Somerville Farm to School Project

That's right! Somerville Food and Nutrition Services joined a CSA . A few weeks ago we piloted a Farm Fresh Salad Bar partnership with Drumlin Farm, Lincoln, MA . What is a CSA? CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. According to the USDA , CSA philosophically refers to a "community of individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that the farmland becomes...the community's farm, with the growers and consumers providing mutual support and sharing the risks and benefits of food production." It can also imply an economic relationship between farmer and consumer, often called subscription farming. In other words, a subscriber agrees to buy a minimum amount of produce at a fixed price, often paying in advance for the subscription. While we haven't paid in advance, we have committed to buying a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 shares (or veggie boxes) each week. This commitment creates a guaranteed market for the farm's produce. 

As our National Nutrition Month Event, we held kale chip taste tests in all our K-8 school cafeterias. For the full story visit the post . If you would like to try the kale chips at home, use this yummy recipe. Bunches of curly kale Ingredients 8 cups kale, ripped into 3 inch pieces (~1 bunch) 1 tbsp   vegetable oil 1/8 – 1/4 tsp salt Preparation 1.   Preheat oven to 350 o 2.   Wash and pat dry kale. For best results, kale must be very dry. 3.   Remove kale from center stem and rip into 3 inch pieces. 4.   Add oil and salt. Massage the oil and salt into the kale until the kale pieces are evenly coated. 5.   Lay kale pieces in a single layer on a baking sheet; ideally the pieces are not touching. 6. Bake for 3-5 minutes. Checking regularly to make sure chips aren't burning. Make sure to dry your kale well! Gentle massage the oil and salt into the kale.   Do not overlap your kale pieces. Check them regularly so they don't burn!