Posted by Lauren Hinrichs, Age 10, on July 13, 2016
“In Nebraska we are fortunate to have access to delicious fresh and garden-raised vegetables. It hit me that we can make foods that we already love, into healthier but yummy foods. That inspired me to whip up something that utilized vegetables for more than just the toppings. Cauliflower creates a twist on taco shells and is the foundation of a new take on tacos. I hope you enjoy this new take on tacos!”
- Lauren Hinrichs, Age 10, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Nebraska
“My mom inspires me to eat healthy. She encourages me to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. Our family recently became vegan. For this recipe we recreated my favorite store-bought boxed Indian lentils, and made it full of veggies. Vegan food can be healthy and full of flavor. I love this recipe served with brown rice and a Mango Lassi. I hope you enjoy.”
- Skylar McGough, Age 8, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Nevada
Posted by Jude VanderHooven, Age 8, on July 13, 2016
“Here in New Hampshire, there is a big push to support local farmers and to urge our community to buy local. My family likes to grow food in our backyard garden. In August we usually get lots and lots of zucchini. My grandpa says ‘you need to have a lot of friends and neighbors if you grow zucchini so you can give it away to them.’ I like to pick the zucchini (and other yummy vegetables) and fill a few boxes and bring it to our local food pantry and soup kitchen. I enjoyed creating and eating this recipe with my mom and it is part of our monthly menu rotation.”
- Jude VanderHooven, Age 8, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from New Hampshire
“At dinner one night, my mom made salmon cakes with leftover salmon. They were crispy and yummy. After I met with a worker from my town's farm and learned all about New Jersey’s state fruits and vegetables, I decided to make my own recipe, but with healthier foods. Many of the fruits and vegetables in my recipe are from my state, and some were even from my own garden. I substituted frying the cakes with baking as a healthier choice. The pickle sauce is like my mom's tartar sauce but healthier with yogurt. It tastes great now with all the healthy changes and I love it even more!”
- Gianna Malecki, Age 8, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from New Jersey
“McLean loves to make salsa, and this recipe combines his love of salsa making with the famous green chili cheeseburger New Mexico is known for,” says McLean’s mom, Kristin. “This recipe kept the feel of a green chili cheeseburger, but easier for lunch and healthier. Jicama is a great vegetable that is light and crisp but takes on other flavors, providing a healthy crunch to replace the greasy fries. The salsa is found in the form of a deconstructed guacamole. Our state question is ‘red or green?’ Every New Mexican knows that question refers to your green or red chili preference. This burger has both!”
- McLean Knight, Age 10, is the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from New Mexico.
Posted by Danielle Mazlish, Age 10, on July 13, 2016
“In school, I did a report on Michelle Obama's Let's Move! program and now I try to eat based on the MyPlate picture. I used chicken instead of beef for the meatballs, and I stuffed them with fresh mozzarella, because I love cheese! I put the meatballs on a stick, because I think it is fun to eat foods on a stick. I added carrots and yellow squash to make it colorful and taste even better. It looked like spaghetti, so I named it Veggie Spaghetti, and topped it with basil, which we grow. Everyone in my family loves it, even my brother, who is a picky eater. I hope you like it too!”
- Danielle Mazlish, Age 10, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from New York
“I created this dish because I like to cook with my mom in the kitchen. I wanted to make a healthy meal that highlights my Korean background and also learn more about nutrition when I cook. I made this recipe for my dad and he loved the taste. I am very lucky to live in North Carolina because I can choose so many wonderful vegetables to cook with, including sweet potatoes, which are so tasty!”
- Mena Choi, Age 10, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from North Carolina
Posted by Stella Halverson, Age 8, on July 13, 2016
“We are potato farmers—Stella is a part of the fifth generation of our family that will farm potatoes,” says Stella’s dad, Eric. “So a potato had to be a big part of the recipe. We made chili to put in the potato to show one example of how a potato can be healthy. We selected bison meat because it is lower in fat and cholesterol than beef. We used dried beans because North Dakota is the largest producer of dried beans in the world. Stella loves to cook—we cook together every chance we get.”
- Stella Halverson, Age 8, is the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from North Dakota.
“This recipe was inspired by my mom’s workouts and the diverse cultures that live in our community. The coleslaw is like our community—full of different flavors from all of the different cultures that live here.”
- Fanai Staffler, Age 9, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from the Northern Mariana Islands
Posted by Wyatt Rosengarten, Age 9, on July 13, 2016
“Wyatt loves pizza, but his grandmother is gluten free and can't join us for build-your-own-pizza night,” says Wyatt’s mom, Tiffany. “He found a recipe for a cauliflower crust, but decided it needed to taste more like a seasoned flatbread crust. The flavor of the pizza was amazing since he added his own blend of spices into the crust. Serving it with a salad and fruit smoothie is our favorite way to have lunch.”
- Wyatt Rosengarten, Age 9, is the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Ohio.
“I'm a first generation-born American and proud to be born and raised in the great state of Oklahoma. I wanted to create a recipe that represents my Pakistani heritage and my lovely state's homegrown products. My inspirations to cook healthy are my precious 14-year-old twin brothers who have cerebral palsy and also a severe seizure disorder. We found out that certain foods or even too many carbs or sugar can trigger seizures. I thought, wow, if we can help reduce their seizures just by what they eat, then I will definitely help prepare recipes for them. I had no idea that food played that big a part in our health. Ever since we decided to start eating healthy we noticed a huge decrease in their seizures and a bonus is I can focus much better at school.”
- Maya Jacob, Age 10, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Oklahoma
“This recipe is for hungry kids who like salad and want to make it a meal. In this recipe, I’ve added protein (salmon) and a heartier base (kale) to turn one of my favorite dishes into a satisfying meal. Every year my grandma serves Caesar salad as a starter on Christmas Eve. I request Caesar salads for my special meals and as I’ve grown, I make the salad myself. I was inspired to create All Kale Caesar so that my favorite salad wasn’t just a side dish—it’s a satisfying meal. I hope you enjoy this salad as much as I do!”
- Hannah Conte, Age 12, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Oregon
“My little sister Caitlin was born with a serious heart problem and got a pacemaker at one day old. My mom, dad, and the doctors were worried, especially because she was a very picky eater, even as a baby! So, my dad and I work hard to create healthy, animal-shaped meals that Caitlin will eat—she loves animals! When my mom told me about this contest, my first thought was making a healthy meal that Caitlin would love, which meant a breakfast-at-lunch theme in the shape of Bo and Sunny Obama. A lot of my ingredients are from Pennsylvania, including the eggs, mushrooms, and fruit. It’s shaped like Portuguese Water Dogs because what kid doesn’t like breakfast for lunch in the shape of adorable dogs?“
- Ava Terosky, Age 9, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Pennsylvania
Posted by Victor Junniel Rivera, Age 10, on July 13, 2016
“Being raised by my mother, a health teacher, and my father, a disabled veteran, it is not new to me to have a healthy lifestyle. On a Saturday after a basketball game, the most convenient thing to have is a healthy lunch and I would think of making a pizza in a pan. My recipe includes ingredients we picked from our backyard like oregano and spinach. With my parents I learned to make a healthy pizza with a twist, one in which anyone can add the ingredients of their choice. I like the mix of flavors and the idea of me cooking it. I would like to motivate others to learn or keep up healthy food habits.”
- Victor Junniel Rivera, Age 10, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Puerto Rico
Posted by Pablo Aizenman, Age 10, on July 13, 2016
“I think war causes too much suffering in the world. One problem I see is that people often focus on their differences, rather than things they have in common. In the Middle East there have been wars going on for a long time because people often fail to get past their differences. I wanted to create a dish that takes parts of different cultures in the Middle East and shows how they can come together to make a delicious and healthy lunch. The lentil soup brings in many Middle Eastern flavors and is joined by a crunchy Israeli salad stuffed into a pita. My dish highlights things that different regions in the Middle East have in common, and shows that, in the end, everyone is more alike than different.”
- Pablo Aizenman, Age10, the 2016 Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner from Rhode Island
