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Lessons in yummy, affordable produce | Philadelphia Inquirer | 2011-08-03

William Jordan's path to affordable produce takes him on three city buses.

At 46, Jordan is hindered by high blood pressure, asthma, and permanent damage to his right knee, but he makes the journey - on crutches, despite the heat, every Thursday afternoon - to stretch his SNAP (food stamp) dollars in an experimental program with an appropriate acronym: LIFE.

This Local Initiative for Food Education at Greensgrow Farm in Kensington, now in its second summer, enables members to stretch their SNAP dollars while cultivating their ability to budget, plan, shop, and prepare meals.

"You make out much better here than you would at a supermarket," says Jordan, who lives, and cooks, alone in Center City.

Jordan and nearly a dozen others pay $15 a week in SNAP dollars for membership in the 15-week LIFE program, which runs through Sept. 29. The program is open to all SNAP participants.

In return, each receives a bag of freshly harvested produce that actually exceeds the $15 value. And each week, a Penn State Extension Service nutrition educator is on hand at Greensgrow's outdoor kitchen to demonstrate one or two dishes and distribute recipe cards. Between sessions, program director Noelle Dames checks in with the participants by phone.

On a recent scorching Thursday, when a heat warning cautioned the elderly and asthmatics to stay indoors, the LIFE-ers' boxes overflowed with butterhead lettuce, apricots, red plums, tomatoes, zucchini, purple peppers, cantaloupe, savoy cabbage, and white potatoes. Some of the share is from Greensgrow's network of 75 small farms, and a smaller portion is grown on site at Greensgrow, a long-established urban farm whose experimental projects involve hydroponics, a green roof, biodiesel fuel, a community kitchen, beehives, and more.

Simran James of Penn State Extension cooked up Garlic Ginger Cabbage and the members went home with recipes for that and a cool carrot and cabbage slaw.

Frank Abruzzo, 31, a cook and sometime bass guitarist from Fishtown, washed the cabbage for James as Rae Schufreider, 67, of Oxford Circle, watched.

"It's the social gathering that I love," said Schufreider, who learned of the program through a flier at a senior center. Her two children are grown and gone and she misses cooking big meals.

"I have to watch my weight now, too, so I can't make the things I used to cook for the family." She paused and admitted: "Except I cheat here and there.

Yummy Yummy Fuel for My Tummy — Mamavation

I cannot believe we are all ready half way into week 3.  Time is really flying by.  This week has been exciting, I am still enjoying the workouts!!!  Lately, I am asked many questions on what “diet” I am on.  My answer is always the same, I am not on a diet.  Not in the way “we” tend to think of the word.  Instead I am choosing to eat healthier from here on out, my family is all eating healthier.  This is not a quick fix; this is a long term health solution. Alysa created a wonderful meal plan for me.  I don’t “count calories”, instead I make exchanges (healthy exchanges).  This works perfectly with my lifestyle.  It is easier to trade a glass of milk for a cup of yogurt; then it is for me to add up each calorie I have eaten.  There is a lot of food fueling my body everyday, it is rare that I get to a “hunger” point.

That works out to be a lot of food, and it is all yummy!!!  For everyone wondering, this works out to be around 1400 calories per day.  If you are interested in seeing what I eat daily, it is posted on bookieboo .  To remind me to drink slowly and enjoy each bite, I drink my milk out of a wineglass.  The meal plan is working!!

I am down 11.6 pounds so far!!!  Good bye 190s!!  That is an amazing feeling. This weeks video is one I promised during the finals, cooking with kids.  Please keep in mind I am not a morning person, trying to get there.  This was filmed after a 4k run but before my “wake up” shower.  So, I do look sleepy.  If you would like the recipe it is the breakfast cookie 2 at Inspired RD.  Hopefully, you enjoy cooking with your kids.  It is never to early or to late to start them in the kitchen and help to teach them about healthy food.

You are such a patient mom. I am always rushing so my kids think cookies come from the Schwan man and think it is awesome when they go to a friends house and they use butter, lol.

I also don’t count the calories, but I only pay attention to how many carbs that I eat. I think I might need to watch more. I love the wine glass for the milk idea because I can down a half gallon in a few minutes now that I can drink it again.

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