We’re ramping up for another season of Garden State on Your Plate, thanks a second consecutive year of generous funding from the Office of Community and Regional Affairs at Princeton University.
For those new to our site and and our work, Garden State on Your Plate brings chefs and farmers into school cafeterias at lunchtime, where they serve up small portions of simple recipes featuring local and seasonal fruits and vegetables. The students are encouraged to cast aside their likes and dislikes and become scientists, tasting and testing to note differences in color, texture and temperature, and in various preparations: raw, boiled, steamed, roasted, or with other ingredients, or with lemon or salt.
For a virtual taste of foods devoured by Princeton Public School District elementary students last year, click to download the posters below. We produce these posters (perfect for celebrating NJ Farm to School Week) to encourage students to explore the sensory aspects of produce and for use in the science, art, and language classes. (We give each school 30 posters prior to each lunchtime sampling.)
Our program begins in October, with chefs from Princeton University Campus Dining serving up organic broccoli leaves from Chickadee Creek Farm. In November Chef Joseph Voller of Eno Terra and Chef Terry Strong of Mediterra will serve up beets from Canal Farm.
