By the time this news column is published, I will have returned from a vacation that included some fun in the sun with an occasional Zoom meeting to keep me connected to what was going on at work. During my time away from the office, I finished up an on-line course titled, “Reframing Aging.” The instructors were passionate about helping us see how important it is to recognize the contributions of older residents in our community. I enjoyed sharing stories in the break out rooms about the many times I have enlisted the help of older adults to teach sewing or fiber arts workshops to young people. In our fast-paced world, it is important that basic life skills are passed on and don’t become a lost art. I’m looking forward to sharing more of what I learned from the Reframing Aging class in future columns.
The last three days of our road trip were spent in Ames Iowa, to share a session with Extension Educators there about how to teach fermentation workshops. One of the participants had heard my on-line presentation at a national meeting last fall, so it was a pleasant surprise to be invited to teach an in-person class at their professional development meeting. Now that I have a few hands-on fermentation workshops under my belt, I have some interesting stories to share.
The process of how to ferment vegetables is a popular topic and a wide variety of fermentation kits on the market make it safe and easy to accomplish. Fermentation is the oldest form of food preservation, with stories of it’s start, well over 7000 years ago. The fact sheet I wrote two years ago, titled, “Taking a New Look at Fermented Foods” is available to download from the K-State Research and Extension bookstore. It highlights the process as well as the health benefits including a small amount of fermented food in your diet can provide.
As I return to the office and turn the calendar to May I invite you to take a look at the upcoming programs in the Cottonwood Extension District. Visit our website at [email protected] to check out our May newsletter which includes these fun learning opportunities.
Donna Krug is the District Director and Family & Consumer Science Agent for K-State Research & Extension – Cottonwood District. You may reach her at: (620)793-1910 or [email protected]