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Fresh, local produce featured at Eat'n Park for the week of July 29, 2013.

• Brenckle Farms, Butler County, PA
• Yarnick Farms, Indiana, PA
• Harvest Valley Farms, Butler County, PA

• Yarnick Farms, Indiana, PA
• Harvest Valley Farms, Butler County, PA
• Brenckle Farms, Butler County, PA

Grape Tomatoes

• Yarnick Farms, Indiana, PA

• Brenckle Farms, Butler County, PA
• Holthouse Farms, Willard, OH

• Yarnick Farms, Indiana, PA
• Wier’s Farms, Willard, OH

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At Eat’n Park, we’ve made a commitment to helping children and their families make healthier choices. One of the ways that we do that is through volunteerism. Read on to see how Jamie Moore, our Director of Sourcing and Sustainability, shared his talents with a group of local students.

One of the organizations that I actively volunteer with is called Slow Food Pittsburgh. They recently partnered with the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens on assisting with hands-on cooking classes for their high school interns through a program called "Learning for a Greener Future".  Cooking is a great life skill that these young adults can take with them as they grow into independent adults. I was excited and honored to be one of their instructors for the afternoon. 

"Learning for a Greener Future" Students

On July 11, I got a chance to teach the young adults some simple but useful cooking techniques with a recipe that will wow their friends. I decided to teach them how to make a veggie hoagie that utilized the following locally grown vegetables: zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, tomatoes, lettuce and red peppers.  

Since these students are going to be heading off to college or starting a place of their own, I made sure that I showed them ways to save money when cooking. One of the cost-cutting ideas I showed them was how to roast a red pepper versus purchasing them already roasted. It’s so easy - all you need is a gas stove top or a grill. Simply put the pepper on the open fire or grill and continue to turn until the pepper is charred black. Place it in a paper bag and let sit until its cool. Once cool, the skin from the pepper can easily be pulled off.

Roasting red peppers

After all of the veggies were sliced and roasted, we assembled the hoagies by layering the vegetables onto a large loaf of ciabatta bread.

Assembling the hoagies

Making homemade vinaigrette

After the hoagies were done we sat together and enjoyed them as well as an awesome carrot zucchini cake that Alyce Amery-Spencer a member of Slow Food Pittsburgh made the night before. 

I enjoy teaching young people how to cook because it’s an essential skill that they won’t forget. Plus it aligns with Eat’n Park’s LifeSmiles program, which aims to empower both children and their parents to make healthier choices.  

Below is the recipe for these hoagies. Enjoy!

Until Next time,

Jamie
Director of Sourcing & Sustainability

Roasted Veggie Hoagie
Yield: 1 large Hoagie (serves 4 – 6)

• 1 yellow squash, ¼” slices
• 1 zucchini, ¼” slices
• 1 eggplant (Japanese or small eggplants), ¼” slices 
• ½ of a Red onion, ¼” slices
• 3 plum tomatoes, ½” slices
• 1 red pepper
• 1 head of bitter lettuce (Frissee or Arugula)
• ¼ lb. Brick or Munster Cheese (or any cheese that you prefer)
• ¼ cup Dijon mustard
• 1 loaf ciabatta bread
• 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 2 tsp. thyme or other fresh herb
• ¼ cup red wine vinaigrette (Recipe below)
• Humus (Recipe below)
  

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Slice the first 5 items according to the instructions above.  Add the sliced squash, eggplant and yellow squash to a large bowl and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper and thyme.  Arrange these vegetables on sheet trays and roast in the oven for 15 minutes, flip vegetables over half way through roasting.

Set aside until assembly of the sandwich.

In the meantime, prepare hummus and vinaigrette (recipes below). 

To roast the red peppers, first wash and dry them. Turn one burner on the stove and place pepper in the center. Continue to char the pepper until they are 80% blackened.  Place charred pepper inside of a paper bag.  Let set for 10 minutes. Remove the charred skin and seeds and slice into ½” strips. 
Slice ciabatta bread in half long ways. Spread hummus on the bottom half of the bread then layer with sliced onion, zucchini, eggplant, yellow squash, cheese and red peppers. On the other half of bread, spread Dijon mustard then tomatoes and lettuce.  Drizzle vinaigrette over the lettuce and place on top of the bottom of the sandwich. If you’re going to toast the sandwich in the oven don’t put the top with the lettuce and tomato on until after. To toast sandwich, turn on broiler and broil for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.  

Slice sandwich into 4 or 6 slices.   

• 1 ½ tbsp. Red wine vinegar
• 1 medium garlic clove, peeled and minced
• 2 tsps. Dijon mustard
• ½ tsp. sugar or honey
• 2 tbsp. Olive oil

Instructions:
In a small bowl add the first 4 ingredients and whisk together with a wire whip.  While stirring slowly add olive oil and whisk until oil has combined with the other ingredients.

• 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 medium garlic clove, peeled and smashed
• Juice of 1 medium lemon
• 1/4 cup roasted tahini
• 1/4 cup water, plus more as needed
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to serve
• Salt

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Hello everyone! It’s Smiley, here, ready to report on my awesome weekend with my team. We started the weekend at the Saints Simon and Jude parish festival in Greentree, and we concluded on Monday at the Eat’n Park Hospitality Group’s company picnic at Cedar Point.

On Saturday, we traveled to Green, Ohio for WKDD Kidz Day, which was a great event for everyone involved. The day began with a rainy drive to Ohio, but we arrived to an enthusiastic event staff and everyone was so excited to eat Smiley Cookies! The event was sponsored by WKDD radio station, and there were many different booths, vendors, and performers set up to provide fun and entertainment. 

Hanging out at WKDD Kidz Day

My crew and I took a stroll around the park grounds to see everything that was set up. Highlights for us included Sit Means Sit dog training, The Pierogi Lady, the life flight helicopter, Iron Man inflatable obstacle courses, Fred the blind pony, and the many different Ohio sports teams that were represented. We saw some great performers as well, including dance academy showcases, dancing robots, and Alex Angelo, an up-and-coming local DJ. I got to meet some other mascots as well, including the very tall frogs from Sweet Frog Frozen Yogurt. 

I got to meet the Sweet Frogs

Guests at the event had a wonderful time decorating their own Smiley Cookies and sharing Smiley Cookies with their families. Some people even had their first Smiley Cookie at this event, and they responded with rave reviews! We were so glad to be a part of this event, spreading smiles and Cookies to everyone in Ohio.

What a great day!

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Last fall, we announced our support of a new initiative aimed at improving the health of our area’s children by mobilizing and motivating our community. FitUnited, launched by The United Way of Allegheny County, was a natural fit (no pun intended) with our goal of creating a healthier future for our children.

FitUnited brings together like-minded organizations to support this objective through education and outreach. How? By encouraging healthy eating at youth-serving organizations, increasing awareness of how to choose and access healthy foods, and increasing physical activity, for starters.

And who better exemplifies physical activity than our own Pittsburgh Pirates? This video, featuring Pirate Neil Walker and his teammates, illustrates just how easy it is to be a healthy role model for kids.



To learn more about FitUnited, click here.


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Fresh, local produce featured at Eat'n Park for the week of July 22, 2013.

Zucchini

• Brenckle Farms, Butler County, PA
• Yarnick Farms, Indiana, PA
• Harvest Valley Farms, Butler County, PA
• Wexford Farms, Butler County, PA

Yellow Squash

• Yarnick Farms, Indiana, PA
• Harvest Valley Farms, Butler County, PA
• Wexford Farms, Butler County, PA

Cabbage

• Yarnick Farms, Indiana, PA

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Hi friends! It’s Smiley, and last weekend was an eventful weekend that consisted of a parish festival, a walk supporting epilepsy, and the pre-Pirates game Kids Day at PNC Park. On Tuesday, Team Smiley and I were invited to attend the WPXI Skylights Media Day at Heinz Field. Football teams, cheerleading squads, and marching bands from around the Pittsburgh area gathered together for a collective pep rally! We, of course, were the cookie suppliers of the event!

I was able to do so many fun things while at Heinz Field. I hung out with my friend Sarah Marince and I met football great, Hines Ward and 96.1 radio hosts, Mikey and Big Bob. Not only did I visit with these smiling faces, but I met a bunch of football players and cheerleaders who had just as much pep as I do!


Here I am with Mikey & Big Bob from KISS FM and Sarah Marince

Football players love Smiley

Filming the WPXI Skylights commercial

I am so excited to be a part of this WPIAL football tradition. I can’t wait for the season to begin so I can cheer on my favorite teams!


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It’s hard to believe that our endless Soup & Salad Bar has been around since 1978. What can we say; guests love our fresh-cut fruit, homemade soups, and abundance of salad bar toppings! But we wanted to make our Salad Bar even better – so let me introduce you to our new Soup, Salad, and Fruit Bar.

Let’s start with our lettuce choices. We now feature three different types of lettuce every single day. Choose from mixed greens, or alternating spinach, Romaine, and spring mix.

We’ve also added:

• Dried Cranberries
• Mandarin Oranges
• Pasta
• Corn & Black Bean Salsa
• Combination of red and green peppers (fresh from local  farms, in season)

But we didn’t stop there. We have two new salad dressings: Red Wine Vinaigrette and Citrus Lime Vinaigrette. Give them a try – they are both light and refreshing options!

You can also enjoy our new homemade prepared salads that will be rotated throughout the week.



Waldorf Salad (Sundays) – First presented at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in 1893, this salad is made form apples, grapes, walnuts, celery, and mayonnaise.



Couscous & Black Bean Salad (Mondays) - A staple in Mediterranean diets; coarsely ground semolina wheat pasta formed into tiny pasta “grains”. Tossed with fresh diced tomatoes, black beans, peppers, and citrus lime vinaigrette.




Tomato & Cucumber Salad (Tuesdays) -  Fresh local tomatoes and crisp cucumbers tossed in Italian dressing.





Grilled Fresh Marinated Vegetables (Wednesdays) – Zucchini, mushrooms, and onions all sliced, marinated, and chargrilled to perfection.




Couscous Salad (Thursdays) – A staple in Mediterranean diets; coarsely ground semolina wheat pasta formed into tiny pasta “grains”. Tossed with roasted sweet potatoes, garbanzo beans, red peppers and raisins.






Macaroni Salad (Fridays) – A classic salad sure to be a favorite!






Potato Salad (Saturdays) – Just like Grandma’s Fourth of July salad…made fresh every day!



And as always, we have an abundance of fresh hand-cut fruit, homemade soups, and housemade breads on our bar.  Are you hungry yet?


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