School Lunch Revolution & a Recipe for a Healthy Hero (Podcast #102)

Over the past few months, we’ve been absolutely wowed by the growing momentum behind school lunch reform. Both of us have spent time in the “trenches” working to improve the school lunch options in our children’s schools, so we understand the time and commitment it takes to bring positive change to the system. On this week’s Cooking with the Moms podcast, we dish about several of those efforts and chat about the role we see for ourselves in the movement.

If you watched the last episode of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution on ABC, you may recall his disappointment when some of the kids brought brown-bag lunches filled with candy, chips, and soft drinks. We were disappointed too, so from now on, we will be making a greater effort on our website and blog to provide our readers and listeners with tips and recipes for adding ease, nutrition, and fun flavors to kids’ lunches. Under the Mealtime Tips section of our main site, we have a fact sheet on Brown Bag Boredom Busters, and we have some helpful articles you may want to check out too: Think Outside the Lunchbox and Smart Snacking. Read on for a lunch box Healthy Hero recipe and links to some of our favorite school lunch reform websites.

Healthy Hero

Makes 4 Servings

  • 1 cup packed baby spinach or romaine lettuce
  • 1 tablespoon lite or regular Italian salad dressing
  • 4 teaspoons honey mustard
  • 4 whole wheat submarine rolls, halved
  • 4 ounces thinly sliced roast beef
  • 4 sandwich-cut dill pickles
  • 1 medium tomato, thinly sliced, optional
  • 4 ounces thinly sliced reduced-fat cheese (mozzarella, American, Swiss, or provolone)
  • 4 ounces thinly sliced low-sodium deli turkey

1. Combine the spinach and salad dressing in a bowl and mix well.

2. Spread 1 teaspoon of the mustard on one side of each roll. Layer evenly with the roast beef, spinach, pickle, tomato as desired, cheese, and turkey. Place the remaining roll halves firmly on top. Slice in half or pack whole.

Nutrition Information per Serving:  350 calories, 11g fat (4.5g saturated), 870mg sodium, 39g carbohydrate, 6g fiber, 28g protein, 15% vitamin A, 25% calcium, 15% iron

Print Recipe

We could spend all day going from website to website reading about the people and organizations working to improve what our kids eat in school. Here is just a brief overview of some of our favorites:

Two Angry Moms:  Two moms make a movie about their quest to improve their school lunch program and provide tools to help you bring change to your district.
Let’s Move: More than 31 million children participate in the national school lunch program, and Michelle Obama, through her Let’s Move initiative, wants to make it a whole lot healthier.
Chef Ann Cooper: As the self-described Renegade Lunch Lady, Chef Ann’s life work is to transform how we feed our children in school each day, from highly processed to highly nourishing food — one school lunch at a time.
Farm to School Initiative: The USDA encourages schools to buy produce from local farmers.
Fed Up with Lunch: Blogging anonymously under the pseudonym, Mrs. Q, this third-grade teacher from the Midwest is eating school lunch just like the kids every day in 2010. Her photos and insights are a real eye opener!
Moms Inc.: A group of concerned moms provides tips and tools for helping fellow parents approach school administrators and food service directors with the goal of improving the nutrition in school lunches.

What’s happening in your community? Do tell!

May 5, 2010 | Filed Under GivingBack, KiwiMagazine, Lunch, PickyEaters, Podcast, Website | 8 Comments 

Podcast 90: Casseroles with a Twist

Gooey and gloppy are just two of the words that come to mind when we think about classic casseroles.  Typically made with creamy soups and lots of butter and full-fat cheese, casseroles get a bad nutrition rap because they have a tendency to stick to the ribs … and to the waistline. In this week’s Cooking with the Moms, we add a contemporary twist to casseroles by skimming away some of the bad fat and the excess calories and by incorporating some good-for-you ingredients … and we do it without sacrificing the time-honored flavors. The inspiration for the show came from a casserole article we just wrote for Kiwi magazine.  The February issue hits newsstands soon, so be on the lookout.

For the Kiwi story, we featured three recipes: Crushed Tortilla Chip Casserole, Sweet & Nutty Rice Casserole, and a makeover of the classic kid favorite, tuna noodle casserole. For this recipe, we added an updated twist by switching from tuna to boneless, skinless canned salmon (salmon is one of the richest sources of brain-boosting omega-3 fats), using a whole wheat blend pasta versus white, and by adding peas for a kick of color and fiber. We also topped it with a mixture of Panko breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan cheese. We promise you won’t miss the crushed potato chips on top!

Silly Salmon Noodle Bake

Makes 8 Servings

The soy sauce in this recipe may surprise you, but it adds a deep, rich umami flavor to the dish. Leftovers freeze really well.

  • 1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • One 12-ounce package whole wheat blend egg noodles
  • Two 5-ounce cans boneless, skinless pink salmon, drained and flaked
  • 1 cup frozen petite peas, thawed
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 8 ounces mushrooms, coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried dill
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3 ½ cups 1% lowfat milk
  • 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.  Combine breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese in a bowl and set aside.

2. Fill a large saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain and return to saucepan. Stir in salmon and peas and set aside.

3. While pasta is cooking, add butter to a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat until melted. Add mushrooms, salt, pepper, dill, and onion powder and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes (there may be liquid from the mushrooms in the saucepan, but that’s okay).

4. Stir in olive oil and flour and cook 1 minute, whisking constantly (it may look lumpy at first, but keep whisking). Whisk milk slowly into flour mixture. Add soy sauce. Raise heat and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat and continue to simmer and stir gently until mixture thickens, about 2 minutes.

5. Remove from heat and stir in sour cream. Pour sauce over pasta mixture and stir to combine.  Place mixture evenly into a 9 x 13-inch baking pan or dish. Top with breadcrumb mixture.

6. Bake until casserole is bubbly and topping turns golden brown, 15 to 17 minutes.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 370 calories, 13g fat (5g saturated, 0.4 omega-3), 600 mg sodium, 22g protein, 47g carbohydrate, 6g fiber, 25% calcium, 10% iron

Print Recipe

We have other heatlhy casseroles on our website and blog.  A few you may want to check out include Simply Delicious Shepherd’s Pie, Chicken & Broccoli Casserole with Crunchy Almond Topping, and The Whole Enchilada Bake.

January 19, 2010 | Filed Under Dinner, KiwiMagazine, Pasta, Podcast, Seafood | 5 Comments 

Podcast 20: After-School Snack Attack

If you’re like us, kitchen craziness kicks in every day around 3:00PM when the kids get home from school. After backpacks are unloaded and hands are washed, it’s snack-attack time. What you choose for a snack can have a major impact — either positive or negative — on the quality of your child’s overall diet. In this week’s Cooking with the Moms radio podcast, we feature lots of healthy snack ideas along with two snack recipes: Lime ‘n Honey Black Bean Dip and our oh-so-delicious Grab & Go Granola Bars. Be sure to tune in to our podcast to get the skinny on snacking or check out our Smart Snacking story featured in this month’s issue of Kiwi magazine (it’s on the news stand now).

Lime ‘n Honey Black Bean Dip
Makes 6 to 8 Servings

One 15 ½ -ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup salsa
1/4 cup light sour cream
2 tablespoons lime juice (juice of 1 lime)
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1. Place the beans, salsa, sour cream, lime juice, honey, cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth and creamy.

2. Serve with baked tortilla chips or baby carrots.

Nutrition Information per Serving (1/4 cup): 60 calories, 0.5g fat (0g saturated fat), 180mg sodium, 13g carbohydrate, 3g fiber, 3g protein

If you have a favorite after-school snack idea you’d like to share, post it here on our blog!

September 10, 2008 | Filed Under Beans, KiwiMagazine, Podcast, Snacks | 1 Comment 

The Biggest Bean Ever

Last week, Liz traveled to Chicago for a nutrition conference on the benefits of beans (yes, we know, as dietitians we get all the perks). Before heading back to the airport, she took a walk over to Millenium Park where she was greeted by what looked like the world’s largest bean! Turns out the 110-ton sculpture is not a bean at all but rather an abstract structure called Cloud Gate designed to reflect the city’s famous skyline and the clouds above.

Beans were clearly the theme of Liz’s trip to Chicago. Here are a few things she learned:

* Beans wear two hats: They’re rich in protein — like beef, chicken, and eggs — so are listed on the government’s MyPyramid in the meat & beans category. They’re also categorized as a vegetable. In fact, beans have more protein and fiber than any other vegetable out there!

* Black beans, pinto beans, chickpeas, canellini beans and the hundreds of other bean varieties are incredibly versatile and are found in almost every cuisine from around the world.

* If you visit VegetableWithMore.com, you’ll find over 1,000 bean recipes as well as info on the Moms And Kids Panel where families can test and rate bean recipes.

Speaking of vegetables, be sure to tune in to our Cooking with the Moms podcast this week as we chat about vegetable recipes kids love. And while you’re at it, check out the May/June issue of Kiwi magazine and read our Veggie Love article!

May 27, 2008 | Filed Under Beans, KiwiMagazine, Podcast, Vegetables | 4 Comments 

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