Celebrity Chef Visits Morton East and West High Schools

October 23, 2014 | Filed under: Education,Michael Flaherty | Posted by: Michael Flaherty +

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Celebrity Chef Visits Morton East and West High Schools

By Michael Flaherty

(Berwyn, IL) – High Liner Foods, the leading value-added seafood supplier in North America, announced that it has partnered with Morton West and East High Schools located in the Chicago, Illinois area, as part of an ongoing initiative to raise awareness in the school environment about the benefits of seafood.

The event kicked off on October 16 at Morton West with culinary demonstrations by High Liner Foods’ Chef Marco Suarez, where students were shown how to fillet a fish, along with various cooking methods. The demonstrations were followed by lunch specials in the cafeteria, where Suarez, acclaimed celebrity chef featured on Chopped, collaborated with the foodservice team to provide students with a healthy and unique seafood option. On October 17, Suarez provided demonstrations and shared a featured seafood lunch option with students at Morton East. Within the dining hall Chef Marco featured American Pride Southern Cornmeal Alaska Pollock Strips and the famous Nacho Encrusted Alaska Pollock Sticks. He served bite size samples with a culinary flare to spark interests and engagement with students.

“We are excited that our students got to learn the healthy food options available to them through our schools. We are ensuring that we are educating students through a hands on approach too,” said Josh McMahon, Morton West Principal.

“We are constantly looking for new ways of educating our students on healthy eating. The fact that a celebrity chef taught our students is just another way of motivating our students to eat healthy. We are glad our students get to experience this,” said Morton East Principal, Jose Gamboa.

“This was a great opportunity to get our students excited about new seafood menu items,” said Elvira Michalek , Food Service Consultant for Morton West and East. “Chef Marco’s demonstrations were a big draw, and certainly provided an educational aspect of how seafood can be prepared, and its many health benefits.”

“We’re happy to be invited into the Morton schools to provide students with an educational and palate pleasing event, showcasing the benefits of seafood and unique ways it can be added to the menu,” said Jim LaBelle, Vice President of Foodservice Marketing for High Liner Foods. “The emergence of culinary contest television, and students’ appreciation for sophisticated cuisine, paired with October being National Seafood Month, makes the timing ideal for this partnership.”

J. Sterling Morton High School District 201 provides quality educational experiences that challenge and enable more than 8,000 students from the communities of Berwyn, Cicero, Forest View, Lyons, McCook, and Stickney as lifelong learners to be productive and responsible members of the global community. The district’s Board of Education is comprised of Board President Jeff Pesek, Vice President Kasumba “Kal” Lwanga, Secretary Jessica Jaramillo-Flores, and members Mark Kraft, Margaret Kelly, Michael Iniquez, and Vincent LaPaglia. Visit District 201 online at www.Morton201.org