The secret ingredient to any recipe is a mixture of delicious and nutritious!
That’s exactly what Irving ISD’s head chef, Ashlee Clark, and dietitian, Linda Oberg, aspire for when filling the bellies of 33,000 students. 
It’s a task they don’t take lightly.
“We try to find different ways that we can have healthier versions of the meals our students like,” says Clark.
“Our menu is healthy for our students, and that’s our goal. When our students come through the line, they have options,” says Oberg.
The days of walking through the lunch line, cringing at the sight of the cafeteria’s one menu option – meatloaf casserole, ugh! – is over.
Thanks to their collaborative effort, Clark and Oberg offer a menu full of tasty choices. From the turkey burger club sandwich and sweet potato fries to the fruit yogurt parfait and fiestada pizza, there’s something for everyone.
Instead of skipping meals, students walk confidently in the lunch line knowing there’s something for them, even if they have allergies, are vegetarian or are downright picky eaters.
Just ask Tilly Tiggeman-Morris and Ellie Tiggeman-Morris, twin sisters at de Zavala Middle School, who have been vegetarians for five years.
“I like how th
e cafeteria staff knows me and has my vegetarian lunch ready,” says Tilly.
Twin sister, Ellie raves about the yummiest of the food. “The Mac ‘n’ Cheese sticks are my favorite. The cheese is so melty!”
Whether students are learning in person or remotely, they can have the same experience as the Tiggeman-Morris sisters. The meals are planned and prepared with the same intentionality and focus on healthy yet tasty.
For more information about school meals, including weekend Grab and Go meals, visit IrvingISD.net/SchoolMeals.
