Austin Food Bloggers Alliance members began sharing their recipes, stories and spreading the word about hunger in Central Texas. Here’s a roundup of the posts so far (photos link to the blog post):

Addie of Austin American Statesman’s, Relish Austin on Austin360.com, puts herbs and spices to work in a modern twist on the classic American comfort food, franks and beans.

Kristina says cookies can be for breakfast and be healthy, too. At Girl Gone Grits, she whips up a beautiful low-cost healthy meal that will keep children satisfied through lunch—Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Shake, Cinnamon Orange Yogurt, and Breakfast Cookies.

Returning blogger and long-time CAFB Ambassador, Kristi Willis of Austin Farm to Table, shared a recipe for Ricotta Stuffed Zucchini, a perfect dish for early spring.

Laurie at LonelyGourmet knows what it’s like to succumb to the stigma of food stamps. She shares her story and some startling facts about hunger in Central Texas.

Rachel at Dinner With Daneman features a wonderful mix of pico de gallo with fresh fruit.  Is it a salad or salsa?  Whatever you decide, you’ll agree it’s a fresh and delicious way to perk up a meal.

Jen at Zesty Bean Dog whips up a protein-packed mini meal with tuna and yogurt as the star.

Take a South Austin Foodie adventure with Suzanna as she shares her tips for a great and low-cost polenta with tomatoes, meat and greens.

At Kitschn Calamities, Julie takes a whole wheat pasta recipe and stretches and transforms it into a frittata, providing a healthy dinner for two nights and two lunches.

A great recipe for the novice cook, Linda at Girl Eats World takes care to showcase a recipe where most of the ingredients could be found at one of CAFB’s Partner Agencies.

Vegetarian chef, Nelly at Salt preps her audience for fideos and lentejas mexicanas recipes.  Can’t wait!

Ready for a ramen revamp? Check out Laura at  Shoestring Austin for some tasty ramen hacks.

Ren at Edible Aria, known for low-cost recipes featuring sustainable whole foods, brings a great vegetarian recipe for “Meatless Monday” lovers – a Quinoa burger.

Sara at The Smart Kitchen looks to cold pizza Lunchables as inspiration for kid-friendly healthy and fun snacks.  There are more great ideas, but you’ll have to read the blog to find them.

Last, but certainly not least, Emme from The Kid Can Cook focused her first blog post on  informing her readers about hunger in Central Texas and raising funds for the Food Bank.  Each comment left on the post generated a $1 donation. Thanks, Emme!

It isn’t over, yet. Be sure to check out our Austin Food Bloggers Project web page for the latest culinary creations.

Austin Food Bloggers Alliance members visited the Food Bank yesterday to launch their first philanthropy event.  This event was inspired by last year’s Austin Food Bloggers challenge where participants were asked to create recipes from food distributed at a food pantry.  For this year’s Anniversary project, bloggers are creating awareness about the SNAP program and creating recipes inspired by the minimum SNAP benefit of $16 per month. The month-long project begins April 30.

“Our challenge is to bring more awareness to our local food bank – particularly the SNAP program – by creating some nutritious recipes that Angela [CAFB’s Nutrition Education Manager] and her team could incorporate into the local classes. Each of our stories will be different due to our own life experiences and perspectives, just as the stories are of each individual or family supported by CAFB. The face of hunger knows no bounds.” said Kristina Wolter, Austin Food Bloggers Alliance Philanthropy Chair.

Nutrition Education Manager, Angela Henry, explains CAFB’s curriculum offerings and nutrition education outreach to SNAP-eligible clients. Credit: Kristina Nichols-Wolter

Lisa Goddard, Online Marketing Director shares the Food Bank’s history and services before starting a tour of CAFB’s facilities. Credit: Kristina Nichols-Wolter

Austin Food Blogger Alliance members learn about SNAP, formerly known as food stamps. Credit: Kristina Nichols-Wolter

At the kickoff, participants enjoyed a CAFB CHOICES Nutrition Class favorite recipe prepared by Angela; a mango and black bean salad. Credit: Kristina Nichols-Wolter

Alex Cruz one of CAFB’s SNAP Outreach Coordinators explains the barriers many Central Texans experience while applying for SNAP benefits. Credit: Kristina Nichols-Wolter

Interested in participating in the challenge?

Email info@austinfoodbloggers.org, to learn about becoming a member of the Austin Food Bloggers Alliance, or  fill out an application.

Can you taste the difference?

by Emily Eckelkamp, Nutrition Educator, and Anadeli DeJesus, Bilingual Nutrition Educator

If you haven’t made the switch from whole milk to reduced-fat milk, the children at Sierra Ridge Apartments may give you inspiration.  We know it is recommended that we drink reduced-fat milk, but does it matter which one? Do they all taste the same? People often say that skim (fat-free) milk tastes too watery, and they prefer 1% or 2% milk. But, can you really taste the difference?

In February, we put 4^th and 5^th graders from Sierra Ridge Apartments up to the challenge as part of our Kids in the Kitchen series. Each student was given three different milk samples, simply labeled Sample A, Sample B, and Sample C. They tasted each one, and then had to determine which sample was 2% milk, 1% milk, and which was the skim milk. As it turns out, many students had a hard time actually tasting the difference. And, when asked which sample was their favorite, they answered, “A, B, and C!” The lesson: the taste difference may be marginal, but the health differences are significant. All types of reduced-fat milk contain the same amount of calcium, which promotes bone health, yet drinking skim milk instead of 2% milk will reduce the amount of calories and grams of total fat and saturated fat consumed. (See chart below.)

Maria participates in the milk tasting activity.

The same goes with low-fat and fat-free yogurts that can be used, instead of regular yogurt, for smoothies and other healthy snacks. After the milk tasting activity, the students got to use low-fat, vanilla-flavored yogurt to make their unique Yummy Fruit Smoothies. They made a variety of flavors including mango, peach, blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, blackberry, pineapple, and banana. See the recipe below to make your own!

Shareefa makes a fruit smoothie.

Yummy Fruit Smoothie

Make a fruit smoothie for a snack or breakfast.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Serving size: 1 cup                                         Serves: 5

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen fruit (get creative! You can make your own mix of frozen fruits — strawberries, blueberries, peaches, mangoes, raspberries, blackberries, pineapple)
2 cups vanilla low-fat yogurt
1 cup orange juice

Preparation:

1.      Combine all ingredients in a blender.
2.       Process until smooth for approximately 2 minutes. Serve immediately.
3.      Drink and enjoy!

Nutritional Information per Serving:

Calories 130, Total Fat 1g, Carbohydrates 28g, Fiber 1g, Protein 3g,

Sodium 45mg, Cholesterol 5mg

Recipe modified by CHOICES Nutrition Program, CAFB

To sign up for class, or for more information about CHOICES, call Angela Henry, nutrition education manager, at 512-684-2502 or email choices@austinfoodbank.org.

A new report released by Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Susan Combs, “Gaining Costs, Losing Time: The Obesity Crisis in Texas,” reveals obesity cost Texas businesses $9.5 billion in 2009. If current trends in obesity continue, it could cost Texas businesses $32.5 billion from reduced productivity, obesity-related health care, disability and absenteeism.

Texas’ children are also at a disadvantage compared to the rest of the United States. The 2007 national Survey of Children’s Health (nSCH) found that 20.4 percent of Texas children aged 10 to 17 were obese, compared to 16.4 percent of all U.S. children.

In the report, the Comptroller provides recommendations for reducing the obesity crisis in Texas, many of which CAFB supports through programs and advocacy.  However, the recommendation to limit or curb the eligibility of unhealthy food items purchased with SNAP (food stamp) benefits, although a seemingly sensible measure, is a misplaced and probably ineffective means to reduce obesity.

Independent data has yet to confirm that people receiving SNAP benefits are more likely to make worse food choices than those who are not receiving SNAP.  Often it is access to affordable healthy food in low-income neighborhoods and/or the cost of healthier foods relative to other foods such as fast food, that dictates what can be purchased.   And, what should be considered junk food?  Is it soda because of its low nutritional value or should herbal teas or coffee also fall into the category because of their low nutritional value?  In any case, the USDA has been down this road all ready and concluded that restricting food items would be expensive, burdensome and most likely ineffective in reducing obesity.

Let’s remember the harmful effects of the welfare queen myth and not assume that just because someone is poor they are ignorant or unwise. From the Comptroller’s report, it’s clear that obesity is not just a “poor person’s” issue – it’s a Texas-wide issue and it should be treated as such.

The best way to support low-income individuals in making healthy choices is to make those choices affordable, accessible and appealing.  Here’s how we help:

• CAFB’s Kids Cafe program partners with after school programs to promote healthy eating and physical activity by providing healthy nutritious meals to children.
• CAFB’s CHOICES curriculum encourages healthy eating for children and families through hands-on cooking classes and product demonstrations at area pantries.
• CAFB encourages eligible clients to enroll in SNAP and promotes Farmers Markets where they can redeem their benefits.

We hope the Comptroller would consider a “carrots, not sticks” approach to fighting obesity, where SNAP benefits would be worth more when spent on fresh healthy foods instead of limiting choices.

by Emily Eckelkamp, Nutrition Educator

The Boys & Girls Club of Bastrop, a Partner Agency of the Capital Area Food Bank, has faced many ups and downs in the past year. In August 2009, the club was forced to close due to financial reasons. With the help of Whitney Goble, the club re-opened in April of 2010, beginning with only seven students enrolled. By the time our CHOICES Nutrition Education Program arrived in early May, the club had grown to more than 50 students.

For four weeks, fellow Nutrition Educator Anadeli De Jesus and I taught more than 40 students the program’s Power of Choice series, which educates children about basic nutrition, how to make healthy eating and fitness choices, and how to make healthy snacks. Although we could only teach 10 students at a time due to limited space, the children remained enthusiastic and open-minded.

Many of the Bastrop children attend the Boys & Girls Club every afternoon, and are excited to see special events and classes, such as our Nutrition Education Class. As one six-year-old girl put it: “I wish every day was nutrition day!”

It was obvious throughout the series the students of Bastrop enjoyed talking about nutrition — something they hadn’t learned much about previously. Topics covered in our Power of Choice series include the MyPyramid for Kids, making healthy choices, and learning how to read a food label. Even with all of these engaging topics, the snack was always the favorite part! See pictures below of the students enjoying their nutritious snacks they made themselves.

For information on volunteering or hosting a CHOICES Nutrition Education Program class, email Monica Escobar, Nutrition Education Manager, at choices@austinfoodbank.org or call 512-684-2502.

Justine eats her Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich with a smile.

Evette enjoys her Zesty Tomato & Cucumber Cup.

Rysainee  learns about the variety of fruits and vegetables.

First-grade students learn about the MyPyramid for Kids.

The small office building of the Boys & Girls Club of Bastrop where the CHOICES classes were held.

Sixty-one percent of Austin Independent School District (AISD) students are eligible for free or reduced lunch – that’s a lot of children counting on nutritionally balanced meals outside the home and away from parent’s guidance.   And what about nutrition after the school hours? Working poor families without the means to purchase enough food may opt to have their children “feel full,” even if that means foregoing healthier choices at mealtime.

With one-in-five Texas children suffering from obesity, we’re working to educate and inform children in low-income households about their healthy eating options.

CHOICES, our nutrition education program, is funded in part by the USDA’s Food Stamp Program to help empower children and families to make smart choices at mealtime.  Our four-week children’s nutrition program, based on MyPyramid, teaches the health benefits of each food group, healthy choices among the food groups and how to classify foods into appropriate food groups.

At Apple Adventist Academy, in Austin, CHOICES students were asked why it is important to learn about nutrition. Here’s what they had to say:

“So when we grow up we can make healthy choices and so I can make something that is healthy for my own kids.” Hayley, age 9.

Hayley also says, “I think kids should walk around, exercise and run. They should eat healthy. Don’t be obese.”

“Healthy food can taste good and be good.” Hillary, age 10.

“When I eat junk food, I feel hyper.” Luis, age 7.

Get Involved:
You can get involved by becoming a CHOICES Volunteer Instructor or Assistant. Learn more.

We’ll continue to address child nutrition and hunger in the next few weeks.  Stay tuned.