Food Access

• Use this time to teach Scouts how to prepare healthier dishes.
  • Train cooking badge counselors on MyPlate and available resources.
  • Supply necessary materials: Use the MyPlate menu planners to plan meals.
• Use cooking badge time to teach Scouts how to prepare healthier dishes.
  • Use MyPlate menu planners to plan meals.
• Download MyPlate worksheets

Cooking badge guidelines require meals to follow MyPlate standards: 50% whole grain, ½ fruits non-starchy vegetables, low fat dairy, and only one lean protein choice per meal (include plant-based proteins).

• Have a fruit or vegetable at every snack time.
  • No fried food
• All snacks should have a healthy carbohydrate and protein option.
• Make at least half of all grains whole-grain.
  • Brown rice
  • Whole-grain rolls/bread
  • Whole-grain pasta
  • Eliminate foods that are not as palatable in the whole-grain form, such as pizza
• Fat-free or low-fat dairy products only

Make sure campers are offered vegetarian protein options: veggie burgers, nut butter spreads, hummus, black beans, etc.

Examples:

• Apple crisp
  • Add 1 chopped apple, ¼ cup oats, 2 Tbs. brown sugar, and 2 Tbs. whole-wheat flour to foil. Add walnuts if desired. Mix well. Spray with vegetable oil and sprinkle with cinnamon. Add to fire for 5-10 minutes. Apple crisp will be very hot. Allow apple crisp to cool outside the fire before eating.
• Banana bar
  • Slice banana open vertically and place on aluminum foil, leaving the skin on the banana. Allow scouts to top with nut butters, peanuts, sliced almonds, sprinkles, cinnamon, hazelnuts or chocolate chips. Wrap in foil completely. Warm in the fire for 5-8 minutes. Allow bananas to cool outside the fire before eating.
• Stuffed strawberries
  • Cut stems deep out of strawberries. Stuff strawberries with 2-3 peanuts and 3-4 chocolate chips. Cook on marshmallow sticks or in foil over the fire. Allow strawberries to cool outside of the fire before eating.
• Popcorn over the fire
  • Recipe
  • Sprinkle with parmesan cheese
• Ants on a log
  • Spread almond butter on celery sticks. Sprinkle with raisins and enjoy.
• Fruit popsicles
• Sliced watermelon
• Cut fruit and whipped cream
• Hummus with crackers and veggies

Items for consideration during evaluation of cracker barrels, campfires, cooking badge class, etc.:

• Use taste tests to allow Scouts to choose cracker barrel snacks.
• Work with the camp director to finalize alternatives to cracker barrels, cooking badge meals, etc.
• Offer healthier alternatives, giving troops ideas for outings.
• Evaluate through food costs.
• Monitor satisfaction in focus groups.

Budget considerations include: voice recorders for focus groups, transcriptions from focus groups.