In case you missed it, the Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom team was on the road recently, visiting funded districts and filming technical assistance videos to help you get a “sneak peek” behind-the-scenes of some very successful breakfast after the bell programs. Today we will be talking about some of the scratch- and speed-scratch recipes, techniques, and equipment that are helping these schools improve breakfast participation.
Charleston County School District
In Charleston County School District (SC), one key to BIC success lies in dialing in to students’ regional favorites like chicken and biscuits. Replacing an individually wrapped (IW) chicken biscuit sandwich with a speed-scratch version required an increase in labor hours but was met with a welcome return on investment. Not only did participation improve, there was a big bump in staff morale when students raved over the new dish.
The “Prime Time” breakfast sandwich is made with biscuits prepared in-house and paired with high-quality, whole-muscle breaded chicken. Though scratch- and speed-scratch is not possible in every school, every day, CCSD staff is always developing and testing recipes to serve as many students as possible. In addition to their popular chicken biscuit sandwich, CCSD also offers the popular “Badabing” bowl—a hearty mix of grits, cheese, and bacon—and a homemade banana bread on breakfast after the bell menus. Get the recipe for CCSD banana bread and let us know how your students like it!
Garfield Heights City Schools
A Partners for BIC grant helped Garfield Heights City Schools (OH) invest equipment to centralize production in the district’s newly renovated high school kitchen. Two overwrap machines allow school nutrition staff to prepare scratch- and speed-scratch meals that are delivered to other school sites in the band’s instrument and equipment truck. GHCS offers scratch-made items such as cinnamon rolls and omelet sandwiches on breakfast after the bell menus throughout the school year.
Serving scratch- and speed-scratch menu items has been a key strategy for breakfast after the bell success at GHCS, with several important benefits:
- Increased school breakfast participation
- Lowered food costs
- Improved staff pride and enhanced program buy-in
We look forward to sharing the full suite of technical assistance videos with you all later this year—stay tuned! Don’t forget to follow the Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom on Facebook and Twitter.
