Calling all parents, teachers and school dietitians! If you have a hunger to turn the tide on the growing epidemic of childhood obesity and the decline of children's health, this is the class for you.

I'll be show you how to teach nutritional concepts to children of all ages using fun and engaging techniques that include as examples: how to read a food labels and detect "health hype"; how to recognize the foods that are in season; how to play the "picky eater" game; and more. These creative coaching methods, together with a complementary workbook filled with comprehensive lists of internet resources and entertaining activities for your children or students, will empower you to ignite their desire for a healthy relationship with food.

Date: Wednesday, March 25, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Location: Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health
48 West 21st Street in Manhattan.
Fee: $45; Two People: $80
Call (212)-645-5170
Email: info@naturalgourmetschool.com

If you had purchased $1000 of shares in Delta Airlines one year ago, you will have $49.00 today.

If you had purchased $1000 of shares in AIG one year ago, you will have $33.00 today.

But---- if you had purchased $1000 worth of beer one year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the aluminum cans for recycling refund, you will have received $214.00.
Based on the above, the best current investment plan is to drink heavily & recycle.

I'm not a big beer drinker, so this investment plan wouldn't work well for me. Here's a strategy that I like better than the beer. For example, if you purchased just $2 worth of tomato plants, your yield would be over $100 worth of fresh organically grown food that has no carbon footprint. While tending to your tomatoes, you'll also benefit from additional Vitamin D in the form of sunshine, thereby reducing your risk of both cancer and osteoporosis. Saving you costly medical bills.

Want to make an investment that pays higher return than any Wall Street stock? Invest in seeds and grow some food. It's easier than you think. Community gardens are springing up everywhere. Containers like the Earth Box can easily work on a deck. Teich Garden Systems can help you to create a state of the art animal resistant garden for your yard or school.

My friend, Roger Doiran's initiative Eat the View is gaining momentum nationwide. I'm happy to tell you that there is a strong possibility that President Obama and his family will break ground on their garden this summer. A White House garden will inspire millions of Americans to grow some of their own food, similar to the Victory Garden movement of the 40's.

I'm proud to say that our Slow Food Westchester chapter is growing and thriving. My co-leaders, Jan Maltby of Sleepy Hollow and chef Michele Kim of Brewster have worked to bring a variety of events for all ages, locations

Last weekend, Jan organized a sold out bread baking event at Wave Hill Breads This Friday, January 6th, Jan will be holding lunch bunch at Comfort Restaurant. We are combing the county to check out Slow Food friendly restaurants each month.
On March 25th Slow Food Westchester is teaming up with the Westchester Rockland Dietetic Association Sustainable ways to grow land and food, economical and creative ways to enjoy local cuisine @ Peter Pratt's Inn in Yorktown, NY Wherever you live, I hope you'll become a member of Slow Food

I continue to travel near and far to speak about school food. These days with budget cuts along with environmental concerns, school food is even more important than ever. The issue is starting to heat up as legislation for the National School Lunch Program is being set for re-authorization this fall. Will it be business as usual with big agribusiness and junk food companies running the show? Stay tuned!

March 10th, I'll be speaking at the Whitby School on Why School Food and Gardens Really Matter
March 18th, New Caanan Cares is hosting me for series entitiled: How School Food Impacts Your Waistline, Your Wallet and the World

On March 19th, I'll be in Portland Oregon to attend the National Farm to Cafeteria Conference and the NW Real Food Summit.

As a result of an longstanding family joke, my daughter bought me a chia pet for Christmas. I've had fun this winter growing chia sprouts on my kitchen windowsill. It's reminded me that the green of springtime will soon be on it's way.

There are many ways to add chia seeds into your daily diet. You can mix chia seeds into yogurt, sprinkle them on your hot cereal in the morning, add to salads, or even add them to your baking. They don't need to be ground up like flax seeds do.

You can eat your Chia pet sprouts too! Sprouts are a great source of vitamins, minerals, proteins, and enzymes. Their nutritional value was discovered by the Chinese thousands of years ago. Chia seeds are similar to flax seeds, they are both high in Omega 3 fats, a source of good fiber as well as antioxidants.

You don't need a degree in biochemistry to eat healthfully. It comes down to simply this: You can't go wrong eating seeds and leaves!
Seeds: whole grains such as quinoa, brown rice, millet, amaranth. ( Not "whole grain cereals", that's just junk created and boxed up by the food industry!) If your "whole grain" doesn't look like something that can be planted in the ground, then it isn't a seed!
Leaves: green leafy veggies like kale, collards, spinach, chard, even chia pet sprouts!