Raising the Bar on Nutrition

Raising the Bar on Nutrition is a nutrition-education program that offers workshops at Food Bank member agencies. This program includes live cooking demonstrations and practical nutrition information.

The goal of Raising the Bar is to help low-income families create healthy, affordable meals, often using food pantry ingredients. The multi-week program also includes recipes and provides participants with the ingredients necessary to make healthy meals at home.

Raising the Bar Recipes

Research shows that a diet rich in vegetables and whole grains improves health and may reduce risk of obesity and diabetes. The recipes below are easily prepared and use inexpensive ingredients.

Pasta

Food cooking in a pan. Eat wheat. We recommend using whole wheat pasta in recipes, as it is healthier than white. Substituting whole wheat pasta for white as part of a healthy diet may also reduce a person’s risk of developing diabetes, heart disease and weight issues. Keep in mind:

A healthy serving is about 3 ounces of dry weight pasta
A 12 oz box of dry pasta offers about 4 servings
A 16 oz/1 pound box of dry pasta offers about 5 servings

Spinach, Beans & Pasta (PDF, 21KB)
Peas & Pasta (PDF, 20KB)
Vegetable Lo Mein (PDF, 21KB)
Macaroni & Cheese with Vegetables (PDF, 24KB)
Baked Pasta with Chick Peas (PDF, 21KB)

Rice

Buy brown. Brown rice is more nutritious than white. It takes longer to cook, though, so prepare ahead of time and store in the refrigerator. Cooled rice is better for cooking, too, because it doesn’t absorb fat when cooked. Other benefits:

Brown rice has the whole grain kernel on it – which contains many important nutrients
White rice is refined and has the outside grain kernel removed
White rice has some vitamins added back to it, but is not close to brown rice in terms of nutrition content

A healthy serving is about one cup of cooked rice.

Corn, Black Beans and Tomatoe Fried Rice (PDF 20 KB)
Onions, Carrots and Green Beans Fried Rice (PDF, 19KB)
Corn and Peas Fried Rice (PDF 20 KB)
Broccoli and Peppers Fried Rice (PDF 20KB)
Frittata with Onions, Spinach & Rice (PDF, 23KB)
Vegetarian Chili (PDF, 26KB)

Potatoes

Save the skin. Potato skins contain vitamins and other healthy nutrients, including fiber. Wash skins thoroughly before cooking.

Helpful Potato Tips - Baking & Boiling (PDF, 19KB)
Roasted Potatoes (PDF, 18KB)
Vegetable Stuffed Baked Potato (PDF, 20KB)
Mashed Potato Dinner (PDF, 21KB)
Frittata with Broccoli & Potatoes (PDF, 23KB)

Soups & Sandwiches

The perfect pair. Soups and sandwiches are a simple, healthy way to eat vegetables.

Soup tips:

Cook vegetables in extra virgin olive oil for a heartier, more flavorful soup
Prepare soups in advance. They can be refrigerator for three days and frozen for a few months

For sandwiches, use vegetables. Prepare as follows:

Use 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil per cup of veggies
Heat olive oil in a pan
Add vegetables and sear over medium heat or, for sweeter vegetables, turn heat down and cook longer
Season vegetables with salt, pepper and herbs to taste

Vegetable and Bean Soup (PDF, 18KB)
Vegetable Soup (PDF 20KB)

Lentil Soup (PDF, 22KB)
Black Beans, Cabbage & Potato Soup (PDF, 17KB)
Cabbage and Carrot Soup (PDF, 20 KB)
Carrot Soup (PDF 20 KB)
Breakfast Burrito/Huevos Rancheros (PDF, 30KB)
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars (PDF, 20 KB)
Grilled Cheese Sandwich (PDF, 28KB)

Vegetables and Salads

The following recipes are for vegetables that tend to be plentiful and quite inexpensive at the time of harvest, usually August and September. Try to use local, seasonal vegetables, especially ones you find at a Farmer's Market. These recipes are not priced as the vegetables used can be more expensive out of season.

Cabbage (PDF, 20 KB)
Coleslaw (PDF, 20 KB)
Carrots (PDF, 20 KB)
Winter or Acorn Squash (PDF, 20 KB)
Zucchini and Summer Squash (PDF, 20 KB)
Zucchini or Summer Squash with Tomato and Rice (PDF, 20KB)
Stuffed Zucchini (PDF 20 KB)
Barley Salad (PDF 20 KB)
Black Bean, Corn and Tomato Salad (PDF, 20 KB)
Three Bean Salad (PDF, 20 KB)
Pasta Salad (PDF, 20 KB)
Potato Salad (PDF, 20 KB)