This year in a collaboration with radio producer, Beverly Mire, students in Visualizing Science went to local food makers to explore the science of food. It was incredible how many viewpoints on food production and consumption we could get within a mile from CRLS. The class began with assessing their own connections to food. Among us were vegans, omnivores and a pescatarian. Some of us thought about food as a fuel for sports or studying, others thought about food production and its connection to environmental impacts as well as animal cruelty.
Food is often thought of as fuel for getting through a day of school or sports. With the recent number of NBA players and NFL stars going vegan we wanted to better understand the nuances of a vegan diet versus an omnivore diet. Ms. Augustine, Anatomy and Physiology Teacher at CRLS explained the role different foods have in helping us maintain a healthy system and what needs to be attended to when students eliminate meat and/or dairy from their diet.
Diet for High Performance Athletes
Our first stop was a local restaurant chain, Clover, where we were allowed to participate in their product development sessions, a process that RSTA culinary teacher, Chef Rick, helped us decode. Through prior knowledge of food properties,research into food preparations in other cultures the chefs create potential menu items and then test them on potential customers to see what works.
Product Development
Cambridge was a center point on the confectionary production map during the 19th and 20th centuries. A visit to the museum and kitchen of Spindler Chocolates showed us how much chemistry and an understanding of crystals goes into the production of high quality chocolates.
Chemistry and Chocolate
Angela Hofmann, from Nussli, a vegan foods producer in North Cambridge, came in to share some of the environmental impacts of food production. While she herself does not maintain a strict vegan diet she thinks it is important to make choices based on the resources used in growing food to weigh out how much meat or dairy you want to include in your diet. She also underscored the way in which whole grains offer more nutrition versus processed grains and in smaller quantities allowing people to get more out of their meals.
Sustainable Foods
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