Presidents for School Food.

My mom is at the US School Nutrition Association Legislative Action Conference this week in Washington D.C. The purpose of this conference is for school nutrition professionals to come together and not only learn about the policy issues that are being addressed by Congress, but also get a chance to lobby to the US Representatives and Senators about school nutrition issues that are relevant to their state and district.
After talking to her about the fun things like the Lincoln memorial and the how cool meeting members of Congress were I decided I should look up some of the policies she will be advocating for this week. Some of the most interesting to me was the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-296), which would provide for a significant increase in funding for school lunches for schools that meet certain nutrition standards. It also provides funding for several new demonstration and performance based programs.
School lunch is something we need to invest in. Sometimes it is the only meal a child will get. I am so proud of my mom for being part of a program that wants to implement healthy food practices in children and making a postitive impact on their lives. School lunch is something that impacts us all, even Bill Clinton.

Come to Mama

Oh happy day, Mommy has come to town! In honor of the birth of her first.. and only.. born daughter, my mother made the long trek from Port Townsend to Bellingham during the frigid month of February. As usual, the visit was too much fun, too brief and filled with sooo much food. When else can a penniless college student afford to eat out at all of her favorite local spots?
The trip started off with a bang when good ol' mum showed up with the best goody basket, full of all my favorite Port Townsend items.. I was needless to say, giddy as a school girl. Honestly, does an egg taste as creamy or a beer as crisp than when it come from your own back yard? I have already written recently on The Foodivas about my opinion regarding locally produced food, but I just cant get enough of it! My recent obsession may be partly fueled by adventure through Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Either way, I was ecstatic by the present. What's that, did you just ask what was in that fantastic basket of joy? Well I am glad you asked. Here it was as follows:

TWO DOZEN EGGS FROM THE FAMILY HENS

SALMON MY FAMILY CAUGHT ON THE PENINSULA, FILLETS, SMOKED AND CANNED.
MORE DEER, STEAKS AND ROASTS. 














PORT TOWNSEND BEER, BREAD, CHEESE AND COFFEE

PAPRIKA! This label is not lying. Oddly enough my mother sniffs (not to be confused with snorts) this when she has congested sinuses. She says it works like a charm, then precedes to sneeze for the next few minutes.

Pour some suga on me...

The Foodivas decided to try our hand a desserts for this meeting. Conflicting schedules, tons of homework, and way to much work forced the Foodivas to have a late meeting. What a perfect time to divulge into the sins of sweets. The night was such a success with stuffing our bodies with sweets that the next day was "sugar-free" for most of us!

For my adventuresome food undertaking of the week, I decided to attempt some gluten free baking. Chocolate. Black bean. Brownies.  WOO! Within recent years I have noticed an increasing amount of gluten sensitivity present within my friend/family group. Since I do love to cook and cook for those I love, I have recently decided to become more adaptive in my cooking techniques to accommodate for this condition. It seems to me that gluten allergies and incidences of people living with Celiac Disease are surprisingly common within the U.S. After doing some poking around on the internet I found some figures, which estimate that one out of 133 people in the US experience Celiac Disease (http://www.celiac.org).

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Celiac Disease, it is an autoimmune disease and stems from unknown causes which make those who suffer from it unable to process the gluten proteins found in wheat. When people with Celiac Disease eat foods containing gluten it creates a reaction within their body that damages the small intestine. 

Fortunately, a wide variety of substitutes exist for wheat when baking (including black beans which I used in my brownies, mmm!) A couple common substitutes for traditional wheat are soy and rice flour. Although the consistency of these products are not the same as traditional wheat, with some tweaking the goods can turn out just as good or dare I say, even better.

Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 4 eggs
• 16 ounces chocolate syrup
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 6 tbsp butter
• 6 tbsp milk
• 1 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Processs

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
• Grease a 9x9 baking pan
• Mix Together 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup butter, eggs, chocolate syrup, and flour.
• Spread batter into pan
• Bake for 25-30 minutes

Optional frosting

• combine 6 tbsp of butter, milk, and 1/4 cup sugar in saucepan. 
• Stir and boil for 3 minutes. 
• Add 1 cup of chocolate chips and stir over low heat until melted. 
• Frost cooled brownies ASAP so the frosting does not melt.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients

• 2/3 cup butter flavored shortening
• 2/3 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1tsp salt
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Process

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, cream together shortening, butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth
• Beat in the eggs one at a time
• Stir in vanilla.
• Combine flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into creamed mixture.
• Stir in the chocolate chips.
• Use a measuring tbsp to round dough balls
• Place on ungreased baking sheets.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes.
• Cool for 2-3 minutes before removing from baking sheets. 

White Chocolatini
Ingredients 

• 1 1/2 oz. vanilla vodka
• 1 oz Godiva White Chocolate Liqueur
• 2 oz cream
• dark chocolate shavings for garnish

Process

• Pour vodka, godiva, and cream into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
• Shake well.
• Strain into a chilled glass
• Garnish with dark chocolate shavings.

Berry Parfait 
Ingredients

• strawberries
• blueberries
• whipped cream

Process

• Cut washed strawberries into halves
• Layer blueberries, strawberries, and whipped cream into a tall glass. 

Chocolate Black Bean Brownies
Ingredients

• 1 can organic black beans
• 1/4 cup peruvian coco powder
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 white sugar
• 1/2 tbsp baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 1tsp salt
• 3tbsp coffee
• 2tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup apple sauce

Process

• Preheat oven to 350F
• combine all ingredients
• spread into a 9x9 greased pan
• bake for 25 minutes
• allow to cool