Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

Dirtying Up Our Diets

Story by Jennifer Tyler Lee
 

This month our new food adventures focused on dirtying up our diets, with meals sourced straight from the garden. Making friends with the mighty microorganisms found in our backyard may be the best way to keep our bodies healthy.

A recent article in The New York Times on the merits of dirtying up our diets ignited a lively discussion at our dinner table. Could dirt help us stay healthy? The conversation catalyzed a new food challenge for our family. This month we focused on enjoying meals grown straight from the garden. When we couldn’t source fresh produce from the backyard, we turned to our local farmers’ market. Here’s what we made:

Nut Free Basil Pesto
Overflowing in our tiny kitchen garden was fresh basil. A distinct and refreshing partner in soups and pasta dishes, basil is one of our favorite garden herbs. With a hearty crop on our hands, Our Family Eats inspired us to dirty up our diets with nut free basil pesto.

When Pizza is a Vegetable
Our school lunch menu listed “pizza” as one of the menu items this month. I was jumping for joy (and so were my kids). After the fierce debate about Congress declaring pizza a vegetable, why would I be cheering? Because this pizza was grown from the garden a veggie pizza.

Butter Lettuce (with a Side of Dirt)
There’s nothing more satisfying than picking (and making) a healthy snack straight from the ground butter lettuce with a side of dirt


Watermelon Popsicles
Opening the door to the back garden, a rush of sun burnt air came barreling into the house announcing the arrival of a summer heat wave. There’s no better way to cool rising temperatures than with a homemade frosty treat. Thanks to The Naptime Chef, we had fun chilling out and making watermelon popsicles.

What’s Growing in Your Garden?
What are you growing in your garden this month? Post your pictures on the Food Revolution Facebook page and tag @crunchacolor. You may be featured in our next 52 New Foods Recipe Roundup!

Craving more new recipes to try? Tune into the Crunch a Color™ New Food Challenge each week for more tasty, fun and easy recipes from fellow Food Revolutionaries and get the exclusive recipe roundups each month right here on Jamie’s Food Revolution.

About the author: Jennifer Tyler Lee is a mom of two children and the creator of Crunch a Color™ -- the award-winning nutrition game that makes healthy eating fun. Like most parents, she struggled to get her kids to eat healthy, balanced meals, so she decided to make it into a healthy eating game and she’s giving back to support The Food Revolution. Watch her tell the story of picky eaters and how they turned into healthy eaters playing the game. Jennifer’s passion is making mealtime fun, easy and healthy for busy families. Her tasty recipes, quick tips, and new food adventures are regularly featured at Pottery Barn Kids, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, The Huffington Post,and on her website, www.crunchacolor.com.

show/hide

Share this article