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Food – The Energy of Life
Discover New Fruits and Vegetables
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Did you know that chocolate grows on trees? Coffee beans are cherries. Banana flowers are edible.
It’s time for you and your family to discover what common fruits and vegetables look like and even taste something new.
Stimulate All Your Senses
• Feel the texture of plant leaves and the texture of soil
• See the explosion of nature’s colors, tones, and shades
• Stop and sniff some plants – how do they smell?
• Have a little taste of usual edible plants like Pandan or fresh coconut
• See the whole plants -roots, stems, leaves, flowers, seeds
• Locate how these plants are used for food
• Learn how different cultures use these plants
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Quinoa ‘n Squash Stuffed Tomatoes
A nutritional powerhouse with a delightful nutty flavor
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About the Recipe: This vegetable inspired dish is packed full of protein. Bursting with vitamins and iron, it was used in the everyday diet of the ancient Incas. The juicy sweet tomatoes are filled with flavor and can be baked quickly in the oven. We like to serve them as an easy-to-make vegetarian supper or side dish. It’s so delicious!
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Chocolate Spice Rubbed Flat Iron Steak
Served with pineapple compote and red wine butter sauce
About the Recipe: Did you ever taste steak that was flavored with rich dark chocolate? This recipe combines fragrant mocha coffee, chocolate, and spirited spices. Topping it off with a rich red wine butter sauce takes it way over the top, especially when it is served with peppered pineapple compote. This simple recipe tastes amazing!
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Banana Dusted Chocolate Cheesecake Mousse
An impressive dessert with Cheesecake Mousse
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About the Recipe: It’s hard to believe that this dessert is made with naturally sweet ingredients. Banana chips and dates are used as flavor sweeteners, and an avocado provides the smooth, silky texture. Prepare in a medium pudding bowl or serve in stemmed dessert glasses. Naturally elegant and delicious.
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Golden Squash Chopped Caponata Salad
Italian Caponata is updated into a chopped salad with squash
About the Recipe: Italian Caponata is a cooked vegetable salad seasoned with a sweet vinegar sauce usually featuring eggplant. This updated new recipe uses cooked golden squash with tomatoes and red onions with crisp chopped lettuce. A light white chocolate flavored orange vinaigrette is drizzled over the warm salad. It’s a wonderful dish to serve for lunch or a quick snack.
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Lincoln Park Conservatory “Edible Fruit Tour”
Lincoln Park Conservatory, located in Chicago’s Lincoln Park, features seasonal displays for spring, summer, and the winter holiday. The Conservatory was constructed between 1890 and 1895 and is divided into four sections, which feature palms, ferns, orchids, and many edible plants. Fruits, flowers, seeds, and growing plants are featured from all around the globe. There is also a beautiful area where one can sit and enjoy the natural surroundings. If you come to Chicago, make sure to plan a visit to the Conservatory. The admission is free, and it’s located close to the Lincoln Park Zoo.
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Entrance to the Lincoln Park Conservatory in Chicago’s Lincoln Park
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Volunteer Tour Guide – Susan Salpeter – for the “Edible Plants Tour” at the conservatory on Dec. 7th 2019.
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Chimichurri Caramelized Onion Soup
Herbal and refreshing with a little kick of South American heat
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About the Recipe: The secret of a delicious onion soup is preparing the caramelized onions that are so soft and almost melting away. Season it with some chimichurri dry seasoning, adding roasted red peppers and lots of fresh spinach. A meltaway raisin bread crouton tops the hearty soup, filled with rich flavors.
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Smoky Baba Ghannouj Platter
White chocolate adds a new level of smoothness
About the Recipe: This classic Middle Eastern eggplant puree develops a smooth silky texture with light touches of sweetness as it combines with the flavors of roasted garlic, lemon, cumin and smoked paprika. Serving it with fresh vegetables, broiled artichoke hearts, and some crunchy pita chips makes it an elegant appetizer or snack.
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Baked Caribbean Chicken Meatballs with Spicy-Sweet BBQ Sauce
Double chocolate makes the smooth difference
About the Recipe: Spicy sweet chicken meatballs use an easy oven baking method and are packed with Caribbean flavor. Team these with some rich BBQ sauce and slices of toasted thick bread or hand breads to make some seriously delicious, barbecued chicken meatball sandwiches.
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It’s Teatime – Make a Special Cup Using Flowering Tea Blossoms
Reduce Your Stress with a Flower
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You’ll be amazed at the taste, aroma and beauty that unfolds before your very eyes. Flowering tea brings together elegance and art to loose green tea. Artisans take freshly picked green tea leaves from higher elevation gardens and hand sew them with edible flowers to come up with exclusive flavors and exotic designs. When steeped in hot water, these leaves slowly blossom into a bouquet of breathtaking flowers and exquisite flavors.
Serve them in your favorite tea pot and elegant teacups. Enjoy the beauty of blossoming flowers.
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Mini White Chocolate Almond Scones
Little treats are perfect as a quick snack or at teatime
About the Recipe: These little treats are the perfect size to serve at teatime or a quick coffee break. They have a uniform appearance and are easy to make. The scones are packed with rich almond flavor both inside and out, and a perfect companion for that cup of coffee or tea. We like the light lemon glaze, which adds a touch of sweetness along with the crunch of sliced toasted almonds.
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Instant Pot Braised Eastern Mediterranean Romanesco
Serve as a vegetable main dish or side dish
About the Recipe: Romanesco tastes a little nuttier or earthier than its family cousin cauliflower. It is easy to prepare this recipe using an Instant Pot and then serve in wedges. Cocoa nibs enhance the rich flavor of the sauce. This recipe highlights the Eastern Mediterranean flavors and makes a tasty vegetarian dinner dish.
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Spicy Crisp Salmon with Pickled Red Onion Salad
Add a seaweed look-alike herb sauce that’s great for biscuit dipping
About the Recipe: The bright spiced salmon is served on a warm herb sauce that looks almost like seaweed. It’s surrounded by a crisp lightly pickled onion salad and dotted with sweet fresh orange segments. Plump golden raisins and a light sprinkle of cocoa nibs add a surprising sweet taste to the salad. The salmon dish has a wonderful blend of savory, spicy, and sweet seasonings and textures.
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Cornmeal Spaetzles with Roasted Tomatoes and Crinkled Cut Carrots
Add Central American crunch with roasted tomatoes and carrots
About the Recipe: Spaetzles are usually found in European cuisines, made into irregular dumpling shapes from simple eggs, flour, and salt. Some are enriched with various grated cheese or spinach. This recipe adds a South/Central American cocoa back flavor with a touch of cornmeal and chili flavor. The dumplings are tossed with juicy roasted tomatoes and fresh tender roasted carrots. It’s a refreshing update on a delicious classic dish.
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Asian Roasted Delicata Squash
Stuffed with Shiitake Mushrooms and Onions
About the Recipe: Delicata is an heirloom squash that has a pale-yellow peel with green strips. One of the best things about it is that you can eat the outer peel as well as the soft orange flesh inside, which is slightly sweet. We love to fill the roasted squash with Asian mushrooms and onions. Top with dots of grated radishes and a few cilantro leaves.
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Elegant Pavlova with Hibiscus Glazed Berries
Save this dessert for that extra special celebration
About the Recipe: We enjoyed this dessert when we visited Australia. It is very elegant and delicious. It has lots of sugar and requires about two preparation days, one for baking/resting and another for adding the filling and fruit. The dessert has a crisp outside meringue, is chewy inside, filled with billowy whipped cream, and studded with fresh berries. It has everything in one dessert. Just seeing it makes you want to celebrate!
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