Harvests of the Month are a hit at Kids Unlimited Academy!

Sampling bruschetta in the KUA cafeteria, 98% of students LOVED the recipe featuring farm-fresh tomatoes with garlic and basil grown in our own KUA garden. Harvest of the Month tasting tables are an extension of garden instruction for every grade at KUA, including Pre-K.

Twice-weekly garden classes put kids to work picking and planting vegetables, learning about cycles and seasons, saving seeds and even identifying insect life while on “bug safari.” These lessons are held on KUA’s Medford and White City campuses.

“They have had introductions to plant needs — cool weather versus warm weather crops — and will continue to work hard to create and enjoy a fall garden,” said KUA garden educator and coordinator Alyssa Buswell. “Fall is a great time to learn about cycles and seasons.”

Seeds sown in the school’s winter garden include beets, carrots, lettuce, broccoli, bok choy and more basil. As they planted cold-weather vegetables, students returning to KUA in August also harvested the fruits of their summer labors. Zucchini, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers; fresh herbs, corn, kale; blackberries, strawberries, plums and grapes all were sampled since school has been back in session.

Zucchini, said Buswell, has been an eye-opener for students, who loved it baked into zucchini bread and garnished with cheese.

“We have made several delicious meals already, including zucchini with butter and Parmesan, tomato-cucumber-herb salad and have taste-tested lemon cucumbers versus slicing cucumbers.”

A different fresh fruit or vegetable is featured in each month’s KUA cafeteria tastings — October’s is all about apples. Try out a tasty, healthy recipe for Baked Apples in September’s KUA newsletter.