Hamburg Garden Veggie Party

Hamburg Veggie Garden Party

For Your Body and Mind!

·         When you try a new healthy food (like a vegetable, fruit, whole grain or protein), that is something to celebrate!

·         When you go to the grocery store and pick out something healthy and new that is something to celebrate!

·         When you plant a veggie or fruit that is something to celebrate!

Eat to Live and Take Care of Your Body & Mind!!

Let other students and families know and help us all learn to be healthier.

(Ask your parent if you can write about your experiences at www.seedsoflivingeducation.blogspot.com)

Also visit us at www.seedsoflivingeducation.org

Mr. Borden's 5th Graders take the Bitter Test

Twenty-one 5th graders, 2 moms and 1 outstanding teacher took part in a taste testing experiment.  Co-founder of The Giving Garden, Jean Gunner, serves on the Parent Panel for the Makers of Hidden Valley Salad Dressing along with 19 other parents and helps offer parent wisdom....Today with her son, Aidan's 5th grade class, and co-chair of SOLE, Tricia Miller, she conducted a really neat experiment. 

All the students and three adults placed paper taste testing strips on their tongues to ascertain who was a "bitter taster" or not.  14 of the taste testers tasted very rapidly bitter while 10 only tasted paper or nothing.  Interestingly, the gender breakdown was exactly divided for both the bitter tasters and no tasters.  So gender did not impact the experiment.

Observe some of the experiment and explanation in the video.  After the experiment, the students had a Veggie Party, some dipped in Hidden Valley Ranch and Hummus and some did not.  The contention is that bitter tasters are more likely to eat bitter tasting foods and veggies like broccoli if there is a bit of sweeter dip available.  Helpful information for parents desiring their children to eat and love their veggies.  Thanks Hidden Valley!

Mr. Borden's 5th Grade Class Inaugurates The Giving Garden and Sows Sugar Snap Peas

Our 5th graders came out in the misty rain on this springlike day in early March to sow sugar snap peas.  The class planted heirloom seeds in one of the raised beds in the garden for an early crop of sugar snap peas. 

We also tried some veggies, including sugar snap peas, in the classroom before coming out to the garden after doing a really neat experiment with taste testing strips. 

Hamburg Middle School -- The Final Day of Taste Testing Healthy Buffalo Style Chicken Wraps for Chefs to Schools Week in Hamburg

It was a super successful week for our Chefs to Schools Week in Hamburg Central School District.  Seeds of Living Education coordinated the volunteers, Hamburg Central Food Service, and the parent volunteers which numbers around 40! to visit and set up taste testing of our yummy and healthy Buffalo Style Chicken Wrap -- which was a blend of whole white meat chicken, chick pea hummus, Hidden Valley Ranch Blue Cheese Dressing, celery and Buffalo's Own Frank's Famous Hot Sauce wrapped in a whole grain wheat wrap served up with a side of Ranched Up Salsa or Hidden Valley Ranch!

Our Food Service staff with Linda Muldoon at the helm along with Chefs Steven Binks and Chef Pat Koch made between 4000 bite size wraps for the students to taste.  There was overwhelming approval.  Our empirical data (we surveyed the students for likes) was a near 60% approval rating for a new lunch food offering.  Many students liked the wrap so much, they took seconds, thirds and fourths, etc! 

We served almost 98% of the samples made -- so that means most children were willing to at least try the sample even if they ended up not preferring it. 

We asked for recommendations that might make the wrap even tastier ... some suggestions included having it warm, leaving out the blue cheese and using cheddar or other mild yellow cheese instead, having more crunch in the form of celery or other veggies. 

It was fun and exciting to have our children, the ultimate consumers of the school lunches, to be the taste testers.  Seeds of Living Education is extremely thankful to Linda Muldoon and her awesome staff, Chefs Binks and Koch and all the parents volunteers and of course, our STUDENTS!!

A busy taste testing day at Union Pleasant Elementary School for the Chefs to School Weeklong Campaign

There are 900 students in Union Pleasant and most of these students in grades kindergarten through 5th grade sampled our Buffalo Style Chicken Wrap made with breast meat chicken, hummus, Hidden Valley Blue Cheese, celery and just a touch of Frank's Hot Sauce.  The wraps were a big hit at UPES!
A Ranched Up Salsa as well as Organic Hidden Valley Ranch were available to dip in on the side.

We also had lots of press on hand from Channel 2, The Buffalo News, The Hamburg Sun and our District photograher!  The children were interviewed and photos were snapped of our samplers!

Great job everyone!

Boston Valley Enjoyed the Chefs to Schools Tasting Last Week

Most of the taste testers at Boston Valley Elementary truly enjoyed the Buffalo Style Chicken wrap with hummus and celery.  We had very adventurous and willing children sampling the new wraps, as well as teachers and parents!