Holiday Greetings !!!!
… from all of us at Pathfinder Produce.  We’ll be open this Thursday at the Pathfinder  Village Commons from noon to 5 p.m. to help you with your fruit and veggie purchases for your festive year-end gatherings.  Our market staff has plenty of holiday cheer to go around and can’t wait to assist you with your purchases.  And of course, our online ordering is open at pathfindervillage.org/our-village/pathfinder-produce to help you during this very merry time of the year. Our market will be closed for Thursday, Dec. 27, so that our market staff may spend more time with their loved ones.  After a mini-break, our wonderful Pathfinder Produce team, all members of the Pathfinder Adult Day Services program, will be back to help you get into a healthy and nutritious 2019!  This week, our Director of Education Maura Iorio offers some last-minute ideas for gifts.  Enjoy and explore these tempting and unique ideas using fruits and veggies! *** Produce-Inspired Gift Ideas! With the year-end holidays right around the corner, you may find yourself scrambling for some last-minute gift ideas for family, friends, neighbors, teachers, etc. Here are some fruit and vegetable-inspired options that you can easily make and assemble yourself! 1. Natural Strawberry Facemask Crush up about a cup of fresh strawberries and let them soak in 1 cup of organic milk for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator. Strain well and keep the strawberry-infused milk refrigerated in a sealed jar. Apply the strawberry milk as a facial cleanser, leaving it on for about 20 minutes until gently rinsing it off. Your skin will appear brighter and healthier! Click here to learn more. 2. Homemade Pickled Vegetables Making pickled vegetables is easy, and the final product will last for quite a while if stored properly. Plus, these jarred gifts already look pretty—add some holiday ribbon around them and you will be all set! One great recipe to try is Pickled Heirloom Carrots from Country Living. (We recommend following standard cleaning and sterilization techniques to prepare your jars; use canning jars, which are able to handle the heat of sterilization). Using carrots, cider vinegar, honey, salt, mustard seeds, fennel seeds, black peppercorns, crushed coriander, and dried hot chili pepper, this recipe has a bit of a kick to it and takes about 30 minutes to make. It’s perfect for someone who likes to explore spicy foods. Check out this recipe, and several others, by clicking here.
3. Traditional Fruit Basket Fruit baskets are one of those traditional gifts that you can’t go wrong with—who doesn’t love fruit? Grab a pretty basket or decorative bowl, fill with your favorite fruits, and top with some holiday ribbons. This is a simple and nutritious way to cross some names off your holiday shopping list for hard to shop for friends and acquaintances! Need a more in-depth tutorial? Click here!
Wishing you and your families a warm and happy holiday season! Maura (and Lori)