Jamie Oliver is challenging schools, workplaces, families, and restaurants alike to organize healthy eating events.  The hope is for the world to band together to shed light on the importance of eating healthfully and teaching our children the importance of proper nutrition.  Whether you host a dinner party, prepare a healthy snack, try a new recipe, visit the farmers market, or whatever it may be, you can participate.  Food Revolution Day is about educating and inspiring people to learn more about food, where it comes from and how it affects our bodies.

Fewer schools are putting an emphasis on health and physical education courses.  Families have put home cooked meals on the back burner.  Many don’t enjoy regular meals as a family.  With each generation we are losing our ability to menu plan, grocery shop, and cook.  Whether our excuse is time, availability or ability, the art of home cooking is slowly dwindling.  Food Revolution Day is about bringing back the joy and excitement of cooking and eating together.

Celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Sir Elton John, Orlando Bloom and Justin Bieber are supporting Jamie Oliver and Food Revolution Day.  The British chef himself will be hosting a virtual party on Google+ at 8pm Eastern Time, taking questions from participants.

For more info, visit http://www.foodrevolutionday.com. For how to participate in Oliver’s Google+ hangout, watch his video invite here, http://bit.ly/K0aDgV.

What tastes like spring more than vibrant green asparagus spears? Here’s a sure way to get your kids (and your husband) to happily eat their vegetables. This roll is packed with delicious crispy, tender asparagus spears rolling in herbed sushi rice

For the Asparagus Tempura

Vegetable oil, for frying

1 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon canola oil

1 cup club soda

Salt

16 thin asparagus spears, trimmed

Lemon wedges and ponzu sauce

In a medium bowl, whisk the rice flour with the baking powder, baking soda, canola oil, club soda and 1 teaspoon of salt until smooth.

Heat 1 inch of vegetable oil to 350°.

Dip the asparagus in the batter and fry, in batches if necessary, until golden and crisp, about 2 minutes. Drain the asparagus on paper towels and season lightly with salt. Set aside.

Herbed Sushi Rice

2 cups prepared sushi rice

1/2 cups parsley leaves

1/4 cup celery leaves

5 large basil leaves

1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

3 teaspoons sesame seeds, toasted

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/2 teaspoon crystal salt flakes

In a food processor, or mortar and pestle, pulse or grind the parsley, celery leaves, basil, lemon zest and crushed red pepper. Transfer to a bowl and season with salt fakes.  Turn gently into prepared sushi rice to combine.

1. Place Corn, Carrot or Tomato Origami Wrapper wrapper shiny side down on rolling mat.

2. Lay in herbed sushi rice leaving  a 1-inch rice-free border at the top. Lay in 2 pairs of asparagus spears horizontally in middle of  rice with heads protruding slightly over the end of wrappers.

3. Lightly swipe border with a damp brush. Roll forward using mat and let roll rest for 1 minute on seam to seal.

4. Cut into 8 pieces and serve with lemon wedges and ponzu sauce.

-Plant a tree in your yard

-Start a garden

-Create a compost pile or bin

-Volunteer at a community trash pick up

-Bring recyclables to a recycling center

-Donate old clothing and household items

-Visit your local farmers market

-Attend a citywide Earth Day celebration

-Watch an environmentally educational film

-Visit a National Park or Nature Reserve and take a hike

-Build a bird feeder or bird house

-Go see the animals at the zoo or aquarium

Earth Day Every Day

-Brush your teeth with the water off

-Recycle your electronics, plastics, cans, and paper products

-Use reusable bags when shopping

-Opt for direct deposit, online statements and bill pay

-Trade bottled water for a reusable water bottle

-Unplug appliances when not in use

-Take public transportation when possible

-Use environmentally friendly cleaners and detergents

Matthew Du Bord, our founder father, had driven a rainy 3-hour round-trip drive to my house on NYE eve to carefully hand-deliver a shopping bag full of supremely pristine Gem Wrap packages with perfect labels in stiff white bubble envelopes. He handed them over with a raised eyebrow.

“Do NOT bend these. Or wrinkle or crease or dirty them. These are the beauties and HSN will not let go on the air if they are imperfect in anyway.”

I accepted the bag and my mission. I held next to me in the car so it wouldn’t slide around on the way to the airport. Like you would if you had to transport cupcakes to the neighbor’s house. Only I wasn’t going to the neighbors. I was driving to SFO from Napa then flying across the country to Tampa.

To HSN. To our BIG break on television. To the chance our little company had struggled and  waited for- over 4 and half years.

Besides being excited and a little nervous about cooking, talking  and prepping for 3 separate shows in 10 hours , I now had to deliver the “beauties” unmarred.  I could do it! I would do it! Or so I thought—until I met the TSA at SFO airport.

The “beauties”

I laid the bag full of the perfect Wraps in a bin and gently pushed it onto the rolling conveyor belt. I smiled at the agent as he waved me through the machine. I collected my other bag, my boots, my coat. My wraps? They were stopped inside the X-ray machine. TSA agents began gathering around the screen pointing and looking over at me with concerned scowls. Finally, one agent brought the bin around and dropped it in front of me.

Easy!! I thought.

He looked at me, his head tilted, worried- “These yours?”

“Yes, sir!” I said. “Everything ok?”

His eyes widened, dramatically. “No, Ma’am, It is not. What are these?”

I hesitated. All right! Yes- I scanned a few optional answered besides the truth—but—these wraps are so unique, never been seen on TV or anywhere- could I explain them? What if they took them?  They were our beauties- they were our show!

“Um. They. Are. Papers! Colored papers!”

Colored papers? What the…?

The agent shook his head, disappointed.

“No Ma’am. These are registering on the machine as…. cake.”

I froze. I laughed a little. “Cake? “

He nodded importantly, “Yes. Cake.”

He looked at me for an answer.  I smiled stupidly at him, nodding. “Uh!”

“So?”

“Sooooo. Cake is okay, right?”

“Yes, it is, Ma’am. You can tell us it’s cake, next time.”

“Oh! Right. Okay. Thank you, sir.” I had my hand on the handle now. “Thanks a lot. Have great day.”

He held the bag for a second and then nodded sharply again.

“You, too, ma’am”

I bolted with the wraps safely in my grasp, thanking all the security goddesses and cake gods. We were safe. We were on our way to Tampa.

The rest of the trip was a breeze. The staff at HSN were cheerful, warm and excited about the wraps like they were the new, cool kids on the block. Producers to cameramen to hosts wandered in and out of the prep kitchen while we got our banquet table prepped for the shows. They asked questions,  accepted tasty bites, said they were going to buy some, too. We had 3 great shows- including the 3 AM time slot! Everything looked beautiful, my hosts were great and their ethusiasm was inspiring to me and most importantly to their viewers.  I managed to speak and roll and talk all at once without much stuttering. Whatever we did must have been right- because we were fortunate enough to sell out in 3, twelve minute shows. Yes!! Thank you!!

A bouquet of wraps

The table at HSN

We’ll be back on HSN March 12^th.  Show times TBD.  See you there!

1. Baby steps- don’t set unreachable goals.  You’ll have more success if you set goals you can realistically attain.  It may help to set interim goals from beginning to end goal.
2. Create distractions- plan errands, go exercise, or visit friends during down time to avoid temptation to deviate from your goals.
3. Get a friend to join you- having someone else to keep you motivated will likely be more fun and more successful.
4. Track your progress- take notes along the way, keep a food diary, create a budget, or write down your feelings.
5. Allow mistakes- don’t let little mishaps mess up your whole plan.  It’s okay to mess up now and then, just keep at it the rest of the time.
6. Make a pros and cons list- keep track of the positive gains you receive from change and remind yourself of the negatives of past behaviors.
7. Tell others your resolution- if other people know what your goal is they can help keep you on top of it.
8. Give yourself small rewards- allow yourself mini celebrations when you’ve made significant progress on your goals.
9. Make it cost you- whether it’s getting up earlier or paying for a trainer investments may make it more worth your while.
10. Don’t give up- we’ve heard before it takes 30 days to make a new habit.  After that it’ll be a piece of cake.