Food & Your Family – Make it Fresh

I heard the groans from the gallery as soon as you busy parents out there read the words “Make It Fresh” in the headline. Fresh definitely doesn’t give off the aura of fast and easy, which for working parents with a house full of kiddos can be almost untenable.

I think a lot of parents, including myself, retreat at the thought of having to log hours in the kitchen to make sure our kiddos are eating healthy. There are SO many choices out there when it comes to prepared meals that go from the box to the oven to the table and cooking well is not everyone’s skill.

Cooking is not something I ever considered necessary BB (before baby). I love fresh food and a big meal on the weekends was always nice. But, my husband and I both worked full-time, commuted hours to work every day and spent our free time jamming in exercise, house work, projects, time with friends, classes and an occasional lazy day. Cooking wasn’t very high up on the list.

But, once the tiny person made her debut and we discovered her allergies to wheat, dairy and soy, eating fresh became mandatory (reading labels is rather eye opening).

That’s when I learned to love Freshbaby.com. An absolutely family-minded web site run by sisters Cheryl Tallman and Joan Ahers that focuses on getting fresh food on the table at every meal, keeping kids out of the junk food aisle and helping parents collect and put to use all kinds of great information on healthy family eating.

I actually discovered them by mistake, looking for baby food freezer containers (which is how they started out), and wow has it ever been a super find. These gals have a monthly newsletter that highlights a fresh food and offers a stack of ideas on how to use it in easy, daily cooking along with Podcasts (for those parents on the go), tips, personal coaching, whatever you need to get your family eating fresh with ease.

Fresh Baby doesn’t cater to kiddos on special diets. So, we’ve also turned to Savorypalate.com for fantastic gluten-free recipes and flour mixtures that allow us to eat things like pizza, pancakes and bread again.

And, then, I found my food Bible – Nourshing Traditions by Sally Fallon, given to me by a friend who was also our pediatrician. And while I can’t say that it’s a book that promotes fast an easy, I started cooking well for the first time in my life with it.

All of this is made even easier by a community in which fresh food is king. One of the greatest parts of living in the Comox Valley is that I know where our food comes from, who grows it, who catches it, where those pork chops on the table started out.

I’ve honestly never lived any place where making and eating meals every day could be so interactive.

With that in mind, the Comox Valley Farmers Market kicks off for the season on Saturday at the Exhibition Ground on Headquarters Road. The vendors there are more than happy to guide anyone looking to go fresh through the eating and cooking maze.

Ah, the market.

Now I know Spring has arrived in The Valley.

Tags: children, family, food, fresh, Kids, local, Our Big Earth Media Co., tips

Category: EAT LOCAL, Food & Your Family