Today marks the official start of National School Lunch Week.
Established in 1962 by President John F. Kennedy, the second full week of October annually shines a spotlight on the importance of healthy school lunches and the impact they have in and out of the classroom.
That focus on nutritious meals for students gained even more momentum last year when California began offering free school lunches to all TK-12 students. Backed by additional funding, many schools have since taken steps to enhance their culinary offerings, including upgrading their kitchens, hiring talented chefs and forging partnerships with local farmers to acquire even healthier ingredients.
To commemorate National School Lunch Week, we reached out to nutrition services staffs and other district leaders to ask them about their most popular dishes, how they’re prepared, and how they contribute to the health and academic success of their students.
Here, in their own words, are their delectable descriptions.
Anaheim Union High School District spices up lunchtime with a chicken wrap
One of our most popular lunch entrees is our Spicy Chicken Wrap.
Baked, spicy, breaded chicken tenders are set on top of a bed of fresh romaine lettuce and tomatoes, fresh chopped cilantro, and a kickin’ Chipotle Ranch dressing, wrapped in a whole grain-rich tortilla.
This tasty dish provides the spice that our students enjoy, along with the freshness of three different vegetables and reflects our goal of balancing taste profiles that students want along with fresh produce.
Brea Olinda Unified School District shakes things up with shake ramen
Brea Olinda Unified School District’s most popular student meal is a Shake Ramen.
This popular entrée is made by assembling tender pieces of diced chicken (raised with no antibiotics ever), sweet corn, crunchy shredded cabbage and spinach in a bowl topped with special miso sauce and blanched ramen.
Students have a fun exercise of shaking the bowl vigorously before eating to mix the content in the bowl and have a kick out of it!
Capistrano Unified serves bolognese pasta, taco salad, Korean chicken wings and more
Our most popular elementary school meal is Bolognese Pasta. The Bolognese sauce is cooked from scratch in the central kitchen using ground beef, canned tomatoes and spices. Whole grain rich pasta is cooked and nestled under the Bolognese.
At middle schools, students love the Taco Salad. Fresh romaine, tomatoes and bell peppers are mixed with corn, shredded cheese and allergen-free ground beef seasoned with taco spices. The salad is served with ranch dressing and whole grain corn tortilla chips.
High school students enjoy Korean Chicken Wings served with whole grain chow mein, fresh carrots and fresh celery. No-antibiotic-ever chicken wings are tossed in Korean BBQ Sauce and served in a pagoda box atop whole grain chow mein noodles with a side of crunchy carrots and celery. Our team works hard to nourish students with freshly prepared, colorful, delicious and nutritious meals.
Fullerton School District’s BBQ chicken drumstick a hit with students
It’s heartwarming to hear about the BBQ chicken drumstick dish’s positive impact on the Fullerton School District students, particularly the enthusiasm and joy it brings to their lunch experience. The fact that a student shared the scent of the meal with their parent speaks volumes about the authentic and delightful flavors it imparts. The child stated, “Mom, smell my fingers, to smell the real chicken!”
Also, positive comments about the dish’s color, texture and flavor suggest that it’s a hit from student feedback at Richman Elementary. Meals like this nourish the students and create memorable and enjoyable moments, fostering a positive relationship with food and encouraging healthier eating habits. Nutrition Services deserves credit for creating new scratch-made recipes with wholesome ingredients.
Garden Grove Unified’s Tuscan chicken pasta is one of many restaurant-inspired entrées
One of our students’ favorite meals is our restaurant-inspired Tuscan Chicken Pasta.
One of our retired managers graciously shared this original recipe, and it has been fine-tuned to meet the USDA guidelines. It includes perfectly al dente rotini pasta, tossed in a creamy sauce with seasoned chicken strips. The dish is elevated further with blistered cherry tomatoes coated in garlic and oil and sautéed spinach, adding that extra pop of color, texture and flavor. This delicious entrée is served with a warm cheesy breadstick for dipping.
In addition to our Tuscan Chicken Pasta dish, many of our entrée options are inspired by restaurants and current food trends. All meals are offered with a variety of fruits and vegetables with options grown from our local farms.
Huntington Beach City School District offers a guilt-free ‘breakfast for lunch’ option
The culinary delight that has Huntington Beach City School District students’ taste buds doing a happy dance is our much-loved “Breakfast for Lunch” meal. This lunch option features two wholesome whole-grain cinnamon french toast sticks paired with savory, lean turkey sausage links.
These cinnamon french toast sticks are made from the good stuff — whole grains. They are packed with essential vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber and a sprinkle of cinnamon magic for that extra flavor. With no added sugar, they’re a guilt-free indulgence that makes breakfast for lunch even sweeter. The turkey sausage links are delicious and low in saturated fat and calories, making them a fantastic source of lean protein that gives our students the energy they need to conquer the school day.
The impeccable balance between fun and nutrition is what makes this meal special. It’s a testament that a meal can be tasty and wholesome, and our students can’t get enough!
Huntington Beach Union High School District embraces healthy options, from banh mi to smoothie
At HBUHSD, the healthy options available to students have been a growing trend for the last several years. The Nutrition Services Department has made it a mission to offer items that are also catered to the different demographics of each of our schools. Some of these items include house-made and marinated Banh Mi sandwiches, overnight oats, assorted fruit parfaits and high-protein mixed green (vegetarian) salads, to name a few.
This year Nutrition Services will be adding a variety of smoothies district-wide that will not only be fruit-based but vegetable as well, and will include all necessary components in each cup.
Nutrition Services attends several of the school’s House of Representative meetings each year where students have been vocal about wanting to shift their menus into greener, fresher and more fruitful offerings.
Irvine Unified School District finds tangy orange chicken is a lunchtime favorite
An elementary school favorite in IUSD is orange chicken, which is a delicious and tangy dish featuring tender pieces of chicken coated in a flavorful orange glaze. It’s served alongside fluffy brown rice for a wholesome and satisfying meal.
To make it even more nutritious and delightful, it’s accompanied by locally grown farm-fresh vegetables or a selection of ripe fruits, adding vibrant colors and flavors to this lunchtime favorite.
Newport-Mesa Unified School District fuels student success with a hearty Greek Salad
One of our favorite entrees among students is our hearty Greek Salad.
We create this salad by mixing an array of leaves such as spinach, romaine lettuce and purple cabbage. It is then layered with a delightful blend of crisp cucumbers, tangy black olives, creamy feta cheese and topped with a red cherry tomato. Then we add just the right blend of spices in our zesty Italian dressing to complement the salad.
This blend of healthy ingredients helps to support active students by providing protein, fiber, phytochemicals, and vitamins and minerals. Our goal is to fuel success with our salad.
Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified’s ‘Wok On’ station presents Asian-inspired dishes
Our most popular meal comes from our “Wok On” Station, which offers Asian-inspired dishes to high schoolers. We serve a build-your-own style bowl featuring a variety of nutritious main entrees including our house-made peppered steak, which is a favorite among students.
Sliced beef, fresh onions, green bell peppers and pepper sauce are slowly simmered together for the best flavor. Paired with our handcrafted Asian noodles or house-made fried rice, the vibrant colors of fresh steamed broccoli florets and sliced fresh carrots make this dish not only eye-appealing but nutritious.
Our whole grain noodles are tossed with our low sodium stir fry sauce and freshly shredded carrots, red and green cabbage, and green onion garnish. Our house-made fried rice starts with brown rice that is cooked with diced onions and minced garlic. Once complete, peas, carrots, low-sodium soy sauce, and scrambled eggs are mixed in.
Placenta-Yorba Linda students love the generous portions of this nutritious and well-balanced meal, which offers healthier versions of entrees that they are familiar with from popular chain restaurants.
Saddleback Valley Unified School District’s turkey pesto sandwich is handmade with love
The Saddleback Valley Unified School District’s most popular menu item at our intermediate and high schools is our Turkey Pesto Sandwich. It is built onto our fresh baked ciabatta roll. This fan favorite includes thickly sliced smoked turkey breast and a single slice of Swiss cheese. Spread onto both halves of the ciabatta roll is the star of this entrée, the house-made pesto aioli.
This savory and satisfying upscale entrée is presented in a kraft bag with a window and sealed with a “Handmade with love” sticker. It is served daily alongside a variety of nutritious and delicious fresh fruits and veggies.
Information on the California Universal Meals program, including background, policy, resources and FAQs, can be found on the California Department of Education website.