Dishing It Up!

by Victoria Mattson

Victoria Mattson is a local cook, confectionaire and writer. She offers healthy and nutritious recipes and food tips in each issue of North County Outlook. Phone (360) 658-9903 or e-mail victoria@northcountyoutlook.com.

Recently the Snohomish County Health District released a study, "Obesity in Our Community." Among its key findings was "from 1994-2007, the percentage of adults who are obese in Snohomish County doubled." Many of you may have heard of this as a passing sound-bite on the local news which reported that Marysville's 98270 zip code contains the "fattest" population. Clearly systemic changes are needed to reverse this trend.

The Marysville Healthy Communities Project (MHCP) is aimed squarely at such change. The purpose of the project is to "provide a framework in which Marysville's policymakers can build and support an environment that makes it easier for Marysville residents to choose healthy foods and be physically active." MHCP aims to encourage use of the local parks and trail systems to support people's efforts to become more active.

Secondly, to increase the access to healthy foods, MCHP hopes to establish a community garden. MHCP plans are already underway for the creation of a community garden next to Kellogg-Marsh Elementary School. Community gardens provide an opportunity for increased physical activity and easier access to healthy foods. Given the abundance of produce from such a garden, excess produce will be donated to local food banks. This multiplies such a garden's impact by offering patrons of the food banks fresh fruits and vegetables.

Independent of the Healthy Communities Project, a group of M-PHS students, guided by math teacher Emily Lefstad, are involved in a community garden project with Sunnyside Nursery. They had a bountiful harvest this past season, enabling a generous donation of produce to the Marysville Food Bank.

With an abundance of locally grown produce available, families can incorporate more fresh fruits and vegetables into their meals. The recipe below can be made with a multitude of fresh vegetables. Use the vegetables in this recipe as a guide, but feel free to add whatever you have on hand. Peas, carrots and zucchini are also excellent additions to a pilaf.



Rice Pilaf with Fresh Vegetables



11/2 cup brown rice

3 cups low-sodium chicken broth

2 TBSP butter

2 TBSP Olive Oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 tomato, peeled and chopped

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 cup broccoli, chopped

1 cup mushrooms, chopped

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper



Put brown rice in saucepan with chicken broth. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Meanwhile, in a separate skillet, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for about 5 minutes until soft. Add the chopped tomato, red pepper and broccoli.

Cook, stirring for about 10 minutes until the vegetables are crisp tender. Add the mushrooms and cook for 3 minutes more. Season with cayenne pepper. Add the rice to the vegetable skillet and continue cooking until rice is heated through.

To read the full report, "Obesity in our Community" visit www.snohd.org/snoWellness/ObesityBrief.htm. To find out more about the Marysville Healthy Communities Project, visit www.marysvillehealthycommunitiesproject.com.



Victoria Mattson is owner of Let's Dish!, a "make and take meal kitchen" located at 11605 State Ave. in Marysville. Phone 360-658-9903 or visit www.letsdish.com.