Westonka Schools Puts Delicious into Nutritious with Chef Marshall O'Brien

Westonka Public Schools has announced a partnership with Chef Marshall O’Brien to bring his Healthy Kids Living Program to Lake Minnetonka. In his work throughout Westonka nutrition services, O’Brien will work closely with school nutrition staff to help develop new recipes that put delicious into nutritious.

Chef O'Brien's "Healthy Kids Living Program" will…

• assist with enhancing existing recipes and providing new recipes featuring flavorful fruits and vegetable side dishes
• provide culinary training and team-building to help lunch staff work more efficiently
• ensure that the school district becomes certified under the new regulations to become eligible for an additional federal reimbursement of $0.06 per meal.

“While the new requirements do place a limit on calories, we need to think less in terms of calories, and more in terms of better nutrition," Obrien said. "Changes to the school lunch program are doing just that—giving kids the proper fuel they need to give them the energy and the brain power to perform at their best. Just like a car needs quality fuel to run properly and will seize up if it has low-grade fuel, nutritious foods keep kids running at their best."

Chef O’Brien’s work will begin with visits to each school in the district, where he will meet with lunch staff and students to introduce a fun, delicious dish. Students will be given the opportunity to "taste-test" the food. When they are done tasting, they'll cast their vote by tossing their container in a bin marked with a smile/frown or yes/no to indicate what they thought of it.

"Students watch with excitement as the containers pile up in the 'smile' bin, knowing they've tasted something great and helped to get it on the menu in the future," Obrien said.

Chef Marshall O’Brien’s upcoming visits to Westonka include:

• Nov. 19, Grandview Middle School
• Nov. 21, Hilltop Primary School
• Nov. 29, Mound – Westonka High School
• Shirley Hills Primary sSchool TBD
• Our Lady of the Lake TBD

“Our goal of teaming up with Chef Marshall is to show the community of Westonka that school nutrition can be fun, flavorful and fresh," says Laura Metzger, director of nutrition services for Westonka Public Schools. "We are working very hard to make sure students have quality entrées and well-prepared fruits and vegetables on a daily basis."

Metzger said partnership will allow for additional training of her food service staff and help achieve a goal of making 25 percent of meals from scratch by the end of school year 2013-2014.

"Scratch-cooked meals mean fresher foods, lower sodium and a larger variety of smart food options to choose from," Metzger said.

Information provided by the Westonka School District