When most people think of classically trained chefs in a kitchen, they think of five-star restaurants, exclusive country clubs or even luxury cruises. But what if these culinary experts took their knowledge on the road to where America desperately needs it -- public schoolroom lunchrooms.
Meet Andrea Martin and Kate Adamick, two classically trained chefs from New York City, who have chosen to share their expertise in public school lunchrooms across America. The goal? To improve the nutrition in school cafeterias.
Chefs like Martin and Adamick teach others to stay away from deep-frying and processed foods and emphasis cooking fresh food from scratch.
The reason they do it?
According to the Centers for Disease Control, one-third to one-half of our children born since the year 2000 will acquire type 2 diabetes in their lifetime, because the Centers for Disease Control says that this is the first generation in American history to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents, because of diet-related illness.
School cook Shannon Solomon said she is inspired after her week at boot camp.
"I feel very empowered. I want to bring my education to the kids. That is where my heart, that's where my passion is. I want to bring the education. Five-star restaurants are great. And I love -- I love the chef learning I had right now. But impacting the lives of our children and bringing that to our school district, it's the most important thing to me right now in my life," she said.
Quotes
"The issue is not that kids won't eat it. The issue is the adults think the kids won't eat it. And it is almost universal that we see the kids really do eat it." Kate Adamick, chef.
"We have learned how to disguise some of the fruits and the vegetables in the food." Lisa Samuel, school cook.
"We have to be careful about what we are putting in our bodies and what the kids are getting in their bodies. These are the kids that are going to have to take care of us some day. And if we don't watch what we are putting into them, how can they take care of us?" Janice Adams, school cook.
Warm Up Questions
1. What makes certain foods healthy? What makes certain foods unhealthy?
2. Name some healthy food items. Name some unhealthy food items.
3. What is a diet-related illness?
4. What is diabetes?
Discussion Questions
1. Why do you think trained chefs are going into school cafeterias to share their culinary knowledge?
2. What is the food like in your school cafeteria? Do you have healthy options?
3. Why is this the first generation in American history to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents, because of diet-related illness? What has changed in recent years?
4. What changes can we make in our diets to help change this?
Additional Resources
Report Says Many Youths Are ‘Too Fat to Fight’
Michelle Obama’s Plan to End Childhood Obesity
LESSON: Fast Fats: A Nutritional Analysis of America's Obsession with Fast Foods
