Master Foods Volunteer (MFV)

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Yesterday was class two of the training and we baked banana nut bread and later on did a stir fry. It was really a Mongolian BBQ more than a stir fry but it was great whatever you called it. I spoke with Barb about out banana nut bread problems and she told me that getting the inside done without making a hard crust is very hard to do. In fact she quit trying to make it in a bread pan years ago. She uses a muffin pan now and has good results. Barb has some small loaf pans and said her bunt pan would be better.

The couple of food tips I took away from the training is that if possible we should make half of our grain products whole grain. If you look in the stores, the pasta, breads and rice all have a whole grain component. In fact, there is a store in Kansas City that focuses on whole grains and we made salads of Teff (the smallest seed) that looks like ground coffee, Bulgar wheat, cracked wheat (Tabbouleh) barley and couscous. All of the salads were made to be served cold and while they were good snacks would have been better if served the next day. There is something about the whole grains that include more fiber and nutrients that we normally mill out of our other grain products.

The second thing we talked about was the color of vegetables and how we should try to eat three cups of vegetables a day and two cups of fruit. The colors, red, purple yellow, white and green should be spread across the spectrum. Our groups cut up some of each color and as individuals put at least one thing from each color in a bowl and then stir fried them. It was an excellent snack mid afternoon. I tried tofu and beets in mine and would not normally eaten either. You do have to use a dipper of oil in each bowl to keep the contents from sticking. The instructors were very careful to tel us to throw away the bowls after we filled them and to use a clean plate to eat from. Cross contamination from the raw chicken was the big worry.

We did discuss the fad diets out there and why they are for the most part a failure on the long run. The real way for success is to serve a variety of foods, control the daily portion and get some exercise. They even went so far to say that there is such a thing as fit and fat. It just takes a lot to motivate the fat to get out and do the exercise.

We also made a loaf of bread to bring home. It was really two cups of white flour and one of whole wheat. Barb took the loaf and is making Cinnamon rolls as I write. I am looking forward to seeing what the whole wheat does to the normal light bread texture and taste. I think I am quickly developing a taste for whole wheat and more grains in my bread. I can't remember when I ate my last slice of that white wonder bread.

Eat your grains, vegetables and fruits. Am I boring you with this stuff?

MUD