Haldane Elementary School Raises Funds for Farm to School at Family Spaghetti Dinner

Last Thursday, Haldane Elementary School had their first Annual Family Spaghetti Dinner to raise money for their growing farm to school initiative. "It had been my dream to have a family spaghetti dinner at Haldane ever since I started working here," announced Assistant Principal Julia Sniffen at the dinner last week.

Over the past few months, there had been some discussion about bringing local New York State ground beef from Slope Farm into the school lunch program, but the cost was higher than what food service could include in their budget. So at the September Wellness Committee meeting, Julia Sniffen came up with the idea of combining the spaghetti dinner with a fundraiser for the local beef. Sandy McKelvey, director of Hudson Valley Farm to School loved the idea, and the two of them immediately began planning for the event.



Food Service Director, Lauren Collica soon got on board and began processing and freezing local tomatoes and basil, including those growing in her very own Tomato Sauce Garden the Haldane Garden Committee planted for her over the summer!

"None of us could have guessed this would be so popular! Being our first event, we expected maybe 100 people," stated McKelvey. "But the rsvp's kept on coming, and by the afternoon of the event, we had over 240!"

The Family Spaghetti Dinner was truly a community event. It wouldn't have been possible without all the generous donations and volunteers.

Kory Riesterer, chair of Haldane's Garden Committee created the exquisite dried flower arrangements on the tables.

Slope Farm donated the ground beef for the bolognese sauce.

Glynwood Farm donated the kale and arugula for the salad. 

Fishkill Farms donated the apples for the baked apple dish.

Nature's Pantry donated all the ingredients for the baked apples.

Beacon Bread Company donated the baguettes.
The Haldane PTA donated funds to purchase the pasta.

BOE President, Joe Curto donated four pounds of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Food Service Director, Lauren Collica said, "Last night was such a positive experience in all of my time running a kitchen. The amount of time, effort, and generosity from everyone involved is something that will continue to inspire me to keep fresh, local choices in our cafeteria."

And a big thank you goes out to all the parent, staff, and student volunteers that made this event so fun and memorable.

We can't wait to do it again!

Beacon Bread Company

Broccoli Stir Fry Taste Test at Haldane: Biggest Success Ever!

This past Tuesday, Haldane students experienced their first taste test of the year. It was by far the most popular taste test we have had in the last four years. We had over 350 tasters and over 75% liked the dish. Thank you 8th graders and Home and Careers teacher Megan Murphy for making it such a success!












Here is the recipe: Try it for yourselves!

BROCCOLICIOUS STIR FRY

3 tablesoons vegetable oil
1 cup carrots, diced
1⁄2 “ long piece of ginger, minced
1⁄2 cup onions, diced
1 cup broccoli, cut into small pieces 2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons corn starch and 2 tablespoons of water for corn starch slurry 1/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of lime juice
1 bunch scallions, sliced thinly

1 cup brown rice

1. Boil rice in 2.5 cups of water until the water is completed absorbed and rice is soft and thoroughly cooked: about 30 minutes.
2. To make the slurry: In a small bowl, mix cornstarch with water until all the cornstarch is dissolved. Set aside.

3. In a sauté pan, heat oil on medium high. Sauté carrots. Cook until slightly tender. Add ginger, cook 30 seconds. Add onions and sweat for 1 minute. Add broccoli and cook for 1 minute. Add garlic and cook to aroma. Set aside in a large bowl.
4. Deglaze the pan with vinegar. Reduce by half, add soy sauce, water and cornstarch slurry, stirring frequently until you see it begin to thicken. Add sugar.

5. Add cooked rice to the sauté pan. The rice will absorb the liquid. Cook the rice until hot. Combine with vegetable mixture.
6. Finish with fresh lime juice and sliced scallions.

Thank you Chef Nick Gonzalez, Chef intern from the Culinary Institute of America for making this recipe with Haldane 3rd and 4th graders!

Measuring for Success at Haldane Elementary School's Garden!

Second graders from Mrs. Scrocca's class honed their measuring skills in the Haldane School Garden last week.











Armed with centimeter rulers and meter sticks, the children measured the garden beds, tomato plants, dried beans, and Haldane's very own banana plant. (That measured 1.8 meters in height!)

This young girl showed off her whopping 90 centimeter bean to the whole class!

Mrs. Scrocca said, "What better way for the students to understand the concepts of centimeters and meters than to measure things in the real world!"

October is National Farm to School Month!

Take a look at what Haldane Elementary School is doing for National Farm to School Month:

Click below to see Haldane's calendar of events.

Haldane Farm to School Month

Now Online: Nearly 50 Kid Tested and Approved Chef in the Classroom Recipes from Haldane, GUFS and Beacon City School Districts

Come take a look at our new recipe page! I posted every recipe we've made since the beginning of Hudson Valley Farm to School's initiative in 2010. They are easy and fun to browse through, alphabetized by fruit or vegetable.

Try one of our delicious chef's recipes today! Go to Recipes page

Haldane Farm to School: Great Start to a New Year!

We had a great farm to school week at Haldane Elementary School! 

On Monday Chef Nick taught the 3rd graders how to make a classic tomato sauce with fresh basil, oregano, thyme, garlic, and tomatoes. All from Haldane's own garden! It was a unanimous thumbs up!















The same day, Mrs. Scrocca's 2nd graders made kale chips from kale they picked from the school garden.

And the next day, Mrs. Cretara's kindergarteners made apple chips from apples they picked at Fishkill Farms.

We closed the week with local, organic corn on the cob and a local salad bar with greens and carrots from Glynwood Farm.

What a week!

We're in Hudson Valley Magazine!

Check out this month's issue of Hudson Valley Magazine:

Any adult who says that kids don’t like vegetables has no idea!” declares Sandy McKelvey. Over the past four and a half years, the Cold Spring-based founder ofHudson Valley Farm to School has been bringing farmers, chefs — and vegetables by the bucketload — into classrooms in the Haldane, Garrison, and Beacon school districts. Read more:

Forrestal students make salads with lettuce from Common Ground Farm!

Butter lettuce from Common Ground Farm and fresh strawberries were the main ingredients for this month's Chef in the Classroom visit. Mrs. Gall's 3rd graders got busy chopping strawberries and tearing up lettuce in bite-size pieces. 

Then one by one, students came up and helped Chef Katie make the strawberry vinaigrette dressing. 

Sweet and sour and yummy!

Enjoy this recipe with local strawberries and Common Ground lettuce from the Beacon Farmers Market!

Strawberry Vinaigrette

5 oz baby lettuce leaves

1 cup strawberries, chopped fine

1 teaspoon whole grain mustard

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 shallots minced

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

In a medium bowl, mash the strawberries with a whisk.  Mix in the mustard, honey, vinegar, and oil.   Season to taste with the sea salt and pepper.  If dressing settles, whisk quickly before tossing with the baby lettuce greens. 

Dressing can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Haldane High School Students learn to make traditional Mexican Quesadillas with Local Spinach

Chef Evelyn Garcia, graduate of the Culinary Institute of America visited Mrs. Pidala's high school Home and Careers class at Haldane last week and taught the students how to make quesadillas using freshly made tortillas.

She demonstrated how to make the dough from corn "masa" and water, and using an iron tortilla press, she made the tortillas within seconds!
















Meanwhile, students made a spicy salsa verde with tomatillos and jalapeño peppers in a traditional Mexican Molcajete. Others sautéed fresh spinach from Madura Farms in Goshen, NY. And the rest worked on the guacamole. 

After grilling the tortillas for a few minutes, the students assembled the quesadillas with sautéed spinach and Mexican queso blanco. The quesadillas were topped with guacamole and salsa verde. 

Chef Evelyn brought in a traditional hibiscus iced tea to add to the delicious traditional Mexican snack.

A Healthy Twist on an Old Favorite!

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