COVID-19 Changes and Resources: What You Need to Know

In these uncertain times, we at Poughkeepsie Farm Project are greatly concerned with the impact of COVID-19 on food insecure households, both those that are already part of our community and beyond. It’s our mission to combat food insecurity. Now, more than ever, this mission is important.

---

Changes to PFP Programming

In response to the current  COVID-19 outbreak, we are making necessary changes to our programming  to ensure the safety of our staff, CSA and workshare members, students  and volunteers. Survey results, state and local mandates, best  practices, and availability (or scarcity) of resources have all informed  these decisions. 
These are uncertain times,  but we are doing our best to continue offering the programs and services  you’ve come to expect from us while upholding rigorous safety  standards. We hope these changes make you feel comfortable, safe, and supported. 

• Learn about changes to CSA.

• Learn about changes to education programming. (Youth Learning with PFP!)

• Learn about changes in Volunteer Opportunities.

Community Resources

In light of school closures, Poughkeepsie City School District is distributing meals at multiple locations throughout the city. Click here for the full schedule.

PFP produce is available in hot meals and grocery packages from:

Community Collaborative
A collaborative community food program of Bread of Life, Hope on a Mission, ChangePoint Church, and Community Matters II. To get food, call or text 845-384-0100 between 9am and 3pm daily to receive a hot meal, groceries, or toiletries delivered for the members of your household.

Dutchess Outreach
Dutchess Outreach's Lunch Box Hot Meal Program is offering a To-Go Lunch Monday-Friday from 11:15 am – 1 pm and Sunday 12 pm – 1 pm. Their Food Pantry hours are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday from 8:30 am – 11:30 am, 29 North Hamilton Street.   Additional resources from Dutchess County and ways you can help.

Health Resources

For the latest from the CDC, visit cdc.gov/coronavirus.

For the latest from the New York State DOH, visit https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/home or call 1-888-364-3065.

Dutchess County COVID Flyer (English)
Condado de Dutchess COVID (Espanol)

Nuvance Health has established a COVID-19 Community Hotline. Those experiencing symptoms are encouraged to call 1-888-667-9262 from 8 am - 6 pm, seven days a week.

Here at PFP, we are taking extra precautions to keep our staff and neighbors safe, and want to encourage everyone to make decisions with a focus on helping our neighbors. Specifically: 

1. Follow CDC guidelines for staying healthy. One of the key things we can all do is to limit and slow the spread of COVID-19 to provide time for this understanding to develop and to not overwhelm the medical system. 

2. Practice social distancing - avoid physical contact and public gatherings as much as possible. To this end, we have canceled our upcoming swing dance event scheduled for April 1, 2020, at Vassar College.

3. Stay home if you feel unwell, if you’ve been exposed to someone who is sick, or if you have been recommended to isolate. 

4. Consider contributing to a local nonprofit. We are currently at work finding new ways to get fresh vegetables to our students, our community, and to the more vulnerable at-risk populations in Poughkeepsie.

If we follow common sense advice, and consider the most vulnerable members of our community first, we can help to lessen the impact of COVID-19 on our community.

Poughkeepsie Farm Project Unveils New Program ‘Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home’

Poughkeepsie Farm Project is proud to announce an innovative new program, Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home, which will put fresh produce into the kitchens of 100 students and their families beginning this month. “Poughkeepsie Farm Project’s mission to cultivate a just and sustainable food system in Mid-Hudson Valley is taking an important step forward by piloting Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home,” said Ray Armater, Executive Director of Poughkeepsie Farm Project. “We are grateful for a $15,000 grant award from the Henry Nias Foundation for this project.” Fittingly, the kick-off for Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home coincides with February 28, known in the farming community as the official Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) day. Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home will give students in PFP’s after-school programs mini CSA shares, which are also available for purchase by the community at large through Poughkeepsie Farm Project. 

View fullsize

Mr Jason passed out purple cabbages. and recipes to students in our after school program at Krieger School.

View fullsize

View fullsize

Making pickled radishes and carrots.

View fullsize

Morse students preparing kale for salad bar.

View fullsize

Poughkeepsie Food Power at Home is a unique culinary enrichment program because it provides all the tools necessary for students to take their newly honed cooking skills to the next level in their home kitchen. As teachers know, true mastery of a skill results in the authentic performance of that skill. The intergenerational sharing that will result from Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home is, quite literally, the icing on the cake of the ongoing after school programs conducted by the Poughkeepsie Farm Project. 

Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home will allow 100 students to take home three Poughkeepsie-grown produce items every week, such as carrots, kale, and beets. Each week of the program, students will prepare recipes in their Poughkeepsie Food Power garden club and will then bring that recipe – and the produce necessary to recreate it – home, to then prepare it with their families. It will provide students with the resources to take home not only produce, but the nutrition education and skills they are cultivating in the classroom. The pilot program will run through April 2020, and will start up again in September 2020 for the new school year. 

“One of the strengths of Poughkeepsie Food Power At Home is that it invites and enables a strong family engagement component,” said Jamie Levato, Education Director for PFP. “Our students are learning about food from different cultures, seasonal eating, and growing their own food. This project enables the students to continue building their skills and knowledge at home with their families.”

Growers Row: March is When the Magic Happens!

The first few weeks of March will be spent scouting the weather forecast for those “in-like-a-lion” cold nights. The resulting frozen ground will allow us to drive a tractor into the fields to start spreading a thick layer of compost. On wet days, we’ll begin broadforking and preparing our high tunnels for hundreds of incoming tomato seedlings. On warm days, we’ll be pulling the last of our parsnips from the ground.

Late last month we transitioned our greenhouse from a winter wash station back to a greenhouse, in which we will start seeding our very first successions of lettuce, chard, kale and beets -- the first crops to be planted in the fields in April. We’ll also be seeding hundreds of tomatoes destined for the high tunnels, plus thousands of flowers, herbs, and vegetable starts for the Plant Sale.

Here to help us with this (and lots of upcoming) work, we have welcomed some new faces to the farm. We’re thrilled to welcome a new Wholesale Coordinator and Foodshare Coordinator, and we’ve got a great group of Fieldwork Interns from Vassar’s Office of Community Engaged Learning.
Read on to meet the newest members of our team!

Erin Moylan, Wholesale Coordinator

Hometown: Overland Park, Kansas
Fun fact about you: I have a black belt in Tae Kwon Do
This season at PFP I want to… work on pest & disease observation and identification
Someday I hope to… wake up before my alarm clock and switch to tea instead of coffee. I remain hopeful.

Natalie Marshall, Foodshare Coordinator

Hometown: Montclair, NJ
Fun fact about you: I spent the winter in Spain helping to rebuild a ferro cement Chinese junk ship called the RV Heraclitus
This season at PFP I want to... immerse myself in all stages of a full farm season while getting to know the community
Someday I hope to... make a documentary, start a Talking Heads cover band, drive a Zamboni at the Olympics, and sail around the world

---

Name: Alex, Fieldwork Intern
Hometown: Minneapolis, MN
Fun fact about me: I am an aspiring sourdough connoisseur
I chose PFP because... I love being outside and working with my hands
As a Fieldwork Intern I want to... learn the process of how food comes from the earth to my plate sustainably
Someday I hope to... safely forage for mushrooms

Name: Eve, Fieldwork Intern
Hometown: Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Fun fact about you: I have been to 18 different countries
I chose PFP because... of its mission to provide sustainable, locally grown produce to surrounding communities.
As a Fieldwork Intern I want to... learn more about sustainable farming practices, the lifecycle of produce, and what it takes to successfully run a farm.
Someday I hope to... own my own company/ business.

Name: Georgia, Fieldwork Intern
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Fun Fact about me: I can snap with my left hand and raise my left eyebrow.
I chose PFP because... I want to work outside with a community and watch plants grow and evolve!
As a Fieldwork Intern I want to… learn more about the local plants and the farming process in general.
Someday I hope to... crochet a blanket and run through a field of flowers.

Name: Lucinda, Fieldwork Intern
Hometown: Nyack, NY
Fun fact about me: I brew mead!
I chose PFP because… I want to learn more about produce farming and CSAs, and love working outside on the farm!
As a Fieldwork Intern I want to… learn about water usage in agriculture and under what conditions different crops grow
Someday I hope to.... raise my own chickens and goats!

Name: Mackenzie, Fieldwork Intern
Hometown: Denver, Colorado
Fun fact about me: I spent half a year working on a farm in Ecuador!
I chose PFP because… I want to spend more time outside, learning about agriculture, and meeting people who care about the earth and good food.
As a Fieldwork Intern I want to… learn more about planting and harvest seasons for various crops.
Someday I hope to… grow my own food.

We hope you’ll join us in welcoming the newest members of our team, and welcoming the official start to the season!

Agricultural Literacy Month at PFP: Staff Book Picks

In honor of New York’s Agricultural Literacy week, PFP is once again doing a whole month of Ag Literacy visits to elementary school classes to read a book and prepare a Rainbow Potato Salad together! The program is a celebration of New York agriculture, with the 2020 selection, Right This Very Minute by Lisl H. Detlefsen, students will explore the journey food takes from the farmers working to harvest it, all the way to their plates. They see apple trees, a cranberry bog, a sugarbush, vegetable farms with potatoes and lettuce, and more as they trace each meal featured in the story.

Thousands of books will be donated across the state as volunteers visit classrooms and talk with students about where their food comes from and how farming is important to their community and state. Check out the full lesson info and other resources from New York Ag in the Classroom.

In the spirit of agriculture literacy, here are our staff picks for our favorite Ag themed books this year, with everything from children’s books to an adult cookbook! Tell us about your recommendations for adding to our collection.

Kathryn, Farm to School Manager

The Thing About Bees by Shabazz Larkin

“I love The Thing About Beesbecause not only are the illustrations beautiful and colorful, but the story is both spirited in it’s rhymes and all about the connection between foods we love and bees that children often fear! The author writes a sweet love letter to bees and the audience that has a potent and timely message about these important pollinators.”

Sonya Joy, Garden Educator and Community Engagement Manager

My Hair is a Garden by Cozbi A Cabrera

“This book is soul food for young black femmes! The language and vibrant illustrations enliven and gently encourage the reader to cultivate a healthy relationship to human body and earth body. I identify with both of the main characters. Mack, a child internalizing racism and craving self-love; and Miss Tillie, who shelters Mack with nurturing force, shares wisdom and creates beautiful green spaces for reflection and resilience. 'I weed out all the opinions that have no place in my garden. It's too curly. Pull it back. Straighten it. Cut it off. My hair is a garden, and I give it love.”

Laura, Teen and Young Adult Program Coordinator

¿De Dónde Eres? By Yamile Saied Méndez

“The book ¿De Donde Eres? or Where are you from? is a favorite of those we have at PFP. We have students from so many different places and often one parent is from one place, another is from a different one, and then they were born somewhere and moved elsewhere! I really love how the book is not about finding a particular place for an answer but the answer is we are from 'Al amor, Y del amor de todes los que existieron antes de nosotros' 'you are from love, and the love of those that existed before us' I also really enjoy the beauty and diversity of the places in Latin America that are featured in the book and can show kids the beauty and magic of South America.”

Kitana, Assistant Garden Educator

The Bad Seed by Jory John

“The Bad Seed relates to all ages, and everyone's life. When the seed realizes that his actions make him unwanted and unfavored by others, he begins to morph into a good seed. I love the message that it's okay to make mistakes while you're growing because that is exactly what a kid needs to hear!”

Chris, After School Program Coordinator

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

“I didn't read The Lorax as a child and the first time I really became aware of the book was when I heard a fellow educator read it aloud to a group of students. I was immediately taken aback by the seriousness of the story - the pictures look bright and childlike but the story itself is about big concepts like corporate greed and environmental degradation and the importance of biodiversity. Kids want to be taken seriously and they can handle learning about more mature content than adults often give them credit for. The Lorax is a book that always reminds me of that fact.”

Larissa, Garden Educator

Farmer Will Allen and The Growing Table by Jacqueline Briggs Martin

“I really liked this book from the moment I read the first page. It reminded me of my own family in regards to not having much. But we always made room for food and people from all over. I loved how he was a professional basketball player and then came back to growing things. The illustrations are wonderful too. The different expressions and faces of the people illustrated in the book have so much diversity. I loved the growth Will Allen made and the brainstorming he did in order to make a difference in his community. There's so much to learn from this book.”

Jamie, Education Director

Pies from Nowhere: How Georgia Gilmore Sustained the Montgomery Bus Boycott by Dee Romito

“This biography shares an important example of both the role of food and ordinary people in the civil rights movement. Students get to see the impact of a group of women doing what they could behind the scenes to support the movement.”

Kate, Office Manager

Bounty From The Box - The CSA Farm Cookbook by Mi Ae Lipe

“I love the information and format of this cookbook because it breaks down the vegetables in simple paragraphs, from history, to trimming and cleaning, to a variety of cooking methods that are easy to follow - especially when it is a NEW vegetable to me. I feel empowered to break out of my routine recipes that I have been cooking for years and venturing out into new territory of delicious and nutritious foods. We at PFP are fortunate to have such wonderful choices of freshly grown vegetables as our starting place when making a meal or eating a snack!”

Kira, Education Intern

Rainbow Stew by Cathryn Falwell

“Rainbow Stew is always really fun to read with kids, especially right after a farm tour. They notice the same vegetables in the story that they just saw in real life on the farm, and they get so excited at the end when we tell them that they're about to help make their own rainbow stew.”

Lauren, Assistant Farm Manager

A Weed is a Flower: The Life of George Washington Carver by Aliki

“I am so inspired by the work of George Washington Carver, who shows that a weed can be so much more than a weed, and that we are all capable of blooming. I love how this book by Aliki brings the spirit of this prominent scientist, environmentalist, and humanist to young readers.”

What is a CSA?

What IS a CSA, anyway?

CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture, is a chance for you to support open space and farmland in your community and bring home a box of super-fresh, sustainably-grown seasonal fruits and vegetables every week! It’s a great way to eat local, eat healthy, keep your community green, keep farmers farming, and support our mission.

Here’s how it works at PFP:

You choose a Full Season Share (23 weeks from June - November) or a Fall-only Share (10 weeks September - November).

You choose the size share you want: either a whole share (10 units) or half share (5 units). A “unit” could be 3 lbs tomatoes, 2 lbs carrots or cucumbers, 1 head of lettuce, 1 lb kale, 1 bunch beets or radishes, 1/3 lb arugula.

You choose a “working” or “non-working” share. Working on the farm (either 12, 6, or 3 hours over the course of the season, depending on your share size) allows you to pay for part of your share in farm work, resulting in a lower-priced share. It’s a great opportunity to get your hands dirty with your farmers and learn more about where your food comes from.

You may also choose to add on a…
● Fruit Share (15 weeks July - November): fruit from our friends at Glorie Farm
● Egg Share (23 weeks June - November): eggs from our friends at Old Ford Farm

You choose which day of the week you want to pick up your produce. Pick up your share weekly on either Tuesday 3-6:30pm or Saturday 9am-12pm.

Finally, when June (or September) arrives…

You choose your produce. We set out a farmers’ market-style distribution, with an average of 15+ different crops for you to choose from each week. Depending on the season, you could be stocking your kitchen with anything from arugula, butter lettuce, carrots and cucumbers to watermelons, yellow tomatoes and zucchini. Choose something new you’ve never tried, or choose double lettuce if you love salads -- it’s up to you!

You pick-your-own produce. In addition to everything that we harvest for you, you’re invited to pick your own strawberries, raspberries, cherry tomatoes, peppers, green beans, flowers, herbs and more -- all bonus, to encourage you to experience the beauty and magic of the farm and to dig in to this land and this community.

On National CSA Day, farms across the country will be signing up people who want to eat more fresh, local produce. By the time March rolls around, we’ll be gearing up to get out of the office and into the greenhouse to start our 2020 crops. That’s right: CSA sign-ups happen *early*, to allow farmers like us to plan based on the number of members we have, and to help pay for things like seeds and farm labor to start growing all that gorgeous produce.

Sign up for your share by CSA Day (Monday February 28) and enter to win a…

● Coffee Share, valued at $84! North River Roasters offers a careful selection of sustainably sourced, Poughkeepsie-roasted coffees. Pick up every two weeks for 3 months at PFP.
● May Share, valued at $62! May Share is two weeks of the first fresh greens of spring. Past May Shares have included arugula, butter lettuce, sweet salad turnips, radishes, pea shoots and rhubarb. Pick up the last two Tuesdays of May (May 19 & 26, 3:00 – 6:30pm)

That’s right! On CSA Day we will choose 2 winners, one for the Coffee Share and one for the May Share, from everyone who has signed up for any of our Full or Fall season vegetable shares.

Photo by Eva Deitch

Photo by Eva Deitch

Have questions?
● View our sign up page to filter your selections and see pricing
● Visit our FAQ page for more information
● Email us at info@farmproject.org
● Call us at (845) 516-1100

Growers Row: What’s Cooking?

While the fields are covered in snow and the daylight remains low, Winter CSA marches on, with a beautiful assortment of seasonal produce. CSA members have been receiving familiar favorites like carrots, cabbage, sweet potatoes, onions, red and gold beets to seasonal treats like fresh-dug parsnips, purple mizuna, purple-top turnips, sweet-stemmed spinach, purple daikon and hot-pink watermelon radishes.

To celebrate this colorful array of winter vegetables, we have been putting together different recipes inspired by and prepared with our Winter CSA produce!

At our last January distribution, members of our PFP Education team sampled a sweet and creamy turnip apple soup from Turnip the Oven, CSA Members (and former PFP farmers!) Dan & Merle prepared tender turnips with miso and mizuna, and students from the Culinary Institute of America crafted a sesame-dressed mizuna salad with turnips and carrots.

To help you bring the YUM into your own kitchen, we’re rounding up this stellar collection of January’s recipes here.

This month, to celebrate National Heart Month and promote heart health, we’ll be featuring parsnips and red beets. Stop by for recipes and samples of these antioxidant-rich, heart-healthy vegetables at February CSA distributions, or tune in next month for a recipe recap.

We are having so much fun trying different recipes, and hope they inspire you to make the most of what’s seasonally available.

Happy Cooking!

Cinnamon Apple Turnip Soup
By Turnip the Oven, prepared by Kathryn, PFP Educator

Ingredients
● 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
● 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
● 2 cloves garlic, smashed
● 1 1/2 pounds turnips, peeled and diced
● 1/2 pound Granny Smith apples (2 or 3) peeled and diced, plus more for serving
● 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
● 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
● 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
● 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon, plus more for serving
● 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
● 4 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
● 2-4 tablespoons heavy cream, plus more for serving

Instructions
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion is translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the turnips, apples, sugar, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and cayenne and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

Add the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, partially cover the pot, and simmer until the turnips and apples are fork-tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and puree the soup with an immersion blender (or in batches in a regular blender). Stir in the cream. Top with a drizzle of olive oil and cream, some chopped apples, and a sprinkle of cinnamon before serving.


Turnips with White Miso and Steamed Mizuna
By Dan & Merle, CSA Members (& former PFP Farmer!)

Ingredients
● 2 lbs White Turnips
● 2 Tbs White Miso
● 2 Tbs Unsalted Butter (softened)
● 4 Tbs Mirin (Japanese Sweet Rice Wine) divided
● 1/4 cup Vegetable Stock or Water
● Medium bunch Mizuna Greens

Instructions
Peel turnips and slice into 1/2 in rounds. Slice across rounds making strips and once again, into cubes. Place turnip cubes into pot and cover with water. Add a small amount of salt and bring to a boil. Cook “al dente” , about 6-8 minutes. Quickly cool the turnips by covering in cold water. Set aside.

Wash and dry the Mizuna. Our winter Mizuna greens are tender and sweet, though some Mizuna stems can be tough. If they’re on the tough side, remove and just use the leaf portion.

In mixing bowl place the Miso, 2 tablespoons Mirin and Butter and blend into a paste.

In the heavy bottom (2-4 quart) pot place the vegetable stock or water plus the remaining 2 tablespoons Mirin. Bring to boil and add the Mizuna. Cook briefly until wilted but still bright green. Quickly add the turnips and miso mixture, making sure to mix and heat thoroughly. Serve immediately.


Mizuna Salad with Roasted Sesame Dressing
Prepared by Lance, Culinary Institute of America

Ingredients
● 4 ounces mizuna greens
● ½ large carrot
● 1 small turnip
● ½ orange

Ingredients for Dressing
● 3 Tablespoons sesame seeds
● 2 ½ Tablespoons rice wine vinegar (sub white vinegar)
● 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
● 2 teaspoons honey
● 1 teaspoon sesame oil
● 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise
● 1 clove fresh garlic, minced

Instructions
In a frying pan on low heat, toast the sesame seeds until lightly colored and fragrant. Grind sesame seeds with a rolling pin until evenly crushed or powdery. Put the crushed sesame seeds into a medium bowl and add vinegar, soy sauce, honey, garlic, and mayonnaise. Whisk! When well combined, mix in the sesame oil while pouring. Set the finished dressing in the fridge and wash and peel the produce

Trim the mizuna greens, julienne the carrot (or shred), thinly slice the turnip, and halve the orange slices. Place the prepared produce in a serving bowl and drizzle dressing around the produce. Mix with tongs and serve right away!

February Harvest of the Month: Sweet Potato

By Kathryn B., Farm to School Manager

Sweet Potatoes are not only a super healthy and delicious vegetable, but easy to cook at home in a variety of ways. You can add them to desserts, savory dishes, or eat them on their own! Another awesome thing about sweet potatoes is that here in New York they can be found well into the winter - including in our Winter CSA!

Sweet potatoes are high in vitamins and an excellent choice to help “Eat the Rainbow” as we like to say, and get your daily servings of vegetables. Cube and add them to a breakfast hash, a burrito, or chili for something savory and packed with nutrients!

In our Poughkeepsie Food Power after-school program, students love to make Sweetie Pie Smoothies, Sweet Potato Pudding, and Sweet Potato Hummus with roasted sweet potatoes! They are often amazed at how sweet and flavorful these dishes are without adding sugar. Scroll down for even more recipes, a coloring sheet and cooking ideas!

---

Did you know? Famous inventor George Washington Carver, known for his work with peanuts, also experimented with sweet potatoes as a crop to help improve soil and give new cash crops to farmers who had only been growing cotton. He found hundreds of uses for them and his work on crop rotation and innovative products helped many farmers to survive and make a good living.

Learn more on our previous blog : 7 Contributions of Black Farmers to Agriculture

---

WHAT TO KNOW WHEN YOU GET YOUR SWEETS:

Store them in a cool, dry place like a pantry to make them last longer. You don’t have to peel them! Just scrub them clean and cook them up.

Though they are often confused, sweet potatoes are not the same as yams or potatoes. They are actually a root vegetable that is related to the morning glory! Yams are larger and originated in Africa, though they can be cooked in similar ways.

Learn More and Try Our Favorite Recipes:

Sweetie Pie Smoothie

Download the Recipe

Sweet Potato Batata Dulce

Download the Coloring Sheet

Smoky Sweet Potato Hummus

Download the Recipe

Recipe Sweet Potato Carbonara from Vermont Harvest of the Month

Download the Recipe

An Educator’s Year in Review, Plans to Grow our Impact in 2020

By Kathryn B., Farm to School Manager

This past year had so many amazing moments we want to share as we get excited to plan for 2020! Check out our photos from some of the great programs we offered youth and families last year, and make sure to scroll down to the bottom for some of our featured recipes for this month to kick off the year with healthy eating!

During 2019 we were grateful to expand our team of Educators and our reach, with extended programming in all of the Poughkeepsie City School District schools. In addition to our after school education, internships, and farm visits, we have grown our Farm to School program with our Harvest of the Month initiative, including getting those fruits and vegetables on to local school menus and into cafeteria tastings!

In August we hosted our annual Summer Institute for Educators at the farm, with educators from multiple districts joining to learn about topics such as garden-based education, culturally responsive STEAM, multicultural children’s literature, and how to “grow” healthy eaters! This Fall, as part of the Farm to School program expansion, we attended an inspirational conference in New Orleans with the USDA Farm to School grantees from around the country, where we got a first hand look at the youth- led farm, Grow Dat Youth Farm, and heard about projects happening across New York and the Northeast as schools commit to getting local produce on the lunch menu.

In 2019 we extended the length of our After School Program at all the Poughkeepsie schools AND added on our very first Summer Program! Students in the program also were able to participate in a family cooking workshop where parents and guardians were invited to cook a farm fresh recipe with the group. In Food Power Club we were able to do spring and fall gardening this year, and students learned about the seasons, garden mapping, seed saving, and herbs!

In the culinary component they learned food preservation through quick pickling, and prepared seasonal recipes focused on local produce as well as different cultures - including veggie filed Tacos, Jollof rice, and my favorite, Okra Gumbo. Students enjoyed reading books on the history of farming, including about George Washington Carver and activists Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez, as well as practicing mindfulness and meditation.

The Summer Program at Poughkeepsie Middle School was made up of elementary students from all four schools coming together to focus on curriculum around gardening, cooking and pollinators! We made a vegetable dish to go with our shared lunch each day, and students also planted a pollinator garden, made seed balls for their own neighborhoods, and learned how to do watercolor painting with Ms. Lala and Ms. Chris!

In honor of the New Year, and our January Harvest of The Month, Apples, give these healthy kid-approved recipes a try, and check out our new bilingual coloring sheet!

Kale Apple Salad

Download the Recipe

Apple Coloring Sheet

Download the Coloring Sheet

Apple & Squash Hash

Download the Recipe

Kohlrabi & Carrot Slaw

Download the Recipe

Happy 2020, and here's to growing more healthy kids in Poughkeepsie this year!

Kathryn

Harvest of the Month: Winter Squash

By Kathryn B., Farm to School Manager

December's Harvest of the Month is winter squash. Harvest of the Month is an initiative of Poughkeepsie Farm Project’s Farm to School program. A different local farm product is served in school meals at area schools each month and we are helping to promote these locally available farm products.

Winter squash is not only nutritious, but delicious and versatile! We grow several varieties including Butternut, Delicata, Black Futsu, and Spaghetti squash. While it is harvested in the fall, the hard rinds make the squash able to be stored well into winter—thus the name winter squash. That means we have these beauties for both our Fall and Winter CSA!

Harsh winters make it difficult for vegetables to grow in New York year round, so squash are great winter nutrition boosters to include in meals. Winter squash are loaded with vitamins A and C and provide about the same amount of potassium as bananas!

SQUASH that hungry feeling! Winter squash is delicious on its own, roasted with seasonings. You don’t even have to peel some varieties like Delicata! Add winter squash to dips, chili, soups, or even burritos for a delicious and vitamin packed meal. It can be used in place of sweet potatoes in many dishes, including our kid- approved Sweetie Pie Smoothie. Go back to last month’s Kale blog to find the recipe for adding it to an Autumn Kale Salad.

Education resources

Squash Coloring Sheet

Print this fun coloring sheet that shows off the diversity of Winter Squash!

Download Coloring Sheet

Smokey Butternut Squash Hummus Recipes

Smoky Butternut Squash Hummus Recipe - Here’s a favorite with our students - it’s a great recipe to add some color to your table with this flavorful dip!

Try this Recipe

Winter Squash

This infographic breaks down the fun varieties you might find locally and how to use them.

Print the Infographic

Winter Squash Tip Sheet

Check out this handout to learn tips about storing and preparing Winter Squash, including some delicious recipes!

Download the Tip Sheet

Montana Harvest of the Month Fact Sheet

Want to learn more? This fact sheet is a great resource with history, plant facts and preparation tips!

Download the Fact Sheet

GROWERS ROW: Growing Greens and Gratitude

As we close our 20th year, I’m reflecting on what a great growing season this has been. Many of you may remember the sad state of some crops (beets and carrots in particular) to too much rain. This year, conditions were good, and the proof is in the pudding, as it were: the beets are huge, the carrots are fat and sweet, the kale has looked fantastic and the spinach -- WOW the spinach! Like many of you, I’ve been enjoying these vegetables all season… and thanks to our high tunnels and winter growing, I will be enjoying them over the winter months too. (That’s 46 weeks of fresh, locally grown vegetables. What a bounty!)

I am grateful for this rare opportunity to eat off the land I work on for so many months of the year. (I am grateful, too, for the global economy that allows me to buy pineapples and plantains over the winter.)

I am grateful, hugely grateful for the relative peace of mind that comes with not having to scramble -- after a long, hot, exhausting season -- to find winter work. I remember that anxiety well.

I am grateful for a job that makes me feel alive every day; a job that feels good, even when it hurts.

I am grateful for all the little moments of connection I’ve had with so many of you: hearing about your travels and your trials in the kitchen, sharing secret grins as your children sneak leaves of kale or devour whole tomatoes raw in the middle of the distribution tent, watching you discover turnips or fall in love with beets or try pickling for the first time.

I am grateful to all of you who waited patiently at 3:03 on a Tuesday in July for me to finish writing the board.

I am grateful to anyone who has ever helped catch a bin of carrots (or peppers or turnips) from tumbling; who jumped in to help unload the truck or carry boxes of fruit; who offered to help fix our tractor joystick or the A/C unit in our vegetable cooler or the broken scale at distribution.

I am grateful to all of you -- from CSA members to middle-school students to baseball players -- who responded to my urgent pleas for last-minute help to donate produce; to tackle an urgent, looming weeding project; to clear out the tomatoes or to get carrots out of the ground before a freeze.

I am grateful to anyone who has been willing to stay an extra ten minutes in the field to finish a job. (Oh the satisfaction of a job complete! That long, weed-free row!)

I am so grateful to all of you who say thank you -- whether in words, in notes, in grape muffins or surprise crockpots of soup on cold days.

And so, I’d like to take this opportunity to share my gratitude for you, your participation and support. I do this both on behalf of Poughkeepsie Farm Project, because we couldn’t do this without you… but also personally, because I don’t think I could do this without you. You make being here better. Thank you.