Raising the Bar on Nutrition was developed by Dr. Mary Flynn, who also serves on the Rhode Island Community Food Bank's Board of Directors.

Pasta Recipes
Rice Recipes
Potato Recipes
Soup & Sandwich Recipes

Raising the Bar on Nutrition is an innovative program that is currently being piloted at several emergency food programs that are Member Agencies of the Rhode Island Community Food Bank. The program was developed by Mary Flynn, Ph.D., RD, LDN, Supervisor and Chief Research Dietitian at The Miriam Hospital and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Brown University. The goal of the program is to help low-income families adopt and maintain a healthy diet.

Limited financial resources make low-income families at double risk for hunger and obesity. When a family cannot afford to buy adequate food, they may try to fend off hunger with readily available, inexpensive foods. This results in a high-calorie diet that is a major contributor to the rise in obesity and diabetes among low-income families.

Raising the Bar on Nutrition teaches people who are at-risk for hunger how to prepare nutritious meals that are affordable, even on a tight budget. The program recruits participants at emergency food pantries and invites them to attend classes over a six-week period. Each class involves a cooking demonstration of a healthy meal for a family of four. Participants receive nutrition information, recipes, and ingredients needed to re-create the meal at home, provided by the Food Bank.

Mary Flynn developed the recipes for Raising the Bar on Nutrition based upon research showing that a diet with less meat, more vegetables and whole grains improves health (link to recipes). Importantly, the recipes are easy to prepare using a few basic ingredients and simple cooking techniques. Program participants have responded very positively, making these recipes a regular part of their family’s diet while decreasing their food costs, as reported in an April 2008 article in the Providence Journal.

The Food Bank looks forward to continuing our partnership with Mary Flynn to expand Raising the Bar on Nutrition so we can help more families improve their diet and health.

Pasta Recipes

Pasta recipes are nutritious, easy to make and many people like them.   Pasta can be easy to overeat, especially if it is white pasta, so try not to make more than you need for the meal.  A healthy serving of pasta is about 3 ounces of dry weight pasta.  This would be about 4 servings per 12 oz of dry pasta or about 5 servings for 16 oz (1 pound).  We recommend that you use whole wheat pasta as often as possible.

Why use whole wheat pasta? Whole wheat pasta is healthier than white pasta.  People who use whole wheat pasta tend to have less diabetes, heart disease and are less likely to be over weight.  Whole wheat does not taste like white pasta – it has a nutty taste to it.  Whole wheat pasta is more expensive than most white pasta so try to buy it when it is on sale or if you see a coupon for whole wheat pasta.

Spinach, Beans & Pasta
Peas & Pasta
Vegetable Lo Mein
Macaroni & Cheese
Baked Pasta with Chick Peas, Spinach & Peppers

Rice Recipes

White rice tends to be inexpensive and it can be used in many different ways.  A healthy serving of rice is about 1 cup of cooked rice.  White rice is easy to overeat so try to measure out what you will be eating.  We recommend that you use brown rice as often as possible.  Brown rice is more expensive than white rice so try to buy it when it is on sale or if you see a coupon for brown rice.

Why Brown rice? Brown rice is much more nutritious than white rice.  It is “brown” because it has the whole grain kernel on it.  There are many important nutrients in the whole grain kernel.  White rice is refined and has the outside grain kernel removed.  White rice has some vitamins added back to it, but it is not close to brown rice for nutrition content.

Brown rice takes longer to cook than white rice so it is often best to make the brown rice before you need it for a meal.  You can store the cooked rice in a covered container in the refrigerator.  The cooled rice will also mix in to a recipe better as it will not absorb the fat when cooking.

Raising the Bar Vegetable Fried Rice

Vegetable Fried Rice

Frittata with Onions, Spinach & Rice

Vegetarian Chili

Potato Recipes

Potatoes are a very healthy food and tend to be inexpensive.  The skin contains vitamins and other healthy nutrients, including fiber.  Potatoes should be washed clean before they are cooked so the skin is healthy to eat.  A baked potato is a very healthy addition to a meal or could be a meal with some added vegetables.

Helpful Potato Tips - Baking & Boiling

Roasted Potatoes

Vegetable Stuffed Baked Potato

Mashed Potato Dinner

Frittata with Broccoli & Potatoes

Soup & Sandwich Recipes

Soup is an easy and healthy way to eat vegetables.  The recipes included here all use healthy vegetables.  You can use the vegetables listed or use any leftover vegetables you might have from other meals.  These soup recipes all use extra virgin olive oil with the vegetables being cooked into the oil.  This makes the vegetables taste better and the soup is more filling.  Soup can be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator for about 3 days.  You can also freeze soup in one container or in individual servings and it will keep for a couple of months.

Sandwiches can be made with any vegetables you have.  For each cup of vegetables, use 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.  Heat the olive oil in a pan.  Add the vegetables and stir to combine with the oil.  You can cook the vegetables on a medium heat and sear them or turn the heat low and cook longer.  The longer you cook vegetables, the sweeter they become.  The vegetables can be seasoned with salt, pepper and any herbs you like.

Raising the Bar on Nutrition Vegetable Soup

Vegetable Soup

Lentil Soup

Black Beans, Greens & Potato Soup

Breakfast Burrito/Huevos Rancheros

Grilled Cheese with Spinach