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Try your hand at pâte à choux and bake a batch of cream puffs to fill with this peach mixture, perfect for a summertime dinner party. Photo by Sindy Gonzalez. Serves 6 Ingredients 4-6 peaches 1/3 cup honey 3 sprigs thyme, leaves removed and chopped 2 cups heavy cream 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 teaspoon powered sugar Instructions Wash and slice peaches in half. Grill on medium heat until slightly cooked. Dice into small pieces and toss in honey and chopped thyme. Whip heavy cream with vanilla and powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. Serve peaches as a filling in cream puffs or as a topping on ice cream and pound cake.

Once the peaches are grilled, this sauce comes together in minutes and is a perfect companion for grilled meats like chicken or pork chops. You can also roast the peaches and onions to maximize flavor without using a grill. Photo by Melissa Marcarelli Makes 1-½ cups INGREDIENTS 3 fresh peaches, pitted and sliced into wedges 1 large yellow onion, sliced in rings Oil for cooking 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste ½ cup apple cider vinegar ½ cup dark brown sugar 3 datil (or habanero) peppers, minced or 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes ½ teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon salt PREPARATION Brush peach wedges and onion rings with oil and cook over a hot grill. You want the peaches and onions cooked thoroughly and with a lot of color, so don’t be afraid to let them sit on the grill and allow some charring to happen. The color lends a lot of the grilled flavor, just like meat. If you aren’t grilling, turn the oven up to 500° and roast the oil-coated peaches and onions until soft and brown around the edges. Remove from heat and place in a bowl with a lid or cover with plastic wrap and allow to steam. Add remaining ingredients to a saucepan and cook on medium-low heat just until the sugar is fully dissolved. Add all ingredients to a blender, and slowly work up to full speed, blending until completely smooth, about 2-3 minutes, occasionally scraping down the sides. Add a little water as needed to create the consistency you want and adjust the seasoning and spice level to your tastes. Store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

Florida peaches are growing in popularity among area farmers. One of the most quintessential summertime sensations is sinking your teeth into a fresh, succulent peach. From the initial piercing of the taut skin, to the rich juices flooding your mouth, to the nectar dripping down your hands, eating a peach is nothing less than divine. The tantalizingly short availability of peaches, from April to May in Florida and May to August in other growing states, contributes to the appeal. While many consider Georgia the best source of this stone fruit, South Carolina’s crop is actually second in the nation behind California. Not many folks consider Florida as a peach producer. Due to the decline in citrus groves, however, peaches are seen as an alternative crop in the Sunshine state. Citrus greening disease, Huanglongbing, has significantly impacted Florida’s groves, leaving farmers scrambling for sustainable replacements. Enter the peach, which thrives in full sun exposure and moist soil – conditions that match Florida’s climate perfectly. Members of the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences have been actively discussing best practices to grow and market specific peach varieties, especially in northeast Florida. In the spring of 2016, the team presented research on the recommended ‘Flordaguard’ rootstock, the plant that serves as a base for peaches and other stone fruits to grow. The university’s team also published suggested growing procedures for Florida peaches by month, along with proposals for orchard layouts, growth sites, irrigation ideas and tips to avoid nematodes (worms that are harmful to peaches). Plans are for the group at IFAS to continue research and release their findings as an aid to regional peach farmers. Peaches are often harvested before fully ripening, so, when choosing them, let your nose be your guide. If a peach does not smell like a peach, even if it is still firm to the touch, chances are the flavor of the fruit will probably not develop. One way to ripen peaches is by storing them in a paper bag until they are soft. Pitting peaches is a similar process to that of avocados: start by placing a knife at the stem and slicing through the fruit to the pit. Holding the blade against the pit, gently drag the knife all the way around the peach and finish where you began, at the stem. Twist the two halves of the peach in opposite directions until they pull apart, with the pit in one half; finally, loosen one end of the pit with your finger or a knife and slide it free of the skin. You will have ended up with two even-sized peach halves, which you can then lay flat and slice into pieces proportioned according to the recipe you are using. Here’s a simple step to remove the skin from a peach. Make an X in the base of the peach (not the stem end). Place the peach in a pot of boiling water for about one minute, then remove it and plunge into a bowl filled with water and ice cubes. Once the peach is cool, the skin will slide right off using a paring knife.

Nutrition in the classroom Students in Putnam County participating in the breakfast in the classroom program. In 2014, Dr. Rick Surrency was sitting in a meeting with the new food service director for Putnam County School District, Nikki Hawthorne, listening to her proposal to implement an innovative school breakfast program called “breakfast in the classroom.” Surrency was principal of Jenkins Middle School in Palatka at the time, and he worked every day to help students at his school be successful. Hawthorne shared the many benefits of students eating breakfast, from student health to academic performance, and her presentation offered a new way to get more students not to skip the most important meal of the day. Hawthorne’s figures showed that only about 25% of the students were eating school breakfast. The “breakfast in the classroom” program aimed to increase that number by allowing students to eat breakfast in their classroom with their friends. Middle schoolers wanted to socialize and gather with their friends and weren’t willing to give up that time standing in a cafeteria line. By moving breakfast to the classroom, students could socialize while they got the nutrition they needed. The meeting was interrupted by an urgent call that a student had passed out in the gymnasium. Surrency left to attend to the student, who upon regaining consciousness told him that they had not eaten since the day before. Surrency went straight back to his meeting and agreed to move forward with the “breakfast in the classroom” program. In the years that followed, this decision proved to be one that would nurture students in more ways than one. Surrency soon moved into a new position as Superintendent for Putnam County School District, where he had the opportunity to work alongside Hawthorne, advocating to expand this program into almost every school in the district. As a result, school breakfast participation grew to 77-80% and academic performance also improved, along with student health and behavior in the classroom. “The breakfast in the classroom program removes all stigma,” says Hawthorne. “When every student is served in the classroom, it’s a captive audience where positive peer influence takes hold — everyone is participating. It ensures all students begin their day fueled and ready to succeed.” Research overwhelmingly shows that when students have a healthy breakfast they perform better on standardized tests, improve their concentration and comprehension and are more successful academically overall. Beyond that, students are healthier and have fewer absences and visits to the school nurse. But above all else, the importance of school breakfast comes down to providing for a basic need – a guaranteed meal for kids who might struggle to get three meals a day at home. The reality is that one in five children under the age of 18 in Florida live in a household that is food insecure. A recent poll from the organization No Kid Hungry found that affording groceries has become harder for nearly three-quarters of Floridians, which they attributed to the cost of food rising faster than their income. Numbers like that illustrate the importance of making sure students are eating at school and starting their day with a hunger to learn instead of a grumbling belly. No Kid Hungry, a national campaign through the organization Share Our Strength, works closely with Florida’s teachers, principals, food service directors and superintendents like Dr. Rick Surrency to advocate for increased participation, improved access and innovative ideas. Their support helps schools meet the needs of the over 2.9 million children whose families struggle with food security. School breakfast initiatives like breakfast in the classroom, breakfast carts and breakfast after the bell – allowing kids that might arrive last to still start their day with a nutritious breakfast – are part of the work that No Kid Hungry advocates for, removing barriers to their health and success. The mission is not simply to make sure that Surrency and his fellow principals in Northeast Florida don’t have to watch a student suffer because they haven’t eaten. The goal is to see students thrive because they know that food is not something they have to worry about once they walk through those doors.

Salty halloumi cheese is a tasty counterbalance to sweet watermelon. Paired with the shrimp this makes for an easy main dish. Photo by Stefanie Keeler. Serves 4 Ingredients 1 pound large shrimp 8 wedges watermelon Olive oil Salt and pepper, to season 8 ounces halloumi cheese, sliced into ½-inch strips Pickled red onions, to serve Instructions Peel and devein the shrimp and leave the tails on. In a medium bowl, toss shrimp in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Brush watermelon lightly with olive oil. Heat grill to medium-high and brush the grate with olive oil. Grill shrimp until lightly charred in spots on both sides and just cooked through, 1-2 minutes per side. Grill watermelon for about 2-3 minutes on each side, watching for some grill marks to appear. Grill halloumi until it browns and starts to blister on each side, about 1-3 minutes per side. To serve, place watermelon on a platter and layer with shrimp and halloumi. Serve with pickled red onions.

What's old is new again. Local makers bring fresh, new local flavors to age-old cider traditions. Congaree and Penn blends a base of apple cider with fruit grown locally on their farm. Photo by Stefanie Keeler Florida’s unique subtropical climate is ideal for growing many different kinds of fruit. From your standard citrus varieties to more exotic delights such as mango, lychee and Japanese persimmons, we are fortunate to enjoy a diversity of produce not commonly found in other parts of the country. One fruit in particular you would be hard pressed to find around these parts? Apples, which prefer cold winters and moderate summers. That hasn’t stopped a handful of enterprising beverage makers here in Northeast Florida from putting their unique spin on apples in their fermented form – cider. People have been making cider from apple crops for at least two millennia. When the Romans invaded Great Britain in 55 B.C., they observed the native Celtic population fermenting apple juice. The Greek geographer Strabo found Asturians in present-day Spain making “sidra” around the same time. Many of our founding fathers including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin were avid cider makers. But the first commercially available cider made in Northeast Florida didn’t appear until a few years ago, thanks unsurprisingly to the burgeoning craft beer movement. The team at Engine 15 Brewing Company was the first local enterprise to try their hand at cider making. For them, it was an opportunity to experiment with a product they were passionate about. With its light, crisp and refreshing character, it seemed a perfect fit for the market, especially considering the area’s sweltering summer temperatures. “Ours is more of a traditional English-style cider versus the sweeter stuff you see almost everywhere,” says brewer and co-owner Sean Bielman. Well-acquainted with the notion of importing their raw materials, the lack of native produce didn’t deter them. “Some people who make cider have their own orchards, but I know very few breweries that own their own hop or grain farms, so what’s the difference?” Sean explains. When Congaree and Penn first began growing rice on their farm in northwest Jacksonville, their intention was to brew sake. They soon changed course after demand for their rice as a food product in restaurants and at farmers’ markets eclipsed their ambitions in the beverage game. Nevertheless, the idea of a destination farm-winery hybrid lingered in their imagination. “When we went to revisit the idea, we thought, ‘well we’re growing all this different fruit now,’” says owner Scott Meyer. “‘What’s better than making cider using the fruit we can grow in Northeast Florida?’” Meyer attended cider making conferences in Oregon where he was advised to purchase concentrated apple must (freshly pressed juice) “like everybody else.” Unsatisfied with this solution he eventually connected with a winery in Kalamazoo, Michigan who also made cider straight from the orchard. Meyer arranged to have already fermented cider shipped in tanker trucks straight from the winery to Jacksonville where he stores it in a 6,000 gallon dairy tank, typically used for chilling pasteurized milk, before packaging. The cider that Meyer receives is bone dry, which means it has little residual sugar. “It’s pretty good on its own,” he says, “but it’s much better when you let it be the base of the flavor profile and start adding to it.” Congaree and Penn’s part of the operation then involves blending the base cider with fruit grown on the farm. “The goal is to highlight what grows well here and what’s indigenous to Northeast Florida,” Meyer explains. So far, they’ve experimented with a number of different fruits but have found the most success with the Noble muscadine, an indigenous grape varietal that is often sneered at in winemaking circles but happens to blend beautifully with cider. “The juice quality is incredible,” Meyer beams. “It has almost a pink quality to it and a really nice flavor.” Meyer and his team have also played with mayhaw, figs, ouachita blackberries, gallberry honey and perhaps most surprisingly, a rare, heirloom, yellow-fleshed watermelon grown at Meyer’s father’s farm in Georgia which he credits as “hands down the best cider we’ve ever made.” Congaree and Penn’s ciders, including limited pilot batch experiments, are always available at the farm’s taproom and restaurant. You can occasionally find some in distribution on select tap lists around town and they have started canning their Farm Cider. With its lower ABV and a touch of thirst-quenching apple cider vinegar, it’s a highly sessionable quaff, perfect for those long, hot summer afternoons or day sipping during holiday gatherings.

Cut down on trash by recycling aluminum cans into beverage containers. Photo by Sean Kelly Conway. Makes 1 cocktail Ingredients For watermelon rind cordial 1/2 pound cleaned watermelon rind 1 pound refined sugar For cocktail 1-1/2 ounces Repasado tequila, preferably Don Julio 1/2 ounce ancho verde 3/4 ounce watermelon rind cordial 2 ounces lime La Croix About this recipe With bars using freshly juiced ingredients to create syrups and shrubs, the discarded pulp is often just thrown away. Most of this pulp can be reused to create syrups on its own. The pulp of something, such as fresh ginger, can be steeped in warm simple syrup to create an infused mixer. The same goes for carrots and most other roots. Understanding what you’re throwing away and what it has left to offer is a huge step in reducing waste. The final step of serving a drink is what often creates the most waste in bars. For every drink a bartender sets down, they have placed a napkin and a straw that will be discarded. Napkins and disposable coasters may have a place at bars, but what can we do to reduce the waste? Instead of using coasters or napkins, try cutting up the boxes that liquor and wine are delivered in to make fun, recyclable coasters from something that would have been thrown out. Instructions To make the watermelon rind cordial : Chop cleaned watermelon rind into 1-inch by 1-inch cubes. Cover with sugar and let sit for up to 24 hours. Once the mixture has taken on a slurry consistency, place sugar and watermelon rind in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any large particles. Add water if the syrup is too thick to reach the desired consistency. Shelf life is one to two days. To make the cocktail : Shake all incredients together and serve in repurposed aluminum can over ice. To make an upcycled glass with repurposed cans : Take one empty aluminum can and remove the top with a can opener. Smooth down any nicks in the lip of the can with sand paper. Cans may also be cleaned in the dishwasher or with food-safe sanitizer for reuse.

Gin works well in cocktails with coriander seeds, since coriander is one of the botanicals often used to make this spirit. For a nonalcoholic version, try infusing the coriander seeds in The Botanist Gin. Photo by Sara Schober. Makes 1 cocktail Ingredients For toasted coriander infused spirits 1/2 cup coriander seeds 1 (750 ml) bottle spirits such as vodka, tequila or gin (or nonalcoholic spirits) For cocktail 3 slices cucumber Ice 1-1/2 ounces toasted coriander seed infused gin 1/4 ounce fresh lime juice 1/4 ounce simple syrup 1/4 ounce St. Germain Elderflower liqueur Club soda Cucumber slice, for garnish Instructions To make toasted coriander infused spirits: Toast seeds in a small saucepan over medium-high heat for 3 to 5 minutes until they become aromatic. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. Place seeds in the bottle of spirits and infuse for 24 hours. To make cocktail: Add cucumber to shaker and muddle together with a couple of small ice cubes. Add a scoop of ice to the shaker along with the rest of the ingredients except for club soda. Shake for five seconds, then strain into a Collins glass filled with ice. Top with club soda and garnish with cucumber slice.

Use this as a cocktail mixer in your next Moscow Mule. Photo by Lexi Mire Makes 2 liters Ingredients ¼ pound fresh ginger, washed, peeled and chopped 1¼ cups sugar 2 liters water Yeast, either active dry or brewer’s, such as champagne Instructions Boil water and add ginger and sugar, then stir. Let boil for 10 minutes, then remove from heat and allow to cool sufficiently (I often let it cool overnight just to be safe). Once cooled, pour into a plastic screw-top bottle, leaving a third of the bottle empty for flavoring. Fruit juices like lemon, grapefruit or pineapple work well. Once you have your flavoring in, add a smidge of yeast (bread yeast works, but brewer’s yeast is the best. My favorite is champagne yeast). If using champagne yeast, add 1/32 teaspoon (it’s powerful stuff!). Shake and then place in a warm location. The ginger beer is ready when the bottle is firm, in two to three days. Place the bottle in the refrigerator. When you are ready to open the ginger beer, do it outside, as the fermentation may cause it to blast and bubble out in a very messy way.

Reusable containers are a great way to reduce waste when packing lunch. Photo by Stefanie Keeler. Looking for ways to pack lunch without adding single-use plastics to the landfill? A recent study highlighted the amount of trash created by weekly use of disposable items at lunchtime alone, and found an average family of 3 generates 18 pieces of trash per day, or 3240 pieces annually by using items such as plastic baggies and utensils, paper napkins and single use beverages. A typical American child generates 67 pounds of discarded lunchbox packaging waste per school year, which is more than 18,000 pounds annually for an average elementary school and over 1 billion pounds nationally. Here are some easy tips for reducing your packaging footprint: 1. Shop locally at farmers’ markets and buy fresh unpackaged produce. 2. Bring reusable bags. Always! 3. Buy bulk and cut back on pre-packaged snacks and goods. 4. Opt for reusable beverage bottles, such as stainless steel canteens or Mason jars. 5. Switch to reusable utensils. Set aside a set of utensils just for lunch away from home. 6. Look for condiments, jams and jellies in reusable glass containers or make your own mayonnaise, ketchup and dressing. 7. Say no to baggies. Use Mason jars and stainless food containers instead. 8. Pack lunch in a reusable container. Metal lunch boxes are making a comeback, and Bento boxes have separate, stackable compartments for all your lunch goodies. 9. When home, recycle any used packaging and compost any leftover food. 10. Let your produce loose! No need to bag your produce twice. Put it in your cart, then bag it once asyou pay and leave the store. 11. Eat lunch from a food truck daily? Bring your own dish or plate. 12. Request minimal packaging when ordering food to go.

Reduce food waste by composting leftover food scraps, then use the dirt for your garden. Photos by Lexi Mire. Composting leftover food scraps helps reduce trash in the landfill and creates nutrient-rich soil. Think those extra bits of food you leave on your plate at a restaurant, or those slightly blemished veggies you toss from your fridge don't have an impact on the environment? Think again. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, food waste that goes to landfills breaks down anaerobically and produces methane, which is 21 times more potent than CO2 as a greenhouse gas, and in the U.S., it's becoming a significant ecological problem. Additionally, wasted food is an economic concern. In the restaurant world, reducing food waste is a priority, given its impact on profitability and the bottom line. Yet even those eateries which plan menus based on total utilization (that is, using every part of an ingredient, such as carrots and carrot tops) deal with the reality of foodscraps and unused surplus heading to the landfill. Such was the situation Tiffany Bess found when she started work managing a local restaurant in 2014. Having assessed their operations over time, Bess took steps to change their practices and pursued alternative ways to deal with scraps. When initial searches for an organic waste recycler proved futile, Bess launched her own in-house composting initiative. A few years later, her passion propelled her into a full-time business pursuit. As the owner of Apple Rabbit Compost, Bess collects food scraps for a small but growing number of residential and commercial customers. Throughout Northeast Florida, efforts to compost and help reduce waste are largely independent initiatives, as there is no policy mandating reduction of food going into landfills — for now. Some advocates say they believe the region shows promise for more widespread progress. “The missed opportunities to divert food from landfills is something to be concerned about,” says Laureen Husband, who works with Feeding Northeast Florida and is a member of the Duval County Food Policy Council. “We are looking to identify opportunities for small farms, businesses and individuals like you and me to prevent food from being discarded into a landfill and otherwise use it to replenish the earth to make more healthy food.” Composting is a natural way of recycling organic matter, and often includes grass clippings, coffee grounds and leftover vegetable scraps. The result is a nutrient rich, dark soil amendment with myriad benefits. It promotes soil microbes that aid plant growth, helps balance the soil’s pH level, reduces pests and otherwise fosters a more sustainable ecosystem. Husband, who has spent years working in the community health sector in Northeast Florida, says she is not aware of any government-led initiatives to divert food scraps from landfills in any of NortheastFlorida’s counties. Joseph England, chair of the policy and issues committee for the Florida Food Policy Council, said many local-level composting efforts operate outside of state regulations. Currently, food is characterized as solid waste by state statute; therefore, anyone transporting food waste — even small composting efforts — is required to be certified as a solid waste hauler by the state. Even if official changes are made at the state level, Florida still lacks facilities that can process food, either though composting or anaerobic digestion, England said. The lack of infrastructure and widespread public support haven’t deterred many Northeast Florida food-related businesses from cultivating their own ingenuity.