How do we know what we should eat each day? Canada’s Food Guide guides people to eat colourful, flavourful and wholesome food every day. The Food Guide is based on science and it tells us to be sure to eat food from three food groups to get the different nutrition our body needs to grow and stay healthy. Let’s take a look at Canada’s Food Guide and then we’ll use our Food Journal to track the colours of the rainbow we eat in a week.
Food brings people together, no matter how old or young they are. At Project CHEF we cook with kids, teachers, parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles, and volunteers. We have also cooked with seniors from Tapestry Retirement Community at Wesbrook Village. We believe that when people come together in the kitchen there is always an opportunity to learn from each other.
Collard greens are a member of the Brassica Oleracea family of veggies that include cabbage, broccoli and kale. This dark green leaf grows right here in BC and you often find them at the farmers’ markets. They’re high in vitamins A and C and they can be eaten raw or cooked. In this recipe we roll up herby scrambled eggs inside a big, raw leaf like a burrito. If you don’t have collard greens, can you think of some other large, leafy vegetables to use? You can even roll the eggs up in a flatbread.
Yield: 3 wraps
Preparation Time: About 10 minutes
Cooking Time: About 3 minutes
BC is blessed with a bounty of good food grown right on our doorstep. We get to enjoy what our farmers grow and producers make throughout the year. Many of these ingredients we recognize right away but others may cause us to pause, look at carefully and do a little research to find out what they are and how can we enjoy eating them.
Here’s a crunchy snack that includes ingredients from the three food groups: Fruit and Veggies, Protein and Whole Grains. Easy to make and as much fun to make as eat. If little fingers are doing the cutting, be sure to have all hands on deck for supervision.
There are over 8000 different types of apples in the world and each apple has a different flavour. Try this recipe with different types of apples. Take your time and use your senses while preparing the apples. How would you describe the flavour: sweet or sour? How about the texture: crunchy or soft? How about the juiciness: juicy or dry? Close your eyes and smell the apples. Do they smell the same?
Yield: 1 servings
Preparation Time: About 15 minutes
Fresh Tomato Salsa is amazing in late summer when local tomatoes are showing up at markets and in stores. But even now in the spring, it brings a bit of brightness and a splash of summer. In Spanish, Pico de Gallo literally means beak of the rooster. Why do you think they might call salsa “the beak of the rooster”?
Yield: About 1 cup
Preparation Time: About 15 minutes
Summer Black Bean Dip is a favourite recipe of the Project CHEF team. Not only is it delicious, but it’s also fun to make. Practice your mashing skills using a fork and your hands. Test your knife skills by precisely cutting onion into super thin slices. Serve it with chips for a snack or with tacos, burritos or quesadillas. We added some feta crumbles to yum it up. See our guacamole and tomato salsa recipes to make this a meal.
Yield: About 1 cup
Preparation Time: About 20 minutes
This is one of our favorite ways to spice up a Friday night dinner when we are all too tired to be fancy in the kitchen but want our food to feel like a celebration. You can use guacamole in many ways including as a dip, spread on toast or tostadas and serving it with tacos or quesadillas. This recipe is often one that kids make again and again after completing our classroom program.
Yield: About ¾ cup (175mL)
Preparation Time: About 10 minutes
Couscous is wheat semolina flour formed into tiny, tiny balls. It’s commonly served in North African, Moroccan, and Algerian cuisine. It is very fast to cook and can be used as an alternative to rice or pasta. Cous Cous can be served with curry or stew, as a side dish, in a salad or as a main meal by adding some protein and vegetables. Pair our Cous Cous with our Tofu & Veggie Kebabs for a delicious, easy, healthy meal. In this recipe, we have used a whole wheat cous cous for extra fibre and nutrition.
Yield: 4 servings
Time: About 20 minutes
Tofu is a plant-based protein made from soybeans. It is very versatile and can be used as a meat alternative in a lot of recipes. Tofu is available in different consistencies, from super soft, like yogurt, to extra firm. The tofu to use will depend on your recipe. For our Tofu & Veggie Kebabs, a firm Tofu is preferred to maintain the shape while threading onto a skewer. In this recipe, we learn how to marinate tofu. A marinade is a sauce that food soaks in before cooking. Tofu acts like a sponge to soak up all the flavours of the marinade. Summer is approaching quickly and this is a great recipe to have up your sleeve for a barbeque. Get your whole family involved and get creative building your own kebabs.
Yield: 4 – 5 servings
Preparation Time: About 30 minutes
Cooking Time: About 10 minutes