Meal Planning and Composition Notes

Meal Planning & Composition

Successful Menu Planning

Requires knowledge of:

  • Nutrition
  • Food preparation
  • Food presentation
  • Portion size
  • Target audience

Three Basic Types of Menus

  • Static - used in restaurants (many hospitals now because they offer room service menus)
  • Cycle - can go from 1 to several weeks, used in some hospitals and institutions (schools, assisted living facilities, military institutions)
    • Hospitals – one week cycle because patient stays are shorter
    • Schools – two week cycle means every other Monday the same food is served
  • Single Use - Use once for ex. catering, home special event
  • Plan Ahead
    • Make menu decisions in advance: A two week menu allows optimal planning for a small facility.
    • Purchase in advance: If menu items are not available, there is time to regroup.
    • Find suppliers that fit your needs.
  • Plan menus that compliment your clients, facility, and skill of employees.
    • Know what your audience likes and dislikes.
    • Make sure recipes utilize only available equipment.
  • Menu planning questions
    • What do we have in the pantry? Try to keep the cupboards, refrigerator and freezer full of nutrient-rich foods. Name some foods that would be useful to keep on hand to pair with fresh seasonal foods.
    • Plan a menu for a meal. Keep it simple.

2015 Dietary Guidelines

  • Dietary Guidelines for Americans is reviewed, updated and published every 5 years
  • USDA and FDA jointly create each edition
  • Healthy Americans 2 years and older
  • Now includes ‘at risk’ Americans
  • The Guidelines
    • Follow a healthy eating pattern across the lifespan. All food and beverage choices matter. Choose a healthy eating pattern at an appropriate calorie level to help achieve and maintain a healthy body weight, support nutrient adequacy, and reduce the risk of chronic disease.
    • Focus on variety, nutrient density, and amount. To meet nutrient needs within calorie limits, choose a variety of nutrient-dense foods across and within all food groups in recommended amounts.
    • Limit calories from added sugars and saturated fats and reduce sodium intake. Consume an eating pattern low in added sugars, saturated fats, and sodium. Cut back on foods and beverages higher in these components to amounts that fit within healthy eating patterns.
    • Shift to healthier food and beverage choices. Choose nutrient-dense foods and beverages across and within all food groups in place of less healthy choices. Consider cultural and personal preferences to make these shifts easier to accomplish and maintain.
    • Support healthy eating patterns for all. Everyone has a role in helping to create and support healthy eating patterns in multiple settings nationwide, from home to school to work to communities.

2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines

  • 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee is currently reviewing the scientific evidence.
  • The public is welcome to attend any of the 5 pubic meetings and submit comments to the committee.
  • Committee is made of 20 MDs and PhDs
  • 7 Subcommittees addressing top 7 questions

Healthy Eating Plate

  • Use healthy oils (like olive and canola oil) for cooking, on salad, and at the table. Limit butter. Avoid trans fat.
  • Eat plenty of fruits of all colors.
  • Eat a variety of whole grains (like whole-wheat bread, whole-grain pasta, and brown rice). Limit refined grains (like white rice and white bread).
  • Choose fish, poultry, beans, and nuts; limit red meat and cheese; avoid bacon, cold cuts, and other processed meats.
  • Drink water, tea, or coffee (with little or no sugar). Avoid sugary drinks.
  • Limit milk/dairy (1-2 servings/day) and juice (1 small glass/day).
  • The more veggies-and the greater the variety-the better. Potatoes and French fries don't count.

5 A Day

  • EAT MORE! fruits & veggies matters. FILL HALF YOUR PLATE WITH FRUITS & VEGGIES
  • Eat Your Colors Every Day To Stay Healthy & Fit

Meal Patterns in the USDA CACFP Programs

  • Child and Adult Care Food Programs (CACFP)
  • USDA Adult Menu Patterns that qualify for reimbursement
    • Breakfast – milk, fruit, grain
    • Lunch – milk, fruit, grain, vegetable, meat/alternative
    • Dinner – fruit, grain, vegetable, meat/alternative
    • Snack – two items
  • Child menu patterns
    • Follow the same guidelines, but portions adjusted for age groups

2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

  • Amendment to the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938
  • Specifics in 21 CFR
  • Restaurants with over 20 locations that serve similar food must comply by 5/7/2018
  • Vending machines too
  • Menu boards must list kcalorie values
  • Use a wide variety of foods in meal planning
  • Include Vitamin C foods daily
  • Include Vitamin A foods at least 4X/week
  • Use whole grain products to increase fiber
  • Nutrient Recommendations
  • Correct Serving Size
    • Entree (protein sources) 2-3 oz
    • Vegetables ½ cup for many raw and all cooked; 1 cup raw for leafy greens – lettuce, spinach
    • Fruit ½ cup or whole medium
    • Bread/grain 1 slice or 1 ounce or ½ cup
  • Meeting RDAs for certain nutrients

MyPlate Plan

  • Everything you eat and drink matters. Find your healthy eating style that reflects your preferences, culture, traditions, and budget-and maintain it for a lifetime! The right mix can help you be healthier now and into the future. The key is choosing a variety of foods and beverages from each food group-and making sure that each choice is limited in saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars. Start with small changes-"MyWins"-to make healthier choices you can enjoy.

  • Food Group Amounts for 2,000 Calories a Day

    • Fruits 2 cups: Focus on whole fruits that are fresh, frozen, canned, or dried.
    • Vegetables 2 1/2 cups: Vary your veggies and choose a variety of colorful fresh, frozen, and canned vegetables-make sure to include dark green, red, and orange choices.
    • Grains 6 ounces: Make half your grains whole grains. Find whole-grain foods by reading the Nutrition Facts label and ingredients list.
    • Protein 5 1/2 ounces: Vary your protein routine. Mix up your protein foods to include seafood, beans and peas, unsalted nuts and seeds, soy products, eggs, and lean meats and poultry.
    • Dairy 3 cups: Move to low-fat or fat-free milk or yogurt. Choose fat-free milk, yogurt, and soy beverages (soy milk) to cut back on your saturated fat.

Institute of Medicine Food Guidelines

  • Recommended macro nutrient intake
    • 45-60% Carbohydrates
    • 10-35% Protein
    • 20-35% Fat–<10% of Kcals from Sat Fat

The impact of the Guidelines

  • Meals can contain less meat, fish poultry
  • Protein can be combined with a carbohydrate source
  • Not only amount of fat, but also kind of fat needs consideration
  • Include fruits and vegetables for increased – vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals

Purchasing Considerations

  • Holding costs down
  • Meats, Poultry, Fish
    • Biggest expense; Cut down to ≤ 5 oz/person/day
    • Use less tender cuts; same nutritious, often less fatty
    • Inexpensive protein alternatives – Beans, lentils, peas, eggs
  • Fish – Frozen or canned less expensive than fresh
  • Dairy – Non-fat dry milk is least expensive
  • Bread/grain – Bulk grains
  • Fruits & vegetables – Compare fresh vs. processed; frozen often more expensive (than produce in season)

Price Comparisons

  • Holding costs down
  • Determined by calculating cost per serving
  • Convenience food (e.g., trimmed/cut) more expensive
  • Reading label product codes
    • Helps find freshest available product
    • Code dates used in cases of product recall

How Labels can Help

*Freshness or quality assurance date-The last day the product will be of optimum quality. Often preceded by "best when used by."
*Pull date―The last day a store will sell an item, even though the food may be safe for consumption for a little while longer. Dairy and other perishable and semi-perishable items have a pull date that indicates the last day a store should sell the item. Such items are often priced very low and are a good buy if used within a short period of time.

More Labeling

*Expiration date―The last day a food should be consumed. Certain products that will “expire” such as baking powders, yeast packages, and refrigerated doughs, need to show expiration dates to let consumers know whether or not they are still capable of making baked products rise.
*Pack date―The date the food was packed at the processing plant. Canned, bottled, or frozen goods have pack dates that inform consumers how old the food is when purchased. It is often used by stores, which need to know when to rotate stock.

Product Dating

  • Pack date: date the product was packaged (canned green beans for ex.)
  • Expiration date: recommended last date for the product to be at peak quality (baking mixes for example)
  • Sell-by or Pull date : tells the store how long to display the product for sale (perishable products for ex milk)
  • Freshness or Quality Assurance date (also Use By or Best By): date the product should be eaten for best quality (packaged deli meats for ex)

Is Dating Required?

  • Only federally required and regulated food dating
    • Infant formula and baby food
    • Nutrients in formula lose potency as time goes on
  • Otherwise dating at the manufacturers’ discretion
    • Used solely to indicate freshness, and to convey when the product is at its peak
    • Have little if any relevance to food safety
  • Result:
    • More than 90% of Americans throw out food

Reducing Waste

  • Reducing waste saves costs – Waste occurs in following areas…
    • Over-Purchasing – 3 Day Rule = Buy no more fresh produce than can be consumed w/in 3 days
    • Losses from food preparation
    • Losses from shrinkage during cooking
    • Losses from plate waste – Food left because portions too large
  • Portions need to be reasonably sized
    • To satisfy appetite
    • To avoid kcal overload
    • Lean protein Fruits and vegetables
    • To avoid waste

Reducing Waste - Portion Control

  • By weight or volume – grams or cups for ex.
  • By number – number of eggs, slices of ham for ex.
  • By size – 2” by 2” brownie

Reducing Waste - Terminology

  • As purchased (AP)
    • Total amount purchased before preparation
  • Edible portion (EP)
    • Raw state minus that which is discarded
  • Percent yield
    • How much edible food will be left after peeling/trimming
    • Determined by…
      • Determine edible portion: # of servings x serving size
      • EPEP

Different Quantities - Abbreviations

  • AP – as purchased (AP)
  • EP – edible portion (EP)
  • AP – EP = trim
  • Most quantity recipes list ingredients as EP

Quantity Example

A recipe calls for 5 lbs of sliced onions (EP)

To prepare the recipe, what quantity of onions would you purchase?

You have to know the % yield to determine purchase quantity

If the percent yield for onions is 89.

How Much to Purchase

To determine weight needed divide 5lbs by .89; 5/.89 = 5.62 lbs

How much will you actually purchase? How will you round this amount?

Rounding – rules of thumb

  • Round to a whole number to ensure providing the necessary yield (i.e. don’t round to quarter or half pounds)

Enough?

The portion size (EP) is 4 ounces of cooked beef

The event needs to serve 200 people

If you purchase (AP) 50 lbs of beef will that be enough to serve the event?

How much to Purchase?

200 X 4 oz. equals 800 oz. of edible portion needed

800 oz. divided by 16 oz/lb equals 50 lbs of edible portion needed

Not enough was purchased because there will be some trim and loss.

Assume 60% yield on the beef.

50 lbs of beef divided by 60% yield equals 83 lbs of AP beef needed to serve 200 people 4 oz.

Record Keeping

  • Keep Records
    • Know what is purchased; what is used; how quickly purchased products need to be replenished
    • Cost records; know what it costs per meal, snack or serving
    • Make sure foods purchased and served fit into menu guidelines for USDA reimbursement if clients qualify
  • Be observant
    • If a food item is not eaten, alter it

Constructing a menu

  • Color
  • Texture
  • Flavor
  • Temperature
  • Nutrients

Color

The appeal of food begins with your eyes

Visualize: a bratwurst with slaw and potato salad

Texture

Foods combined in a meal need a variety of textures

Visualize: Baked salmon with mashed sweet potato and steamed spinach

Flavor

Combine flavors to provide variety and balance, i.e. spicy with mellow; sweet and sour

Visualize: Roasted chicken, steamed green beans, mashed potatoes, roll

Temperature

Combine foods of different temperatures in the same meal

A salad with a warm element may seem more satisfying than one that is completely cold

Nutrition Considerations

  • Main foods on a menu
    • Center of plate – usually the protein source
    • Side dishes – carbohydrate source; vegetables/fruit – source of vitamins minerals and phytonutrients, but may also provide carbohydrate and protein
    • Fat – may be spread throughout the menu items, but frequently accompanies protein source without adding, so need to be careful especially with sauces, so relishes and salsa can be a good way to add interest