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WORDS BY JANE BLACK

FEEDING THE FUTURE

The artist Paul Cezanne once wrote that there would come a day when “a single carrot, freshly observed, would set off a revolution.” This is what is happening in Berkeley, California, at the Edible Schoolyard program that each year sees 950 students growing, harvesting and preparing seasonal produce, then cooking up healthy meals in a classroom.

Founded a decade ago by Alice Waters, the inspirational chef of the famed Chez Panisse restaurant, the school’s message is clear: If we want to reduce obesity and improve health, we can no longer line school hallways with vending machines and leave school lunches to fast food restaurants. “In school cafeterias, students learn how little we care about the way they nourish themselves,” warned Waters in a recent speech. “We’ve sold them to the lowest bidder.”

Waters’ voice is finally being heard. The Edible Schoolyard has been an enormous success. A mini version of the Schoolyard was recreated this summer on the National Mall in Washington, DC, and over the next decade the program hopes to expand across the nation. Add to that the broad popularity of the Food Network, and we’ll have a new generation of kids who love food and want to learn to cook it right.

Of course, not every public school has a gardening and cooking program.

But luckily, we’ve got a new batch of savvy entrepreneurs to fill in this gap. In Brooklyn, New York, a new cooking school called the Neighborhood Kitchen has launched a Junior Chef Program, offering courses that teach teenagers food science, timing and flavor integration as well as an understanding of the basic cooking techniques used by professional chefs.

In Beverly, Massachusetts, gourmet cook shop Eurostoves caters to an even younger crowd. Moms bring tots aged three to five to learn to make healthy breads. For kids between six and nine, there is the five-day World Tour Series that teaches them to prepare Thai-inspired watermelon and pineapple slush, chocolate fondue from Switzerland and kiwi parfaits from New Zealand. For teens, there are healthy eating and vegetarian cooking classes: “We show them that it’s just as fast to cook something fresh as to fix a processed food you throw in the microwave,” says Karen Callahan, Eurostoves’ director of marketing.

For kids who might not have the time or the inclination to go to cooking class, there is a range of great books with kid-friendly recipes to try out at home. A great example comes from renowned chef, author and television personality Rick Bayless who, along with his teenage daughter Lanie, has produced Rick and Lanie’s Excellent Kitchen Adventures. The book, published last fall, is a lively dialogue between two not always like-minded cooks. Kids will love it, as most of the time Lanie is right. Along with travel memories, riffs on flavors and cooking techniques, it offers great step-by-step recipes, like Thai red curry, that families can prepare together.

So, as kids head back to school, remember there is a lot more to learn besides math and science. Be sure to put healthy eating on the curriculum.

HEALTHY LUNCHES

A few ideas that make brown bags cool at school.

• Bake chicken at the beginning of the week and slice it for sandwiches. It’s much healthier than packaged lunch meats.
• Pack yogurt parfaits with vanilla yogurt and fresh fruit. Have kids sprinkle raisins or granola on top.
• Mix pasta with tomatoes, cucumber and feta cheese for a Greek-style salad.
• Pack pretzels instead of potato chips.
• Try chocolate- or yogurt-covered raisins for dessert.
  

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