The Challenge: Fresh Food In Schools

Who knew getting Garam Masala could be such a difficult task? The New York Times chronicles one school’s struggle to bring healthy food to the cafeteria. M.S. 137 in Ozone Park, Queens is just one of the many schools that must face the problems of aging ovens, frozen food and picky eaters. Schools must combat the draw of fast food and kids’ common aversion to vegetables. But New York City in particular has taken some steps forward – whole wheat pasta, low-fat milk, salad bars. The addition of tasty spices such as Garam Masala can also be intriuging to kids – it always works for me!

Schools’ Toughest Test: Cooking

by Kim Severson

ON a recent Monday afternoon in the back of a middle school kitchen in Queens, it sounded as if a deal was going down.

“You want garam? I can get you garam.”

Jorge Collazo, executive chef for New York City schools, was making an offer to Sharon Barlatier, the manager of one of the largest middle school cafeterias in New York, and, by extension, the country.

Her job is to entice nearly 2,000 students at the height of adolescent squirreliness to eat a good lunch. Because many of her students at Middle School 137 come from families with Indian roots, curry is one of her secret weapons. The spice mix garam masala might improve its firepower.

She has to make curry from a limited list of ingredients approved by the Department of Education: frozen pre-roasted commodity chicken parts, jarred chopped garlic and a generic curry powder.

Fresh chicken might improve it, but there isn’t a speck of raw meat allowed in New York City school cafeterias. It poses too much of a food-handling challenge.

So Mrs. Barlatier will settle for a little garam, even though Mr. Collazo will have to go out of his way to put it on the list.

Mrs. Barlatier is a rarity in a system that feeds almost a million children a day: she can cook, and she has the kitchen equipment to do it.

Read the rest here.