May 2014 Archives

Then you pulse it, and this happens:

BOOM! HUMMUS! And it was SO GOOD. I'm never buying hummus again. 

This May, Recipe for Success Foundation teamed up with the Houston ISD Food Services Nutrition Team for the International Fruit and Vegetable Festival! Students at Berry, Briscoe and Rodriguez elementary schools traveled through the world of fruits and vegetables to learn not only the origin of each food, but how each tastes and the value of eating fresh fruits and vegetables daily.

Students enjoyed trying some new and exotic produce and playing games like Veggie Bingo, Brussels Sprouts Toss and guessing what they were eating while blindfolded (blackberries tastes sweet-tart!) or touching (kiwi is so fuzzy!).

View an album showcasing more of the fun here. Read more about the festival and school nutrition in the Houston Chronicle article and on HISD eNews.

Before opening their doors to the public the following week, acclaimed chef Roy Shvartzapel and the Common Bond crew hauled  dishes, tool kits and a whole mess of decadence to RecipeHouse for our May Chef Surprise. With the lofty goal of becoming "America's best bakery", Chef Roy and team gave the evening's guests a real treat - a sneak peek of their much anticipated offerings. 

And while they will without a doubt have some of the best bread and pastries you've ever encountered, their savory lunch and dinner fare is nothing to scoff at. 

The talented team's precision and care resulted in thoughtful, indulgent dishes that were both appealing to the eye and the palette. 

Guests were provided with parting gifts, including their soon-to-be signature kugelhopf pastry: a sweet gesture and sign that Houston's earned itself another must-taste dining spot.

Click through for a glimpse of the masterpieces crafted by the well-oiled machine that is Common Bond.

Chef Surprise occurs on the first Monday of every month at RecipeHouse in the Museum District and features an intimate evening with some of Houston's finest chefs, benefiting Recipe for Success Foundation. For more information and to reserve seats, click here.

Photos by Dragana A. Harris

Sign up your lil' foodies to join us this summer for Eat This! Summer Camp! During five-day sessions offered in June and July, campers, age eight to eleven, learn to become savvy food consumers through fun hands-on activities at RecipeHouse, our cozy home in the Museum District. 

Campers cook, garden and learn how food is developed and marketed. They culminate the week by turning their summer bounty into a healthy and marketable food product. Through hands-on learning, we prepare young consumers to navigate manipulative marketing tactics used to sell unhealthy foods. Plus, we make it TASTY and tons of FUN! 

Even more fun? One kid-created food product will be selected by Revival Market to sell on their shelves this fall!

Find dates, more info and registration forms here or email Marisol Castro. 

Over the past few years, the spiraling rate of childhood obesity has thrust the issue of school nutrition into a national spotlight. Nineteen million American school children, including 78% of Houston ISD students, receive free and reduced priced school meals, which are often their only meals of the day.  Until the new nutritional standards were mandated, the typical fare, bursting with sodium, fat and sugar, practically guaranteed poor health for the kids who depended on it. Congress passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act in 2010 with bipartisan support to help ensure that every American child has access to the nutrition they need to grow into healthy adults.  

Unfortunately, all of these efforts will be destroyed on Thursday if a House appropriations bill is approved that guts the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. It includes a waiver to allow schools to opt out of complying with all school meal standards if they are able to show any decline in revenue over six months, no matter what caused the decline. 

Rather than ensuring that lunch trays are loaded with fresh vegetables, fruit and whole grains and menus are low in sugar and sodium, we will throw the door open to invite junk food and high-calorie beverages right back into our school cafeterias, along with all the chronic poor health those foods guarantee.

This is unacceptable.  We want a healthy future for all American kids.  

Tell Congress to stop playing politics with our children's health. 

Photo credit: http://www.fns.usda.gov/.

2013 Eat This! Summer Campers Nylah and Nadia joined Recipe for Success on Great Day Houston to talk with Deborah Duncan about their winning Chocolate Kale Cookies and whip up some Quinoa Rainbow Veggie Stir-Fry with Chef Ruffy Sulaiman.

Take a peek, and then check out the recipe for our Rainbow Veggie Stir-Fry here.

Trouble viewing? Watch the video on our YouTube channel.

The Center for Digital Democracy has created a new infographic that shows how food and beverage companies target Hispanic youth with digital marketing for unhealthy food and beverage products. Think on these unappetizing numbers, then share with your networks! 

This frittata comes together in a jiffy and can be served warm, room temperature or cold. Serve with a simple arugula salad, dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. It's a great quiche substitute, as it is both carb and gluten-free. Experiment with different fillings - the sky is the limit!

Leek, Prosciutto and Goat Cheese Frittata
Serves 8

Ingredients

12 large eggs OR 6 whole eggs + 10 egg whites
¼ cup skim or 2% milk
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 leeks, white and light green parts halved, thoroughly washed of dirt and cut into thin slices
¾ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
3 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into small pieces
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Directions 

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Add eggs, milk, Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to a bowl, whisk until combined and set aside.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in sauté pan over low heat and add leeks. Cook until tender.  Add to egg mixture.
• Add ¾ of the crumbled goat cheese and chopped parsley to the egg mixture. Stir to combine.

 There are two baking options:

• Place an oven-safe sauté pan over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
• Once pan is very hot, pour in the egg mixture and let cook for 2-4 min.
• Top with the rest of your goat cheese, prosciutto, tomatoes and parsley.
• Bake, uncovered, at 350°F for 25-30 minutes or until the frittata does not jiggle when you shake the pan.

OR

• Pour egg and leek mixture into a greased 11-in. x 7-in. x 2-in. baking dish.
• Sprinkle with goat cheese, prosciutto, tomatoes and parsley.
• Bake, uncovered, at 350°F for 25-30 minutes or until the frittata does not jiggle when you shake the pan.