Cooking Classes, Spring Break Camps, and Food Events

Just living is not enough... one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower. -Hans Christian Anderson The little bit of sunshine I enjoyed yesterday has me dreaming of warmer days coming. I would love to spend some of the early spring with you at a cooking class or local food event.

Classes taught by Rachel at Franklin Park Conservatory

Greens (ages 3-5) Winter greens are so sweet and tasty that even veggie-averse kids will be tempted to taste the green monster smoothie, kale chips, and pesto we cook up in this vitamin rich class. Thursday, March 10, 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. $15 Members; $20 Non-Members

Charcuterie Charcuterie is the act of curing meat by salt, smoke, or dehydration.  Home cooks will learn how to apply these concepts to their cooking to delicious effect.  Participants will enjoy a light meal featuring cured meat and stuff sausage to take home.  Tuesday March 15, 6:30 - 8 p.m. $30 Members; $35 Non-members

Growing Young Chefs from the Ground Up! (For children entering grades 1 - 6) Spend Spring Break cooking and eating at Franklin Park!  We will discover all the different parts of plants that we eat, from roots in the ground to fruit hanging from branches.  Young chefs will help set the menu and cook tasty snacks and lunches, visiting bees and edible gardens along the way. Register by March 4. Monday - Friday, March 21 - 25, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday - Friday, March 28 - April 1, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. $180 Members; $190 Non-members

Seeds to Grow and Eat! Seeds, the starting germ of a plant, can be eaten, sown, or sprouted.  We will explore all three options in this family workshop.  We will cook three snacks from seeds and create an indoor herb garden to take home. Sunday March 27, 2 - 3:30 p.m. $20 Members; $25 Non-members (price includes one child and one adult)

Condiments Condiments can be made at home as easily as opening a jar from the store. Participants will practice making mayonnaise, aioli, ketchup, mustard, and barbecue sauce. After creating the toppings, we will taste them on sandwiches. Sunday April 3, 4 - 5:30 p.m. $30 Members; $35 Non-members

Butterflies Did you know that all it takes to make butter is to shake up some cream? We’ll make butter from local Snowville cream and use the buttermilk to whip up whole grain pancakes with seasonal fruit. Thursday April 14, 11 a.m. -12 p.m. $15 Members; $20 Non-members (price includes one child and one adult)

Local Food Events

Maple Sugaring - 'Tis the season for making maple syrup. Instead of repeating her work, I direct you to the concise list of sugaring events at local parks on CbusMom.com.

Dine Originals Restaurant Week - March 7-13 Visit an independent Dine Originals restaurant during restaurant week for creative prix fixe meals at a steal of a price. Check out menus on the Dine Originals website.

Ohio Market Day at Hills Market - Saturday, March 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This free community event showcases the wares of thirty food purveyors and organizations from around Ohio. Each of our Ohio vendors will demo their wares. We'll be hosting several workshops featuring recipes and accompanying samples. As always, Boar's Head will be giving away free hot dogs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and we will raffle off more than 100 prizes and giveaways.

Central Ohio Food Forum at Wild Goose Creative - Monday, March 21st from 6:30-8pm Join Edible Columbus, Local Matters, and Wayward Seed Farm for a series of open and honest conversations about our food system. With topics ranging from production to distribution, community gardens to backyard chickens, and everything in between, we invite you to join us. Bring your ideas, questions and thoughts, your neighbors, friends and family.

Edible Books Contest at Northwest Library - March 31 from 6 - 8:30 pm View the tomes turned to treats by professionals and amatuers or enter one of your own! Registration starts at 6 with viewing by the public from 7-8:30.

Zen Retreat and Cooking classes with Edward Espe Brown at First UU Columbus and Franklin Park Conservatory - April 1-3 Zen Columbus Sangha announces a weekend with Zen Buddhist priest, author, and chef, Edward Espe Brown. Detailed information, including schedule and registration, is available here: http://www.zencolumbus.com/EEBannouncement2011.pdf

PS. It's March 2, the birthday of my sister Sarah, uncle Mike and Dr. Seuss!

Snow Cream

If you are like us and find yourself with an abundance of snow and ennui, try making snow cream. We made it today and here's what Lil has to say:

"Snow cream has two ingredients.  First you have to get really fresh fresh snow and get some maple syrup or milk or chocolate syrup or cider syrup.  And that's how you make snow cream."

"It feels snowy when you eat it.  Maple syrup is the best.  Papa liked the maple syrup and Mama liked everything.  But the best of hers was maple syrup with milk."

Added to Hearth and Soul Volume 30.

Sugar Season coming soon, Maple Sugar that is.

A long time ago, my high school boyfriend did a winter maple sugar study.  He tracked data on trees in the forest behind our school, tapped them, and made maple syrup.  It required hours of work boiling off the sap from late January through March, and since I wanted to be with him, I helped with the sugaring. Since then, I've had a soft spot for sugaring.  As it turns out Alex (my husband) tapped a few trees in his backyard as a kid.

If you don't know the maple sugar process, here's a quick rundown.

1. Identify sugar maple tree or trees.  Red and black maple do have some sugar content in their sap but it is so low that it is almost not worth collecting.

2. Insert metal or plastic 'taps' into trees.  You just hammer these an inch or so beyond the bark

3. Hang a bucket or old milk jug off the tap.

4. Collect sap.  Sap runs when the nights are below freezing but the days are above freezing temperatures.  Usually sugar farmers in Ohio expect a steady harvest around February 14th.

5. Skim off any frozen water.  Sap will keep refridgerated for a few days.  Leave it out in the snow overnight (if there is snow) and skim the frozen water in the morning.   You'll be left with higher sugar content sap.

6. Boil sap in a large outdoor boiler or indoors in large pots.  Could probably be done in roasting pans in the oven too.  Keep in mind that sap contains between 3 - 4% sugar, and syrup is much more concentrated, so you want big vessels for this.

7. When you've reached syrup consistency, strain through felt to rid syrup of impurities.  (You can use a hyrometer and/or thermometer to measure, or just go by feel.)

8. Enjoy!  Or boil further to make sugar.

Much more detailed instructions are on the Ohio State University Extension fact sheet.

I'll warn you - sugaring is a lot of effort for a little precious syrup.  It is deeply satisfying to follow through the process, but shouldn't be taken on by those short on time.

If you want to simply observe the process, some farms offer great outings.  We visit Malabar Farm in north central Ohio for their annual Maple Syrup Festival.  They have real life reinactments of historic ways of sugaring up through a working modern production.  This year's festival will be held March 7, 8, 14 and 15.