What they got: Turkey taco meat on flour tortilla, lettuce & tomato, cheddar cheese, salsa, banana and lowfat milk.
Honestly, not a bad meal and would have been much better had the tortillas been whole wheat and the turkey made in our kitchens from scratch, instead they probably used pre-packaged seasoned taco meat! I really do think that a few tweaks here and there and our kids would be eating much better.
For the most part they (the kids) enjoyed the taco, but I did see a few of them pushing off the meat and opting for lettuce, cheese tomato and salsa! This leads me to believe that opting for a vegetarian meal once or twice a week at school might actually be worth investigating! Frankly eating more beans is probably far more beneficial to them than any many of other components they are made to eat.
Just looking at the May menu, I do not see many legumes (beans, peas, lentils) offered. In fact this past month they have included baked beans once and seasoned peas once. Legumes are inexpensive, nutrient-rich and high in fiber, you'd think schools would make more use of them!
If I had to grade this lunch as far as if it's appealing and well-balanced, I'd give it a C+. It loses major points because the taco meat is pre-seasoned and also because there is not a whole grain in sight. What do you think?
