Try Day to Feature Plantains

posted 10/11/21 -- Try Day has become a student and staff favorite in LCCAA Head Start.

New foods are introduced in a variety of ways in the classroom and this month plantains are featured. Plantains look like large bananas. They are technically fruits, but much like the tomato and unlike the banana, they are eaten and cooked as if they were a vegetable.

Harder to peel (especially when green) than bananas, plantains cannot be eaten raw. They must be cooked and are an important part of Central and South American, Caribbean, African, and Southeast Asian cuisines.

Plantains are very versatile and typically inexpensive. They are always ready for cooking no matter what stage of ripeness—green, yellow, or black—and used in a variety of dishes, from appetizers to desserts. They just need to be peeled when raw.

LCCAA Head Start students will get to explore a whole plantain in class so they can feel, smell and see the food. Lunch on Friday, Oct. 22 will include a sample of plantains which will also be sent home for parents to try. Parents can complete a survey to be entered into a drawing for a George Foreman panini press.

Sweet Plantains

Ingredients

1/3 cup water

3T brown sugar (packed)

2T margarine

2 1/2 tsp. raw ginger root slices

2 1/2 lbs. raw yellow plantains in medium sized slices

Preparation Instructions:

1. Place plantains into a baking pan. Spread evenly. Set aside for step 4.

2. Melt margarine in a small pot uncovered over medium heat.

3. Add sugar, water, and ginger. Stir well until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat.

4. Pour ginger mixture over plantains in baking pan.

5. Bake at 350 °F for 15-25 minutes