This weekend I will be conducting cooking demonstrations at the Rogers Park Community Wellness Fair. I will be demonstrating how to do three different recipes and providing samples to participants.

Please stop by, the fair will also feature Yoga and meditation, pediatric safety sessions, oral health session, physical wellness sessions, and alternative medicine sessions.

The fair is located at the new Heartland Health Center in Rogers Park located at 2200 W. Touhy from 10 am to 12 pm.

The fair is sponsored by Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine's chapter of the American Medical Association and the Department of Family Medicine

Experimental Station

Market Manager Position

The Experimental Station is a non-profit (501-c-3) located on 61^st Street in the Woodlawn neighborhood of Chicago. The mission of the Experimental Station is to foster innovative artistic, cultural, educational, and environmental projects and small enterprises. In response to a need in the Woodlawn community for sources of fresh produce and healthy foods, the Experimental Station is creating, as one of its own programs, a weekend farmers market to serve the local communities.

The Experimental Station is looking for a dynamic individual who can develop and manage our proposed 61^st Street Farmers Market. The Market Manager will be responsible for ensuring the development and management of a successful market. This will include recruiting farmers, ensuring product mix, developing market programming, managing volunteers, enforcing standards, overseeing advertising, administering and fundraising. The Market Manager will report to the Experimental Station Board of Directors and be supported by a Market Steering Committee.

Qualifications:

• Management experience
• Sales/marketing experience
• Knowledge of organic food standards
• Strong communication skills
• Strong organizational skills
• Strong writing skills preferred

The position is full-time, beginning immediately. Salary will be commensurate with qualifications.

If you feel that you are qualified for this position, please forward a resume and cover letter to: conniespreen@experimentalstation.org, or Connie Spreen, Treasurer/Vice-President, Experimental Station, 6100 S. Blackstone Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637.

For most people, spring means planting gardens and enjoying warmer weather, but for our nutrition programs it is the start of our cooking schools. Throughout the spring and summer, we will be offering programs on how to cook healthy for your family. Learn the basics of cooking, how to prepare foods with more fruits and vegetables, and how to prepare economical meals your kids will love.

This year we have classes at:

Casa Central

1343 N California.

Monday and Wednesday

6:00 pm to 7:30 pm

Now through May 7

(Registration closed)

Family Focus

4151 W. Armitage

June (TBA)

Contact Carmen for more information (773) 276-0940

WIC Food Centers

• 3110 W. Armitage

July 7-11

9:00 am to 1:00 pm

• 4622 W. Diversey

August 4-8

9:00 am to 1:00 pm

• 1643 W. Cermak

August 11-15

9:00 am to 1:00 pm

• 5332 S. Western

August 18-22

9:00 am to 1:00 pm

Registration is limited to families enrolled in WIC

To register call (312) 455-8782

To find out more about how you can bring a cooking class to your agency or how to become more involved please contact me at (312) 698-7080

Growing up, I rarely ate beans. Now that I cook for my own family, I found that beans are really good and can be used as part of a quick meal. Not only do beans have a lot of good nutrition by being good sources of fiber, protein, and B vitamins like folate, they are also low in fat.

Most beans can be found dry or canned. If you are using the dried version and are not familiar with how to cook them, you can follow this fact sheet on Cooking Dry Beans.

I encourage you to add more beans to your meals. The Dietary Guidelines recommend eating 3 cups of beans each week.

Here is one of my favorite recipes. It is perfect as a side dish or a snack.

Bean Salad

(makes 8 servings)

1 can (15 oz.) black beans or 2 cups cooked dried beans

1 can (15 oz.) kidney beans or 2 cups cooked dried beans

1/2 cup onions, chopped

1 cup corn (drained canned)

1/2 cup zesty Italian dressing – low fat

1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 cup celery, chopped

Directions:

1. Drain and rinse beans (you can substitute bean types).

2. Mix all ingredients together and chill.

3. Add other combinations like mandarin oranges and broccoli florets.

Nutrition Facts (per serving): calories 140 ~ calories from fat 15 ~ total fat 2g ~ cholesterol 0mg ~sodium 470mg ~ carbohydrates 23g ~ protein 7g ~ fiber 7g

In the nutrition world and often on this blog, there is talk about eating local, low fat, organic healthy foods. While I still think that is a good goal to strive for, after an evening with my 18 month old who cried, pouted, begged, and screamed almost the entire night, I say to all other moms out there - if you served anything that resembled a meal with the five food groups, you are doing OK in this nutritionist's world.

Often times as moms we feel guilty for not doing more for our children. So, on those days that are challenging, I encourage you to be proud of what you did right. Therefore, tonight I am proud that in between tantrums I was able to reheat the Pennsylvania BBQ, put it on a bun (it was a wheat bun), heat canned peas, serve the drained mixed fruit, and pour a glass of milk to serve a homemade meal that had all five food groups.

This post is to all moms who are trying to do the best they can. Keep up the good work.