Greetings! We hope everyone will come out to our next tempting Pathfinder Produce market this Thursday, April 19, at the Pathfinder Village Commons, from 1 to 5 p.m. With great selections, great tastes, and the convenience of a hometown market, we’re ROOTED IN COMMUNITY!
Just a reminder, our online ordering system is up and running each week, offering a convenient service for our Pathfinder Produce patrons. The online ordering, which is fulfilled by members of our Adult Day Services, is open the Friday through Wednesday (noon) before the market on Thursday. We have two order drop-off locations, at Pathfinder Village Commons in Edmeston (1-5 p.m.), and at the UMC in Morris (3-6 p.m.). Go to pathfindervillage.org/our-village/pathfinder-produce to try our online ordering.
We’re just one month away from our fifth annual Splash Path, and are planning a fun and colorful day here at the Village on Saturday, May 19. Our signature paint run/walk is raising funds for a new Mobile Market for Pathfinder Produce; this initiative will help our market extend its reach into the communities we serve. It’s really easy to sign up for Splash Path … just go to splashpath.racewire.com to register online. More information on this vibrant and fun family event is at our website at pathfindervillage.org/get-involved/splash-path or at the Pathfinder Village Facebook page.
Speaking of extending our reach to support people in eating healthier foods … in this week’s blog, my colleague Martha Spiegel considers ways to encourage little people to eat a wider variety of fresh and healthy foods so they have a great start in life.
***
I saw a story on the news last night about why many children are reluctant to eat green vegetables. Apparently, there is a lack of single-ingredient baby foods on the market and hardly any that contain green vegetables. According to an article in Science Daily, out of 548 infant and toddler foods on the market, only 52 are single-vegetable, and none of them were dark green vegetables or beans/peas. In multiple-ingredient baby foods containing vegetables, most listed fruit as the first ingredient, followed by those which listed carrots or sweet potatoes first. Only 1.1 percent had dark green vegetables listed as the first and main ingredient.
I had noticed a trend toward mixing fruit with vegetables in my grandchildren’s baby food, but I didn’t realize how lacking single-ingredient foods were. When my own children were babies, nearly all of the baby food was single-ingredient until they started on “toddler foods” (typically mixed vegetables and sometimes meat in small, soft chunks). Peas and green beans were widely available.
I surmise that the intention in mixing fruits and vegetables is to get the little ones to eat foods with the nutrients of veggies masked with the taste of fruit. According to the Science Daily article, infants are predisposed to prefer sweetness, and so must learn through repeated experiences to accept dark green vegetables, which can be less-sweet. So if the veggies taste like fruit, the baby will be more inclined to eat it. The problem with this is that it can hinder the transition to table food, resulting in fussy eaters.
So what can be done? One obvious solution is to make your own baby food. Vegetables can be steamed until soft, and then run through a blender or a food mill and strained until it is smooth (and thin) enough. Wholesome Baby Food and Web MD provide tips for making baby food. Then the homemade items can be used in place of or in addition to commercial baby foods. Some vegetables don’t puree well enough for infants just starting on baby food (such as broccoli or spinach), but these can be introduced later when the little one is ready for more texture. Check out the selections at Pathfinder Produce, and give them a try!
Another thing to remember is that babies often reject new tastes at first. Try feeding the same vegetable for 3-4 days in a row; if the baby still spits out more than he or she swallows, wait a few months and try it again. It might become more acceptable once a greater variety of flavors have been experienced. Feeding babies a wide variety of tastes, including dark green vegetables, could make transitioning to table food smoother for both parent and child.
Until next time, savor the flavors with your little ones,
Martha (and Lori)
