Five Fresh Air Fall Recipes

As we approach Thanksgiving, we are excited to share some of our favorite recipes and food tips from our Fresh Air community.  

Maddie’s Soup 

Thanks to a generous donor, families that visited camp as part of our Fresh Air Family Wellness program were able to bring home a box of vegetables and other items from local Hudson Valley farms.  

After an adventurous day with her mom and grandmother at Camp Hidden Valley, nine-year-old Maddie was excited to make soup with ingredients from the box of fresh vegetables – and we are excited to share Maddie’s recipe with you!  

INGREDIENTS: 

• 1 squash, chopped 
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 potato chopped
• 2 fresh peppers, chopped
• 2 cups chicken broth (feel free to substitute with a vegetarian broth)
• 2 cups water
• Seasonings to taste (Maddie used onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper)

DIRECTIONS: 

1. In a large stock pot, combine vegetables, broth and water. 
2. Bring to a boil. 
3. Simmer for 20 minutes. 
4. Season to taste. 

Recipes from our very own Fresh Air Model Farm 

Every summer at The Fund’s Nutrition Center at the Camp Model Farm, campers learn about sustainable farming practices – composting and harvesting. In addition, campers also discover new and fun recipes they can try at home through interactive workshops! 

Food Tips: How to Make Your Food Last Longer from Fresh Air volunteer, Brandan Chareon.  

When in doubt, bag it.

It’s important to store vegetables in a bag (preferably the one they came in) or container to keep them fresh. Keeping produce in a bag prevents the moisture within the vegetable from evaporating. And, remember to reuse your bags! 

Keep most things in the fridge.

My rule of thumb is if something does not need to be ripened or is already ripe, store it in the fridge. By moving ripe produce like avocados and mangos to the fridge you’re hitting pause on the ripening process. What would go bad on the counter in a few days, could last for up to a week in the fridge.  A simple rule to follow – the softer it is, the sooner you should use it. 

First in, First out!

Keep a mental inventory of what you have in your fridge. It is always a good idea to use old produce and leafy greens like spinach and lettuce first. Then start to work your way through hardier vegetables like potatoes and carrots which will stay fresh longer. 

Email Communications@freshair.org to let us know if you’ve tried our recipes or to share your own recipes. 

For more Fresh Air Home Activities visit our Resource page and our Fresh Air Everywhere Virtual Activity Library