Having a connection with our food has become a top priority for our families. We want to have a connection with our food and know more about what we are putting on our dinner tables. So many children today think that their food comes from the grocery stores. That’s a mentality that we can easily change in our own families, by educating ourselves and then educating our children by making them a part of the process. Take a look at these 7 ways that you can engage your family in the conversation and education about our food to create that connection.

1. Read the Label
Get familiar with the labels on your packaged food. Look beyond the calories and the fat grams on the nutrition label. Take a look at the ingredients listed on the package and become familiar with what is in your food. If you don’t know what an ingredient is, look it up on the Internet and become familiar with it. The more familiar you and your family are with the ingredients and what they are on the package, the better decisions you will make as a family for your table.

2. In the Kitchen
Cook together as a family. Find a great recipe that everyone would enjoy and prepare the recipe together. When everyone plays a part in the meal, there is appreciation and sense of pride with the result.

3. Grow Your Own Food
If you don’t have an area for a garden or do not have time to work a garden, grow one vegetable or some herbs in pots on your patio. You don’t have to grow everything you use in your kitchen. Start small. You’ll gain more of an appreciation for the process of growing food by just trying a couple of small things you can use in your kitchen.

4. Find a Farmer’s Market
Locate the closest farmer’s market to your community, then venture out to see what it has to offer. Compare the types and freshness of produce you find to what you find in the grocery store. Don’t be afraid to ask the farmers questions about their farming practices and how they grow their produce. Having the conversation with the farmer can give you peace of mind about where the food you purchase came from.

5. Visit a Local Farm
Many farmers give tours of their farms if you just ask. Find a farmer closest to you or find one at a farmer’s market that you can contact. Having a visual of what a farmer does to produce the food on your table gives a bigger perspective to the food you eat. It also helps connect the dots from farm to table.

6. At the Grocery Store
When grocery shopping, make your family a part of it by having them help look for items on the grocery list. Kids love to go on a hunt to see if they can find certain things. Making it a game can be fun. Later, when you show them what the ingredients they found at the store are used for in the kitchen, they are able to make a connection with their food and understand what goes into the preparation of it.

7. In a Restaurant
When you are eating in a restaurant, don’t be afraid to ask the waiter about where they get their food. If you are ordering fish, ask if it is wild fish or farm-raised fish. Ask if they get their produce locally from a farmer, farmer’s market or through a food distributor. It never hurts to ask the waiter about this information! Farm to table restaurants are popping up all over the place that make this type of information available to the consumer. Try one out sometime and learn about the farms they get their ingredients from when you dine at one.

About the Author:
Working with her grandfather not only taught Rebecca Crownover about the hard work behind farming, but also taught her about overcoming obstacles in life. Tragedy struck her family in 2009 when her husband, a native Texan and farmer, passed away in an ATV accident. His passing inspired Rebecca’s award-winning children’s book, My Daddy Is In Heaven With Jesus. Rebecca founded Texas Farm Girl, a brand that helps ignite a passion for agriculture in farming’s next generation, while teaching life lessons that she herself learned growing up on her PawPaw’s farm. Rebecca remains a business partner at Lone Star Family Farms with her in-laws to carry on her husband’s legacy and to continue her contribution to the farming business, an industry that has always been an important part of her life. Be sure to check out Rebecca’s web site.

The post 7 Tips to Connect Your Family to Their Food first appeared on The How Do Gardener.

Everyone has a favorite recipe they look forward to enjoying at family gatherings. The smell and taste of a special dish can evoke memories from the past or create new ones  for younger generations. To preserve your family’s special recipes and traditions for generations to come, consider these easy and fun ideas:

Create a Family Cookbook
A cookbook full of special family recipes is a wonderful keepsake, and creating your own has never been easier, with a variety of affordable printing and scrapbooking tools available. Ask each family member to share a favorite recipe for inclusion. Make the book more personal by having each person write a memory that is tied to the recipe or include favorite family photos. You can also capture step-by-step photos of the recipe preparation and finished product, so the next time that you or a distant relative cook the dish, the recipe will yield the perfect result.

Declare Official “Just for the Holidays” Recipes
Make your grandmother’s famous apple pie the official dessert for Thanksgiving, or cook your dad’s special banana pancakes every Christmas Eve morning. Tying recipes to a specific holiday helps build traditions and excitement so family members can look forward to enjoying their favorite dishes.

Host a Family Cooking Party
What better way to preserve family meals than to plan a family cooking party? Gather the entire family and work together to prepare several special dishes. Assign each family member a role to ensure that everyone is involved. Not only will you be working together, but everyone will learn to prepare the recipe themselves.

Make Inherited Recipes Your Own
Adding your own twist to a family favorite can keep recipes alive for future generations. Modernizing a passed-down dish can also make it more accessible and convenient. Try updating your grandfather’s legendary strudel with apple butter you can buy at the store instead of homemade or grill something that is traditionally prepared in the oven.

There’s truly something exceptional about celebrating a cherished family recipe. This fall, the makers of Smucker’s(R) jams, jellies, preserves and fruit butters invite families to share special recipes and stories in the fourth annual Spreading Smucker’s Traditions Recipe and Essay Contest, for the chance to win $20,000 toward a dream family reunion.

From Sept. 14 to Nov.16, you can share an original family recipe on www.Smuckers.com. Your recipe must incorporate at least 1/4 cup of Smucker’s jam, jelly, preserves or fruit butter and should be submitted along with an original essay of 200 words or less about how the recipe is part of family traditions and how it makes your family celebrations special.  

Contest open to legal residents of the 50 United States and D.C., 18 years and older. Complete Official Rules available on www.smuckers.com. Void where prohibited.

Last year’s winning recipe has been passed down for three generations, and is a family favorite at Easter gatherings:

Slow Cooker Marmalade Pork Tenderloin
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours
Makes: 6-8 servings

Ingredients:
3 pounds boneless pork tenderloin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Crisco(R) Pure Olive Oil  
1 large onion, sliced
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce
1 (12 oz.) jar Smucker’s(R) Sweet Orange Marmalade
2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 cloves garlic, minced

Directions:
1. Season the roast with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the roast on all sides. Transfer meat to slow cooker, add sliced onion, cover and cook on high about three to four hours.

2. Heat teriyaki sauce, marmalade, ginger, brown sugar and garlic in a small sauce pan on medium until sauce simmers. Cook until smooth and bubbly, stirring constantly.  

3. Remove meat from slow cooker, let rest for 10 minutes; slice and arrange on serving platter.  Drizzle roast slices with 3/4 cup of sauce, garnish with cooked onion slices and serve with remaining sauce.

The post Creative Ways to Preserve Family Recipes and Traditions first appeared on The How Do Gardener.

But often, the photos you snap (especially photos of little ones and large groups) don’t make the cut, aren’t “holiday card worthy” and last less than five seconds before being deleted. Since most families don’t have a resident professional photographer, here are some useful tips to help any member of the family take wonderful pictures that will be shared and saved for generations to come:

* Don’t be scared to be the paparazzi. Keep your camera handy at all times and snap lots of photos. When your camera is always handy and you take lots of pictures, you’ll greatly improve your chances of getting the pictures you’ll love.

* Lights, camera, action. If you’re taking photos outdoors, do it either early in the morning or late in the afternoon. The light tends to be richer at these times and you won’t get squinted eyes and shadows from the overhead sun. If you’re shooting indoors, see which time of day the room lights up the most and choose that time for the photo shoot.

* Make sure the group is happy, comfortable and fed. If you have little ones in your group, it is especially important to make sure they are rested and fed before attempting a photo shoot. Make a conscious effort to schedule family photos earlier in the day or later in the afternoon to avoid mid-day meltdowns.

* Give babies a comfortable place to lounge. Newborns can be placed in a comfortable (and photo-friendly) place like the Boppy Newborn Lounger. This pillow has a recessed interior so baby can snuggle comfortably in it while you snap away. Cover it with a white sheet for a neutral background.

* If you are shooting wiggly kids, try placing them in a wagon or basket to contain them in one spot and give them a new perspective.

* Be aware of the background. It’s easy to focus on a great smile while forgetting about what might be in the background of a picture. Make sure backgrounds are simple and don’t distract from the main attraction – the people.

* Set the sports or child mode. If you have a large group and/or children in your group, try using the sports or child mode on your camera instead of the auto setting. These modes are designed to capture clear shots of fast moving subjects and increase your odds of getting a photo where everyone is smiling and has their eyes open.

* When shooting little ones, get close and stay low. When taking photos of children, zoom in on their faces and make their faces fill your entire view finder. Also, it’s important to get down on your knees and shoot pictures of kids from their eye level, so you see facial expressions instead of the tops of their heads.

* Enlist the help of a friend. Ask a friend to take photos of your family for you so you don’t have to rely on the camera’s timer. This will help to ensure the photos aren’t too posed since your friend can engage you and your family, tell a few jokes and make funny faces to help you capture more natural photos.

Great photos capture wonderful memories. A little preparation can ensure that you will be able to share amazing photos of those you love. So, don’t be afraid to act like the paparazzi, get creative and try out new ideas.

The post Tips for Taking Great Family Photos first appeared on The How Do Gardener.