Welcome to the ninth ReFresher newsletter of the fall season! We hope you are enjoying the change in weather and the beautiful colors of the leaves!
In this newsletter, you will find:
– ReFresh program post-survey
– Learn more about leeks and their health benefits in “Ask a Nutritionist.”
– Gardening tips for preserving tomatoes.
– A few simple recipes that you can make with the fresh ingredients in your ReFresh bag!
– Check out the community resource section to learn what new project is coming to TSK!
We hope you enjoy this newsletter and thank you for your participation as we work together to build a healthy local food system.
LAST distribution of the season: 11/17/21
Text your questions, photos, and comments to: (505) 226-3707.
ReFresh Program Post-survey
As this ReFresh season winds down, we are grateful that we could share this experience with you, and we hope that the program has provided a bit of comfort and nourishment. Some of you have been with the program since March 2020, and some of you joined over the past few months. Either way, we are grateful to have the opportunity to share food, learn, and build with you!
Ask a Nutritionist What are leeks and what are their health benefits?
Leeks are a vegetable from the onion family. They are native to the Middle East and can be produced in your garden. They resemble green onions “scallions” and are used in soups, casseroles, salads, canned, pickled, or with sauteed foods.
Leeks are rich in vitamins and minerals. One cup of cooked leeks contains 30 percent of your daily recommended intake of vitamin A and K, which help boost your immune system and are good for eye, bone, and heart health. Leeks are also high in fiber, flavonoids, polyphenols, which are good for alleviating heart conditions and preventing blood vessel damage.
Leeks have to be properly cleaned in order to remove all the dirt. Water and vinegar can be used to clean the leeks before use. Cut the root and the dark green leaves before cooking or storing and wash or rinse them right before using. According to Home Stratosfer, leeks should be stored in a damp towel with a rubber band around the buddle. They should be stored in the vegetable bin for up to ten days. For freezing the leeks, they should be blanched and cut, and placed in a freezer bag.
Check out this recipe for the ReFresh online cooking class (don’t forget to sign up via the previous section):
Have more questions about food and nutrition? Send your questions to [email protected]
Disclaimer: The information shared by Three Sisters Kitchen (TSK) is for general informational purposes only, and is not meant to substitute for the advice provided by a doctor or other health care provider
Gardening Post
Content from farmer Tiana Baca
Recipes We Love
This apple and pomegranate salad is not only delicious but also is a great source of vitamins A, C, and fiber, which are important for eye, gut health, and immunity.
This veggie soup is loaded with vitamin B, C, iron, potassium, and calcium, which are important for bone and heart health.
Recipes by 1) Teya Moore 2) Virginia Cantua
Community Resource
Our Nutritional Values campaign at Three Sisters Kitchen
We are excited to launch a new project at TSK called #OurNutritionalValues with five restaurant partners throughout the month of November. To check it out – and to get free lunch while supplies last – visit Nexus Blue Smokehouse, Buen Provecho, The Shop Breakfast & Lunch, Street Food Institute Cafe at CNM, or Soo Bak Seoul Bowl and order the “Nutritional Values Meal”. You’ll get a special dish (the first 100 at each restaurant are free!) and a Nutritional Values Meal Kit with stories and fun swag developed through Three Sisters Kitchen’s Shifting Narratives Around the Table project. If you check them out, be sure to post your nutritional values – and tag us #OurNutritionalValues #ThreeSistersKitchenNM!
This week your Refresh bag will include many of the following delicious fresh and staple items:
Sweet onions and purple potatoes from Rodriguez S & J Farm*
Biscochito granola from TSK Food Group*
Corn tortillas from Sabroso Foods*
Pomegranate and mangos from Quality Fruit and Veg
* NM grown / NM made. We raise money to purchase these foods from local farmers and food producers as a concrete way to invest in our local food system and get delicious, fresh, local food to our ReFresh families. Keep an eye out for these local farms and food businesses when you do your food shopping. ReFresh boxes will always include local food items.
Thank You!
Special thanks to all of the farmers and food producers working so hard to feed our communities; our partner organizations who helped to recruit ReFresh families: Kids Cook!, YES Housing, Together for Brothers, SWOP, Centro Savila, Street Food Institute, and Mandy’s Farm; to the staff, volunteers, donors, and ReFresh families who make the program work, and to our partners at MoGro Mobile Grocery, who pack these beautiful ReFresh bags each week for us, and who do so much important work connecting communities to healthy food throughout New Mexico. There would be no ReFresh program without all of you – we love our partners!
