Good Morning Chef!

On Thursday, September 7 our chefs went back to the school cafeteria and served up deliciousness for our kids. The kids at Elaine Wynn ES were just as excited as we were to be serving up smiles. As we were entering the school to finish setup, we could hear kids crossing the street saying “Today is Chefs for Kid’s Day! This is going to be fun!” It filled our hearts with joy to know that the kids truly look forward to when Chefs for Kids is in the kitchen.

When kids finally were able to enter the cafeteria for breakfast, they were greeted by chefs from MGM Grand Las Vegas and ACF Chefs Las Vegas, who handed them a hat and said “Good Morning Chef.” The returned smile on the kids’ faces says it all.

MGM Grand Las Vegas cooked up a delicious plate including: Breakfast “Hot Pocket” containing Cage Free Eggs, American Cheese, Chicken Sausage, and Puff Pastry; The Rocket’s Jell-O & Tropical Exotic Fruits with Cherry Jell-O, Minted Papaya, Mango, and Dragon Fruit; and House-Made Whole Grain Cinnamon Rolls with Dairy Free Sweet Cream and Toasted & Candied Oats.

The kids enjoyed every last bite. It was hard to tell which was the crowd favorite because each piece got rave reviews from the students, and many were saying “I want some more of (insert their favorite item here).”

Cookin’ Up Breakfast has many benefits beyond simply feeding hungry children. Our chefs are asked to incorporate fruits and vegetables into their meals, and create a healthy, balanced meal. Of course, occasionally they include a “sometimes” snack as a sweet treat. It furthers our in-class nutrition education by showing kids creative ways to incorporate healthy eating into their diet. Additionally, it exposes them to a potential career. But this time, Principal Newman enlightened us on another benefit we hadn’t quite considered…

“Our kids typically don’t get a chance to eat in restaurants, so it’s a nice opportunity for a restaurant-quality meal to be brought to them. We are grateful for the community members who come together to put these smiles on our kids’ faces and give them new experiences.”

It’s true – each school we support is at or very near 100% of the student population qualifying for free or reduced lunch, which means families are already struggling to put food on the table, let alone visit a restaurant. Our program exposes kids to restaurant-quality meals and “exotic” ingredients that they otherwise might not receive (do you remember getting Minted Papaya or Dragon Fruit in elementary school?). You may be thinking these “exotic” ingredients are only found on cooking shows on TV like Guy’s Grocery Games, but our students are able to try these ingredients right in their own school cafeteria thanks to our supporters! Speaking of Guy’s Grocery Games – we 💙Guy Fieri Foundation for helping support breakfast for our kids.

So to all the chefs, volunteers, and sponsors who continue to support our program – thank you! Want to join us at the table? E-mail donations@chefsforkids.org to become a culinary or volunteer sponsor, or make a donation today!