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Several months ago I wrote here about my trip to the White House to learn about Michelle Obama’s initiative to improve the food served in American public schools. Since June I have been busy trying to do my small part.

Here’s an update:

· I adopted Central School in South Berwick — a K-3 elementary school.

· We have found a hoop house (a type of primitive greenhouse with thick sheets of plastic) and it should be delivered and installed by the end of October.

· Next step will be to build a series of raised beds and paths so that maneuvering through the hoop house is easy for little kids.

· In the next few weeks the kids will begin to grow seeds in their classrooms with grow lights and southern exposure sunlight to get a head start on the growing season.

· Late this fall or very early next spring we will plant the first garden. We will focus on hardy plants like root vegetables, kale, chard, spinach, and greens and hope the winter goes quickly and is not too brutally cold.

· The kids have a contest going to name the Hoop House and the Outdoor Garden Classroom. Ideas have been pouring into the little box outside the principal’s office. A small group of teachers and I will choose the three “best” ideas and then, at an all-school assembly, the kids will vote on their favorite name.

· The most important things I’ve learned in these past few months is that if you present a good idea to a community, chances are they will rise to the challenge. The number of parents, teachers, farmers, landscape architects, school board members, friends, and family who have stepped up and offered help of all kinds — physical, financial, emotional — has been astounding.

In the meantime I’ve started doing cooking classes with the kids. It was tough trying to decide what to start with, but I knew it had to be something sweet, something healthy, and something the kids would embrace.

Last week I spent the school day with a first-, second-, and third-grade class making smoothies. Everyone told me to go slow and remember how young the kids are, but I figured “why not just dive right in?” I brought in about a dozen types of fruit — everything from apples, pears, melon, berries, and bananas to more exotic varieties like kiwi, pomegranates, and fresh figs. We talked about local fruit versus fruit grown far away, and raised awareness about the types of fruit grown around Maine and what varieties would never make it here in our climate. I learned that “SpongeBob” lives inside a pineapple (hey, I didn’t know) and that Fig Newtons aren’t nearly as popular as they used to be. I learned that pomegranates are “super cool,” and fresh figs are “really weird.”

Before we broke up into small groups I told the kids they could use any of the fruit on the table they wanted to make their smoothies and then mix it with any, or all, of the liquids — milk, apple cider, low-fat yogurt, and coconut water.

“But wait!” I told the kids. “There are two things missing from this table. What do you think they could be?” They looked at the gorgeous, colorful array of fruit and juices and scratched their small, curious heads. “There’s no sugar here. And no maple syrup. And no honey? No sweeteners of any kind. What do you think is going on with that?” I asked them.

“Sugar makes us super hyped up,” one little girl with braids screamed out.

“Sugar is, um, bad for us?” asked a boy with curly brown hair, not quite sure he believed his own answer. “Maybe cause we shouldn’t eat so much sugar?”

And then one very wise little girl raised her hand. “I think I know why,” she said, looking very serious. “Is it because the fruit is already sweet?”

BINGO! The girl smiled like she had just won a free shopping spree at a toy store. “That’s exactly right,” I told them, which made the girl smile even broader. And then we had a little chat about natural sugars and how they are found inside fresh fruit. We talked about how the next time they have a “craving” for sugar they might want to think about grapes or apples or honeydew melon instead of candy. They looked skeptical (come on, remember what it was like to be seven?) but they stuck with me.

“The other thing missing from this table is a recipe,” I told them. “Oh yea, “ they all mumbled. “How do we know what to do?” This was one of those “A-ha!” moments that teachers must live for. “Well if we don’t have a recipe then I guess you guys are going to have to make one up.” This idea elicited high-fives and “yeas.”

So while the energy was flowing and the mood was high, we set to work. We broke the class up into small groups — each group working with an adult volunteer and a blender — and the kids created their own recipes. An adult recorded the amount of fruit and liquid that went into the blender and then the kids — even the very small first-graders — sat and wrote out their own recipes. They learned about fractions and tablespoons, and learned that the word “pomegranate” takes a really long time to write. They learned that when you add blackberries to a blender it turns the mixture to a gorgeous purple. They learned that creating a recipe — getting just the right texture (not to thick and not too thin) isn’t that easy. They learned that recipes and good cooking is an experiment — you just keep trying until you get it right.

They argued a bit about what to call their smoothies. Some groups took the first few letters of each kid’s name to find a title (“Kyserrebzac Smoothie” for Kyle, Serafina, Rebecca, and Zachary) while others found inspiration in the color of their smoothie mixed with their favorite after-school activities (“Purple Monkey’s Skateboard”). We went around the room and each group introduced their recipe (even the first-graders, with a little help, managed to read the recipe out loud, fractions and all) and then we tasted. The general consensus: “yummy!” This makes me happy.” “I’m taking very little sips to make it last a long, long time.”

The best feedback? “I’m going to show my Mom my recipe and ask her if we can make this for my snack tomorrow.”

Banana Cider Smoothie

From a first-grade class.

½ cup peeled, chopped apples

¼ cup peeled, chopped pears

¼ cup hulled strawberries

3 blackberries ½ cup banana pieces

2 tablespoons plain yogurt

2 to 4 tablespoons apple cider

Place all the ingredients in the container of a blender or food processor and blend. Serves 2 to 4.

Super Cool Smoothie

From a third-grade class.

1 tablespoon peeled, chopped apple

1/3 cup hulled strawberries

5 blackberries

1 tablespoon peeled sliced kiwi

¼ cup fresh peeled, chopped pineapple

¼ cup honeydew melon, peeled and chopped

2/3 cup apple cider

1/3 cup low-fat plain yogurt

1 tablespoon pomegranate juice

Place all the ingredients in the container of a blender or food processor and blend. Serves 2 to 4.

If you're interested in helping support the Hoop House and Outdoor Classroom at Central School, you can make a tax-deductible donation to Central School PTO, c/o Vicky Stewart, Central School, Main Street, South Berwick, ME 03908.

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