Family Meal Plan: All Shook-Up Roasted Lemon Potatoes + Crunchy-Creamy Celery Salad + Lemon Celery Smoothie

All Shook-Up Roasted Lemon Potatoes

Happy & Healthy Cooking,

Fun-Da-Mentals Kitchen Skills

• blend :

  to stir together two or more ingredients until just combined; blending is a gentler process than mixing.

• chop :

  to cut something into small, rough pieces using a blade.

• measure :

  to calculate the specific amount of an ingredient required using a measuring tool (like measuring cups or spoons).

• pour :

  to cause liquid, granules, or powder to stream from one container into another.

• roast :

  to cook foods, like meats and vegetables, surrounded by dry heat in an oven, over an open flame, or in a pan on the stovetop.

• shake :

  to rapidly and vigorously move a covered container filled with food up and down and side to side to combine ingredients and create a different consistency, such as shaking whipped cream to make butter.

• slice :

  to cut into thin pieces using a sawing motion with your knife.

• stir :

  to mix together two or more ingredients with a spoon or spatula, usually in a circle pattern, or figure eight, or in whatever direction you like!

History of Roasted Potatoes!

• Potatoes originated in the South American country of Peru and are very popular there. They serve them in many ways, including roasted. 
• Sunday dinners in the United Kingdom and Ireland often include roasted potatoes with the meat roast.
• Roasted potatoes generally include oil, salt, pepper, and herbs. Various herbs such as parsley, rosemary, thyme, cilantro, dill, or oregano may be added to the potatoes.
• If the potatoes are small, like new potatoes or fingerlings, they can be roasted whole. Medium to large potatoes may be cut into wedges or in half before roasting in the oven or in a pan on the stove. They may be roasted by themselves or with meat or other vegetables.
• Crispy, tender roasted potatoes are a delicious side served with breakfast or dinner!

Let's Learn About Peru!

• Peru is the third largest country on the South American continent, after Brazil and Argentina. It is on the western coast, next to the Pacific Ocean.
• Peru shares borders with five countries: Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia, and Chile.
• Lima is Peru's capital and largest city. The country's official languages are Spanish, Quechua, Aymara, and other indigenous languages.
• Peru is a unitary presidential republic with a president, vice-president, prime minister, and congress. Its currency is the Peruvian sol. 
• The land area of Peru is 496,225 square miles. It is larger than the state of Texas but smaller than Alaska. Over 34 million people live in Peru. 
• Peru's landscape has beaches, deserts, mountains, and rainforests. Most people live along the coast, where the capital, Lima, is located. 
• Machu Picchu, the "lost city of the Incas," is located in Peru and is one of the World's New Seven Wonders. It was built by hand in the Sacred Valley over 8,000 feet above sea level and rediscovered in 1911. You have to hike or take a bus to get to Machu Picchu. 
• The Giant Andean Condor is the largest flying bird on Earth and can be found in Peru.
• Guinea pigs are a delicacy eaten in Peru! They are called "cuy" (pronounced "Coo-wee").
• The Amazon River starts in Peru and runs through six other South American countries. Some consider the Amazon the world's longest river; however, other experts say that honor belongs to the Nile River in Africa.
• The Andes mountain range, at 4,300 miles, is the longest above-water mountain range in the world. It runs through seven countries, north to south, including Peru. 
• Over half of Peru is covered by forest, much of it rainforest.
• Peru is home to an extensive and diverse selection of plants and animals. Yet Peruvians have not impacted their natural world like many other countries, and many of these ecosystems have been undisturbed.
• Did you know that in less than half a square mile of the Peruvian rainforest, there are more than 6,000 kinds of plants?
• Some of the main crops of Peru have been cultivated for thousands of years. A few of those crops are quinoa, potatoes, beans, peppers, maize, and tomatoes. The potato originated in Peru. 
• Peru's cuisine has been influenced by its indigenous population, including the Inca, and cuisines brought in by colonizers and immigrants from Europe, Asia, and West Africa. Without familiar ingredients from their home countries, immigrants modified their traditional cuisines with those native to Peru. 
• "Chifa" (CHEE-fa) is one of these cuisines, combining foods Chinese immigrants brought to Peru in the 19th and early 20th centuries with Peruvian ingredients.
• "Ceviche" (seh-VEE-chay) is a seafood dish that originated in Peru. Chunks of raw, fresh fish are marinated in key lime juice, seasoned with chili peppers, coriander, julienned onion, salt, and pepper.  

What's It Like to Be a Kid in Peru?

• Peruvian kids attend school from March to December. Peru is in the Southern Hemisphere, so its seasons are opposite those of the Northern Hemisphere, with summer months from November to March. 
• Families are close in Peru, and kids enjoy family gatherings with many relatives. 
• Peruvian kids like to play a game called Sapo, where they try to toss coins into holes on top of a box. The winner is the first to get a coin into the frog's mouth (one of the holes in the box). Kids also enjoy playing with marbles. 
• Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in Peru, so you can often find kids playing football together. They may also play volleyball or basketball.  
• There are several sweets kids like to eat. "Alfajores" are Spanish sandwich cookies filled with dulce de leche. "Picarones" are Peruvian doughnuts made from squash and sweet potato. They are often covered with "chancaca," a syrup made from the raw sugar of the sugar cane with added orange zest. Finally, kids may have ice cream or shakes made with "lúcuma" (an Andean fruit) for a cool treat.