Pass the Plate 2024

In mid-January the fifth graders began the month-long process of planning, preparing, and cooking all the food necessary for our Pass the Plate event. They cooked four dishes from around the world and helped to feed all of our kindergarteners, first, second, third, and fourth graders a delicious and adventurous meal. The fifth graders planned and worked for weeks to make this event possible.

The fifth graders made pita bread and two different kinds of tzatziki (one with cucumbers and one with chard) from Greece, empanadas (with potatoes and squash from our garden) from Argentina, and atakilt wat (a vegetable stew with carrots, cabbage, and potatoes) from Ethiopia. 

The fifth graders signed up for time slots to serve all the younger farm classes. The younger kids went around to each country with their little DIY “passports” and received a stamp and a serving of the dish from that country. The fifth graders served over 350 students over the course of the week. The younger kids loved trying so many delicious and new foods and the fifth graders proved to be great servers and leaders! We are so pleased with our fifth graders and their dedication and hard work, and we can’t wait to do it again next year! 

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Recipes:

Pumpkin & Potatoes Empanadas

Dough

INGREDIENTS	MEASUREMENTS (yields ~ 24 mini empanadas)	x2 RECIPE (yields ~48 mini empanadas)
All-purpose Flour	2 cups	4 cups
Salt	½ tsp	1 tsp
Cool Water	⅓ cup	⅔ cup
Oil	⅓ cup	⅔ cup

Potato Pumpkin Filling

INGREDIENTS	MEASUREMENTS (yields ~ 24 mini empanadas)	x2 RECIPE (yields ~ 48 mini empanadas)
Squash Puree	2 cups	4 cups
Potatoes	2 cups	4 cups
Shredded cheese	1 cup	2 cups
Cumin	½ tsp	1 tsp
Chili Powder	½ tsp	1 tsp
Onion Powder	½ tsp	1 tsp
Paprika	¼ tsp	½ tsp

Instructions

Dough:

1. In a large bowl mix flour and salt until well combined. 
2. Make a well in the center and pour in the water and olive oil. 
3. Mix the liquid into the flour mixture until the dough begins to come together. 
4. Knead until everything is incorporated into a soft dough. Add a little more water or flour to help the binding. 
5. Wrap and set aside until ready to use.

Potato Pumpkin Filling:

1. Combine squash and potatoes in a bowl. Mix well. 
2. Add the spices and cheese. Salt to taste. Mix well.* 

Shape and Bake the Empanadas:

1. Preheat oven to 400F. On a floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/8 inch.*
2. Cut dough into circles. For mini empanadas, use 1 cup measurement to create circles. 
3. Place one tablespoon of filling inside each circle. Fold over to create a half moon, and use a fork to press dough together. If dough does not seal, dip finger in water and line the bottom edge. Freeze and use later. 
4. Place on baking sheet. Optional: Brush tops with olive oil or egg wash. 
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes. 

Makes ~24 mini empanadas 

*Notes: 

• If needed, use water in filling to facilitate mixing. Could use KitchenAid 
• May use pasta machine to roll out dough

Atakilt Wat

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tsp minced ginger
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 to 3/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp cardamom powder
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1/8 tsp cloves powder
• a generous dash of black pepper
• 3/4 cup sliced carrots
• 2 medium potatoes chopped, 1.5 loaded cups
• 1/2 head of cabbage finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions:

• In a large skillet, add 1 tsp oil and heat at medium-low. Once hot, Add garlic, ginger, and onion. Mix and cook for 4 minutes.
• Add the cumin, turmeric, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and black pepper. Mix and cook for 3 minutes to infuse the oil and to continue cooking the onion to golden.
• Add the carrots, potatoes and mix well. Add cabbage and 1/4 tsp salt. Mix well, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Stir once in between.
• Add 1/4 tsp or more salt, and 1 tsp olive oil. Mix in. Deglaze at this time with water if needed. Cover and Cook for another 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

Pita Bread

INGREDIENTS	MEASUREMENTS (yields ~ 3 breads / 18 pieces)	x12 RECIPE (yields ~ 210 pieces)
Lukewarm Water	1 cup	12 cups
Active Dry Yeast	2 tsp	24 tsp → 0.5 cup
Sugar	½ tsp	6 tsp
All-Purpose Flour	3 cups, divided	36 cups
Kosher Salt	2 tsp	24 tsp → 0.5 cup
Olive Oil	2 tbsp	24 tbsp → 1.5 cups

Make sponge: 

1. In a large mixing bowl add 1 cup lukewarm water and stir in yeast and sugar until dissolved. 
2. Add ½ cup flour and whisk together. 
3. Place the mixing bowl in a warm place, uncovered to form a loose sponge. 
4. Give it 15 minutes or so, the mixture should bubble.

Form the pita dough:

1. Now add salt, olive oil and almost all the remaining flour (keep about ½ cup of the flour for dusting later). 
2. Stir until mixture forms a shaggy mass (at this point, the dough looks like a sticky mess and you can easily pull bits off). 
3. Dust with a little flour, then knead the mixture inside the bowl for about a minute to incorporate any stray bits.

Knead the dough: 

1. Dust a clean working surface with just a little bit of flour. 
2. Knead lightly for a couple minutes or so until smooth. 
3. Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes 
4. Then knead again for a couple more minutes. The dough should be a little bit moist, you can help it with a little dusting of flour, but be careful not to add too much flour.

Let the dough rise. 

1. Clean the mixing bowl and coat it lightly with extra virgin olive oil and put the dough back in the bowl. 
2. Turn the dough a couple times in the bowl to coat with the olive oil.
3. Cover the mixing bowl tightly with plastic wrap then lay a kitchen towel over. 
4. Put the bowl in a warm place and leave it alone for 1 hour or until the dough rises to double its size.

Divide the dough. 

1. Deflate the dough and place it on a clean work surface. 
2. Divide the dough into 7 to 8 equal pieces and shape them into balls. 
3. Cover with a towel and leave them for 10 minutes or so to rest

Roll the Dough & Cook

1. On a floured surface using a floured rolling pin, roll out each piece to be about 8-9 inches wide 
2. On a lightly greased pan, using medium-high heat, put the pita on the pan and let it cook for 30 seconds or until bubbles start to form. 
3. Flip it over and let cook for 1-2 minutes and then flip back over and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and enjoy!

For Gluten Free Pita: Replace the flour here with the same amount of an all-purpose gluten free flour. 

**Make ahead note: You can prepare the dough ahead of time. Once it has risen, you can store it in the fridge until you need it! If you don’t want to bake all 8 pitas on a given day, you can bake 1, 2 or however many you need at a time. Save the rest of the dough in the fridge for later (if stored properly, the dough will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week). 

Swiss Chard Tzatziki

• 3 to 4 large leaves of Swiss chard, ribs removed
• 1c plain Greek yogurt
• 1 1/2 T chopped fresh mint leaves
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 T extra virgin olive oil
• 1 t lemon zest
• 1 T lemon juice

Preparation

1. Dice the stems of the chard and sauté them on medium heat for 5 minutes with olive oil. Chop the leaves of the chard and add to the sauté for 2 more minutes. Remove the leaves onto a paper towel and squeeze the moisture from them.
2. Combine the tzatziki ingredients: Put the Greek yogurt, chopped chard and stems chopped mint, garlic, salt, olive oil, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Stir to combine. Chill until ready to use (can make up to 3 days ahead).
3. Toast the pita bread: Cut the pita bread into triangles and lay out in one layer in a broiling pan (use a sturdy sheet pan or broiling pan, not a thin cookie sheet or your cookie sheet will warp). Drizzle olive oil on one side of the pita wedges. Place under a broiler. Broil for 5 minutes or until the pita bread starts to toast. Remove and let cool for a minute.
4. Serve: Drizzle the tzatziki with a little olive oil and serve with toasted pita wedges.

MAY 4, 2019