Aug. 1—Intermediate District 287, South Education Center Alternative in Richfield, Minn., won the grand prize in the Recipes for Healthy Kids competition. The winning recipe was Porcupine Sliders. The school won the competition last week at the American Culinary Federation’s National Convention in Dallas. More than 340 recipes were submitted for the contest, which was launched to challenge students, parents and other community members to create tasty and healthy recipes for school menus.
“Intermediate District 287, South Education Center Alternative and all of the schools that participated in the competition have demonstrated once again that school meals can be healthy—and taste great too,” Audrey Rowe, USDA Food and Nutrition Service administrator, said in a press release. “This is an outstanding achievement for our kids and for our efforts to bring healthier meals and healthier lifestyles to schools across the nation.”
Other finalists in the competition’s recipe cook-off included Central Valley Harvest Bake, submitted by Joshua Cowell School in Manteca, Calif.; and Tuscan Smoked Turkey & Bean Soup submitted by Ira B. Jones Elementary School in Asheville, N.C. Competing teams submitted recipes in three categories: Dry Beans, Dark Green-Orange Vegetables and Whole Grains. The top 10 recipes in each category will be published in a Recipes for Healthy Kids cookbook to share with schools, students and families.