GARDEN EDUCATION MODULE ONE: WARM SEASON HARVEST - A SPIRALIZED SALAD 1 st THROUGH 5 th GRADE

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1 GARDEN EDUCATION MODULE ONE: WARM SEASON HARVEST - A SPIRALIZED SALAD 1 st THROUGH 5 th GRADE Helpful Bites There is a lot of information to digest in the LiveWell Kids lessons. Helpful Bites is our way of providing a quick reference tool to the key points for each lesson. It is intended to help guide your discussions, but should not replace the full content. Preparation This lesson requires preparation. PLEASE RECRUIT HELP AHEAD OF TIME. Make sure that you check your garden bed prior to your lesson to see what is growing and available for picking during the lesson. Ask your teacher to have students wash their hands right before the lesson, as they will be doing food prep. Retrieve a lemon from the LiveWell Kids refrigerator. Set 2 bowls, and a pair of pruners next to the garden bed. Set up the WASH STATION. Set up the FOOD PREP AND TASTING STATION. Use wipes to clean storage bin and pack it with paper food trays, forks, and paper towels. Introduction Introduce yourself, the garden and the lesson topic. Lead the class through a mindful breathing exercise. Go over the garden rules. Exploring and Harvesting the Summer Crops Lead the class through the garden and discuss what s growing. Encourage students to take a mindful approach using their senses. Harvest summer crops and prepare a spiralized salad. Wash Station Have the teacher/parent helper monitor this area. Have students wash their hands if needed. Have students wash their produce and put them in the colanders. Food Prep Station Discuss each vegetable and herb as well as their health benefits. Demonstrate the preparation of the salad. Place one small scoop of salad on each paper food tray. Food Prep and Tasting Station Pass out the paper food trays, forks and paper towels to students for tasting. Check food allergies with your teacher ahead of time. Wear food handling gloves when preparing the salad. Follow the guided mindful eating exercise outlined in the script. After Lesson If there is time, have students complete the reflection activity by drawing or writing something that they learned in today s lesson. Thank your teacher/helper and dismiss the students. Clean up and return supplies to shed. Report your lesson completed at or scan the QR code. Return the shed key to the office. 1

2 GARDEN EDUCATION - MODULE ONE WARM SEASON HARVEST - A SPIRALIZED SALAD 1 st THROUGH 5 th GRADE Education Standards For California Health Education and Common Core Standards, please see Appendix A Objectives By the end of this lesson, students will: Identify some warm season vegetables, describe how they were harvested and their health benefits Harvest summer crops and make a spiralized salad Mindfully participate in a tasting using the five senses Supplies All non-perishable supplies are in the garden shed. Ask the front office staff in your school for help with locating the LiveWell Kids refrigerator if needed. 2 Colanders 2 bowls (for harvesting station, then for tasting station) 1 vegetable scrubber Paper towels (1 per child, plus more for your use) Wash bin 2 Knives Food handling gloves 2 Cutting boards 1-2 large serving utensils I large serving bowl Garden-friendly soap Pruners Spiralizer Scissors Clear plastic storage bin Sanitizing wipes Plastic forks (1 per child) Paper food trays (1 per child) Olive Oil Lemon - from the LiveWell Kids refrigerator Juicer Salt Pepper From the garden: 2 small or 1 large squash, 12 cherry tomatoes, 1 large or 2 small onions, approximately 15 arugula leaves or flowers and approximately 15 basil leaves Before the Lesson Have your helper read the lesson ahead of time and discuss their role with them. Check with the teacher for any known stinging insect or food allergies prior to lesson. The dressing includes olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper. Advise that parents can bring in a small amount of their own dressing if their child has an allergy to any of the dressing ingredients. Lesson Preparation **Please allow at least 45 minutes for set-up and prep before the lesson** Harvesting Station Set the bowls and pruners next to the garden bed. You need bowls for all the items that you are harvesting with the class. Washing Station 1. Gather the wash tub/bin, vegetable scrub brush, hand soap and paper towels from the shed and take to the sink. 2. Set up a washing station near the sink by filling the tub halfway with water and set the vegetable scrubber in the tub. 3. Set the colanders next to the sink (to be moved next to the wash tub while students are washing produce). 4. Set the hand soap and paper towels at the sink. Food Prep and Tasting Station Bring the following items to the Food Prep Station: Food handling gloves Cutting boards Knifes Several paper towels 1-2 large serving utensils 1 lemon Olive oil Salt and pepper 1 large bowl Spiralizer Scissors Juicer Clear plastic storage bin Sanitizing wipes Food trays Forks 2

3 Go to the LiveWell Kids refrigerator, retrieve one lemon from the refrigerator, bring it to the garden and place in at the Food Prep Station. Place a recycling bin next to the trashcan, leaving both wide open so that they are accessible from the Tasting Station. Wipe the storage bin clean with sanitizing wipes, then wash your hands. Place paper food trays, plastic forks and paper towels in the storage bin, cover and put next to Tasting Station. Station Set Up Below are the stations that you will use during the lesson, their locations, the supplies you will need and any preparations that you will need to complete before the lesson. Station Location Supplies needed at the station Preparations Suggestions Harvesting Garden Bed. Set 2 large bowls and 1 pair of pruners near the bed. Use bowls to collect items that you and the class will harvest. Place the heavier items in first as to not squish the more fragile items. Washing Sink area - make sure that a few students can gather around at a time. Set wash tub and vegetable scrubber near the sink. Set hand soap, roll of paper towels and colanders at the sink. AFTER harvesting the squash, tomatoes, onions, basil and arugula into bowls, take the bowls to the wash tub and set them next to it. Fill wash bin halfway with water and set the vegetable scrubber inside. Students wash the produce in the wash bin, gently using the scrubber on squash and onions. Point out how fragile herbs and tomatoes are, so rinse gently by swishing in the water - no rubbing or scrubbing is needed. During the time that students are washing, move the colanders from the sink area to the wash tub location. Students will place washed produce into colanders. Place the heavier items in first as to not squish the more fragile items. Food Prep and Tasting Set up Food Prep table (use folding table from shed if needed) near the picnic tables (or where the students will do their tasting). Set the sanitized and covered storage bin with the paper food trays, paper towels and forks next to the area where the students are tasting. Items to set up: Cutting boards, knives, spiralizer, juicer, food handling gloves, olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper, roll of paper towels, serving utensils. Vegetables in colanders AFTER they are harvested by the students and washed. Use the 2 bowls that were used for the harvesting. One per child: paper plates, paper towels and plastic forks in covered sanitized plastic storage bin. Roll of paper towels. Lay a few paper towels down and secure with a cutting board to dry the empty washed leafy greens. After vegetables are washed, rinse the bowls used during harvest and take to the Food Prep area. One large bowl will be used for the salad, and another bowl will be used to hold produce scraps for compost. Roll of paper towels to be brought over AFTER all students are finished at the Washing Station. Position folding table so that students can watch you make the salad from the picnic tables (where they will stay seated to do their tasting). To deliver the lesson, you are not required to memorize a script. Some docents have expressed a desire to have a sample script as suggested wording. We encourage you to use your own words, so it feels more natural for you. Introduction Introduce yourself to your students and guide them through a mindful breathing exercise. Gather feedback from the students. Explain what they will be doing during their first lesson. Hi everyone, my name is. Welcome to your school garden! Let s start with a mindful breathing exercise. If you re comfortable, close your eyes and slowly take a deep breath in and slowly let it out. Let s do it one more time, deep breath in and slowly let it out. Now open your eyes. How do you feel? Allow a few students to respond. This is our first Beach Cities Health District LiveWell Kids garden education lesson of the year! Today we are going to mindfully explore the garden that you planted before the summer break and pick some ingredients to make and taste a spiralized salad. 3

4 Garden Rules Point out the Garden Rules sign, and go over the rules together. Before we begin, let s talk about the rules of the garden. 1. Always walk when in the garden. 2. Stay on the paths. 3. Always ask before using any tool or picking any crop. 4. Respect each other and all living things in the garden. Exploring the Summer Crops Gather the class in the garden and share with them what occurred in the garden during the summer: caretaking was done by the Garden Angels, and Beach Cities Health District s 2 nd Annual Community Volunteer Day took place. During this event, volunteers harvested and donated ripe produce from the gardens, and planted new plants for the students. A group of volunteers called The Garden Angels took care of your garden all summer long. Since these are summer crops that love the long hours of sunlight and lots of heat, they grew wonderfully all summer, and were ready to pick in the end of July. We had a big event called Community Volunteer Day during which 150 volunteers worked at the school gardens to harvest the ripe crops. More than 35 boxes of vegetables and herbs were donated to various food donation sites in your community! Inform them that not all seeds thrive when planted and discuss why. Whenever we plant seeds we hope that they will grow and thrive. It takes the right conditions for a plant to sprout and grow up. Some seeds were successful and some were not. Can anyone tell me why a seed wouldn t thrive? Examples of why plants fail to thrive: Temperature Hours of light Depth and position of seed in the soil Amount and frequency of water Health of soil Tell them what is growing in the garden now: Seeds are eaten by birds Disease or pests Time of year Age of seed Every plant that you see growing here, or anywhere, decided that the conditions were right to thrive. Today in the garden we have some different crops growing that we will harvest to make our salad. They are: Squash Tomatoes Arugula or arugula flowers Basil Onion Harvesting The harvesting instructions and talking points are detailed below. The first one also provides a sample script and grade level discussion suggestions to give you an idea of how to talk about each plant that they will be harvesting. SQUASH Bring the students to stand around a squash plant in the garden and discuss the characteristics of squash plants, referring to the example before them. Allow them to take turns coming up close to inspect the plant. Have them look out to the garden around them to see if they can see and identify other varieties of squash growing. Let them know there are many more varieties than what s growing in their garden. This is a squash plant that was planted right before summer. Everyone can take a turn to come see the plant up close. In our garden, lots of different kinds of squash were planted. Looking around the garden, how many different kinds of squash do you see growing? Some varieties they might see: dark green zucchini, green striped zucchini, yellow zucchini, yellow pattypan, light green pattypan, white pattypan. (Allow just a couple of answers.) Harvest 1 large OR 2 small squash. To harvest a squash, put on the gloves, and using the pruners, cut the stem of the plant. Place the squash in one of the harvest bowls. 4

5 GRADE GRADE LEVEL TALKING POINTS 1 ST GRADE Ask the students if they can think of other fruits and vegetables that are similar to the ones that are being harvested today (I.e. pumpkin, cucumber, or you can ask What other vegetables grow on a vine?, etc.). 2 ND GRADE Note: aligns with Common Core and Healthy Behavior Outcomes and Standards in Appendix A Ask the students if they can think of other fruits and vegetables that are similar to the ones that are being harvested today (I.e. pumpkin, cucumber, or you can ask What other food grows on a vine?, etc.). Ask the students to describe the appearance of the fruit (i.e. bumpy, rough, smooth, etc.). 3 RD GRADE Ask the students if they can think of other fruits and vegetables that are similar to the ones that are being harvested today (I.e. pumpkin, cucumber, or you can ask What other food grows on a vine?, etc.). Ask the students to describe the appearance of the fruit (i. e. bumpy, rough, smooth, etc.) Point out similarities that the squash has to its relatives (gourds, pumpkins, cucumbers.). 4 TH GRADE Ask the students if they can think of other fruits and vegetables in the same botanical family Cucurbitaceae, as the squash that is being harvested today (I. e. gourds, melons, cucumbers, etc.). 5 TH GRADE Ask the students if they can think of other fruits in the same families as the squash being harvested today, and which are edible and which are not (i.e. what other kinds of squash can you think of that we eat? or what are some relatives of squash that we don t eat? Gourd, luffa). Point out similarities between plants in the same family in the garden: zucchini and cucumber. Discuss similarities and differences in their features or how they grow. Discuss the difference between how a pumpkin grows versus a zucchini. A zucchini grows more like a bush with the fruit sticking off a central stem. ARUGULA - Bring the students to the arugula plant in the garden. FACT: Explain that arugula is a leafy green herbaceous plant and it is a member of the Brassicaceae family, also known as the Cruciferae family. Some other members of this family are: cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, kale and radish. HARVEST DIRECTIONS: If you have both leaves and flowers in your garden, allow them to choose which one they want to harvest. If they are harvesting a leaf, instruct them to find a large leaf and carefully trace it with their fingers down to where it attaches to the plant. They will then pinch the leaf with their fingernail to cut the leaf off. Never tug a leaf because that can pull the plant from the soil. Demonstrate the correct way by picking a leaf and putting it in the other harvest bowl. If they are harvesting flowers, demonstrate by plucking a yellow flower from the plant (not including the stem). They can pick a couple of flowers to add to the harvest bowl. Have a small group of students approach the bed to harvest either their leaf or flowers and add them to the bowl with yours. As they move away from the bed, the next few students can come forward and repeat. BASIL - Bring them to stand around a basil plant. FACT: Inform them that basil is also a leafy green herb that can be used in salads, water, ice cream and more. HARVEST DIRECTIONS: To harvest the basil, you are going to pinch off a leaf or two with your fingernail, separating the leaf from the stem and add it to the of the harvest bowl. For the recipe, you need 1 leaf per child. Pinching off leaves will stimulate the plant to produce more. Demonstrate first and then have them try it. ONION - Bring them to stand around some onions. FACT: The green parts above the ground are actually the onion s leaves. The leaves have a milder taste than the more intense bulb-end, which develops underground. HARVEST DIRECTIONS: There are different ways to harvest onions depending on what your intended use. You can either pull it out of the ground and use the entire onion, or you can cut some of the green leaves only, leaving just a few inches above ground so the onion can continue to grow. Harvest either one large or 2 small onions by pulling it/them out of the ground. Show them that since the bulb-end of the onion was underground, it has soil on it that needs to be washed off. Put the onion/s in the harvest bowl that contains the squash. 5

6 TOMATO - Bring them to stand around the tomatoes. FACT: Let them know that tomatoes come in all sizes, colors, shapes and flavors. Most people think of them as round and red, but they come in dark purples, pinks, orange, green striped, white, yellow and more. They can be large and lumpy or tiny and round like a pea. HARVEST DIRECTIONS: To harvest a tomato, make sure that there is no green color on the fruit that you are choosing to harvest. Hold the piece of fruit and give it a gentle twist. It should fall off in your hand. Harvest the designated amount determined by your Lead Docent and add them to the harvest bowl with the squash and onion. After you have finished harvesting everything, take the class and both bowls to the washing station. Set the bowls next to the washing bin, on the opposite side as the colanders. Washing The class is at the Washing Station for this activity. Use your teacher/helper to monitor this station, as a line will most likely form. A few students can wash at the plastic bin at the same time. They should be able to move quickly but might need some prompting. Have the class stand back to allow enough space around the work area. Instruct a few students at a time to come forward and to take a basil leaf OR an arugula leaf OR a couple of flowers from the bowl and swish them around in the wash bin water to rinse off any surface dirt (there shouldn t be much). Let them know that the flowers are very fragile and need delicate handling. Put their washed leaf or flowers in a colander. After the delicate leaves and flowers are washed, instruct the remaining students to choose a tomato OR the onion, OR squash to wash in the bin. Add the vegetable scrubber to the wash bin. The tomato needs very gentle rubbing with fingers to remove any surface dirt, while the onion/s and squash need to vegetable scrubber to gently remove any soil. As they finish their turn, send them to the Tasting Station where the docent is waiting for them. When hand washing is done, the parent helper will take the colanders of washed vegetables and the roll of paper towels to the Food Prep Station. The helper will GENTLY shake the colander with the delicate leaves/flowers to drain excess water before emptying the contents of the bowl onto the folded paper towels, trying to spread them out as much as possible. After the leaves/flowers are spread out, the helper will GENTLY pat them dry. Food Prep For this activity, the class is at the Food Prep/Tasting Station. Put on the food handling gloves. Wait to start the demo until all the students are together at the Food Prep Station/Tasting Station and ready to listen. Explain to the class that it s time to make the Spiralized Salad. Let them know that one of the large bowls is for the salad, while the other is for compost. Take the squash from the bowl and pat it dry with a paper towel, explaining that you will spiralize it into ribbons for the tasting. Depending on the size and shape, the squash may need to be cut into strips first, using the knife and cutting board. Cut the end of the squash off and demonstrate any other cutting necessary and spiralize into ribbons over the largest bowl. Put any produce scraps in the other bowl for compost. Next, hold up an arugula leaf and a basil leaf from the bowl for all to see. Tear or cut into smaller pieces over the salad bowl. Have the parent helper cut the rest of the leaves and add to the bowl. While the helper is busy with the greens, take an onion and show them the root. Let them know that you will not be eating the roots, but the entire onion is edible and they will be using the whole thing in their salad. Cut them off and add to the compost bowl. Using the knife, slice the white part of the onion in fine slices before passing to your helper. Your helper will show them how they will use the scissors to cut up the green part of the onion into small pieces into the salad bowl. Lastly, take a tomato and gently pat it dry. Hold it up and explain that tomatoes need gentle pressure when slicing as to not squish their insides out. Slice up the tomato into small pieces. After all ingredients are in the bowl, hold up the olive oil. Measure out 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and drizzle it over the salad. Next, take the lemon and hold it up for all to see. Explain that most salad dressings have a balance of fat and acid. While the oil is the fat, the lemon is an acidic fruit, and will serve as the acid component. Slice it in half width-wise. Squeeze the juice from each section into the juicer and drizzle the juice over the salad. Add a small amount of salt and pepper to taste and toss. Have the parent helper assist you by taking the food trays and forks out of the storage bin. Plate approximately 2 tablespoons of the salad on each plate and serve with forks and paper towels. 6

7 Mindful Tasting Take the students through a mindful tasting experience, using all their senses. Please wait to taste it; we are going to enjoy the tasting together as a class. Before we taste the Spiralized Salad, let s mindfully smell it. Everyone take a deep breath like this (demonstrate taking a deep breath). Now, close your eyes and smell the ingredients. Do you recognize the smells? What do you smell more, the dressing, the veggies or both? Good, now open your eyes and look at your sample. Notice the colors, the different shapes and sizes. Now, using a fork, take a small bite of the salad. How would you describe the taste? Is it sweet, sour, salty or bitter? See if you can chew it several times before swallowing. Does the taste change at all as your chewing? Notice all the yummy flavors in your mouth. Pay attention to the texture. Does it start out crunchy in your mouth and end up soft the more you chew? Can you taste all the flavors together? How about separately as you chew? Go ahead and continue practicing this mindful way of eating until you are finished the tasting. Share with them some of the health benefits of what they are eating: Squash Squash contains a huge amount of vitamin A, as well as significant amounts of vitamin C. Tomato - Tomatoes are a great source of vitamin C, potassium, folate and vitamin K. Onion - The phytochemicals in onions along with their vitamin C help improve immunity. Arugula - Consuming 2 cups of arugula will provide your calcium needs for the day. Basil - This member of the mint family has been used as a medicinal plant and its oils and extracts are said to have antioxidant and antibacterial properties. Classroom Management: If you hear a negative comment, say, Please don t yuck someone else s yum! Remember, it can take trying something several times before you know if you really like it or not. Encourage them to use all their senses: look, smell, touch, taste and hear. Even if they don t want to taste the food, they can use their other senses to interact with the food. Remind them that just a few months ago, everything that the tried was just a tiny seed that was planted! Teach them the phrase Seed to Mouth, which is the process of planting, growing and harvesting their food with no processing, packaging or additives. Recap what they learned today and inform them that they will be planting new seeds in their next lesson. Thank the teacher and parent helper. Have students dispose of their plates, forks and paper towels in the trashcan and recycle bin as they leave the garden. We learned a lot about the summer harvest in the garden today. You can ask your parents if they would like to experiment together trying new ideas for using some of the things that you tasted today in your snacks and meals, and teach them what you learned today. Remember the rules of the garden, as well as how to have a mindful experience both in the garden and while eating. Remember to slow down and really look at the colors and textures of your food, taking time to smell and taste every ingredient. See you next time! Post Lesson Tasks After the students leave, wash all dirty dishes and utensils with the garden friendly soap and return to the shed. Wipe out the storage bin again with sanitizing wipes. Any leftover paper goods can be returned to the shelf in the shed along with all other supplies. Fill out the tracking form online. Put any pictures, testimonials or reflection papers in the LiveWell box in the office. 7

8 Appendix A Common Core and Healthy Behavior Outcomes and Standards: Kindergarten N Name a variety of healthy foods and explain why they are necessary for good health P Identify practices that are good for the environment, such as turning off lights and water, recycling, composting and picking up trash. 1. G. A. 3: Partition circles and rectangles into two and four equal shares, describe the shares using the words halves, fourths, and quarters, and use the phrases half of, fourth of, and quarter of. Describe the whole as two of, or four of the shares. Understand for these examples that decomposing into more equal shares creates smaller shares. 1. W. 3: Use narratives to recount two or more appropriately sequenced events, include some details regarding what happened, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide some sense of closure, comprehension, gather additional information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue 1 st Grade G Describe how living things grow and mature S Identify ways to reduce risk of injuries at home, at school, and in the community P Identify materials that can be reduced, reused, or recycled N Differentiate between more-nutritious and less-nutritious beverages and snacks N Describe safe food handling and preparation practices N Demonstrate how to prepare a healthy meal or snack using sanitary food preparation and storage practices. 2 nd Grade 8. 1N Practice making healthy eating choices with friends and family 2. L. 5. a: Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e. g., describe foods that are spicy or juicy). 2. L. 5. b: Distinguish shades of meaning among closely related verbs (e. g., toss, throw, hurl) and closely related adjectives (e. g., thin, slender, skinny, scrawny). 3 rd Grade 3. NF. 1: Understand a fraction 1/b as the quantity formed by 1 part when a whole is partitioned into b equal parts; understand a fraction a/b as the quantity formed by a parts of size 1/b B: Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e. g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion) C: Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others P Demonstrate ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle at home, at school, and in the community. 4 th Grade N Identify how to keep food safe through proper food preparation and storage B: Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions and carry out assigned roles. 4. NF. B. 3. A: Understand addition and subtraction of fractions as joining and separating parts referring to the same whole. 4. MD. A. 1: Know relative sizes of measurement units within one system of units including km, m, cm; kg, g; lb, oz. ; l, ml; hr, min, sec. Within a single system of measurement, express measurements in a larger unit in terms of a smaller unit. Record measurement equivalents in a two-column table. For example, know that 1 ft is 12 times as long as 1 in. Express the length of a 4 ft snake as 48 in. Generate a conversion table for feet and inches listing the number pairs (1, 12), (2, 24), (3, 36). 5 th Grade B: Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions and carry out assigned roles. 5. NF. B. 7. C: Solve real world problems involving division of unit fractions by non-zero whole numbers and division of whole numbers by unit fractions, e. g., by using visual fraction models and equations to represent the problem. For example, how much chocolate will each person get if 3 people share 1/2 lb of chocolate equally? How many 1/3-cup servings are in 2 cups of raisins? B: Use common, grade-appropriate Greek and Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e. g., photograph, photosynthesis). References hgtv. com/outdoors/flowers-and-plants/vegetables/fun-facts-about-tomatoes realfoodforlife. com/7-health-benefits-of-basil-the-royal-herb/ infobarrel. com/basil_plant:_25_fascinating_facts_you_want_to_know medicalnewstoday. com/articles/ php organicfacts. net/health-benefits/vegetable/health-benefits-of-arugula. html com/2009/top-10-zucchini-fun-facts livestrong. com/article/ how-to-cook-early-white-bush-scallop-squash/ loc. gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/squash. html nutrition-and-you. com/pattypan-squash. html onions-usa. org/all-about-onions/trivia-and-other-fun-stuff everydayhealth. com/healthy-recipe-pictures/pick-from-a-rainbow-of-beautiful-fruits-and-veggies. aspx#04 organicfacts. net/health-benefits/fruit/health-benefits-of-lemon. html webmd. com/food-recipes/features/beautiful-basil organicfacts. net/health-benefits/other/health-benefits-of-salt. html mercola. com/black-pepper. html google. com/search?q=health+benefits+of+arugula&oq=health+benefits+of+arugula&gs_l=psy-ab l psy-ab BdffjtKhCUU care2. com/greenliving/8-great-reasons-to-eat-more-onions. html healthline. com/nutrition/foods/tomatoes organicfacts. net/health-benefits/fruit/squash. html 8

9 Did You Know? Tomato On average, an American will eat pounds of tomatoes every year, according to the USDA. Ketchup and tomato sauce account for around half of that amount. The world s largest tomato tree produced over 32,000 tomatoes in its first 16 months! This is the record for the most tomatoes produced in one year according to the Guinness Book of World Records. The scientific name for tomato, Lycopersicon lycopersicum, translates into wolf peach. Basil When translated to Greek, basil means royal or kingly. During ancient times, there was a superstition that if you left a basil leaf underneath a pot, it would turn into a scorpion! Basil was also used as an antidote for snakebites. Basil is not only an herb used in cooking, but is also used in perfume and incense. Basil is in the same mint family as rosemary, lavender and oregano. Arugula Although they may not look similar, arugula is in the same vegetable family as broccoli, kale and Brussel sprouts. Arugula is easy to grow at home on your windowsill, as it only needs three hours of sunlight every day. In Italy, arugula is often used as a pizza topping. Arugula is also known as garden rocket, rucola, roquette and colewort depending on where in the world you are. Zucchini Bernard Lavery of the UK grew the world s largest zucchini; it was inches long and weighed 65 pounds! Zucchini is a great source of potassium and even has more than a banana. There is a three-day zucchini festival in Ohio that celebrates everything zucchini! There is a parade, pageant, contests, games and more. Pattypan squash Pattypan squash is from a region between Mexico and Guatemala and is part of the same vegetable family as the cucumber and melon. Pattypan squash were grown by Northeastern Native American tribes. The word squash originates from the Narragansett Native American word askutasquash, meaning eaten raw or uncooked. The white, yellow and green pattypan squash are commonly used for cooking, but its flowers are also edible! Pattypan squash have more vitamin A than zucchini. Onion The average American eats 20 pounds of onion every year. That s nothing compared to Libya. On average, one person in Libya will eat pounds of onion every year. V. Throup of England grew the world s largest onion; it weighed 10 pounds 14 ounces! Before New York City was known as the Big Apple, it had the nickname, the Big Onion, because you could peel off layers and layers without reaching its core. 9

10 SPIRALIZED SALAD Ingredients: 1 large or 2 small squash About 12 cherry tomatoes 1 large or 2 small onions About 15 leaves of arugula or arugula flowers About 15 leaves of basil 1 lemon 1-2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil Salt Pepper Directions: Using a spiralizer tool, cut squash to fit in the tool, and create spaghetti strands and put in the salad bowl Cut tomatoes into quarters (or small pieces) and add to bowl Cut off the root of the onion, and finely dice the whole thing, add to bowl Tear up the arugula smaller than bite sized pieces (it s a strong flavor!), add to bowl Add in any arugula flowers whole, they don t need tearing up Cut basil into tiny strips, careful not to bruise it Cut the lemon and squeeze all the juice over the ingredients in the bowl Drizzle extra virgin olive oil over all ingredients Add a little salt and pepper to taste Toss well Eat and enjoy! HELPFUL TIP: To make your own salad dressings at home, use any combination of fat (different oils are nice) and acid (acidic fruits or vinegars are good choices). A good ratio is 50/50, and you can adjust to your own taste (more fat, or more acid, as you like. Many recipes call for 2/3 fat to 1/3 acid). In this case, the fat is the extra virgin olive oil, and the acid is the lemon. Try experimenting at home with different oils and acids for a fun variety of flavor! 10