How about a French Butter, super sweet and truly buttery smooth. Or the Seckel? It’s the only pear variety that originated in the United States, New York in 1820. It’s also known as the “sugar pear.” Any guesses why? The Seckel is the perfect school pear. They tend to be smaller, and your kids will love how sweet they are.
O’HENRY PEACH (Thursday, Sept. 4): Still, after over 30 years, the O’Henry Peach is one of the most popular peaches grown and harvested in the United States. The O’Henry was found on the a peach farm in Redding, California. This peach is known for its color, sugar and flavor. It has about a 95% red blush on the skin. Inside, the flesh literally glistens with juice and sugar. It’s one of those peaches that you have to role up your sleeves to eat. The O’Henry is only here for a few weeks, so when you see them advertised, stock up. This is a great peach to freeze so you can enjoy fresh peach ice cream this winter. If you love a peach cobbler like I love a peach cobbler, the O’Henry was made for peach cobblers. Get out the whipped cream or the vanilla ice cream. O my, it’s an O’Henry Peach.
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