Be Fresh, Be Creative, Be Healthy - What's Cookin'? Smithtown

What’s Cookin’? – Smithtown

By Nancy Vallarella

Farm Fresh Fare

Now is the time to eat for the season. Here on Long Island, we have the good fortune of gathering local bounty from land and sea.   Fresh fruits, veggies, fish and wine with a little extra virgin olive oil and nuts are heart healthy and can lead to an approximate 30% reduction in heart attack and stroke according to the Journal of Medicine.  When quoting science, it may not sound appealing or delicious but the good news is that it most definitely can be.  Here’s how:

Go visit your local farmstand or Farmer’s Market.  Inspiration abounds there.  On a recent trip to the King’s Thera Farms Boston LettucePark Farmer’s Market, I found my muse in Thera Farms (Ronkonkoma) hydroponically grown Boston lettuce. Grown in nutrient rich water all year round the deep green, dirt-free leaves make a the perfect wrapper for your favorite summertime ingredients.  

My mission thereafter was to fill my fresh green lettuce wrappers with colorful, no cooking required goodies.  Beets!  - The magenta beauties sitting on the table of D & J Organic Farms (Yaphank) caught my eye. To complement the sweetness of these organic beets while adding some hearty texture, I chose D & J’s peppery baby arugula.   No ah hah moment required to see where this was going - beets, arugula… goat cheese! 

Coach Farm (Pine Plains/Hudson Valley) treks their goat milk products to the Kings Park Farmer’s Market every Sunday. Their artisanal goat cheese has the perfect consistency to crumble onto a salad or add to recipes for just the right amount of tasty creamy goodness. 

The prospect of making a beet and goat cheese salad with raw beets seemed a bit challenging and not necessarily appealing to the masses. There is the unfortunate loss of some enhanced sweetness due to the lack of caramelization by not roasting the beets.  On the plus side, there was no loss of nutrients through the cooking process.  My answer to the no cook requirement was to peel and thinly slice up the raw beet.  I julienned the beet with a fantastic julienne tool found at Sur La Table in just a few minutes.  Then I added a dressing containing vinegar to marinate the julienned raw beets.

Vinegar breaks down the protein in the beet and tenderizes it.  For the dressing I choose the most full of flavor local oil and vinegar option available.  Eileen Sanger Profit from The Crushed Olive of Stony Brook and author of The Infused Palate helped me pair The Crushed Olive’s Favolosa Extra Virgin Olive Oil with their Cranberry Pear Balsamic Vinegar.  The Favolosa Olive oil is imported from Chile. It is quietly spicy, grassy and herbal. It finishes with a slightly peppery kick. The Cranberry and Pear Balsamic Vinegar is white which does not discolor the vegetables or the goat cheese in the dish. The cranberry and pear flavor is the perfect complement to the plain goat cheese.

A few more ingredients went into the mix: toasted pine nuts, dried sweet cherries and diced avocado were added for texture and enhanced flavor and… VIOLA!  - Farmer’s Market Veggie Cups were born. This farm fresh fare was taste tested at the Kings Park Farmer’s Market last Sunday. The overwhelming response was, “WOW!”, “DELICIOUS!” and “AWESOME”! I doubt anyone one was thinking about all the health benefits they were getting with each bite.  

Find the recipe for Farmer’s Market Veggie Cups/Wrappers on Smithtown Matters Food and Restaurant Guide or www.facebook.com/chef.noko.wcs. 

Young And Looking For Something To Do? Check Out Smithtown's Summer Activities

By Cristen Feeney

If boredom is creeping up on you this summer, this week could end it all. This week in Smithtown, there are more events than you will be able to attend. The fun isn’t going to come to you, you have to get out there and attend these town programs and events that are sure to enrich your summer.

If you’re a Smithtown resident, chances are you’ve been to at least one of the branches of the Smithtown Library. Monday, July 1 marks the start of the Summer Reading Program at the Smithtown Library. There is a reading program for people of every age. Literally. There are 4 different programs for different age groups, beginning at “birth-2 years” and ending at “18 and older.” Whether it’s to keep yourself on track with reading, or to meet like-minded people, sign up for a summer reading program. For more information, visit  HYPERLINK “http://www.smithlib.org/” http://www.smithlib.org/

If you’re interested in seeing a musical Smithtown Performing Arts Center is putting on a production of Grease, starting July 6 and going through to August 11. The Smithtown Performing Arts Center puts on quality productions at a low price, and it’s right on Main Street, which is convenient for many Smithtown residents. To buy tickets, visit  HYPERLINK “http://www.smithtowntheatre.com/mainstage/” http://www.smithtowntheatre.com/mainstage/

 Starting July 8, the Smithtown Youth Bureau invites children in grades 8-12 to come to their Leadership Development program. It is a 5 week course, but it’s a small commitment— 1 hour, every Monday. This program gives teens a chance to obtain the skills necessary to lead a group of their peers. For more information, the document is available here:  HYPERLINK “http://smithtownny.gov/DocumentCenter/View/523” http://smithtownny.gov/DocumentCenter/View/523

If you’re feeling the need to get fit this summer, Kings Park Dance Center has $10 walk-in Zumba classes Monday at 7:30PM, Tuesday at 6:30PM and 7:30PM, Wednesday at 7:30PM, Thursday at 10:30AM and Saturday at 11:00AM. Zumba is an awesome way to stay in shape. It’s extremely fun and it doesn’t even feel like you’re working out.

The Smithtown Youth Bureau has a Safe Summer Night Program on July 15 and continues through the middle of August. If you’re a student in the Town of Smithtown or have a child who is a Town of Smithtown Student, the program is free admission and it is a supervised drug-free and alcohol-free event. Any students middle school aged and up are welcome to attend. They also accept volunteers to help out.

If you would like to hear free music, The Hoyt Farm Summer Concert Series begins at 7PM on June 30th and is happening throughout the entire summer.  The Nesconset Summer Concert Series also begins July 2 at 7:30PM at the Nesconset Gazebo. The Friends of the Smithtown Library Concert Series at the Library begins on July 11 at 8PM. All the Concert Series are free admission and all are welcome to attend.

You don’t have to sit back and do nothing this summer, you can stay safe and have a great time, while also getting involved in your community.

St. Johnland Development Group Makes Its Case For Whisper Landing Assisted Living Facility

By Taylor Fleming

Part I - Of BZA Hearing On Whisper Landing Assisted Living Facility

Smithtown’s Board of Zoning Appeals convened on Tuesday, June 25, 2013 for a public hearing of eleven legal notices. However, the BZA only heard seven of the notices on the agenda. One notice was adjourned until August 15 and six notices were closed without comments from members of the community.

A majority of the meeting was spent discussing pending legal notice 16943 regarding St. Johnland Development Group, LLC’s variance requests for the building of Whisper Landing Assisted Living Facility at River Heights Dr. & Route 25A. Prior to hearing St. Johnland Development Group, Board Chairperson Adrienne Giannadeo said she would allow each member of the Town of Smithtown one opportunity to speak and asked members of the community for “no applause or outbursts.” 

St. Johnland attorney Rich ScheyerSt. Johnland attorney Rich Scheyer was first to take to the podium. He asked the board to amend several of the variances that St. Johnland had previously requested. The company is no longer asking to increase the maximum building height from 35 feet to 49 feet and will build the 35 feet limit. They wish to amend the variance to reduce the minimum truck loading spaces from 3 to 1 and to amend the variance to increase the maximum height of retaining walls from 6 to 12 feet. 

After the amendments to the variance requests, St. Johnland was left to discuss the original and standing variance request to permit structures within 10 feet of environmentally sensitive land. Scheyer emphasized, however, that with regards to environmentally sensitive land, “only 12.1% of the site will be affected” and the building presents no impact for endangered species populations. 

St. Johnland brought in John Breslin of Breslin Appraisals to discuss his study of the variances. “A bulk of the original site will remain essentially green,” said Breslin. He stressed that St. Johnland will minimize the use of environmentally sensitive lands by pulling the structure towards 25A. In conclusion, Breslin said the “totality of the circumstances” does not violate the variance and does not adversely affect the surrounding neighborhood.

Scheyer then asked Thomas Mazzola, an expert on traffic safety, to speak on behalf of St. Johnland. Mazzola suggested that the assisted living facility would generate very little traffic except for around 20 employees for day and evening shifts, 6-8 employees for overnight shifts and a few visitors around lunchtime. Mazzola believes very few of the residents will drive themselves. Although St. Johnland is requesting 80 parking spaces, Mazzola said, “the actual need will be around half that.”

Finally, Scheyer brought in Thomas Cramer, a landscape architect, to discuss the environmental issues of the site. Quoting the Smithtown Town Master plan, Cramer suggested that there is a greater need for assisted living facilities over nursing home facilities. He described Whisper Landing as “almost like a clubhouse for [seniors].” Cramer discussed the 7 categories of environmentally sensitive lands and rendered all except one irrelevant to the St. Johnland site. “The only issue we have are the steep slopes,” said Cramer. Building on steep slopes presents environmental issues like erosion, but Cramer declared that most likely less than 40% of the steep slope will be disturbed at the site. 

David Flynn, Assistant Town Planning Director, raised several questions for Cramer regarding soil permeability, the visual aspects of the building and the noise impacts of the facility. Cramer was accommodating to Flynn’s arguments, stating that St. Johnland would be open to innovative drainage techniques, and has already suggested a chromoglass self-contained sewage treatment facility. He said St. Johnland was also planning to buffer the noise and compromise on the visual impacts of the structure. “A lot of intention went into the design of this building,” said Cramer. “We want it to become part of the community.”

Part II Residents Comments to follow Saturday June 30

Missing KP Woman Arrested In Attempted Shooting In New Orleans

By Naomi Martin, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune 

Email the author | Follow on Twitter 

on June 25, 2013 at 4:05 PM, updated June 26, 2013 at 9:39 AM

Kevin Cahill, 29, and Sara Mott, 27

A New York couple was arrested Tuesday after the boyfriend shot another man multiple times in a Central Business District hotel room, police said. Kevin Cahill also accidentally shot his girlfriend in the foot, according to the New Orleans Police Department. 

Police said Cahill, 29, tried to kill a 49-year-old Florida man around 9 a.m. in a hotel room at the Wyndham Garden Plaza Hotel at 201 Baronne Street. Witnesses said the man appeared to be shot in the chest and stomach. Police recovered drugs and a handgun at the scene. 

After the shooting, police said, Cahill and his wounded girlfriend Sara Mott, 27, tried to flee the hotel but were quickly apprehended. Mott was taken to a hospital in good condition; she will be booked on a charge of second degree battery when she is released from the hospital, police said. Click Here for article

Going Off To College? Think "Street Defense"

Empire State Karate Starts Innovative Program for High School and College Bound Students

By Taylor Fleming

Beginning on July 19^th, Empire State Karate of Smithtown is offering “Street Defense,” a five-week seminar for high school and college bound students. Empire State Karate, which will be celebrating its 50^th anniversary this year, offers children and adult martial arts programs as well as kickboxing fitness and mixed martial arts courses. 

Sensei Troy, who has taught at Empire State Karate for over ten years, said, “[‘Street Defense’] is something we’ve wanted to do for a long time.” Troy said he and Hanshi Joyce Santamaria, the first ever female blackbelt, often discussed the high school and college bound age group. He described college bound students as “adults but not quite adult” who are in need of training in “not combat but awareness.” The two also conferred about the horror stories they had heard about, or, as Troy said, “when it went wrong” in a college environment.

One such story came to the surface following the submission of a letter from then Amherst College student Angie Epifano to “The Amherst Student” independent newspaper. In her letter, Epifano revealed that another student had raped her in the spring of her freshman year. “I had always fancied myself a strong, no-nonsense woman…” wrote Epifano. “May 25^th temporarily shattered that self-image and left me feeling like the broken victim that I had never wanted to be.” In her letter, she discussed the lack of support she received from the school and her fellow students. Eventually, she left Amherst. Recently, more and more stories like Epifano have surfaced in the media. Over the past year, the Office for Civil Rights has received 38 complaints against colleges, universities and postsecondary schools across the country, related to sexual harassment.

Sensei Troy said that “Street Defense” is aimed at teaching students, “how to see a bad situation…and how to get out of it.” He has created a comprehensive plan, which addresses the key issues involved with incidents of harassment and violence, not unlike Epifano’s encounter.  The first week focuses on awareness, avoidance and evasion. After consulting with several lawyers, Sensei Troy has developed a plan for teaching legal jargon and “keep[ing] the law on your side,” as sexual harassment on campus is now being seen and prosecuted as a federal crime in many schools nationally. For the second week, the instructors plan on hosting a drug and addiction specialist and discussing fitness, nutrition and saying “no.” The third week will work on building student confidence and teaching them safety in any environment. In the fourth week, students will foster an effective attitude and learn escape techniques. Finally, the fifth week will recap the entire course and test students in a live action final exam. 

As a parent, Sensei Troy thinks a major concern is “how…we protect our kids when they go off to college.” HeStreet Defense program begins in Julybelieves this program will help reassure parents that their children are prepared for college life. His students will gain confidence and knowledge as well as skills and techniques. “They have to know this to come home safe to us,” said Sensei Troy. “We want them to have fun, get the most of out of it, but we want them to be aware.” 

Recently, assault on college campuses has become a more prevalent topic of discussion and an explosion of activism has occurred in numerous schools, such as Occidental College, Swarthmore College, Wesleyan University and Yale University. Sensei Troy’s program, however, works not only to address the incidents that have already happened but also to prepare and educate students on preventive measures. Combining techniques from other Empire State Karate classes while targeting the lessons towards students in high school or heading to college, Sensei Troy believes this program will build the confidence and awareness necessary to guard them against the potential dangers surrounding a new, often challenging environment. “I’m around these kids so much,” he said. “I see the changes in them.” The confidence karate grants his students, said Sensei Troy is, “unmatched by any other activity.”

The five-week seminar will run Fridays from 7-8pm from July 19^th to August 16^th. To register, students and parent can call (631) 265-1555 or drop in to 86 Terry Road in Smithtown. More information is available at www.empirestatekarate.com or on Empire State Karate’s Facebook page.