Chefs Visit Novi High School for New Lunch Experience

Students at Novi High School were pleasantly surprised during lunch Thursday when guest chefs prepared healthy, fresh Asian-inspired dishes in their cafeteria.

Food Science students Andrew Fokken, 17, a senior, and Lulu Chang, 17, a senior, worked with the chefs since the morning to prep food for the Chefs 2 Schools program.

>>See the video above of their cooking demonstrations and delicious dishes.

The menu included fried brown rice and vegetables with a choice of four sauces: sweet and sour, garlic ginger sesame, General Tso and coconut curry. Evol Gazzarato, director of dining services for the Novi Community School District, said students will choose via a survey which sauce they like best. It will then be incorporated into the regular lunch menu, she said.

Thursday was an introduction by food service provider Chartwells and Novi schools to the program, which invites chefs to schools to teach about healthy meals, sound eating habits and food preparation. Chartwells Regional Executive Chef Jennifer Brower and Executive Chef Kimberly Sinclair, of Rochester schools, were on hand preparing samples for the students during all three lunches.

"We're hoping to get our own chef in the next month or so," Gazzarato said.

Until then, guest chefs can interact with the district in several ways, like:

• planning and preparing a healthy meal that meets the necessary standards to be featured on the school menu
• providing food demonstrations that feature recipes and foods that highlight local produce and good nutrition like whole grains, fruits, salads and vegetables with low-fat dips
• hosting an exhibition cooking demonstration or classroom visits

The program also allows for more cooperation like food promotional or nutritional classrooms activities, local farm events, hands‐on cooking classes and family food and fun nights. 

Do you think the Chefs 2 Schools program will encourage healthier eating? Post a comment below.