Just What Makes Our Healthy Fast Food Unique?
As a parent, who hasn’t heard the words “Ew, that looks gross”, come out of your kids’ mouth at some point or another? One thing we can depend on with children is shear brutal honesty, whether we like it and want it or not.
That’s why, when we set out to create healthy fast food for kids, not only was it important to come up with food that tastes good, but also looks good as well. And let me tell you, when you take out grains, gluten, sugar (often dairy) and preservatives, that’s not an easy task.
Ask any parent who is trying to cook with these types of food restrictions. It requires a lot of research, testing of recipes, messing up and then trying again. Most of the time, we’re happy if we can make something that tastes good, that our child will eat, let alone look good.
Finding a Chef Who Can Cook Grain, Gluten, Sugar and Preservative Free
When it came time to find a chef for Caleb’s Cooking Company, I knew I had my work set out for me. There are plenty of great gluten free chefs out there, but cooking gluten free is not the same as cooking without grains or complex carbohydrates. This means no potatoes, rice, corn or starches because they are disaccharides (double molecules) and polysaccharides (chain molecules), which are not allowed. Complex carbohydrates, that are not easily digested, feed harmful bacteria in our intestines causing them to overgrow and inflame the intestine wall. The diet works by starving out these bacteria and restoring the balance of bacteria in our gut. This reduces inflammation in the body and is why the diet is so helpful for anyone who struggles with inflammation or digestive issues.
In the last hundred years, the increase in complex sugars and chemical additives in the American diet has led to a huge increase in health problems, ranging from severe bowel disorders to obesity and brain function disorders. So, it only makes sense that the SCD diet restricts all sugar. The only sweetener we can use is honey and that’s because its a monosaccharide. And then, naturally there are no preservatives allowed in our food as well. I’m guessing by now, you can envision the struggle I faced in finding a great chef for Caleb’s Cooking Company.
How About a Paleo Chef?
With the huge success of the Paleo diet and the striking similarities between SCD and Paleo, I started looking at prominent and successful Paleo chefs. I reached out to a number of chefs, but found myself gravitating towards one chef in particular and he didn’t specialize in Paleo.
Get cindy frei’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
I had read about Camp Oasis (a wonderful camp which provides a supportive and caring community for kids with Crohn’s and Colitis) and heard about the Chef named Travis Bettinson who was preparing SCD meals for all of the kids. He was also cooking SCD food for a big study being done at Seattle Children’s Hospital studying the effects of the SCD diet on Inflammatory Bowl Disease.
This was the kind of heart and soul I was seeking in a chef.
Not only does Travis specialize in cooking for kids with dietary needs, but he focuses on whole, healthy foods, sourcing all ingredients locally and sustainably with peak nutrition in mind. It didn’t hurt that the kids also already loved his food.
All it took was one phone call sharing Caleb’s story, my vision and my concern for children on special diets. We connected immediately. We both shared a passion for healing through food.
Then, it was just a matter of deciding which recipes with which to launch. First, I asked Caleb what food he missed the most. That was easy…pizza and chicken nuggets. As it turns out, Travis had stellar recipes for both of these items.
He sent us samples and they were an immediate hit. Honestly, the chicken nuggets tasted and looked just like a traditional fried nugget. We were thinking about burritos as our third product, but Travis convinced us to try his enchiladas and boy are we glad we did. I have no doubt in my mind that once people taste these bean and pork enchiladas, we will have a huge hit on our hands. They were outstanding. The flavors were delicious.
When I asked Caleb to rate his favorite of Travis’ food; first place went to the enchiladas, second place to the chicken nuggets and third place to the pizza. Caleb loves pizza, so that should give you some indication of how much he’s loving Travis’ food. We hope everyone else does as well!
We are launching our Kickstarter campaign on April 12th so that we can raise the money needed to get into the kitchen and start making food. If you would like to be one of the first to get an “early bird special”, follow us on our Kickstarter campaign and get 20% off your first order of “healthy fast food” for kids.
