Although meeting the new school nutrition regulations and standards may seem inundating, healthy kids’ meals is not just a trend in schools. According to a survey by the National Restaurant Association, healthy kids’ meals and children’s nutrition are two of the top 2014 culinary trends!
In fact, it is encouraging that many of the food and beverage practices in place at schools are reflected in the current culinary trends. Here are some of the top 2014 culinary trends in kids’ meals, according to chefs from the National Restaurant Association Survey:
- Whole grain items in kids’ meals
- Fruit/vegetable children’s side items
- Ethnic-inspired children’s dishes
- Oven-baked items in kids’ meals (such as baked chicken fingers)
- Children’s entree salads
- Low-fat/non-fat milk or 100% juice options on kids’ menus
Providing healthy and tasty school meals can promote school lunch participation. For ideas for nutritious, flavorful school meals, visit the Culinary Institute of America’s Healthy Kids, Healthy Flavors website.
Train your school nutrition staff in culinary skills and on how to make healthy school meals that meet the meal pattern requirements with JSI’s Back to Basics trainings and other workshops. Resources from the JSI Resource Center that may be of interest include Cooking Basics and Knife Skills, Recipes and Menus, and Calculators and Nutrient Analysis Tools.