The Great Tomato Deception
I have very clear memories of the Reagan administration’s ketchup gaffe when I was still in grade school. Growing up in a Democratic household, any easy jab at the Republicans was recited often. In an earlier era, Margaret Thatcher was termed, ‘the milk Snatcher’ and again, my Mom couldn’t help but say the British P.M’s name without adding this catchy title. This week, the news has been peppered with stories about Congress’ defense of tomato paste as a vegetable.
Let’s be clear: I am continually saddened by the National School Lunch Program’s nutritional standards. I am the Choicelunch menu planner and have to abide by many of these USDA recommendations, despite my own knowledge and experience in feeding kids. I hate, for example, that even though our delicious shepherd’s pie is a perfectly balanced meal by itself with its layers of seasoned ground beef, corn and homemade smashed potatoes, I have to include an additional ‘bread serving’ with the dish to meet the USDA rules.
But the media’s overplay of the ‘pizza as vegetable’ story is exaggerated. Currently, all lunches that meet the government’s rules must include at least ¾ of a cup of produce and must include at least two varieties. As it stands, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste can count towards this ¾ of a cup, but it would have to be supplemented by another fruit or veggie. Yes, often this is a canned fruit cup, or a dish of overcooked green beans, as the famed Mrs. Q confronted. Not ideal, obviously (and this is why at Choicelunch you won’t see those kind of desiccated, unappetizing veggies ever offered.) But, this tomato paste matter isn’t much different than the commonly heralded puree concept, popularized by Jessica Seinfeld and her New York Times Bestseller, “Deceptively Delicious.”
If you haven’t heard about this cookbook, aimed at us soccer Moms who just want to get some veggies down the gullets of our kids, the concept is if you hide some pureed broccoli to a batch of brownies, you can feel good about your kids getting their veggies in. I have never liked this idea; deceiving your kids by surreptitiously adding nutrient-dense foods to treats. Just because you added some chickpeas to a batch of chocolate chip cookies, doesn’t make them OK for breakfast. And yet, this book series has been on the Bestseller list for years and made Jerry’s wife (as in Seinfeld) as popular as our favorite New York comedian.
So if adding a ¼ cup shredded zucchini to your pasta sauce makes you a frequent guest on Oprah, why is it the Nation’s lunch ladies get ridiculed for serving pizza with some tomato paste? Yes, it’s time for changes and improvements, no question. But this pizza issue isn’t the most critical and detracts from the work of moving our lunch program forward; even Margret Thatcher the milk Snatcher would agree, I am sure.
