What's for Lunch, Tuesday 10/1/13

Chicken Tenders Oven Baked, All White Meat

Sweet Potato Crinkles

Cucumber Sticks with Dip

Strawberry Smoothie

 

The chicken is a Tyson "fully cooked chicken breast nugget fritter with rib meat" with 10g of fat and 420mg of sodium.  The ingredients are: Boneless, skinless chicken breast nuggets with rib meat, water, modified food starch, sodium phosphates, salt. PREDUSTED WITH: Enriched wheat flour (enriched with niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), wheat gluten, salt. BATTERED WITH: Water, enriched bleached wheat flour (enriched with niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), modified corn starch, salt, dextrose, spices, garlic powder, xanthan gum, oleoresin paprika and annatto. BREADED WITH: Enriched wheat flour (enriched with niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), salt, spices, garlic powder, extractives of paprika, natural flavors (spice extractives). Breading set in vegetable oil.

The Crinkles are fries by McCains that are flash fried and then frozen with 190mg of sodium and 7g of fat (one is saturated). The ingredients are: Sweet Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (Contains One Or More Of The Following Oils: Canola, Soybean, Cottonseed, Sunflower, Corn), Corn Starch - Modified. Contains 2% or less of Annatto (color), Beta Carotene (color), Caramel Color, Corn Starch, Dehydrated Sweet Potatoes, Leavening (Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate), Natural Flavor (Contains Wheat), Rice Flour, Salt, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate Added To Maintain Natural Color, Sugar, Tapioca Dextrin, Xanthan Gum.

 What's for Lunch, Monday 9/30/2013

Macaroni & Cheese - Barilla Plus Pasta & Wisconsin Cheddar

Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Carrot & Celery Sticks w/Dip

Pears in Fruit Juice

The noodles we're using for the Mac & Cheese are Barilla Plus. The ingredients are: Semolina, Grain and Legume Flour, Blend (Lentils, Chickpeas, Egg Whites, Spelt, Barley, Flaxseed, Oat Fiber, Oats), Durum Flour, Niacin, Iron (Ferrous Sulfate), Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid. The sauce is made from Wisconsin Cheddar. 

 Why School Peanut Bans Keep Changing and How it Relates to Bulling

http://glencove.patch.com/groups/back-to-school/p/why-school-peanut-bans-keep-changing-glencove

Credit: Burlington Patch

Look what's in the cafeteria!

Fresh Herbs!!

What's for Lunch, Friday 9/27/2013

MEATLESS FRIDAY

Monterey Jack Quesadilla

with Corn Salsa

or

Egg Salad on Whole Wheat Pita

Caesar Salad w/Chickpeas

Pineapple Chunks in Juice

I think this sounds good. They use Monterey Jack cheese (which is mild) and a flour tortilla.  The salsa is organic. 

Egg salad in a pita. Looks very good!

Chinese Chicken in School Meals: USDA Responds But Doesn’t Change Misleading Answer

http://www.thelunchtray.com/chinese-chicken-in-school-meals-usda-responds-but-doesnt-change-misleading-answer/ 

"I am a former lawyer with some food regulatory experience, and after three and a half years of working on school food reform in Houston ISD, I’m relatively well-versed in how school food programs operate.  Yet even I had to email and call the agency several times and parse the regulations carefully, including debating them with my fellow-lawyer husband, to finally figure out that the “no” answer is incomplete and misleading.  One should not need a law degree, special school food expertise, and a lot of extra time on one’s hands just to know what one’s children might be eating at lunch".

 What's for Lunch, Thursday 9/26/201

FROM THE RANCH TO YOU - ANTIBIOTIC/HORMONE - FREE BEEF

Rotini Bolognese

(local, NY State Beef)

Sauteed Broccoli

Baked Sweet Potato Puffs

Petite Banana

This a big change in our school's lunch program. After much work, discussion and research, our district has discontinued the use of most USDA commodity beef for a variety of health reasons and contracted with a New York State farm to provide beef raised without antibiotics and hormones. It is more expensive and there is less beef on the menu as a result but it is a huge improvement in the quality of our lunches.

The rotini uses this beef and we use a Red Pack vitamin enhanced tomato sauce. The sodium at 140mg is much lower than we previously used.  Here are the ingredients: Tomato Concentrate (Water, Tomato Paste), Sugar, Soybean Oil, Potassium Chloride, Onion Powder, Salt, Citric Acid, Spice, Garlic Powder, Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Black Pepper, Vitamin E (DL-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate), Natural Flavor, Vitamin A (Retinol Palmitate).

For the pasta, we use Barilla Plus.  The ingredients are:  Semolina, Grain and Legume Flour, Blend (Lentils, Chickpeas, Egg Whites, Spelt, Barley, Flaxseed, Oat Fiber, Oats), Durum Flour, Niacin, Iron (Ferrous Sulfate), Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid.

And then we have The Return of the Tater Tot.  Or so I suspect. There was a tater tot-like food called a "puff" last year at the Middle School and now they have arrived at Sea Cliff. Our processed potato products generally come from McCain's who has a product called Harvest Splendor Bites.  From the picture, I think this is what we are serving.  The ingredients would then be: Sweet Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (Contains One Or More Of The Following Oils: Canola, Soybean, Cottonseed, Sunflower, Corn). Contains 2% or less of Corn Starch - Modified, Dehydrated Potatoes, Dextrin, Maltodextrin, Molasses, Salt, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate Added To Maintain Natural Color, Sugar, Tapioca Starch - Modified, Xanthan Gum.  We do bake them but I don't know yet if they are pre-cooked (fried?) before being frozen and shipped to us.  This counts as our orange vegetable while still teaching children to eat fries with lunch.

 An Interesting Article from The Lunch Tray Website

USDA Misinforms Parents Re: Chinese-Processed Chicken in School Meals

http://www.thelunchtray.com/usda-misinforms-parents-re-chinese-processed-chicken-in-school-meals/

What's for Lunch, Wednesday 9/25/2013

BRUNCH FOR LUNCH

Cinnamon Challah French Toast

w/Applegate® Turkey Bacon

OR

Scrambled Egg & Cheese Wrap

Herb-Roasted Potato Wedges

Strawberry-Yogurt Smoothie

(Fat-Free Yogurt)

At least there's a choice. Say "No" to meal declared to be "cake" for lunch by our committee's nutritionist - basically white flour bread.  The syrup is basically HFCS.  They are looking for an affordable maple syrup but do not have one yet - but they will be limiting the serving size this year in the meantime.  Actual lunch from our schools above. This meal has a lot of sugar, simple carbohydrates -- no whole grains.

The egg and cheese wrap is a better choice, but hte sides are problematic.

The potatoes are from McCains. The ingredients are: Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (contains one or more of the following: Canola Oil, Soybean Oil, Cottonseed Oil, Sunflower Oil, Corn Oil), Corn Starch - Modified, Dehydrated Garlic, Spices, Salt, Dehydrated Onion, Rosemary, Dehydrated Red Bell Pepper, Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Paprika, Dextrose, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate Added to Preserve Natural Color.   Note that the autolyzed yeast extract is potentially similar to MSG. They have 3.5g of fat and 160mg of sodium.

The turkey bacon is by Applegate.  Here are the ingredients: Turkey (Turkey Used Never Administered Antibiotics, Growth Promotants or Animal By-products), Water, Sea Salt, Maple Sugar, Celery Juice, Onion Powder, Spices, Lactic Acid Starter Culture (not From Milk.)  They promote it as nitrate-free but this NYT article indicates otherwise - and cites the company saying their products have the same level (naturally) of cancer-causing nitrates as conventional brands. Read more about nitrates here.

What's for Lunch Tuesday  9/24/2013

Whole Wheat Pita Pizza with Meatballs

OR

Plain Cheese Whole Wheat Pita Pizza

Zucchini w/Garlic & Oil

More Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Applesauce w/Cinnamon

We make these pizzas in our cafeteria. The pita is actually part whole wheat.  The ingredients are wheat flour [whole wheat flour and enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid)], water, soybean oil, less than 2% of yeast, salt, sugar, dough conditioner (distilled monoglycerides, calcium salts, guar gum, wheat starch, sodium metabisulfite, ascorbic acid), preservatives (calcium propionate, potassium sorbate), vinegar.

For our various pizzas, we use  the Red Pack vitamin enhanced tomato sauce. The sodium at 140mg is much lower than we previously used.  Here are the ingredients: Tomato Concentrate (Water, Tomato Paste), Sugar, Soybean Oil, Potassium Chloride, Onion Powder, Salt, Citric Acid, Spice, Garlic Powder, Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Black Pepper, Vitamin E (DL-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate), Natural Flavor, Vitamin A (Retinol Palmitate).

Pizzas will have fresh mozzarella and basil -- but skip the meatballs. They are a USDA commodity food processed by Tyson. Ingredients are: Ground beef (not more than 20% fat), water, bread crumbs (bleached wheat flour, salt, yeast, dextrose, and soybean oil), seasoning (salt, dehydrated onion, dehydrated celery, garlic powder, spices, soybean oil), tomato puree (tomatoes and citric acid), grated parmesan cheese [(cultured part-skim milk, salt and enzymes), cellulose powder, potassium sorbate], grated romano cheese made from cow's milk [(cultured pasteurized part-skim milk, salt and enzymes), cellulose powder, potassium sorbate].   They have 9g of fat (3 are saturated) and 450 mg of sodium. 

What's for Lunch, Monday 9/23/2013

CBLT  

Breaded Chicken with Turkey

Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato

OR

FRESH FRUIT PLATE

with Breadstick & String Cheese

Red Pepper Strips w/Dip

Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Fresh Apple Slices

The Bacon in the BLT is not listed as Turkey bacon.

The turkey bacon does not say "Applegate" on the menu so I can't 't be sure it is but that's what we usually use. Nonetheless, it is still bacon.  Here are the ingredients: In Turkey Bacon: Turkey (Turkey Used Never Administered Antibiotics, Growth Promotants or Animal By-products), Water, Sea Salt, Maple Sugar, Celery Juice, Onion Powder, Spices, Lactic Acid Starter Culture (not From Milk.)  They promote it as nitrate-free but this NYT article says otherwise - and cites the company saying their bacon has the same level (naturally) of cancer-causing nitrates as conventional brands. 

Ingredients in 'regular' bacon: 

Ingredients Water, Salt, Sugar, Sodium Phosphate, sodium ascorbate, sodium nitrite

**
Sodium Nitrite helps prevent the growth of Clostridium botulinum, which can cause botulism in humans and is also used alone or in conjunction with sodium nitrate as a color fixative in cured meat and poultry products (bologna, hot dogs, bacon).

Veggie Challange!

The Tower of Beets

My children are hard to please - and I often laugh at printed ideas of how to make picky eaters eat.

This one really does works for me.

I cook the beets in tinfoil and honey.
Slice them into rounds,
and build The Tower of Beets with my kids.

It's almost a topple game!

You can modify your "rules" ours are:
The first child to build the biggest beet tower that doesn't fall (and eat it - in a normal fashion) wins!

I'm not saying that it will work, I'm just putting it out there :)

What's for Lunch Friday 9/20/2103

MEATLESS FRIDAY

Whole Wheat Rotini with Broccoli and Mozzarella

OR

Pizza Bagel

Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Cucumber Rounds w/Dip

Fresh Melon

This is a whole grain rotini by Zerega.  The sauce is a Red Pack vitamin enhanced tomato sauce. The sodium at 140mg is much lower than we previously used.  Here are the ingredients: Tomato Concentrate (Water, Tomato Paste), Sugar, Soybean Oil, Potassium Chloride, Onion Powder, Spices, Salt, Citric Acid, Garlic Powder, Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Black Pepper, Vitamin E (DL-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate), Natural Flavor, Vitamin A (Retinol Palmitate)

The WW Pizza Bagel is a whole grain bagel with government commodity tomato sauce (contains corn syrup and a high level of sodium) and commodity part skim mozzarella (not truly low fat but better than not part skim). It's a better alternative than the frozen pizzas we get from large manufacturers chock full of additives. We've talked about the alternate entrees in previous posts, if you are interested.


So, go with the fresh broccoli and the mozzarella (part skim.) 
Or
The salad bar and veggies!!

What's for Lunch Thursday 9/19/2013

BURRITO BOWL

Brown Rice, Black Beans &

Southwest-Style Chicken

in a Taco Tub!

Salsa & Romaine & Cheese

OR

Monterey Jack Quesadilla

Baby Carrots

Fresh Fruit at the Salad Bar

The burrito bowl is a new item this year.   The brown rice is a great whole grain. The black beans are canned. The southwest-style chicken is from Tyson and described as diced, cooked "chicken meat." Read more about farm animals raised by industrial giants like Tyson,  antibiotics and hormones.  The bowl comes from Smokewood Foods. The ingredients are described just as "enriched masa flour" and they look like a big rectangular corn chip. They have 5g of fat and no sodium. 

The quesadilla has Monterrey Jack cheese and canned black beans served in a flour tortilla - no whole grains. The tortillas are from Tyson and contain:  Bleached Enriched Wheat Flour (Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Contains one or more of the following: Cottonseed Oil, Soybean Oil), Mono- and Diglycerides, Contains 2% or less of the following: Salt, Baking Powder (Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Corn Starch, Monocalcium Phosphate), Fumaric Acid, Sodium Bicarbonate, Dough Conditioner (Wheat Flour, Calcium Sulfate, Sorbic Acid), Preservative (Sodium Propionate and Potassium Sorbate).  Sodium is 380mg. 5g of fat (1 of which is saturated).

Plus fresh baby carrots and salad bar!

What's for Lunch Wednesday 9/18/2013

BETTER-THAN-A-PIZZERIA

Flatbread Chicken Parmigiana

OR

Flatbread Plain Cheese Pizza

(Made with Fresh Mozzarella)

Zucchini Sticks with Dip

Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Watermelon!!! 

Unlike many schools, we do make these pizzas. This is a white-flour pizza (not whole grain). The sauce is a Red Pack vitamin enhanced tomato sauce. The sodium at 140mg is much lower than we previously used.  Here are the ingredients: Tomato Concentrate (Water, Tomato Paste), Sugar, Soybean Oil, Potassium Chloride, Onion Powder, Salt, Citric Acid, Spice, Garlic Powder, Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Black Pepper, Vitamin E (DL-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate), Natural Flavor, Vitamin A (Retinol Palmitate).

Go with cheese.  The chicken is a pre-cooked breaded Tyson chicken product. The ingredients are: Boneless, skinless chicken breast filets with rib meat, water, modified food starch, sodium phosphates, salt. PREDUSTED WITH: Enriched wheat flour (enriched with niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), wheat gluten, salt. BATTERED WITH: Water, enriched bleached wheat flour (enriched with niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), modified corn starch, salt, dextrose, spices, garlic powder, xanthan gum, oleoresin paprika and annatto. BREADED WITH: Enriched wheat flour (enriched with niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), salt, spices, garlic powder, extractives of paprika, natural flavors (spice extractives). Breading set in vegetable oil.  Their serving size has 10g of fat (2 of which are saturated) and 620 mg of sodium.
 

What's for Lunch Tuesday 9/17/2013

TRATTORIA DAY

Meatball Parmigiana Hero

OR

Whole Wheat Penne Marinara

(Served with Mozzarella Stick)

Caesar Salad

More Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Fresh Fruit Salad

For the meatball, parmigiana, unlike our hamburgers, this "beef" is from Tyson and  is a USDA commodity product.  The meatballs are processed, cooked and frozen by Tyson from commodity beef.  Ingredients are: Ground beef (not more than 20% fat), water, bread crumbs (bleached wheat flour, salt, yeast, dextrose, and soybean oil), seasoning (salt, dehydrated onion, dehydrated celery, garlic powder, spices, soybean oil), tomato puree (tomatoes and citric acid), grated parmesan cheese [(cultured part-skim milk, salt and enzymes), cellulose powder, potassium sorbate], grated romano cheese made from cow's milk [(cultured pasteurized part-skim milk, salt and enzymes), cellulose powder, potassium sorbate].   They have 9g of fat (3 are saturated) and 450 mg of sodium.

The sauce is a Red Pack vitamin enhanced tomato sauce.  Here are the ingredients: Tomato Concentrate (Water, Tomato Paste), Sugar, Soybean Oil, Potassium Chloride, Onion Powder, Salt, Citric Acid, Spice, Garlic Powder, Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Black Pepper, Vitamin E (DL-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate), Natural Flavor, Vitamin A (Retinol Palmitate).  The cheese is a USDA commodity part skim mozzarella.  Ingredients are cultured pasteurized milk, salt, enzymes. The sodium is 240mg/oz.

Whole wheat penne with sauce above.

 What's for Lunch Monday 9/16/2013

QUESADILLA

Chicken & Cheese

OR

Plain Cheese Quesadilla

Brown Rice & Black Beans

Veggies on the Salad Bar

Grape & Orange Salad

Cheese and chicken quesadilla w/ a flour tortilla - no whole grains. The tortillas are from Tyson and contain:  Bleached Enriched Wheat Flour (Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Contains one or more of the following: Cottonseed Oil, Soybean Oil), Mono- and Diglycerides, Contains 2% or less of the following: Salt, Baking Powder (Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Corn Starch, Monocalcium Phosphate), Fumaric Acid, Sodium Bicarbonate, Dough Conditioner (Wheat Flour, Calcium Sulfate, Sorbic Acid), Preservative (Sodium Propionate and Potassium Sorbate).  Sodium is 380mg. 5g of fat (1 of which is saturated).

The chicken is from Tyson and described as diced, cooked "chicken meat."
 

Weekend Cooking with Kids!

I know, I know - kale and kids - Never going to happen!
I'm here to say, YUP it can!
Even for my super picky 6 year old.

Now, there's some sacrificing in this recipe. There's a lot of sodium - BUT if my picky eater eats it now, I can always slowly decrease it.

And depending on what your family likes, you can always customize - garlic, onion, hot pepper....endless.

Just a note - keep a close eye on them, ideally they are just turning brown around the edge. Not mushy or burnt.

Note: At least for me, practice!

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/baked-kale-chips/

 Weekend Cooking with the Kids

Looking for some yummy and nutritious things to make with your kids this weekend (if you are not camping). Check out http://weelicious.com/

Weekend (camping) and Cooking with Kids!

A little late for this year - but there's always next year! Who can resist healthy smores!!

http://weelicious.com/2012/06/18/20-easy-camping-recipes/

Great Resource!

https://www.facebook.com/thelunchtray

5 Foods You Can Make (Better) The Old Fashioned Way

5 Foods You Can Make (Better) The Old Fashioned Way

What's for Lunch Friday 9/13/2013

MEATLESS FRIDAY

Thin Crust Pizza

with Tomato, Basil and Mozzarella

(Broccoli Topping Available)

OR

Fresh Fruit Plate

with Breadstick & String Cheese

Chickpea Salad~Fresh Orange

The pizza sauce (from Red Pack) ingredients are: Tomato concentrate (water, tomato paste), salt, citric acid, basil.

For the crust, the ingredients are: enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, barley malt, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), water, yeast, soybean oil,, dextrose, salt, calcium propionate, fumaric acid, dough conditioner (wheat flour, salt, soybean oil, l-gyssteine, ascorbic acid, enzyme) potassium sorbate.

Broccoli is fresh.

What's for Lunch Thursday 9/12/2013

GRILLED CHEESE TWO WAYS

Plain Cheese

OR

Cheese & Boar’s Head® Ham

LI Corn on the Cob

Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Petite Banana

The grilled cheese sandwich is made with Cabot cheddar on whole wheat bread.  We use Nature's Own Whole Wheat Bread for these. The ingredients are: STONE GROUND WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR, WATER, BROWN SUGAR, YEAST, WHEAT GLUTEN, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF EACH OF THE FOLLOWING: SALT, VEGETABLE OIL (SOYBEAN OIL OR CANOLA OIL), DOUGH, CONDITIONERS (SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, CALCIUM, STEAROYL-2-LACTYLATE, MONOGLYCERIDES, CALCIUM IODATE, ETHOXYLATED MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, CALCIUM PEROXIDE, DATEM), CULTURED WHEAT FLOUR, VINEGAR, CALCIUM SULFATE, MONOCALCIUM, PHOSPHATE, YEAST FOOD (AMMONIUM SULFATE), SOY LECITHIN.
  
Boar’s Head® Ham Nutrition Facts

Serv Size 2 oz (56g)
Serving Per Container Varied

Amount Per Serving

Calories 60

Calories fom Fat 10

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 1g

2%

Saturated Fat 0g

0%

Trans Fat 0g

Monounsaturated Fat 0.5g

Polyunsaturated Fat 0g

Cholesterol 25mg

9%

Sodium 590mg

25%

Total Carbohydrate 2g

1%

Dietary Fiber 0g

0%

Sugars 2g

Protein 9g

19%

Vitamin A 0%

Vitamin C 0%

Calcium 0%

Iron 4%

What's for Lunch Wednesday 9/11/2013

BRUNCH FOR LUNCH

Cinnamon Challah French Toast

w/Applegate® Turkey Bacon
OR
ENTREE #2

Scrambled Egg & Cheese Wrap

Oven-Baked Potato “Fries”

Salad Bar Veggie Sides

Strawberry-Yogurt Smoothie

(Fat-Free Yogurt)

At least there's a choice. Say "No" to meal declared to be "cake" for lunch by our committee's nutritionist - basically white flour bread.  The syrup is basically HFCS.  They are looking for an affordable maple syrup but do not have one yet - but they will be limiting the serving size this year in the meantime.  Actual lunch from our schools above. This meal has a lot of sugar, simple carbohydrates -- no whole grains.

The egg and cheese wrap is a better choice, but hte sides are problematic.

The potatoes are from McCains. The ingredients are: Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (contains one or more of the following: Canola Oil, Soybean Oil, Cottonseed Oil, Sunflower Oil, Corn Oil), Corn Starch - Modified, Dehydrated Garlic, Spices, Salt, Dehydrated Onion, Rosemary, Dehydrated Red Bell Pepper, Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Paprika, Dextrose, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate Added to Preserve Natural Color.   Note that the autolyzed yeast extract is potentially similar to MSG. They have 3.5g of fat and 160mg of sodium.

The turkey bacon is by Applegate.  Here are the ingredients: Turkey (Turkey Used Never Administered Antibiotics, Growth Promotants or Animal By-products), Water, Sea Salt, Maple Sugar, Celery Juice, Onion Powder, Spices, Lactic Acid Starter Culture (not From Milk.)  They promote it as nitrate-free but this NYT article indicates otherwise - and cites the company saying their products have the same level (naturally) of cancer-causing nitrates as conventional brands. Read more about nitrates here.


You can still choose the salad bar this week.

Sea Cliff Gardeners are AMAZING! Thank you for all the wonderful produce!

We hope you visited our Backyard Farm Stand today! What a success! Thank you to all the Sea Cliff gardeners who contributed their beautiful vegetables, fruits and flowers!

DIY (Healthy) Microwave Popcorn

Who doesn't love popcorn! Just TWO ingredients!!!
http://shrinkingkitchen.com/diy-microwave-popcorn

Link to Sea Cliff School's Lunch Menu

http://www.northshore.k12.ny.us/Menus/Elementary_lunch-menu.htm

Dear North Shore School District Families

September 5, 2013

Dear North Shore School District Families,

As most of you are aware, the District continues to make improvements in the variety and quality of menus offered to students. The overall goal is to improve the quality of food served by:

• Creating menus that are appealing and tasteful
• Reducing the amount of processed foods
• Eliminating excessive additives and replacing them with whole grain, lower amounts of fat
• Introducing scratch-cooking and planning menus with varieties of fresh fruits and vegetables
• Increasing staff training
• Serving alternative meal options for children with food allergies and ingredient intolerances
In order to continue this initiative, the Board of Education approved the lunch prices below for students, effective August 28, 2013. The complete price list will be s available on the district’s web page.

We will also advise you of changes in the breakfast menu prices in October.

We are changing school lunch one day at a time, tray by tray and we thank you for your support!

Thank you.

Olivia Buatsi
Assistant Superintendent for Business
___________________________________________________________________________

"TIP: Switch sugary drinks for fruit-infused water. Make it extra chilly by adding frozen fruit. Kids love it and it keeps them hydrated + it's full of vitamins"! - Whole Foods

Monitoring What Your Child Buys for Lunch

If you have not yet used our online Mealpay Plus system, it's an easy way to add money to your children's lunch account (although there is a processing fee) AND to see what your kids are eating.  Thus far, I can see that my child has purchased an "entree" or twice the "salad bar".

The website can be found here and the link is also on the district's website under the lunch program link. To register for the first time, you need to call the food service office and get a student ID#. They can be reached at 277-7090.  The site will also let you set up automatic payments and control how and when you are notified of low balances