Nebraska Farm to Preschool Toolkit
- Farm to Preschool Fact Sheet: Farm to Preschool – Local Food and Learning in Early Child Care and Education Settings
- What is Farm to Preschool: http://www.farmtopreschool.org/whatisfarmtopreschool.html
- Getting Started With Farm to Preschool: http://bit.ly/1syXKSx
- Getting Started with Farm to Early Childhood Education: http://goo.gl/BHdEjS
- Farm to Early Childhood Programs; A Step-By-Step Guide: http://foodsystems.msu.edu/uploads/files/Farm_to_Early_Childhood_Guide_2015_Feb.pdf
- Grant Funding Available: http://www.fns.usda.gov/farmtoschool/farm-school-grant-program
- Find Farmer’s Markets/Produce Vendors near you (Nebraska Farmer’s Markets/Produce Vendor Search): https://www.nebraska.gov/apps-ag-farmers-market/
- Nebraska Food Cooperative: https://www.nebraskafood.org/
- Where Can I buy Drinks and Food that is Nebraskan (Nebraska Access): http://nebraskaccess.ne.gov/nebraskafoods.asp
- Food and Meat Directory (Nebraska Department of Agriculture): http://www.nda.nebraska.gov/publications/promotion/food_meat_directory.html
- Local Procurement for Family Child Care Providers: http://www.farmtoschool.org/Resources/Preschool%20procurement_home%20fact%20sheet.pdf
- Procuring Local Foods for Child Nutrition Programs: https://cdn.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Buying-Local-Guide_FINAL_August-2015.pdf
- Nebraska Produce Availability:
- Find a Farmers Market or Produce Vendor: https://www.nebraska.gov/apps-ag-farmers-market/
- Seasonal Produce Guide (USDA): https://snaped.fns.usda.gov/nutrition-through-seasons/seasonal-produce
- Seasonal Food Guide in Your Area: http://www.sustainabletable.org/seasonalfoodguide/
- Seasonal Food Guide by State: https://www.seasonalfoodguide.org/
- Agrilicious – All things Local Food and Handmade Goods:http://www.agrilicious.org/home
Turnips
Photo credit: https://snaped.fns.usda.gov/seasonal-produce-guide/beets
Health Benefits
Turnips are often overlooked in the vegetable aisle. However they are nutrient dense, high fiber, and are low calorie. Turnips are a member of cruciferous family related to broccoli, kale, and Brussel sprouts. One medium turnip is only 34 calories, has 4 grams of fiber, 1 gram of protein, and over half of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C. Even the leafy green tops are packed with nutrition. Cooked turnip greens are very popular in southern cooking. They are high minerals and vitamins.
Turnips greens have many health benefits:
- Iron for healthy blood production and helps the body convert food to energy phosphorous
- Magnesium, phosphorus, and vitamin A also promote strong bones
- Vitamin C and Vitamin A promotes healthy skin and hair and helps the immune systems. Vitamin C assists the body in iron absorption
- Vitamin K, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and vitamin A promote bone health
- Folate helps to prevent cancer
- Potassium is good for the nervous system and helps lower blood pressure
How to Purchase and Store
When purchasing turnips, choose the smaller root bulbs will be sweeter and larger will be a stronger spicier flavor. They should be quite firm and avoid bumps and bruises. The greens are sometimes detached and sold separately. The greens should be a healthy green color. Turnips have a long shelf life and are generally available year round.
How to Cook Turnips
Always wash turnips well before preparing them. The white Turnip bulbs can be cooked or eaten raw. When preparing them for raw consumption, slice off the roots and greens. Peel before slicing, or cutting into sticks to eat with dips. Smaller Turnips will have a thinner skin may not need to be peeled.
Turnips can be roasted, sautéed, boiled, baked, steamed, mashing, and pickled. They are also compliment flavor and nutritional value by adding to dishes such as stews, soups, and root vegetable melodies. Roasting turnips is one of the best ways to retain the unique flavors a preserve the maximum nutritional value.
When purchasing beets look for fresh leaves and smooth round hard bulbs. Smaller beets have more flavor. If you are purchasing them with the top greens intact, they should be removed and stored separately as they will continue to extract moisture from the root. When cutting the green tops off leave about an inch of the stalk.
Resources:
https://www.pritikin.com/health-benefits-of-turnips
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/285961.php
https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/vegetable/turnips.html
Produce Pick Spotlight Recipes and Serving Ideas
Roasted Turnips
Turnip Slaw
Turnip Fries
Creamed Turnips
Mashed Turnips
Honey Glazed Turnips
Slow Cooker Turnip Greens
Southern Turnip Greens
Weekly Menus/Sample Menus
Recipe Resources
- USDA What’s Cooking: http://www.whatscooking.fns.usda.gov/search/solr-results
- USDA Harvest Recipes: http://www.whatscooking.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/featuredlinks/HarvestofRecipes.pdf
- USDA Recipes for Healthy Kids Cookbook for Homes: http://www.whatscooking.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/featuredlinks/cookbook-homes.pdf
- USDA CACFP Recipes: https://www.fns.usda.gov/cacfp-recipes
Curriculum
- Grow It, Try It, Like It! Nutrition Educational Tool Kit (Team Nutrition Resource Library):https://pueblo.gpo.gov/TN/TNPubs.php?PubID=15038 Or download available: https://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/grow-it-homes
- National Farm to Preschool Network – Curricula: http://www.farmtopreschool.org/curricula.html
- Safety in the Little Gardener’s Garden: https://learningstore.uwex.edu/Assets/pdfs/A3905-07.pdf
- ASAP Growing Minds a program of Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project: https://growing-minds.org/farm-to-preschool/
- A Guide to using the Creative Curriculum for Preschool to Support Farm-to-ECE Models: http://www.farmtoschool.org/Resources/FarmtoECE_CreativeCurriculumGuide.pdf
Lesson Plans
- Nebraska Department of Agriculture Kids page: http://www.nda.nebraska.gov/kids/index.html
- ABC Fruit and Veggie Fact Cards
- Farm to Table Curriculum & Activity Sheet
- Harvest for Healthy Kids- Free Activity Kits: http://www.harvestforhealthykids.org/?page_id=291
- Farm to Preschool on Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/janamarie76/farm-preschool-theme/
Taste Test Activities
- Farm to Preschool Harvest of the Month Curriculum: (Materials provided by the Center for Food & Justice- UEPI Occidental College Materials modified by permission from the Network for a Healthy California-Merced County Office of Education) http://www.farmtopreschool.org/documents/F2P%20Curriculum.pdf
- Local Foods in CACFP Policy Memo: http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/f2s/CACFP11_2015_Local%20Foods%20in%20CACFP_03%2013%202015.pdf
- USDA – Community Food Systems: http://www.fns.usda.gov/farmtoschool/farm-preschool
- National Farm to School Network – Farm to Preschool Advocacy: http://www.farmtoschool.org/policy
- USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program: Meal Pattern Revisions Related to the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 Final Rule: https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2016/04/25/2016-09412/child-and-adult-care-food-program-meal-pattern-revisions-related-to-the-healthy-hunger-free-kids-act
- National Farm to School Network: http://www.farmtoschool.org/our-work/about-preschool
- Farm to Preschool: Local Food and Learning in Early Child Care and Education Setting: https://www.fns.usda.gov/cfs/farm-to-preschool
- Center for Rural Affairs Farm to School: http://www.cfra.org/f2s
- USDA FSN Community Food Systems: http://www.fns.usda.gov/farmtoschool/farm-school
- Nebraska Agriculture: http://www.nda.nebraska.gov/publications/ne_ag_facts_brochure.pdf
- For more information on the benefits of Farm to School: http://www.farmtoschool.org/Resources/BenefitsFactSheet.pdf
- University of Nebraska Lincoln, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources: UNL Foods: https://food.unl.edu/
- The Dirt: Farm to Preschool e-letter: https://www.fns.usda.gov/cfs/e-letter-archive