We went to San Francisco on Saturday to be part of the "Slow Food Nation," which not only stressed the importance of eating local, organic produce, but more importantly what food means to us as a nation, as a community, and as a family. Part of the Civic Center Plaza was transformed into Slow Food central. Booths run by local restaurants and food purveyors sold meals that exemplify what slow food is all about: local, simple, and delicious. Think of dishes that are nothing more intricate than roast chicken and green salad, but what a difference is made when the chicken has been raised outside a cage and fed hormone free feed, and that salad consists of pesticide-free greens picked that very morning. Another wing of booths was a market showcasing local farmers and food purveyors--how lucky we are in Northern California to have these places and people!

We then roamed through the "Victory Garden," which was created by 15 families in San Francisco. It was wonderful to see the diversity of ideas and produce grown.

I attended the "Edible Education" lecture, in which Alice Waters was one of the panelists. She discussed how the King Middle School in Berkeley was created, and how it reshaped not only the eating habits of the kids there, but the entire curriculum. Science teachers, math teachers, art and English teachers have all found ways to incorporate the garden and the art of eating into their lesson plans.

Waters is now advocating for change on a national level. She argues the much of the money is there already, in the federally subsidized meal programs at public schools. But that the money needs to be spent supporting local farmers instead of the giant agribusinesses. It's daunting but it makes sense. Ella takes her lunch to school now, but if the lunches were being sourced locally--this is Sonoma County after all--I would let her eat "hot lunch" every day. And kids whose families might not be able to afford organic and local food at home would be able to enjoy that type of meal through the breakfast and lunch program at school.  Really, why aren't we doing more to make sure the food kids eat at school is the best it can be?

I realize that I seem to be two people when it comes to how to feed my family. I try to buy a lot of organic, visit the farmer's markets, eat meals at home. But there is also the busy, tired, mom who has been known to buy prepared dinners from the deli, boxes of preservative packed cookies, or have a fast food lunch because I didn't plan better.  The latter might only happen occasionally--but maybe even a little is too much. What am I so busy with that is more important than making sure what my kids eat is healthy, and as Waters' said at the lecture, "irresistible"?

That word, irresistible, stayed with me the entire day. That is what we should be focusing on, making good food irresistible to children. Not this continual rhetoric of  "you should eat this because it's good for you and avoid that because it's bad," but preparing food that is bursting with flavor, food that they will want to eat and then they'll forget about the junk. Food that they planted in the garden or picked at the farmer's market and meals they can help make. If  the "good" food we are giving them is canned green beans or under ripe tomatoes, entrees from the freezer, or fruit grown for an extended shelf life,  is it any surprise they don't like it? Come to think of it, do we?

We're pretending it's fall here in Sonoma County, as school has been in session now for over a week. What happened to starting the Monday after that glorious Labor Day weekend of our youth, that last hoorah where we pretended we hadn't been bored out of our minds for the past month and lamented "why did summer go so fast?"

But since we're pretending it's fall, it seemed a perfect time to bake an apple pie. Gravensteins are in season, which have the apple of many a baker's eye, and even a horticulturalist or two. (Luther Burbank said "if the Gravenstein could be had throughout the year, no other apple need be grown." ) In addition to being a terrific tasting apple, they are really reasonable. Our produce stand is selling them for 59 cents a pound, and I think that there are a few stores in Sebastopol and Forestville selling for even less than that.

The Gravenstein apple originated in Germany, but in the states, it is known as being grown in Sonoma County, particularly the charming town of Sebastopol. It's a striking apple, with red streaks developing over the green apply as it matures. Just like heirloom tomatoes taste much better than their commercial counterparts, the old-fashioned Gravenstein is delicious--a wonderful balance of sweet and tart. It's known for it's versatility, and because it isn't overly tart, it's a great apple for baking with kids or tucking into the lunchbox. I think we'll be using them to make apple crostadas with the kids who have signed up for our upcoming Baking Basics class.

Sadly, the Gravenstein apple could be on its way to extinction. The Slow Food Organization says that, "During the past six decades, Sonoma County's Gravenstein orchards have declined by almost 7,000 acres and are currently down to 960 acres.  There are only six commercial growers remaining in Sonoma County. "

But if you live in the Bay Area, you can find them, so do your part to keep them around and bake a pie today!

If when in Rome  do as the Romans do, then when in England  drink tea. We just returned from a wonderful week to attend my sister-in-law's wedding in Swansea, Wales. On the way to the wedding, we stopped to see Bath, the town in which my husband went to college. It is known for (not surprisingly given the name) the Roman Baths there. It is also known for it's large tea room, the Pump Room, and so Ella and I went together as a little pre-starting-kindergarten celebration.

 The tradition of afternoon tea is embraced by many British regardless of class or occupation. This was not the case when it was first discovered by Europeans in the early 1600s (when the Dutch and Portuguese were credited with bringing home tea leaves)  For quite some time it was a rare commodity only to be enjoyed by royalty and the very wealthy. The idea of the 4 o'clock tea as a staple of the day is attributed to Anna Maria, the 7th Duchess of Bedford. She found it the perfect way to curb hunger until the 7:30pm dinner (and while 7:30 sounds late to most Americans to begin with, remember that the idea of lunch was not the same either. Breakfast was the main meal of the day, and some people would take "noonshine" --a very light version of what we today consider lunch.)

Afternoon tea would become a social gathering of the masses as the cost of tea became more reasonable, and it was very popular until World War II. It's popularity waned for several decades, but it has celebrated a resurgence in popularity over the past few decades. In part, perhaps, because it can be customized for any occasion--a light dessert with tea for an impromptu visit with friends, or a tea party complete with scones, sandwiches, and desserts for a birthday party, (which is what we're doing for my daughter's 3rd birthday in a few weeks).

Personally, I think having a tea party for kids is not only magical, it is much easier than a lot of other menu alternatives. Plain ol' sandwiches seemed transformed just by cutting off the crusts, scones are very simple to make (or found at some bakeries) and the diminutive desserts can be as simple or elaborate (and homemade or store bought) depending on your schedule.

The Pump Room had a children's tea, the contents of which had been chosen by students from the local elementary school. This would explain the non-traditional pineapple and sausage on the second tray! Very traditional however, were the "fairy cakes," very similar to our cupcakes (but a much cuter term, don't you think?) and those were, of course, entirely devoured before our tea was over.

As the economy continues to sink and gas and food prices continue to rise, we've been scrutinizing our budget and purchasing habits. We're not in a panic, but want to be pragmatic because who knows how long this will last? One thing we've really curbed is our eating out budget. $28 for a pizza starts to look pricey (especially if you are spending $5 per gallon of gas to get there).  But making your own pizza at home is fun and easy, and recession-proof!

I taught a really fun class last week in Windsor for a teen camp in which the kids made mini-pizzas. Mini pizzas are the perfect size, and since everyone makes their own, food allergies and aversions aren't a problem. And pizza dough is very simple to make. Most recipes begin by dissolving the yeast into warm water. The heat begins to activate the yeast, and the mixture begins to foam. However, when I am working with large groups or small kids, I use a recipe where you skip this step and stir the yeast directly into the flour mixture. It produced comparable results, and lets you get to everyone's favorite part (kneading) a little quicker.

While you really don't need any fancy equipment to make pizza dough, you might want to check out your local restaurant supply shop for mini-pizza pans. They cost about $2.50 each, and make it very easy for kids to make the right size pizza (you don't want your pizza to be too thick because it will be doughy!). Another thing to remember is to not pile on the toppings too high, as that will make for a soggy middle--and who wants that!

Here is a photo of some of the pizzas that the Windsor teens did--they did a great job made pizzas, several dozen cookies and fruit kabobs in under two hours. Well done!

Here is my pizza dough recipe:

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour
• 1/4 ounce quick rise yeast
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 cup warm water
• (115 to 125 degrees F)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• (plus extra for greasing the bowl)

Oven Temperature: 425 degrees F

In a large bowl combine 2 1/2 cups flour (set aside the other 1/2 cup), yeast, salt and sugar. Stir until well blended.

Add the warm water and 2 tablespoons of olive oil and stir with a wooden spoon until  a rough dough forms.

Dust your work surface with some of the remaining flour. Dump the dough onto the surface.

Knead the dough (this will be demonstrated in class). Remember to keep giving the dough quarter turns as you knead. Continue until the dough is smooth to the touch, about 10 minutes.

Clean and dry your mixing bowl, and then grease it lightly with about one teaspoon of  olive oil. Put the dough into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place in a warm spot and let rise until doubled (about 45 minutes).

Dust your work surface again, dump the dough, and divide into four equal pieces. Using your hands, stretch out the dough into a personal pizza round.

Place pizza onto a foil lined baking sheet and add toppings.  Bake for about 20 minutes.

It seems that one of the official duties of being a mom is to bring cookie platters to events on a regular basis. Above is the one I did last night for my daughters' preschool potluck. Here is my issue with cookie platters. All that effort in the kitchen baking several dozen cookies with kids and family pets eying the bowl and the out-of-the-oven goods, and when you finally plate the ones that escaped those grabbing hands it can look so lackluster.

I feel that if I've taken the time to bake cookies from scratch, they should look as good as they taste. So with this in mind, here are some tips on how to create a little eye candy with your cookie platter.

1) Start with a nice white platter. I know some people worry about platters breaking, but really, how often have you witnessed this happen at your monthly PTA meeting? I use white because the contrast always looks great against the cookies and they can be found anywhere. They don't have to be expensive, Cost Plus has very reasonable serving pieces, and Martha Stewart's line at Macy's can occasionally be found on sale.

2) Think small. Pick a platter that looks a little smaller than you think you need for all your cookies. You want to achieve the look of abundance and by using a smaller plate you'll have very little empty space--a cornucopia of cookies!

3) Build height. By layering your cookies at least two deep, you'll add a nice element of height to your platter, which again makes it look more abundant. For this platter, I tucked chocolate dipped shortbread hearts into the chocolate chip cookies.

4) Go for big blocks of color. If you are doing a large platter with more than four or five types of cookies, group the like cookies together. This will have more of a "wow" effect than mixing them all together. If you have only two types of cookies, like I did, you could intersperse a two or three cookies of one type within a block of another type of cookie, which would add a little visual pop to your platter, while still keeping the big blocks of color.

5) Use fruit or candy to fill out your platter. I tend to only have time to bake one or two types of cookies before an event, but I like the look of more, so often I'll add something simple and store bought to my platter. Yesterday I bought organic strawberries, dipped half of them in chocolate, and then mixed the plain and dipped strawberries in a cluster in the middle of a platter. It's so easy to add fruit to a dessert platter, especially now in the peak of summer. In wintertime, I would look for a little candy that you could tuck into your cookies for visual interest, such as candy fruit slices in a tray of holiday sugar cookies, or chocolate truffles or hershey kisses in the center of a tray of small peanut butter cookies.

 And as always, have fun!