Nina Stecher

Nina Stecher

Caballero

English 8

3 May 2020

Healthy Cooking for Students

Cooking has been something that I have been passionate about for a long time. My family often cooks together and I have learned a lot of my cooking knowledge from my parents. We try our best to cook healthy meals and we follow a pescatarian diet. My capstone project will be making a cookbook of recipes that are specifically suitable for students like me. Most of the recipes will be vegetarian or pescatarian, but I would also like to include some that are either vegan or gluten free. Making sure that there is a dish that works for everybody is really important to me. This project will include the tasks of researching ideas and creating the recipes, making and photographing the food and then putting those elements into the cookbook. I needed to research more about nutritional needs and the benefits of a healthy diet, especially for teens. The information I found from researching food styling and the general format of cookbooks will also help me do this project. Through my capstone project I would like to show people that it is easy to cook meals that are healthy and still manageable to make.

It is very important to understand what is being put into our bodies and to know why it matters, so I first decided to research nutrition. A healthy lifestyle is something that everyone should try to follow, and it is especially crucial for young people to build healthy eating habits. This is because the way they eat now, will likely be how they continue to for most of their life. Especially since they are still growing, teens need the nutrients found in fresh foods, including the antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients (​Ipatenco). Despite how important a healthy diet is for developing students, many middle school students start choosing less healthy options. This is mainly because of the decreasing amount of parent supervision and because more freedom is offered at this age. Another one of the biggest reasons is that most students that age do not know how to cook healthy meals (​Ipatenco). If that is not changed they will likely continue the same habits. one of the reasons that so many college students turn to unhealthy fast food options is because of the convenience of it and also because many students still do not know how to cook even when they are in college (“Low”). This issue can be fixed if people learn how to cook at a young age. Usually the meals that are cooked at home are better for us than what we would get from a restaurant or a fast food place and students of any age can start to plan ahead and even meal prep (“Low”). They will likely continue to cook for themselves throughout their life and will not be as tempted to make unhealthy food choices in the future.

Eating healthy food benefits us in many ways. Of course, fueling our bodies with nutritious food helps us to stay physically healthy, but it also helps us mentally. These benefits are also extremely helpful in any learning environment. Students will be able to focus better when well -nourished, and healthy eating is linked to higher grades. A few of the other benefits include being able to process information faster, better memory, and increased alertness (“Importance”). By eating foods that contain fiber, healthy fats and protein, will be kept energized and focused all day. Not only are the benefits of cooking healthy meals helpful in the classroom, but if students cook their own food at home instead of buying lunch and snacks at school, they can actually end up saving money (“Low”).

To help me throughout my Capstone project, I needed to get a better understanding of some important basics to know in the culinary world. I was able to find several great pieces of knowledge that will allow me to improve my cooking. Trying to buy the freshest and highest quality ingredients when possible is great for many reasons (Flanagan). Fresh produce that did not have to travel as far to get to you will taste much better than something that is no longer very fresh, so it is helpful to try to cook seasonally. These foods will also have a higher amount of antioxidants when they are eaten closer to when they were harvested (Pittman). Something else I found was to not fear salt. This is because it will deepen and enhance the other flavors in a dish. Also it is important to still use salt when baking (Flanagan). To be a great chef, you need to be prepared and that is why it is key to read through the entire recipe and its list of ingredients before you start cooking. It is also very helpful to prep ingredients in advance if possible, doing so will save time later and make the actual cooking process simpler. Making sure that you know how a dish tastes before you serve it to anyone else is very important, so if possible, taste as you go to tell if a dish needs to be altered in any way (Flanagan).

I also learned some specific tips for healthy cooking. One way to make sure a meal is packed with nutrients is to Incorporate the whole rainbow (Pittman). This means to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, because naturally colorful produce contains many different nutrients. Although it is best to use the most fresh form of any ingredient, keeping healthy convenience items on hand, things like canned veggies or beans are super helpful when in a rush. These canned foods can be freshened up with other ingredients and used to enhance the other components of a meal (Pittman). One of the most important things that I learned that helps with healthy cooking is to use more whole foods that aren’t processed or have many added ingredients. By doing this, These general culinary tips I found will be very useful when cooking the dishes I choose to include in my final product.

The next step in my research process was learning about the steps involved in making a cookbook, starting off with how recipes are developed. Through researching this, I realized that pretty much any recipe is inspired by someone else’s, and at this point in time there is almost no such thing as a completely original recipe (Stubbs). But by taking inspiration from and then editing recipes you can make them your own. Some ways to do this are to change up the way something is prepared or maybe use a different cooking method. For example, a variety of vegetables could be either steamed, roasted, sauteed or stir fried. Experimenting with the ratios of some ingredients can make a dish better, like adding more vegetables compared to another ingredient or changing up a sauce or dressing. Another important step is to write the recipes’ instructions in your own words. It needs to be easily understandable and it should seem like you’re actually explaining it to someone (Stubbs). Most cookbooks include any of the author’s tips and notes that they think will help the reader. Being consistent with the measurements and names used to refer to certain things will help to not end up confusing the reader. (“10”). The author should have the most experience making the dish and knows what works best and can share this with the reader (Stubbs).

To make the cookbook more interesting, include some short stories and personal experiences regarding a dish or maybe explain the importance of an ingredient or a technique used in the preparation of the dish. Both of these things can be done by adding headnotes before the recipe (“10”). I learned that trial and error will most likely be a big part in the process of creating successful recipes and eventually a cookbook. Any great chef makes sure to take notes each time a recipe is made, to track what worked well or what to change next time (Stubbs). The overall visual appeal is also a huge part of creating a successful cookbook. Choosing layouts that are interesting and still leave enough white space is important. One of the biggest things I learned about cookbook design is how important it is to fully plan it out. Knowing where the photos will be and how much space you need for instructions or what recipes will be included in each chapter or section, will ensure that your ideas are carefully developed (“10”).

To aid me later on during my Capstone project, learning about food styling and photography was something else I needed to do. Like any other kind of photography, good lighting that showcases and highlights the best parts of each dish will make a big difference. Finding backgrounds that complement the food and don’t distract from it is helpful to make the setup match. The use of props and a variety of bowls, plates, utensils, or napkins in the background can add a lot to a photo (Kopcok). But with any additional props, it is important that they don’t overpower the actual food. If the cookbook has an overall color theme try to stick to that with any items that are used or create a theme for each section to break it up. I learned that it is super important to set up the background and the overall scene before you shoot. One trick is to use an empty plate or other prop to hold the place where you’ll eventually put the food, so it can stay fresh when choosing where to place it. If similar materials are needed for photographing two different recipes, making both around the same time will make the styling process easier. Another way to elevate the look of a dish is to play around with garnishes, things like herbs and spices (Kopcok). Small garnishes are often used in food styling just to make something look more appealing to the viewer. Simply taking time to plan out each section, set up good backgrounds, add garnishes and focusing on the photography will improve the overall look of a cookbook.

Throughout this research, I became even more aware about the importance of healthy eating and also opened my eyes to the process of creating a cookbook. Understanding more about nutrition and the impact of healthy habits has helped me so far in the process of my project. I also learned about the steps and key elements needed in making a successful and understandable cookbook. The knowledge I have of some new cooking tips will help me to elevate my understanding of the culinary world. I will continue to improve my cooking skills and apply what I have learned about nutrition, cooking and cookbook writing and design in my life going forward. My overall goal by doing this project is to also inspire others to be creative and have fun with cooking and realize the importance of fueling our bodies with nutritious food.

Works Cited

“10 Tips for Creating a Cookbook.” Blurb.com, https://www.blurb.com/blog/10-tips-creating-cookbook/ Accessed 12 April 2020

Ipatenco, Sara “Nutrition For Middle School Students.”​ Healthfully, 1​3 June 2017, https://healthfully.com/441408-middle-school-students-nutrition.html​. Accessed 2 April 2020

Kopcok, Darina. “12 Tips for Styling Your Food Photography” Expert Photography https://expertphotography.com/12-tips-styling-food-photography/ Accessed 17 April 2020

“Low cost fast food leads students to poor health choices.” U-Wire, 25 Nov. 2008. Gale OneFile: Vocations and Careers, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A189689478/PPVC?u=beav56809&sid=PPVC&xid=29dad6​. Accessed 2 April 2020.

Pittman, Ann Taylor “30 Ways to be a Healthier Cook.” CookingLight, 15 October 2017, https://www.cookinglight.com/eating-smart/smart-choices/how-to-be-healthier-cook. Accessed 15 April 2020

Stubbs, Merrill. “How to Create an Original Recipe.” ​Food52, 2​9 June 2012

https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/how-to-create-your-own-recipe-according-to-a-pro/​

Accessed 4 March 2020

“The Importance of Eating Healthy for Students” Options for Youth

https://ofy.org/blog/the-importance-of-eating-healthy-for-students/ Accessed 13 April 2020

Flanagan, Shalane and Kopecky, Elyse. Run Fast. Eat Slow. Rodale, 2016.