Innovation

Some patrons of the food pantry are truly overjoyed at gifts of fresh vegetables. However, you may be surprised that sometimes these fresh vegetables are not a welcome addition! It is not that people don't like them or appreciate them. The problem is that they require a lot of time and usually other ingredients to make them work.

Just imagine coming home with a bundle of radishes or basil. These are nearly always a component in larger dishes which require at least a half a dozen other ingredients. Even a simple squash requires cooking oil and at least a little seasoning. People in poverty often don't have the time, energy or other resources needed to make a meal like that. They are busy just trying to survive and often prefer ready-to-eat meals such as cans of soup or stew.

Many thanks to Grace, who volunteers at a couple of local pantries as well as the Catholic Worker, for pointing this out.

One idea is to package up combinations of produce that complement each other.

Salad works well in this regard. Within the bags of lettuce, we are now including items such as a garden fresh radish, green pepper, carrot or cherry tomatoes--whatever is available. We top it off with some single-serve packets of salad dressing. People can simply open the bag and help themselves to a complete salad without needing any other ingredients.



Erin suggested putting simple recipes with a bundle of items. Perhaps tomatoes and basil leaves with a little note showing how they work well on a grilled cheese sandwich or chopped up together in a cold salad with some cheese.

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In other news, we have had some theft at the garden. The real trajedy is that we would have been more than happy to give space for anyone to grow all the fresh vegetables they could ever need. We would also have been happy to give them produce from the community sections of the garden. Unfortunately, the theft occurred in a gardener's private plot.

We are thinking of ways to address this in the future. Perhaps we could put up signs inviting people to pick, but in certain areas only.

Theft is probably part of the reality of a community garden, but it is still sad. So far we have been blessed that the garden has been virtually untouched by theft or vandalism all year. All we can do is have faith that the people who took it must have really needed it, perhaps a young kid wanting to provide for his ailing grandmother.

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On the brighter side, the jalapeño and chile pepper plants are starting to produce in abundance. We'll be handing them out to our Latino friends at our ESL class tonight!

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In still other news, let me direct you to a picture of the beautiful okra flower: