Crunch time

I received the invitation via Facebook this year.

Hear the Maryland Crunch is a state-wide synchronized apple crunch event that aims to reduce childhood hunger by expanding access to school breakfast. Hear the Maryland Crunch is held on Maryland Day, Wednesday, March 25, because every child in Maryland should have access to a healthy breakfast every day!

To participate in Hear the Maryland Crunch --
1) Grab an apple and take a bite!
2) Take a photo or video of your best crunch face and share it with your friends. Enter the best photo in the #HearTheCrunch photo contest!
3) Tell your state legislators (find yours at mdelect.net) to support increased access to school breakfast:
Dear Legislator,
Will you Hear the Maryland Crunch? I will crunch an apple on March 25 to spread the message that every child should have access to a healthy breakfast every day. Please support full funding for Maryland Meals for Achievement. Please vote for the Hunger-Free Schools Act of 2015 (SB334/HB965) to allow more schools to elect Community Eligibility.

Are you in?

I responded that I'll participate.  Will you join me?

Be well,

Technicolor girl

image created by Ink+ LLC

A Belated Celebration of the Senses

Celebration of the Senses Day was June 24th. This is a day to fully exercise all five of your senses: smell, taste, touch, sight and hearing. I invite you to ponder  with me about the five senses from a Technicolor dining perspective.

All five senses are engaged in a dining experience (for those with  an impaired sense the remaining senses become enhanced/ more nuanced). Whether it's how the dish is plated,  the flatware used, the aroma of the dish, or noise level of the room, we are affected and we have a preference about which sense draws us or repels us.


Smell
I recently attended Woodford Reserve's Bourbon Academy. During the training we learned that personnel undergo sensory testing to determine how nuanced their sense of smell and taste is. The class was brought ten  jars of items to smell and determine what the scent is. The instructor told us that the sense of smell can be developed and that women tend to have a more nuanced sense of smell.  


Taste

The tongue's receptors tell us whether something in the mouth is hot, cold, bitter/sour, sweet or salty. What you prefer to taste is often  a matter of familiarity and preference.  I like tea because teas can be sweet, savory or bitter, prepared hot or cold,  and with the addition of sweetener, lemon, or other ingredients become more pronounced.


Touch
I've received quite a bit of commentary about my  dislike of okra. The primary reason I don't care for okra is how it feels (touch) on my tongue. In contrast, I like when spirits (e.g. bourbon, scotch, brandy) touch my tongue because the liquid seems to touch my tongue and slowly move to the back of my throat.





Sight
I clearly remember sending my pal BB a text with a picture of dish I was eating. Moments later BB replied that the dish was unappealing to her because it was monochromatic. BB also reminded me that the setting is also a factor - whether it's the plastic table cloth on a picnic table, the favorite tablecloth used for celebrations, or the 'special glasses' used when company visits it's the visual appeal the draws us.





Hearing
When I think of hearing I think of popcorn, the crunch of an apple and the crunch of fresh tortilla chips. As a child I loved Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory read to me  because I imagined Charlie eating the chocolate  bar with his grandparents, savoring each square.





Consider this: one of delights of summer is grilling, which can appeal to all five senses.

What's your primary sense?
What's your secondary sense?


May you have a day that celebrates all your senses!

Be  well,

Technicolor girl

Hear the Crunch!

I am grateful for the opportunity to experience aspects of dining and culinary arts. I am also very aware that not everyone has the opportunity. Today I want to talk about hunger.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (U.N. 1948), Article 25, states, “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food..."

I live in Maryland. Maryland is one of the wealthiest states in the United States and yet one in eight Marylanders struggle to put food on the table each day. I am concerned about all who don't have access to the food they need, but especially children. A hungry school aged child is less likely to be able concentrate on tasks and is more likely to be tardy or absent from school.


Michael J. Wilson, MDHS Executive Director

Today,  Maryland Hunger Solutions (MDHS)  hosts "Hear the Crunch", an educational and fun event informing the public about the impact of hunger on school aged chilren. I asked MDHS Executive Director, Michael J. Wilson, to tell me a little more about  "Hear the Crunch".

"Maryland may be the wealthiest state in the nation, but hunger runs deep. It affects old and young alike, but it can be solved by connecting all who are eligible to the federal nutrition programs. If we start with breakfast,we know that about 56% of student who qualify for free and reduced lunch are actually getting breakfast in school. How do we get that to 100% where it should be? What if we create something to celebrate breakfast, to focus on the importance of breakfast? Not just breakfast, but on the health and the nutrition and importance of breakfast?

We are not the first state to do an apple crunch; D.C. has done it, New York City did what it called "The Big Apple Crunch", and there was even  a school in Prince George's County that did it once. But our goal was to have kids crunching an apple from the Allegheny Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean, from the D.C.suburbs to Baltimore. People have really rallied to it; apples will be served on the menu in hundreds if schools. Not only that, but apples will be served in Head Start centers in Howard County and senior centers throughout Baltimore. Offices in Montgomery County, food banks, and dozens of organization have pledged to take photos biting an apple, in solidarity with their neighbors from across the state.

 

Focusing on health and nutrition should start with breakfast and in Maryland, #HearTheCrunch is the beginning part of the continuing conversation of the addressing hunger in our state."

The event concludes with  thousands of Marylanders state wide taking a bite into a crunchy apple to help fight childhood hunger. I will take a bite into an apple later this morning and I have opted to participate in the "Hear the Crunch!" Paper Apple activity.

Why do I care you ask? I care because I have been unemployed, looking for work and have gone to bed hungry. I have tried to purchase a week's worth of  groceries with less than $5. Access to food is a human right.

If you live in Maryland I hope you will consider participating in the "Hear the Crunch" event and. If  you live outside of Maryland, consider taking a bite of your favorite variety of apple anyway.

No child should be hungry.
#HearTheCrunch!