chef ann cooper

Madison Celebrates Local and Sustainable Food on the Square

There isn’t much more I would rather do on a crisp, fall day in Madison than visit the Downtown Farmer’s Market. With a sea of proud Madisonites dressed in badger gear foraging for the week’s local food offerings, chocolate-faced kids enjoying their morning treats, and the sun shining strong, I couldn’t help but spend hours meandering the market last week. However, I had more on my “to-do” list than shop for my fill of seasonal veg on that Saturday. It was REAP’s annual Food for Thought Festival on the Square, one of the best fall food events for passionate locavores, if you ask me.  

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What's Your Good Food Resolution for This School Year? Tell Us for the Chance to Win a Year of Free Organic Milk from Organic Valley

Ah, autumn! The leaves are starting to change color. The air is crisp and clear. School is back in full swing, with all of the excitement and change it brings each year. My family is still adjusting to the new schedule.

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Renegade Lunch Lady Ann Cooper Takes On Another School-Lunch Makeover

Last week, I stepped back in time to have lunch in a high school cafeteria. Only this time, it was with Renegade Lunch Lady, Ann Cooper. Ann built a national reputation from her work with the School Lunch Initiative to bring healthy, whole foods into school lunchrooms throughout the Berkeley, California, school district. Now she was in Boulder, Colorado, to do the same thing. As I pulled together research for my visit, I became convinced that California’s loss was Colorado’s coup. You can have Jamie Oliver, West Virginia. We’ll take Ann Cooper.

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An Open Letter to Our Children: We're Sorry About School Lunch

I recently had the chance to sit down with a handful of sixth graders at Sanford Middle School in Minneapolis. The students had been complaining that the lunches they were being served tasted bad and made them feel sick, and their teacher asked me to come answer questions, provide context, and make suggestions.

For an hour, these thoughtful students and I discussed healthy food choices, growing a garden, being pressed for time (a 12 year old girl told me she didn't have time to put an apple in her backpack in the morning), eating on a budget, and how to affect change. I've been thinking about the discussion ever since.

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