Camp Gourmet
How dining halls handle nutritional needs.
by Viki Kappel Spain

PARENTGUIDE News March 2006

Parents are the hands-down experts in feeding their children— creatively disguising those unwanted ingredients, tempting kids to experiment or pleading with “just try one bite.”

But what happens when a chef must serve hundreds of young diners, probably none of whom are the chef’s kin? As a camp cook who helps train kitchen staff across the country, I’ll answer typical questions to provide a peek inside camp dining halls today.

What’s the biggest trend in camp meal preparation and nutrition in recent years?

Choice is the biggest news for camp. Family or buffet-style serving has replaced the cafeteria trays of yesteryear, although some line serving still takes place. Food served in a family setting, with a bowl of salad, pan of lasagna and loaf of garlic bread for each table, offers the opportunity for children to sit, relax, enjoy each other’s company, learn table manners and think of others (taking one serving and passing the bowl around instead of taking half the bowl’s contents).
In this fast food era and age of both parents working, many children do not experience the family table as often as parents would like. If camps offer this serving style, it affords a great opportunity to support family values.

How do health and nutrition translate into menu planning?
I have five principles for delivering the highest nutrition to campers: serve food items separately, offer choice and more choice, serve a wide variety, substitute or eliminate non-dairy items in cooked foods and serve certain items on the side.

1. Serve food items separately. To accommodate most dietary requests, it’s best to serve food items separately. For example, pasta with two sauces, one with meat and one without. The second sauce should be a pesto or cream sauce such as Alfredo to please those who don’t want the traditional tomato-based spaghetti sauce. The meat (such as meatballs) can be served separately from the marinara sauce, as well. Those who don’t want sauce at all can always just eat the noodles with Parmesan cheese. Offering several options separately allows campers to make healthy choices on their own.
2. Offer choice and more choice. If every camp could and would adopt the “bar” mentality, great strides could be taken in the healthy choice effort. The concept of having many items to choose from, such as a salad bar, taco bar, baked potato bar, sandwich bar and dessert bar offers a key element of teaching children to make good choices from a selection of good choices. Every time a child has the opportunity to make good choices, healthy eating patterns are reinforced.
3. Serve a wide variety. A major health and nutrition challenge is to offer balanced nutrition in an appealing format. The best example of offering healthy choices is with a salad bar. With the availability of proteins, nuts, grains and low-fat dressings, campers can eat healthy without feeling hungry.
4. Substitute or eliminate non-dairy items in cooked foods. Camp chefs can address healthy eating and still maintain food quality by substituting high-fat, high-cholesterol items like butter or cheddar cheese with margarine or a cheddar/mozzarella blend cheese. When cooking rice, substitute margarine for the butter, or leave it out altogether. Use flavor substitutes like seasonings or other flavor enhancers, and campers can enjoy a great taste that often satisfies.
5. Serve certain items on the side. The most important feature to offer at all meals is salad dressings, sauces and gravies on the side to allow each individual to select the amount they desire.

What are the top concerns expressed by parents about children and eating at camp?

Parents know their children best. Most parents are concerned about their children getting healthy foods as well as their favorite foods.

The major topic of concern, however, is whether meat is thoroughly cooked at camp. Parents also worry about their children who have special dietary needs (dairy-sensitive, vegetarian, allergic to specific foods). Many contact the food service director, asking how the camp can cater to their children’s needs. Others express concern about sugar and caffeine, and some even ask about the availability of a low-carb program. Since the nature of most camps is activity-oriented, low-carb-conscious parents are usually told that carbs are necessary for energy.

How are camps addressing special diets and food allergies?
Each and every camper may have slightly different dietary needs, which camps consider when planning a menu. Allergies and sensitivities have taken center stage for food service directors regarding the foods served at camp. With peanut allergies so rampant and extremely dangerous, even having peanut butter on the shelves can cause problems, let alone serving peanut butter and jelly or peanut butter cookies to the whole dining hall.

For those who are dairy sensitive or lactose intolerant, having dairy-free options are a must, from soy milk to cheeseless pizza and even butter-free desserts. Cooks are encouraged to make Rice Krispy treats with margarine, not butter, to ensure a safe environment for all.

Some parents contact the food service director when their child has serious food issues, such as wheat or preservative allergies. The camp kitchen needs to make every effort to support any food arrangements the parents are willing to make. Some parents can look at the tentative menu planned for the week and send a supply of acceptable food items that match the menu, including corn tortillas for the burrito lunch, wheat-free waffles for breakfast or sugar-free maple syrup for the diabetic child, so the child can still have a positive camp experience without being ostracized for his or her food differences.

Anything families can or should do to prepare children for meals away from home?
One of the best things parents can teach their children is to “just try a little.” Some families serve favorite, homemade foods and family recipes, and others eat a small variety of prepared foods. In either case, children are exposed to many new items at camp and should embrace the opportunity to experience the entire food selection.

No parent wants to think of their child as finicky, but most children actually are finicky and reluctant to try new things. As hard as camp cooks try to duplicate homemade food items, children can tell that camp macaroni and cheese looks and tastes different from homemade food, whether it is different from the homemade cheese sauce that Grandma makes or the “Easy Mac” recipe they are used to making.

If parents can prepare their child for the camp experience, not only with packing and building anticipation for the fun activities and new friendships but also with food, the camper may feel more settled and secure with the dining changes about to take place. Parents can present the camp dining hall as a new food adventure, with the challenge to experiment and try one new thing each day and then “report” their analysis and opinion in a letter home.

To learn more about camp and child development, please visit the American Camp Association’s family Web site: www.CampParents.org or call (800)428-CAMP (2267).

Viki Kappel Spain, author of The Camp Kitchen Guidebook (American Camping Association), has been cooking in the camp industry since 1985. She is a frequent contributor to camp publications and coordinates regional and national kitchen staff training for the American Camp Association.