Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden (SAKG)

What a great start to the term we've had in the garden and kitchen!

IN THE KITCHEN

We've continued our journey through the decades, watching snippets of the ABC's Back in Time for Dinner. We've explored the 1970's when many women re-entered the workplace, and as result deep freezers and supermarkets become widespread, enabling working women to stock up with frozen foods and do a weekly shop instead of a daily one. Fast food chains from the US also started popping up... McDonalds in Glen Waverley was the first to open its doors in Victoria in 1973. Check out the ad for its grand opening ... and its prices! I remember driving past and pleading with my dad to stop, alas to no avail, "We'll go home and have a sandwich!"

However, as quick and convenient fast or frozen food is, homemade is much more delicious, so quiche/ frittata and homemade pizza was on the menu. We also squeezed our bounty of limes and blanched a load of silver beet to freeze for use later in the term.

Last week it was the 1980's and the age of the fad diets and aerobics, due to the ever-expanding waistlines of Australian adults and children. School canteens sold highly sugary treats and fat laden snacks. We looked at healthier options for lunch that are made from fresh and seasonal produce, and easy to cook. Spanakopita, savoury muffins and fruit kebabs were on the menu.

The 1990's saw the rise of pre-prepared fresh meals that were sealed to preserve them that were still quick and convenient to heat up. We made our own version of packaged pasta and made delicious leafy green ravioli, making the pasta and filling from scratch.

Please feel free to download the recipes to make at home with your children.

RECIPES

IN THE GARDEN

What a busy time we have had since the holidays! How quickly weeds can grow was the comment of many children when we went out to harvest from the garden! Hence we began with yet more weeding and mulching along with checking their mini composters to see if there were any changes after the holidays.

The newly planted fruit trees are sending out their new growth which is very reassuring and looking good. We gave the old ones a light prune to shape them and promote more growth.

Week 2 involved setting up and cleaning the 2x big compost bins ready to make our own. Tidying up, cutting back and weeding all the beds was a priority so that we could plant a mixture of seedlings in the spaces in Week 3, especially the long bed that is the last to be planted out this year. 

Week 3 we finished off the last bit of weeding, thank goodness said some, and began our big planting session despite the warm day. We planted 3x types of tomatoes, cucumber, capsicum, eggplant, lettuce, butternut pumpkin and spinach along with some basil. These were all mulched and watered in really well. A great job was done by everyone and we were all very glad to clean up and adjourn inside out of the sun.