Food for Thought : Fall is on the way

Although it does not start for almost one more month , according to most , fall is almost here . It is important for children and adults to keep up healthy nutrition and physical activity habits during the fall months when schedules may not be structured . 
Here are a few tips to help you and your child to keep up good nutrition and fitness habits while being in  school  or work :

1 .   Sign your child up for an organized sport or physical activity class such as soccer or football after school . 
For young children , pick something that you and your child can do together . For older children , find something that encourages socialization .

2.   Set your family after school activity time  . Going to a park , riding a bike or even taking a short walk in your neighborhood can easily be done once the temperature cools a little .

3 .   Spice up your family's menus . This is the prefect time to let your children experiment with new recipes and to help them learn cooking skills . Choose age appropriate tasks to let them practice during the weekends  . Tasks such as planning the week's menu , making a grocery list or starting dinner can easily be done by older children.
-- The Carano's Famous Hot Dog & Fries  --by Jonny Carano--

4        natural casing all-beef franks 
4        fresh hot dog buns 
1        small white onion, finely chopped 
8        jarred sport pickled peppers (or sub pickled hot peppers) 
Homemade Bread and Butter Relish, for serving, (recipe follows )
Yellow mustard, for slathering 
Hand Cut Fries with Celery Salt, for serving, (recipe follows )

Homemade Bread and Butter Relish: 
1       cup bread and butter pickles, finely diced 
1       tablespoon pickled cherry peppers, finely diced 
1       teaspoon sugar 
Hand Cut Fries with Celery Salt: 
Vegetable oil 
4       large russet potatoes, scrubbed 
Celery salt, for sprinkling

1 .   Set up a large pot with a steamer insert and steam the franks until warm, about 5 minutes. When the franks are almost done, place the buns on top of the franks to steam, 1 to 2 minutes. Place the franks in the buns and top each with some of the onions, 2 peppers, some Homemade Bread and Butter 

2 .  Relish and slather with mustard. To serve, top the franks with a handful of Hand Cut Fries with Celery Salt, wrap each frank in foil and let steam, 2 to 3 minutes, before eating. Eat on the towel-lined trunk of a car.

Homemade Bread and Butter Relish: 
Combine the pickles, peppers and sugar in a bowl and mix well. Serve. Yield: 1 cup.

Hand Cut Fries with Celery Salt: 

1 .   Fill a 6-quart heavy pot or Dutch oven two-thirds of the way full with oil. Heat the oil over medium-high heat until a deep-fat thermometer registers 375 degrees F.

2 .   Cut the potatoes lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick sticks. Fry the potatoes in batches, until golden brown, 8 minutes per batch. Transfer the potatoes with a slotted spoon to a paper-towel-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with celery salt and serve immediately.

Words of Wisdom:

“Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.” 

“Life is not discovery of fate; it is continuous creation of future, through choices of thoughts, feelings and actions in the present.” 

“The path to our destination is not always a straight one. We go down the wrong road, we get lost, we turn back. Maybe it doesn’t matter which road we embark on. Maybe what matters is that we embark.” 

“I think the purpose of life is to be useful, to be responsible, to be honorable, to be compassionate. It is, after all, to matter: to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all.” 

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life and don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. Most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.” 

“When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live your life so that when you die, the world cries and you rejoice.” 

A proud grand-poppa               G .