Somerville Farm to School Project

Back at the beginning of March, we gave you a sneak peek about how Somerville planned on celebrating National Nutrition month. We focused on 5, which is 5 servings of fruits and veggies a day. This year, one of our goals for National Nutrition Month was to expose students to healthy and delicious ways to eat their veggies. We accomplished this goal by taste testing kale chips in 6 different cafeterias. The kale chips are a great snack because they are crunchy and a little bit salty, just like regular potato chips, but with a lot more nutritional value. Kale has tons of vitamin A, vitamin K and some calcium too! Some students compared the taste of kale chips to the taste of other vegetables they are more familiar with, including broccoli, spinach, and lettuce. Students were able to vote on whether they would try the kale chips again. Giving students the chance to decide whether or not they liked the chips encourages them to continue to try new foods: no one l...

March is National Nutrition Month! This year's theme is focus on 5 - that's 5 servings of fruits and vegetables every day. National Nutrition Month bulletin board, Winter Hill School It's a no brainer that most kids love fruit, but some might find vegetables harder to like, especially those dark leafy greens, like kale. We took on this challenge by introducing the students to kale chips. When baked with a little salt, kale becomes crunchy with a slight umami flavor. Check back with us for the full recipe. Bunches of curly kale Kale chips  David Heidkamp, Framingham Nutrition Intern, and Meghan Bodo, Food Literacy Educator, washed, ripped, massaged and baked the kale for our first tasting in the Winter Hill School cafeteria. After eating their lunch, students stopped by the tasting table for a sample. David and Meghan are ready to serve kale chips! Taste, then vote! What did the students think? This delicious and healthy sna...