April has finally bloomed; and with her arrival, a month of raising Awareness for Autism has begun!
As parents of a daughter on the spectrum, as well as an advocate within the Autism community, I searched my ever-wandering brain for the best way to combine everything I have learned about food and everything I have learned about how it relates to Autism and wellness and put them into one basket – just as the Easter Bunny would.
And so, I present to you a challenge for the month of April:
There once was a bunny, a sweet wittle wabbit
Who, over the years, had developed a habit.
You see, as a baby, he ate all sorts of food
Carrots and Radish, mmmmm cucumbers were so good.
But as he grew up, he became rather busy
He started to grab what was quick, what was easy
A package of this and a package of that
Just hop through McBunnies for a quick little snack
Soon, food just didn’t sound great anymore
Everything tasted the same, rabbit’s tummy was BORED!
Poor little guy, starting moping about
He didn’t know why, but he wanted to shout!
He moped his was home and he plopped on the couch.
He felt like a grump. He felt like a grouch.
“What is it, my bunny?” Asked his sweet bunny-mommy
“I’m hungry!” he said, “Do we have some salami?”
“I know just what you need”, said the wise mommy bunny
“You need to grow a garden inside of your tummy!”
His eyes lit right up. He knew just what to do.
He ran to the garden and started to chew.
He grabbed a big carrot, a juicy tomato
Some celery, peppers, and a crunchy potato
Soon he was feeling his old self again
He ran and he played with his wee bunny friends
Whenever the bunny was hungry for more
He planted more vegetables in his tummy, for sure!
How many vegetables can YOU plant in your tummy Garden?
This month, challenge your kids to VEG OUT! Greater Tots will be hosting a Garden in your tummy Challenge for the entire month of April. Join in just for fun, or help us raise funds by getting sponsors to encourage you on your “garden”. Chart your progress and you just may win BIG! Visit www.greatertots.org for more details on our Make a Garden in Your Tummy challenge! Good luck ~ and happy vegging!
To help you along the way, I will be posted some delicious recipes that will help you grow your vegetable garden. Here is one of my favorites.
Suthern Smuthern’ Corn On the Cob
4 Ears of Sweet Corn
1 cup Coconut Milk – Vanilla Unsweetened
¼ cup Butter – Earth Balance Soy Free
¼ cup Vegenaise Grapeseed
1 cup organic zucchini, diced
1 organic green tomato, diced (you may use a red tomato if you can’t find green)
½ cup organic okra, chopped (fresh or frozen)
½ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp organic sweet paprika
6-8 Slices of Nitrite Free Turkey Bacon, cooked and crumbled (optional) (Try Applegate Farms)
Boil about 8 cups of water in a large stock pot that has a lid. While you wait, shuck your corn, remove the silk threads and drop them in to the water as soon as it is boiling. Cover and cook for 8-10 minutes.
While your corn is cooking, melt your butter in a skillet over medium heat. Cook your chopped zucchini, tomato, and okra for about 5 minutes, just until tender. Add in the coconut milk, the Vegenaise, and your spices. Stir until well combined.
Serve by placing one ear of corn in a shallow soup bowl, drizzle a couple of large spoonfuls of your cream and vegetable mixture down over the top of your corn. *** Top with crumbled bacon for a side dish gone main stream!
*Vegetarian: Simply sprinkle with your favorite fresh herbs and enjoy.
** Allergic to corn? Simply substitute the corn with a piece of lean meat like baked chicken, turkey, or fish.
