RIFLE, Colorado — Healthy food is the name of the game for the students in the Re-2 School District as they start back to school this week.

For the second year in a row, the food personnel staff in the district underwent a training session with noted chef and educator, Andrea Martin, who came all the way from New York. She led a three-day culinary “boot camp” in late July at Wamsley Elementary School.

The New York chef works as an independent contractor and trains with school districts around the country, teaching them how to improve the nutritional quality of their school lunch programs.

For Re-2, this opportunity was more than just food for thought.

“We're overhauling the nutrition programs. Last year we eliminated chocolate milk,” said Theresa Hamilton, director of districtwide services for Re-2. “The goal is to increase the nutritional value of the school lunch program.”

During the three-day seminar, Martin covered topics such as knife handling, cooking temperatures, compliance with health codes, salad bar setup and breakdown, cooking charts for grains and legumes and the care and handling of produce.

One thing Martin stressed as a recipe for quality cooking is the importance of foods made from scratch.

“I want to teach them to be more efficient and increase the nutritional value of school lunches,” Martin said. “And I want to teach them how to do everything from scratch.”

As a professional chef and certified teacher, Martin is well qualified to coach others in the kitchen.

“One of the benefits to cooking from scratch is that you have control over what you are feeding the kids,” she said. “This is the second year we're working with these skills and we're working with fresh produce and meats. This year we've added on to that — we've added fresh sauces. And all the sauces have vegetables in them.”

And while the food is healthy, Martin says she strives to create menus that kids will like.

“The emphasis is on making food that [kids] really like,” Martin said. “I try not to make the emphasis on ‘this is healthy' because healthy food is not a big selling point for kids. I also try to do time management with the staff.”

In the past, students would see things like frozen chicken nuggets and burritos.

“It wasn't cooking — it was reheating,” Hamilton said bluntly.

On the third day of “boot camp,” trainees, staff and guests were invited for lunch in the cafeteria at Wamsley Elementary.

It was quite a feast.

A large buffet was set up with Asian barbecue pork; deconstructed nachos with spicy taco meat, homemade pinto beans, jalapeno cheese sauce, chipotle salsa, avocado and corn chips; lentils with turkey sausage; homemade macaroni and cheese; brown rice salad; roasted zucchini and roasted carrots; and a salad bar.

And just because it was healthy, didn't mean it wasn't delicious, with most people making a trip back to get more.

Martin loves to watch people enjoy the food and admits her passion of feeding friends and family and teaching others how to do the same.

“I like to teach people basic techniques and technical skills,” she said with a smile.

A graduate of Amherst College in Massachusetts with a liberal arts degree, Martin also has a master's degree and graduated from the Culinary Institute of America, which she says is the “best school in the world.”

Sue Beecraft is directly in charge of the school lunch meals, and she says this year, the menu will include more fresh fruits and veggies that are raw or roasted, along with whole grains.

The bottom line for Andrea, as well as the Re-2 School District food staff, is to provide the best-tasting, most nutritious food for the students that they can.

“We're creating a whole new reality for the kitchen staff,” Martin said. “They are the food ambassadors. We're taking them to a new level.”

The Re-2 School District serves around 3,000 meals per day and the menu rotates on a six-week cycle. Prices start from $2 for breakfast to $3 for lunch.

For more information about the school lunch program, contact the Re-2 School District at 625-7600.