Link: http://whatsforschoollunch.blogspot.com/

Thanks to a tweet by the LA Times, we've discovered a great new blog: http://whatsforschoollunch.blogspot.com/. With photos from around the world of what kids are eating in their school cafeterias, it's fun to browse other cultures' cuisine. Plus, the next time your child complains about their school lunch, you can tell them they could be eating sardines in Japan.

No time to shop but need to get a meal on the table? No worries!

The Web site My Fridge Food will help you figure out what foods you can prepare using what’s already available in your kitchen. After you click through a list of possible food ingredients, the easy-to-use site pulls up potential recipes for consideration. The site also includes “College Corner” and “Most Popular” recipe sections.

A well-balanced, satisfying diet is just as important to a busy college student as the right class schedule, mentor or learning environment, according to AssociateDegree.org.

“A diet that consists of high-fat and high-calorie foods with little nutritional value doesn’t just make you gain weight: it impairs focus, energy, motivation, sleep, and overall wellness. On the other hand, a diet that consists of energy-rich, lowfat foods packed with antioxidants, iron and other minerals can make a huge difference in a student’s mood and focus,” notes the site.

Read the full article, with brief descriptions of 50 foods and how they benefit the body in five categories (Energy, Brain Foods, Best Values, Sensible Snacking, Healthy Digestion).

While rice is the primary staple for more than half the world’s population, the grain hasn’t often garnered cachet as gourmet, trendy or unique. For most consumers, rice is seen as an inexpensive source of calories or a means to stretch expensive meats or vegetables.

Many view rice as bland, certainly not the star of the show. But foodies know that rice more often than not gets a bum wrap. Devotees frequently opt for specialty rices such as Arborio, black japonica, jasmine and basmati. These varieties typically impart a nutty flavor with an inviting “popcorn” aroma that fills a kitchen during cooking. These specialty rices, known as aromatics, are gaining favor with consumers seeking to add flair to meals.

There’s no better time to think about adding aromatic rice to your menu than September, which has been celebrated by the U.S. rice industry as National Rice Month for the past 18 years. Initiated by an act of Congress in 1991, National Rice Month is sponsored by the USA Rice Federation to increase awareness of rice and recognize the contribution the industry makes to America’s economy.

Today, the typical American consumes an average of 25 pounds of rice per year and it's no wonder. Rice is a healthy, versatile, economical dish that is sodium- and cholesterol-free and contains just a trace of fat. And for foodies, aromatic specialty rice is often the way to go, with consumption growing at a faster clip than conventional varieties.

Alvin, Texas-based RiceTec produces and markets one of the nation’s best known aromatic rice lines known under the brand name RiceSelect.

“Texmati was the first aromatic specialty rice successfully grown and marketed in the United States,” Deborah Locke, brand manager for RiceSelect told Foodie News.

Aromatic rice is a bit more expensive than the “plain Jane” white variety. But its gourmet qualities make it worth the price, adding just the right amount of depth and flavor to simple rice dishes. The pleasing flavor, aroma and texture help nix the idea that rice is boring and bland.

“Americans eat twice as much aromatic rice today compared to 10 years ago. Consumers have embraced aromatic rice and consumption has been steadily rising, so much so, that the category in supermarkets has seen double-digit growth for each of the last 20 years,” Locke said. “Consumers’ desire for healthier foods with flavor is certainly a big part of the picture, but people also are becoming more interested in the rice-based cuisines of India, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam, which has contributed to the growth.”

RiceTec officials believe interest and growth in aromatic rice will continue to increase, particularly with families eating more meals together at home. “This has placed the emphasis on high-quality ingredients that provide healthy food with a focus on flavor,” Locke said.

Learn more at www.RiceSelect.com or www.usarice.com.

With 30 million school lunches served daily in U.S. public schools, improving taste and nutritional quality all at once is understandably a Herculean task. Fortunately for one school district in West Virginia, help is on the way.

British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver will work with local officials this fall to bring healthy food to Huntington, W.Va., which has the dubious distinction of being dubbed “America’s fattest city.”

Huntington was selected for Oliver’s new U.S. reality TV show because the obesity rate for the city and surrounding county is almost 50 percent. Diet-related diseases abound in the area. Nearly one-quarter of the residents have heart disease and 13 percent have diabetes. And the Associated Press recently reported that the number of pizza restaurants in Huntington is greater than the number of gyms in the entire state of West Virginia.

The new show will air on ABC and is expected to expand on Oliver’s earlier British shows. In one of them, “Jamie’s School Dinners,” Oliver took over a cafeteria and worked with a “dinner lady” to convincingly make the point that school food could be both healthy and delicious. The popularity of his campaign for more nutritious school lunches played a role in then-Prime Minister Tony Blair setting new standards for meals and allocating funding for food, facilities and training.

In West Virginia, Oliver’s focus is expected to be school cafeterias where he’ll teach kids about making healthy food choices. His influence also is likely to be felt in grocery stores, restaurants and office buildings.

To date, the food served in Huntington school cafeterias has been of the traditional variety—heavy rotations of cheeseburgers, mini corndogs, chicken nuggets, fish and chips, French fries and the like.

Lower-fat and reduced-calorie versions of some of these favorites, in addition to more fresh fruit and vegetable dishes, are expected to hit the lunchroom trays as Oliver tackles the culinary challenges in Huntington. Tune in to see how it goes.

Top 10 U.S. School Cafeteria Foods, 6 to 12 year-olds
(NPD Group consumer research)

1. Milk
2. Sandwiches
3. Fruit
4. Fruit drinks
5. Vegetables
6. Pizza
7. Chicken
8. French fries
9. Fruit salad
10. Cookies

Does your child's school lunch program need a makeover?