It wouldn’t be spring without the first early season greenhouse tomatoes arriving by personal delivery from Joe Mauro.

CLICK HERE to read about the fifth generation Mauro family farms.

The Recipe Box

Delicious corned beef is a seasonal favorite. Here are some suggestions on how to prepare it. CLICK HERE for recipes.

How did our children end up eating nachos, pizza, and Tater Tots for lunch? Taking us on an eye-opening journey into the nation’s school kitchens, Free for All: Fixing School Food in America provides a comprehensive assessment of school food in the United States. Author Janet Poppendieck explores the deep politics of food provision from multiple perspectives — history, policy, nutrition, environmental sustainability, taste, and more. How did we get into the absurd situation in which nutritionally regulated meals compete with fast food items and snack foods loaded with sugar, salt, and fat? What is the nutritional profile of the federal meals? How well are they reaching students who need them? Opening a window onto our culture as a whole, Poppendieck reveals the forces — the financial troubles of schools, the increase in commercialization and aggressive marketing to children — that are determining how lunch is served. She concludes with a sweeping vision for change built on fresher, healthier food.

DIRT! The Movie takes you inside the wonders of the soil. Narrated by Jaime Lee Curtis, this award-winning film brings to life the environmental, economic, social and political impact that soil has. It shares the stories of experts from all over the world who study and are able to harness the beauty and power of this amazing resource. A free screening is being shown at Colorado College, sponsored by the Independent Film Society of Colorado, Rocky Mountain PBS, & the CC Film Union, 6 p.m., March 4 in the Screening Room, Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center, 825 N. Cascade Ave. CLICK HERE for more.

To watch the trailer, or buy the DVD, CLICK HERE.

Signs of spring

Spring calving has started at the Callicrate cattle operation. Plus, a movie portraying the life story of animal welfare pioneer Temple Grandin comes out on HBO. CLICK HERE to read more.