Veggies devoured in Knoch High School nutrition program
JEFFERSON TWP — Craig Nurmi hoped maybe a handful of students at Knoch High School would try out the fresh vegetable dish he prepared to augment their lunches on Wednesday.
Instead, lines formed at the table where he served the colorful and aromatic vegetables, all of which were devoured by the end of the second and final lunch period.
“I did 100 pounds of fresh vegetables, and the first lunch group ate half of it,” said a very pleased Nurmi, who is resident food services director for AVI Foodsystems.
AVI, which replaced Nutrition Inc. two years ago as food services provider for the Knoch School District, created the Farm to School program to introduce various local food items to students across all the school districts it serves, Nurmi said.
On Wednesday, Nurmi, who is a trained chef, sauteed root vegetables, poblano peppers, green beans, onions and summer squash with dill, olive oil and garlic in the Knoch High kitchen for PA Preferred Day at the school.
Nurmi used produce from Harvest Valley Farms in Middlesex Township to whip up the fresh and delicious treat.
“I think, since COVID, we need to get back to fresh fruits and vegetables and not so much canned stuff,” Nurmi said.
He had noticed Knoch students dumping their canned fruits and vegetables into the trash after each lunch period, so he was thrilled to prepare the fresh vegetable dish on Wednesday.
“The kids’ reaction was very positive,” he said. “I was expecting them to stick with chicken nuggets and pierogies.”
Students entering the cafeteria for lunch Wednesday almost immediately began lining up at Nurmi’s table, which held a chafing dish full of the vegetable mixture and was festooned with blue and gold napkins to represent Knoch’s colors.
While many went for the vegetable concoction, others partook of the fresh apple cider Nurmi also prepared for PA Preferred Day.
A large cardboard placard at the end of the small table announced the benefits of a diet high in fresh, local produce.
Sophomore Sara Simmons said she decided to try the fresh vegetables because they looked and smelled great.
‘And I want to expand my palate,” she said.
Jasper Miller, a Knoch senior, called AVI Foodsystems and the PA Preferred Day idea “awesome.”
“It’s higher quality food than we used to get,” he said. “It’s more nutritious and more enticing for people to eat it instead of just throwing it away.”
Lucas Freshwater, a freshman, gobbled up his vegetables.
“The vegetables are obviously seasoned and cooked very nicely, and I think that’s better than serving plain old carrots in lunch line,” Lucas said.
He also appreciated the apple cider, which also disappeared during the second lunch period.
“I like apple cider for fall,” Lucas said. “It’s better than just milk all day.”
Simon Burd, also a freshman, said his parents raised him to eat a well-balanced diet full of fresh fruits and vegetables.
“It’s always good to be healthy, and it looks delicious,” Simon said of the sauteed veggies prepared by Nurmi.
Nurmi said AVI Foodsystems ensure all lunches are cooked in the school cafeteria, and favors fresh chicken and fresh-dough pizza instead of frozen, institutional-type food.
He said he recently prepared pork butts from scratch so the kitchen staff would know how to prepare them in the future for entrees like pulled pork and sweet and sour pork.
“They are already pretty knowledgeable,” Nurmi said. “They felt like they didn’t have permission to season the food, and I’ve loosened the reins on that.”
Nurmi, a father of nine, gave baked chicken drumsticks a try at home, and was surprised to see his young children enjoying them.
So he gave the entree a whirl at Knoch Primary School a while back and was astounded at its reception.
“The kids went through 175 drumsticks,” Nurmi said. “They devoured them.”
He said no fryers or flat-top grills are used in the Knoch kitchens. Rather, all hot foods are baked.
While AVI offers many more fresh fruits and vegetables than students were accustomed to, Nurmi said students still prefer burgers, pizza and chicken nuggets.
“We give them some of their favorites, and we sneak the fresh stuff in,” he said.
Todd Trofimuk, principal at Knoch High, is all for students enjoying fresh, local foods like the version prepared Wednesday by Nurmi.
He said because the school district still has lots of farms within its boundaries, a farm-to-table program in the school cafeterias only makes sense.
“Reaching out and engaging the community that way and getting the students to see vegetables not as something that comes from a can is wonderful,” Trofimuk said. “It gets kids to think about foods and vegetables and healthy eating all the way around.”
He said working with Nurmi and helping him see his nutritional ideas to fruition has been a very positive experience.
Trofimuk said the upcoming renovation at the high school included just as much thought and research into serving food to students as academic areas of the school.
Nurmi said he has ideas for special offerings in the cafeteria when winter’s grasp will not allow fresh selections, like a hot chocolate bar.
“We’ll just have to be creative,” he said.
