Students at Academy School in Brattleboro enjoyed diverse taste tests of sweet potatoes, the Vermont Harvest of the Month for November, thanks to Academy’s garden coordinator, Kathy Cassin. Taste tests look different this fall because of meal program changes due to COVID-19.

Currently, Academy’s Food Service Professionals are preparing unitized meals for students at multiple schools in the district and they do not have the capacity to prepare taste tests from the cafeteria for Academy School students as they normally would. Kathy was able to find a creative solution to this problem. Meeting with small groups of students, mostly outside in the school’s gardens and outdoor classrooms, each of which has its own fire pit for cooking, Kathy made roasted sweet potatoes over the fire with several groups of students. She also baked sweet potato cookies at home and brought them in to share with students (a big hit!), and she made sweet potato hummus which she served to students with sweet potato crackers and chips purchased at the Brattleboro Food Coop.

Later this month, she will support the kindergarten class with their annual stone soup celebration, and they plan to add sweet potatoes to the soup. Kathy is spreading the word about sweet potatoes to families via recipes and fun facts in the school newsletter, and sharing photos of her cooking and taste tests with students on the school garden Facebook page.