12-year-old Maine girl’s healthy haystack prompts a special meal with the first lady

What do John Quincy Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Patrick Henry, William Penn, Thomas Edison, Eli Whitney, Beatrix Potter, Abigail Adams, Clara Barton and 12-year-old Sienna Mazone from Dresden all have in common?

Each of them was home-schooled and each has left their mark on the history of the nation.

Granted, Sienna’s influence is still emerging, but as a recent winner in the nationwide Healthy Lunchtime Challenge contest — part of first lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign to battle childhood obesity — she is helping to address one of the nation’s top health problems.

Sienna and 53 other youths from across the nation were invited to be the first lady’s luncheon guests at the White House in July, after submitting winning recipes for healthy lunchtime foods.

“It was awesome,” said Sienna. “It was very, very, very exciting. I can’t believe I was there. We had to go through four security checkpoints to get into the White House.”

Michelle Obama greeted each of the children personally. Sienna was struck by her height. The first lady stooped down to speak with Sienna, who is five-feet-one.

“Boy was she tall,” said Sienna.

Sienna’s mother, Kim Mazone, said all of the youths went to see a special food exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. on the day before the luncheon. The exhibit showed how diets in the U.S. have changed over the years.

Mazone said she and Sienna were bothered by the number of chemicals used to add flavor to foods today. She said they also noticed that what was considered a large portion of food years ago is now considered to be a small portion.

Mazone said her family is very aware that what they eat affects their health. She said her husband, Zach, is a resident at Central Maine Medical Center and that he often comes home from the hospital remarking that many of the illnesses he sees are related to lifestyle choices.

The couple encourage their children to eat healthy foods, and they practice organic gardening. Sienna has her own herb garden and sells herbal products at the Common Ground Fair with a friend.

Sienna became interested in cooking at a young age. Her mother said Sienna and her 8-year-old brother, Lucca, don’t watch much TV but do enjoy cooking shows. One of Sienna’s favorites is “Chopped,” on the Food Network, in which participants are handed several ingredients and given a set of amount of time to come up with some type of interesting dish. The show inspired Sienna to create her winning “Mexican Haystack” recipe.

Sienna’s mother gave her three ingredients — a sweet potato, an avocado and a Fresno chili pepper — and challenged Sienna to create an interesting concoction. Sienna was allowed to add other ingredients, but had to use the original three that she was given. She added refried beans, cherry tomatoes, freshly baked whole-grain tortilla shells and a few other ingredients, creating a lunchtime meal that she later entered in the contest.

Sienna said Obama challenged each of the semifinalists to go home and get involved in their community to make a difference.

“She told us to be a role model,” said Sienna.

The youths were encouraged to connect with chefs in their various states and find locations where they could offer cooking classes. Sienna is teaching at the Ark, the vegan cafe on Lisbon Street in Lewiston.

“I’m teaching a bread-making class for kids,” said Sienna. The next class will be Sept. 29 at 6 p.m., for ages 8 to 12. Call 333-3668 for information and to register.

FMI

To register for classes or more information, contact:

The Ark

791 Lisbon St. Lewiston, Maine

207-333-3668

[email protected]

Mexican haystack

6 whole-grain flour tortillas

1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced thin

1 red Fresno chili pepper, seeded and chopped

1/2 red onion, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Juice of one lemon or lime — about 4 tablespoons

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 avocado, seeded and mashed

2 1/2 teaspoons of cumin

1 large sweet potato, peeled, baked and mashed

1 15-ounce can vegetarian refried beans

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the flour tortillas in strips and place them on a baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the strips are crispy and slightly brown.

To make the salsa, combine the tomatoes, pepper, onion, cilantro, two tablespoons of lemon or lime juice and 1 teaspoon of salt.

In a separate bowl, combine the remaining two tablespoons of lemon or lime juice and the avocado along with 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin and salt. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, add the remaining 2 teaspoons of cumin to the mashed sweet potato. In a microwave, warm the sweet potato and the beans in two separate bowls for 1 minute.

To make the haystack: First place the refried beans on the plate, then top with the sweet potato, then the salsa and finally the avocado. Place the baked tortilla strips around the haystack and use for dipping.

Note: This recipe serves 4 kids (or 2 adults). This dish can also be eaten cold for a school lunch, but place the haystack in a reusable container and pack the baked tortilla chips in a separate bag to prevent them from becoming soggy.

Very berry pie

Crust:

1 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/3 cup oil

1/2 cup hot water

1 teaspoon salt

Note: Double the recipe if you want a top and bottom crust. This will give you enough dough to line and cover a 10-inch pie plate and have some dough left over for decorating the edges with shapes cut out with cookie cutters.

Filling:

9 cups berries (or 6 cups berries and 3 cups rhubarb)

1/2 cup and 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2-3/4 cup sweetener (such as honey, agave syrup or maple syrup)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Place the flour in a bowl. In a separate container combine the salt, water and oil. Mix the three ingredients well and then add slowly to the flour. Use a fork to stir the liquid into the flour and then knead together to form a ball of dough. Divide in half if you doubled the recipe for a top and bottom crust. Roll out the dough to 1/8 inch between wax paper or plastic wrap (moisten the counter top to prevent sliding) and then press into a greased pie pan. Prick along the bottom with a fork.

Place 9 cups of berries in a large bowl. You can use 3 cups of rhubarb and 6 cups of berries if you want a rhubarb-berry pie. Sprinkle the berries with the flour and gently stir in.

Sprinkle with the cinnamon.

Place the berries in the prepared pie crust. Drizzle with a natural sweetener of your choice such as honey, agave syrup or maple syrup. Use approximately 1/2 cup, but up to 3/4 cup if rhubarb is added.

After the sweetener is added, roll out the top crust — if using one — and cover the top of the pie. Use a knife to trim excess dough from the edges and to make four small cuts in the top of the pie crust. Flute the edge or press along the edge with a fork. Use the extra dough to make decorations for the top, if desired, using cookie cutters. Bake at 425 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes depending on your oven, until the crust is golden. Let sit 15 minutes before serving.