MenTern Update 2025
The MenTerns for 2025 are a fun and eclectic group. Artists, Engineers, Biologists, Veterinarians, Geneticists, and Industrial Warriors! This year, the MenTerns are really stepping into their own space and I couldn’t be more proud. This is the MenTern update 2025.
Three Books: One New Vision of Learning
After a very intense summer camp at Mezzacello Urban Farm around sustainably using wind energy I had a powerful dream. This dream revolved around three books: "Alice's Adventures in wonderland" by Lewis Carroll, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl, and "A Wrinkle In Time" by Madeline L'Engle. The dream was a response to a conversation I had with the kids about their favorite books and why.
Maxwell Is Incredible
Hello Sarah! My name is Maxwell, I'm 12 years old, and I'm one of Jim's MenTerns at Mezzacello. As a MenTern I help Jim teach all of the kids at camp. This week the theme for our camp is all about wind power and how we can use it.
Morphic Resonance, Math, and
The "universe" is a mystery. It "speaks" through life, math, pattern, energy, and systems. When one system, pattern, structure, or process appears again and again, we call that Morphic Resonance. Morphic means having form or shape. Resonance means the impact of frequency on material. Lets dig into Morphic Resonance, Math, and Life.
Entanglement, Information, Uncertainty, and Poker
This is a guest camp blog from my MenTern Grady at Mezzacello Urban farm. Grady was in Charge of this creative way of teaching quantum entanglement and uncertainty to camp kids using a modified poker game. It was a lot of fun and a surprising way to model superposition for kids to understand.
The Super Small and the Quantum World
We hear a lot about the super small and the quantum world in our emerging tech in the world, but do we really understand the implications? It’s not enough for something to be small; it must also come with the magic that is ONLY possible when you are dealing with the world of very short distances and volumes that even light has issues with.
Emerging Products at Mezzacello.org
Mezzacello Urban Farm is committed to sustainability and organic solutions to food and resources. Each year we design, build, test and modify a fertilizer product line to share our wealth. Last summer we created “Fintastic Fertilizer” a emulsion of algae, fish waste, gypsum, and comfrey tea. The summer camp kids tested and modified the product and designed the marketing.
2025 Olde Towne East Tour of Homes
Exciting news! Mezzacello Urban Farm has been asked to be a stop on the 2025 Olde Towne East Tour of Homes. We were on the tour way back in 2017 when we had just bought the house started building the gardens.
Summer Camp Team Identity
Teams designed their team logo with the help of my MenTern Lula.
A Fresh Take on Summer Camps: One-Day Workshops & Mentorship in Action
At Mezzacello Urban Farm, I’ve always taught summer camps using a mix of the design cycle, systems thinking, and mentorship. But this year, a small shift sparked a big idea: what if one-day workshops could deepen and extend the impact of our week-long camps?
The Foodist: Potatoes Lyonnaise
Not gonna lie, this is one of my all-time favorite Rick meals at Mezzacello, The Foodist: Lyonnaise Potatoes. It is similar to his fantastic potator galette, but hot, crispy, smooth and loaded with flavor. He cooks it in a cast iron pan to really get that crispy maillard reactionand then finishes it in the oven that I replaced after I destroyed his old oven.
This is equally good reheated, although it can get greasy. Serve it for a brunch with a poached duck egg or as an appetizer with fresh goat cheese and a toothpick. This will be a crowd pleaser, fresh herbs are best, but dried will work.
The Foodist: Parmesan Chicken Tenderloins
This is the recipe for The Foodist: Parmesan Chicken Tenderloins and it is a banger! Your whole family is going to love this (even kids!). It is also super easy to reuse leftovers as it heats up perfectly.
It is also perfect for serving as a cocktail part or even fundraiser, as it is easy and cheap to make and holds up well. Serve it with toothpicks and a marinara or dijon and mayonnaise mustard sauce.
Bio Technology at Mezzacello
This is a quick gallery of all the bio automation and programming at Mezzacello Urban Farm. If it has "Bio" in the name, you'll find it here!
The Foodist: Homemade Rosemary Lasagna
I decided that I wanted to try to make a lasagna as much from scratch as was possible. I made the tomato sauce, ricotta, mozzarella, and cottage cheeses, and homemade lasagna noodles. The tomatoes and herbs came straight from the garden and the canning pantry. It was so good.
From Waste To Taste
This is a blog p[ost about how we create animal feed at Mezzacello Urban Farm from slightly dehydrated edible weeds and assorted corn, hay, seeds, wheat germ, oils, and molasses. When all of this blended it is mixed with 1/3 it’s mass of water. This is then blended together into a paste, The paste is then extruded, left to dry and voila! Feed!
The Foodist: Three Homemade Cheeses
These three cheeses are so easy to make, and so worth it to make it yourself. In terms of cost, it makes great sense to make these yourself. Point of fact, to buy these at a store is $18 but just $5 to buy the milk, lemon and vinegar - through in $3 for the heavy cream for the cottage cheese. Now you are in business!
Black Soldier Flies Production Capstone
Today at Mezzacello, I am joined by a high school intern named Ismail. Ismail is interested in finding a solution to curb hunger and provide nutrients to the needy people in developing nations. This is the perfect opportunity for me to work with a keen young mind and an international pioneer in Kenya!
The Foodist: Zingy Peas and Great Northern Bean Bowl
This soup is a delightful, tasty, and filling surprise. It is full of nutrients and flavor, and the tile is right on with the zing! supplied with fresh peas, ginger, and lemon. The leeks, garlic, miso, and butter beans create a rich, crunchy, and flavorful broth that makes for a delicious and luxurious mouthfeel.
The Foodist: Mezzacello Tortilla, Egg, Chives, Cheese, and Salsa Frittata
This was a fun experiment in sustainability and frugality! For $1.60 (including electricity to run the oven for 15 minutes, I made this delicious frittata this morning. It is very tasty and feeds a lot of people.
The Foodist: Oatmeal With Blueberry, Nutmeg, and Cinnamon Compote
Wake up to a yummy morning with this simple oatmeal, blueberry, and cinnamon baked compote. The combination of hearty oats and baked sachets of compote filling is a home run. The sachets can be baked ahead of time and frozen until needed.