What began as a simple way to elevate breakfast, the build-your-own parfait bar became a clear demonstration of how impactful school food can be when fresh ingredients, thoughtful design, and strong partnerships come together. In the days leading up to Valentine’s Day, cafeterias at Lake Elementary and Pinole Valley High School in West Contra Costa […]
Every Parfait Deserves a Little Love Crunch Read More »
What better way to start the day than with an organic Build Your Own Parfait bar? At De Anza High School in the West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD), we tested a fresh new twist on a breakfast staple, and students lined up out the door to get a taste. The Build Your Own
Building a Better Breakfast: Organic Parfaits Read More »
Chef Guillaume Pfhal has brought his passion for cooking to Conscious Kitchen since 2015. Having served hundreds of thousands of meals across the Sausalito Marin City School District throughout the years, Chef G is an expert on getting students passionate about FLOSN (fresh, local, organic, seasonal, nutritious) food. His mission is to create a supportive
Chef G’s Tips and Tricks Read More »
All across the nation, garlic scapes are popping up in droves at farmer’s markets. Upon seeing these clusters of spiraling verdant bulbs, one might ask: “What on earth are these and how do I even eat them?” While perhaps visually strange and unfamiliar, garlic scapes are an excellent way to get more use out of
Garlic Scapes: Getting More Out of the Garlic Plant Read More »
Sandwiches are popular for good reason! Delicious ingredients from bread and cheese to meat and vegetables add variety. Sandwiches are certainly one of our students’ favorite Conscious Kitchen school lunches — easy to hold in hands of any size and packed with color, flavor and texture. The question is: are they good for our bodies and
Conventional or Organic: Which Sandwich Would You Choose? Read More »
When the season provides a plentiful bounty of beautiful strawberries, make jam! The recipe for this sweet fruit spread and Organic Soft French Loaf were shared for the Conscious Kitchen Cookbook by one of the world’s top chefs, Three-Star Michelin Chef, Dominique Crenn. Enjoy! If you make these recipes, tag us in your photos @consciouskitchn. Organic Strawberry
Recipe Spotlight: Strawberry Jam with Homemade Bread Read More »
Pasta Primavera is the perfect springtime dish: it’s comforting and loaded with fresh, local, seasonal veggies. Turning Green alum and professional chef, Ashley Ugarte, recently created this recipe and we’re thrilled to share it with you. If you make it, tag us in your photos @consciouskitchn! Pasta Primavera Serves: 4 Prep: 10 min Cook: 20 min
Recipe Spotlight: Pasta Primavera Read More »
We are not “only” distributing fruits, vegetables, dairy, grains, proteins and other ingredients in the food boxes to children and families in WCCUSD each week. We are proud to also include bilingual English-Español educational materials and recipes to ensure that families know how to make the most of box contents and why this paradigm-shifting program
Eight years ago, when a group of students from the Bay Area and an esteemed Executive Chef, Justin Everett from Cavallo Point Lodge got together, their task was to create a fresh, local, organic meal for $2 or less a person. This budget, which seems tight, is actually more money than is available for school lunch per
Recipe Spotlight: Quinoa Mac and Cheese Read More »
The art of cooking exists in Chef Daniel Tellez’s bones. Coming from a really, really big family in Mexico, Tellez was in the kitchen cooking with his grandmother since he was a kid. The experience was invaluable, as he learned the heart and soul of cooking Mexican food through her. He was working as a
Chef Profile: Daniel Tellez Read More »
Q: What drew you to Conscious Kitchen? A: Initially, I had interviewed with Judi for the position at Bayside MLK to be the chef there for Conscious Kitchen. At the time, it just didn’t work. I think a year and a half later, maybe even longer, I ran into Judi at the Good Earth randomly
Dolores Coleman of Dee’s Organics: Q&A Read More »
At 19 years old, Alice Waters traveled to Paris, France, and ate a wild strawberry. She had never tasted anything like it in her whole life. “Where did this come from?”, she asked, to discover it is harvested in the nearby mountains, only at this time of year. In 1965, every Parisian market only had
Chef Profile: Alice Waters Read More »
Just for a minute, imagine being a student at Willow Creek Academy. It’s been a long morning of reading, writing, and maybe some addition. Stomach grumbling, you excitedly line up with the rest of your class to get your school lunch. The smell of potatoes roasting wafts out of the door to the dining room.
Chef Profile: Guillaume Pfhal Read More »
When talking with Tanya Holland, her hard work, creativity, conscientiousness, and community engagement shines through. As head chef and owner of Brown Sugar Kitchen, food is a powerful medium through which she expresses herself, her care for others, and the planet. Growing up, Tanya’s parents “had a lot of different kinds of people over at
Chef Profile: Tanya Holland Read More »
I pulled up to Lou’s Takeaway on a warm Thursday afternoon to find a kitchen even smaller than what I had imagined during my interview with Chef Anthony Rizzi earlier in the week. A chalkboard menu hung in front of a takeaway window where a cheerful young man chatted with a woman, explaining the different
Chef Profile: Anthony Rizzi Read More »
Looking back on her childhood, it seems like a career in the food industry was inevitable for Ashley Ugarte, pastry chef at San Francisco’s esteemed Dandelion Chocolate. However, despite growing up Mexican, Spanish, and American and being surrounded by traditional cooking and food culture from a young age, Ugarte did not always imagine a career
Chef Profile: Ashley Ugarte Read More »