Monthly Archives: June 2011

Lunch Wrap Up: Week of May 23rd

Packed lunches

I got my hands on the June menu and there is more variety. Ice cream is out, frozen yogurt is in. Hummus, hard boiled eggs, vegetable soup, pinto beans, etc are on the menu. I’m one week delayed with posting of our lunches so when I get to June, you’ll be able to read what they are offering now. I’m pleased.

I made sure to thank one of the people at the front desk the day after the new menu was distributed. She responded, “Well, we’ll see if the kids like it. If they don’t, there will be some changes.” Not sure what to make of that comment.

When I tweeted about the menu changes, someone replied to me “What’s wrong with ice cream?” Well, nothing in moderation. My son has had ice cream at home twice over the past week. We had ice cream on two hot days. But getting ice cream once or twice a week in January? I think of ice cream as a seasonal food. Hot days? Yes. January before I pick him up and take him out in 17 degree weather? Um, no.

Secondly, maybe I have control issues, but I want to be the one deciding when he gets ice cream. Also, these days I need to know what’s on the ingredient list so it’s not simple.

I know many of you think of me as the food police, but my husband is actually more strict than I am. Sometimes I give my son a cookie or a cupcake when my husband isn’t around. I often feel like my little guy gets “deprived” because of his food allergies and try to make up for it. My husband disagrees and says, “This kid is not deprived at all. Look at how much good food he gets.”

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I just want you to know that I didn’t eat good lunches like this before the project. I was eating haphazard leftovers and the occasional microwave meal (with their paragraphs of ingredients). I never put this kind of time into lunch preparation including when I actually had time before my son was born. I never really cared that much about lunch. How things change!

Lunches below the break …

(Giveaway winner to be announced Sunday or Monday!)

My son’s lunches
Monday
Mashed potatoes, jello, pancakes and bacon
strawberries, kiwis

He wanted mashed potatoes. I sent the jello to compete against the ice cream. Day care menu: Ground beef, hash browns, diced pears, diced carrots, with fruit and ice cream as snacks.

Tuesday
Hard-boiled eggs, apple sauce, sweet potatoes
brown rice couscous with broccoli, sliced peaches

Nothing much to say here. Day care menu: Cod nuggets, mac & cheese, applesauce, peas, with yogurt and fruit as snacks.

Wednesday
Pasta, lamb burger, peas and cilantro,
bananas with yogurt, apple slices in the bag

My kid loves cilantro. The rest of his lunch is pretty bland. Day care menu: Diced hame with buttered pasta, bananas, green beans, with fruit and yogurt as snacks.

Thursday
Corn, sweet potatoes, broccoli; kiwis and mandarin oranges;
tuna sandwiches, cranberry muffin, crackers

Nothing much to say here. I sliced the corn off the cob this time. Day care menu: Scrambled eggs, tater tots, mandarin oranges, diced carrots, with fruit and blueberry muffins as snacks.

Friday
Chicken noodle soup; yogurt with mint leaves;
sweet potatoes with brown sugar,
bacon; kiwis and mandarin oranges; breadsticks

My kid loves mint. He also likes these breadsticks, which I only offer with soup. It seemed odd to me that soup was offered in May, but that Friday was chilly and rainy so I was happy he had soup. Day care menu: American cheese sandwich, chicekn with rice soup, diced pears, peas with yogurt and crackers with soy nut butter as snacks.

The breadsticks my son loves. They are amazing.
My lunches
Monday
Pancakes with syrup, strawberries, yogurt

A small lunch.

Tuesday
Brown rice couscous, kiwi, sweet potatoes, bar

This was definitely not enough for lunch. I was running super late that morning. I had no choice.

Wednesday
Pasta with peas and cilantro, lamb burger, bananas and yogurt

A more filling meal!
Thursday
Tuna sandwich, KIND bar, kiwis/mandarin oranges,
sweet potatoes/broccoli

Can’t go wrong with a sandwich and I really like tuna.
Friday
Salami and cilantro sandwich, oranges with yogurt,
peas and sweet potatoes
I ran out of lettuce/spinach and so I had to find *something* green to put on that sandwich. I found a bunch of cilantro and ripped it to shreds. It was good, but maybe not to some of you (who have mentioned hating cilantro)!

Lunch Literature Book Club #fastfoodlover

Book club

They decided to replace the food pyramid yesterday. I’m happy they chose a plate. I like pyramids well enough, but I never associated them with food. I only remembered that grains were at the bottom and sweets and fats were at the top. Everythings else was just a jumble.

It’s a fork not a spork! Phew!
Since one out of every five meals is eaten in the car, maybe they should have considered a bag, a carton, or even a lap with a cup holder… When I plan dinner, I have a visual in my head. I picture a meat/protein, veggies and a grain. Three components only. I don’t usually eat fruit at dinner, but on my way home from work I will chomp on an apple in the car. Maybe that’s my dinner “fruit”? Fruit as a dessert is a wonderful thing too.
For those of you reading the book, where does fast food fit into the plate? Can we give people a guide like this if they don’t know how to cook? What does this plate graphic mean to the “fast food lover” (or the person who eats fast food 50 times per month)?

From an online book guide for Fast Food Nation:

Q: Fast food chains, despite the myriad problems documented by the author, have an undeniable appeal-they are convenient and offer inexpensive and tasty food. Even if you are disturbed by the practices of these corporations, could you realistically swear off your food, given its ubiquity and mainstream appeal? If you are driving home from work, tired and hungry, and your two choices are a familiar fast food restaurant or an unknown Mom-and-pop, which would you choose? What kinds of implications does this choice have?

My answer: It’s really important to remember that everyone is on their own food journey. Just 18 months ago I thought eating school lunch every day was fine. Looking back I think that I was either nuts or naive(definitely both!). My relationship with food as it currently stands would never allow me to do that again.

Are you driving home from work tired and hungry? I’m not, but I also pack a decent lunch and snacks for my car (and I carry gum in my purse too). Anyway, I think most people chose fast food in that situation. Many things that bother me about the choice of fast food, but one is that the money doesn’t stay in the community, but is wired directly to the corporation’s headquarters. If you buy from a local Mom and Pop, your money usually stays in your community.

Q: Since few people would confuse fast food with health food, who bears the greater responsibility for the alarming rate of obesity in children in the United States: the fast food chains that market “supersize” meals to children, or parents who are not educating their children about the benefits of a balanced diet? Can well-intentioned parents maintain control over the eating habits of their children in an era when school districts are contracting to bring fast food into the school cafeteria?
 
My answer: This is a loaded question, but an important one. Parents make the decisions for their children. But many parents don’t recognize marketing as what it is: an illusion to get you to buy something. And to answer the last question: that’s why we need school lunch reform.

I know you have something to say so please comment below!

Breakfast in the classroom: example seven

School Breakfast
Apple cinnamon graham crackers, string cheese, OJ and milk
Today’s breakfast example appears to be a little on the small side. I guess it would be small for an adult, but not a child. Yesterday morning I was running late and only had time to grab a KIND bar as I was leaving the house. So the breakfast pictured above might be better than what I ate by some standards. 
I like that the kids are getting string cheese, which is a favorite food for kids and gives them a little protein. What I’m less crazy about is the processed bar/graham/cracker/cookie. Without knowing the ingredients, I can’t say whether the crackers contain whole grains or refined flour or who knows? I can only guess.
On the upside, this breakfast can be consumed quickly and it doesn’t require silverware. One of the arguments from people who disagree with the breakfast in the classroom program is that it cuts into instructional time. Overall, the kids eat their breakfast efficiently and I don’t see a negative impact. The bottom line is that it’s hard to teach a hungry kid. The transition has been easy: having breakfast in the classroom is just an accepted part of the morning routine now.