Our Clients Say It Best

In 2012, you made sure our severely ill Maryland neighbors had sustenance and joy in their lives --- and they are grateful.

Take two minutes to watch this heartfelt thank you from our client, Lisa. And remember, you can still donate to give more neighbors the gift of healthy food.

 

(Can't view the video? Watch it here!)

Thank you for all that you do to FEED people, FIGHT disease, and FOSTER hope.Wishing you and yours a very happy holiday.

#GivingTuesday: How to put your leftovers to good use

You already know all about Black Friday and Cyber Monday...but this year there's a new special day on the holiday calendar: #GivingTuesday. With the belief that the holidays can be about both giving - and - giving back, charities, retailers, corporations and more are banding together to advance a national day of giving on November 27 (the Tuesday after Thanksgiving).

In honor of our first #GivingTuesday, Moveable Feast is asking people like you to Eat in. Help out.

Here's the plan. On our Facebook page, between Thanksgiving and #GivingTuesday, we'll be posting creative recipes that incorporate turkey-day leftovers. With these great ideas in your pocket, you can pack your lunch and/or make a meal at home instead of eating out. We're asking that on Tuesday the 27th you donate the money you would have spent on a meal out to Moveable Feast.

Your "meal money" will then go towards putting food on the table for someone else. Pretty cool, right?

Here's a poster that explains it all. Take a look and share with your friends:

Sweet Potato Cupcakes for National Grouch Day

Today is National Grouch Day! While you vent your frustrations and furrow your brow, we figured you might want to munch on a Moveable Feast favorite - Sweet Potato Cupcakes. 

Our most recent group of culinary students knocked our socks off on their graduation day with this recipe. As per Moveable Feast tradition, the outgoing class is asked to prepare the brunch or lunch for all who attend, and the sweet potato cupcakes were a favorite. 

So we thought we'd share the recipe (a number of the staff are biting at the chomp to get this). 

Photo from From Scratch, recipe from Better Home & Gardens

Sweet Potato Cupcakes
yield: 24 cupcakes
prep: 45 minutes
bake: 350F for 20 minutes

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 17.2 ounce can of vacuum-packed sweet potatoes (unsweetened), mashed
1/2 tsp vanilla
Cream cheese frosting (recipe below)
Finely shredded orange peel 

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line twenty-four 2 1/2 inch muffin cups with paper bake cups; set cups aside.
2. In medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt; set aside. 
3. In large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar and beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed after each addition until combined. Add sweet potatoes and vanilla, beating until combined. Add flour mixture; beat until combined (batter will be thick).
4. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake about 20 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool in pan on wire rack for 1 minute. Remove from pan and cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting
yield: 4 1/3 cups

Ingredients
1 8oz package cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup butter, softened
2 tbs bourbon or milk
8 cups powdered sugar

Directions
1. In large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and butter with electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add bourbon or milk and beat until combined. Beat in powdered sugar, about 1/2 cup at a time, until smooth. 
2. Place frosting in a large resealable plastic bag. Cut a 1/4 inch opening in one corner of bag. Pipe frosting on top of cupcakes. Sprinkle with orange peel.

Enjoy!

Moveable Feast Honored with Henrietta Lacks Memorial Award

On Saturday, October 6, Moveable Feast stood before a packed auditorium to receive the 2nd annual Henrietta Lacks Memorial Award. This award, presented by the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute, recognized our valuable work with Johns Hopkins (through Ride for the Feast team Fierce Chicks Rock) to deliver healthy meals to severely ill patients after they leave the hospital doors. 

The award comes with a $15,000 grant that we will use to strengthen our collaboration with the Oncology Center at Johns Hopkins and to deliver more life-saving meals to men and women with cancer.

Thank you for making all this work possible. Take a look at the great video they showed at the award ceremony.

Moveable Feast gets UNCORKED!

Moveable Feast is proud and honored to announce a new partnership with the Baltimore Chapter of NACE – The National Association for Catering and Events.  

For the next three years, we will work together to present UNCORKED!, NACE’s annual fundraising event. The main mission of UNCORKED! is to provide great wine education, extraordinary food pairings and gorgeous designs in an exciting and enticing program that attracts both NACE and non-NACE members alike. Plus, Moveable Feast will receive a portion of the proceeds to help put food on the table for our neighbors in need.

UNCORKED! 2013 will be held on Monday, March 18 at the Baltimore Country Club in Roland Park.  So mark your calendars now!

Photo by Anne Sachs

The Baltimore Chapter of NACE kicked off this exciting partnership with Moveable Feast by supporting Dining Out for Life at Gertrude’s last Friday.  There, they had a chance to meet many of the Moveable Feast staff for the first time and learn even more about the work that we do.  We can't wait to work with NACE over the next several years to grow this event and bring more attention to the work of both organizations.  

Photo by Anne Sachs

 For more information, take a look at their website at http://www.baltimorenace.net/

 

Clients Hit Hard by BED BUGS!

Several clients in this past month of home visits have bed bug infestations in their homes.  Unfortunately, according the Maryland laws, unless bed bugs have spread into multiple units, the renter is responsible for extermination costs.  Not only must our clients pay for extermination costs of around $250, but they must also throw out their mattresses, linens, couches, and sometimes all their clothing and shoes and then figure out replacements.   

This week, our dietitian Jinee, visited William who has had bed bugs for the past two weeks.  His landlord has agreed to set up the bed bug treatment on Monday, but William has no idea how he is going to throw out his couch and bed let alone get new ones.  William is 5’9” 110lbs.  He has struggled for several months to build his weight and his strength.  Right now, with the bed bug problem, he sleeps on his old leather office chair to stay away from the bed bugs, keeping him up all night, and adding one more barrier to his ability to achieve a healthier self.   

Can you help William and other clients in similar predicaments?

Photo credit: Mattress Warehouse

Ways to Help!

·         Donate your time

o   Do you have availability and the ability to help move and throw out bed ridden furniture?  Or to deliver new furniture?

·         Donate furniture

o   Couch, loveseat, mattress, mattress box

·         Donate linens & clothing

o   If you have new or gently used clean clothing or new shoes to donate, please email Jinee to check on sizes needed.

o   If you would like to donate new bedding, most of our clients need full or queen sized fitted sheets, flat sheets, blankets, comforters, pillows, and pillow cases.

·         Donate bed bug covers

o   These would be a good thing to give to any of our clients! Here are a few links:

•  http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=115661&RN=0
•  http://www.amazon.com/Ideaworks-Blockade-Mattress-Cover-Queen/dp/B004P9JDNW
• http://www.amazon.com/Bed-Mattress-Cover-Twin-Size/dp/B0043QQT16

Contact Dietitian Jinee Burdg at jburdg@mfeast.org for more information!

Thanks for all you do to improve quality of life for our clients.