Prevent Wasted Food

Pumpkin guts are good for you!

Greetings, Conscientious Food Consumers!

Another pandemic milestone is fast approaching — Halloween without much trick-or-treating. Thank goodness pumpkin carving is still CDC-approved! So is, we assume, National Pumpkin Day on October 26th.

The season of the jack-o-lantern brings to mind one of my (and my kiddo’s) favorite bits of macabre Halloween hilarity — Science Bob’s exploding pumpkins experiment on the Jimmy Kimmel Show. Admittedly, it was also a frivolous waste of pumpkin innards, including all those nutritious seeds…

Did you know? Pumpkin guts are good for you!

In addition to its dense flesh containing essential vitamins, beta carotene, and minerals such as calcium, the pumpkin’s oval seeds are packed with a surprising amount of protein, fiber and omega fatty acids, as well as anti-oxidants and nerve-calming magnesium. Here’s an outline of the health benefits associated with pumpkin seeds from the BBC’s “Good Food” website.

So don’t toss (or compost) those punkin’ guts! (Slimy-stringy guts, ok.) It will take a bit of time and effort, but the reward will be a healthy, versatile snack that you made yourself — while saving a few $$$ you may have otherwise spent on fancy packaged trail or nut mixes.

As usual, we turn to the OSU Master Food Preserver program for the definitive how-to on Drying and Roasting Seeds for pumpkins, other squash and for sunflowers as well. The process involves these basic steps:

  • DIG ‘EM out, CLEAN ‘EM and DRY ‘EM well in the oven or dehydrator;
  • Add seasonings, oil and ROAST ‘EM in their white outer hulls (being careful to not over-cook them),

UNLESS:

    • You really want just the tender and green inner seed (known as a “pepita“) — particularly to make the seeds easier for younger kids to eat. Then you’ll be doing the extra work to remove the tough and fibrous outer seed hull before continuing on to the frying or roasting.  If you prefer, prepare a batch to use soon and eat raw.

THEN:

    • SNACK ON ‘EM as is, or THROW ‘EM in your salads, muffins, breakfast cereal, trail mix, what have you! STORE ‘EM in an airtight container in your fridge or freezer (not the pantry, where they will likely turn rancid).

A bit of clarification regarding carving pumpkins, a.k.a. “jack-o-lanterns” versus their non-exploding cousins the “pie pumpkins” which provide the best tasting “innards” for your winter and holiday dishes. Carving pumpkins are grown for their size and tend to have unpleasant-tasting flesh, while the smaller pie pumpkins are cultivated primarily for culinary uses. Right now you might be getting ready to do some pumpkin PREP to:

Don’t forget the pumpkin’s winter squash relatives — the striped and speckled delicatas, spaghettis, acorns, butternuts, Hubbards, etc. —  in your prep, preservation and seasonal meal planning!

HAVE KIDDOS? They’ll probably jump at the chance to get their hands in some “pumpkin guts” or puree to help you make kid-friendly recipes like Jack-O-Lantern Pancakes, pumpkin pudding or even fruit dip. They’re all part of FoodHero.org, a bilingual collection of nutrition learning resources from OSU Extension Service’s Family and Community Health Program.

On their pumpkin home page, kids will find videos, coloring sheets,  infographics and even jokes! The “Pumpkin Basics” infographic introduces key facts and messages such as “Store well, waste less” — which we love seeing!

*****

And now for this week’s Kitchen Confession:

KAREN CONFESSES: This can of butternut squash was once intended as the main ingredient for a nice soup, but got “left behind” in a secondary pantry storage area that I hadn’t inventoried until… this year!

Although StillTasty.com advises that it is still safe to eat as long as the can is undamaged and its seals intact, I didn’t feel comfortable using it.

$$$ WASTED: $2.49

LESSON LEARNED: Consolidate and reorganize my pantry storage by placing older items in front of those with a longer “Best by” date. Check for other items nearing their date and transfer to upcoming Meal Plans!

 

“Local Eats Month” is underway in Corvallis, with special menu offerings at selected local restaurants celebrating the farmers and foods produced within our six-county region. Between October 18 – November 14, check “Sustainable Corvallis” on Facebook for announcements from the Food Action Team about the latest specials from participating restaurants. On Instagram: @sustainablecorvallis

 

Caring and sharing food in a crisis: “It’s On Us Corvallis”

Greetings, Conscientious Food Consumers!

Blessed rain has returned to western Oregon during the past week, bringing fresh air to our lungs and progress in the containment of the monstrous fires raging in our region since Labor Day, including the Holiday Farm and Beachie Creek conflagrations in nearby counties.

A number of those displaced or made homeless by the fires found temporary shelter here in Benton County, at hotels, motels, in private homes or camped out at the county Fairgrounds, which also provided facilities for displaced horses, farm animals and other livestock. Many local resources and volunteers have been mobilized in the spirit of caring and sharing, and we at NFLB salute all of these efforts.

In particular, we’d like to give a shout out for It’s On Us Corvallis  — a fellow project of the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition — which has helped comfort those evacuees, host families, and others who have suffered financial hardship due to the wildfires with freshly prepared meals and food boxes. This also prevented countless pounds of food from going to waste during closures due to smoke. And it’s all been made possible by more than $62,000 in donations from our generous local community!

Between September 8th and 18th, IOU Corvallis was instrumental in the mobilization of a massive community-based food distribution effort on behalf of evacuees. Numerous local restaurants, nonprofit and hotel industry partners, farms and volunteer food preppers sourced, prepared and delivered 8,000 meals to local hotels, shelters, the Fairgrounds — even to people sheltering in their cars along the waterfront. They worked with local officials and hotel owners to monitor daily need and prevent waste.

As expressed on the IOU Corvallis Facebook page, “This is an effort to reduce food waste, show community support to our neighbors displaced by fires, and allow our community restaurants to recuperate some of their lost revenue from yet another economic blow.”

This short “Thank You Corvallis” video featuring IOU Corvallis’ key partners in the effort — Bombs Away Cafe, The Brass Monkey, Forks and Corks Catering, and Kalamata Bistro — will make your day!

When hazardous air quality shut down the outdoor markets, IOU Corvallis, Common Fields and the Corvallis Albany Farmers’ Markets  organized the collection and distribution of 170 food boxes of fresh produce from local farms, thus preventing revenue losses and waste of those market-bound products.

While NFLB’s primary focus is reducing wasted food at home, we applaud the IOU Corvallis effort to prevent waste at businesses and restaurants, and get fresh, quality food to local people who need it. Especially during the COVID-19 era, food sharing and donation are crucial for addressing food insecurity. The U.S. EPA’s Hierarchy for Food Recovery lists it as number two among sustainable food management practices.

Prior to September 8th, It’s On Us was famous for introducing local residents to the experience of the fabled “free lunch” — known as “community meals” — at a variety of local restaurants. Using the “pay it forward” method of crowd sourced fundraising, IOU Corvallis solicits tax deductible donations from community, and uses the money to purchase bulk food orders from local restaurants. The restaurants then prepare and distribute a limited number of individual servings (say 250) for the public on a specific date and time, as announced on IOU Corvallis’ Facebook page.

Anyone could wait their turn (in a socially-distanced line) to receive a free pre-made lunch to-go with no questions asked. The unspoken rule: “Pay it forward” (donate) when you can. I myself enjoyed a wonderful veggie curry from Corvallis’ popular Evergreen Indian restaurant, but others went away empty-handed because they hadn’t gotten in line early enough.

These community meals are now on hold as of September 8th, when It’s On Us announced it was taking a break for evaluation purposes. That was also the day when the wildfires turned our skies orange and IOU Corvallis quickly pivoted toward disaster response.

Back in April, as we all reeled from the stresses of quarantine and the COVID-19 threat, many local restaurants and food businesses were suffering heavy financial losses. So a trio of local volunteers — retired German professor Elizabeth Jones, Food Action Team leader Aliza Tuttle, and Leadership Corvallis alum Ashley Relf — came up with an innovative way to show appreciation to local health care and essential workers, and stimulate local economy at the same time.

They created a GoFundMe campaign, recruited some businesses and volunteers, and It’s On Us was launched.

Since then, the project has tallied the production of 10,500 meals involving 40 locally-owned restaurants, and inspired 700 individual donors. In May, it became an official project of the Sustainability Coalition’s Food Action Team.

You can support It’s On Us Corvallis by making a tax-deductible donation through the Sustainability Coalition, via GoFundMe, or Venmo: @itsonus_corvallis.

Let’s keep the caring and sharing going, and support local businesses feeding our community!