School food has become increasingly more processed and less healthy. With the right knowledge and tools, schools can transform their kitchens and lunchrooms to support student health, wellbeing, and academic success.

Visit Overview
About Chef Ann Foundation
SCALE
FAQ
Supporting Research
Our Advisory Board

Recipes and menus are the heart of school food change. These recipes have been developed by school food professionals, kid-tested, and perfected in school kitchens. 
 

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What is Scratch Cooking?
Recipes
Fresh Animal Proteins
Menu Development
Menu Cycles
Menu Templates

Management is a general term for: fiscal management, human resources, facilities, assessment, and wellness policies. In order for a district’s food service department to be successful, the director has to be adept in a vast array of subjects.

Visit Overview
Roadmap for the School Year
Fiscal Management
Emergency Resources
Human Resources
Staff Appreciation
Professional Development
Training Videos
School Food Institute
Healthy School Food Pathway
Central Kitchens
Facilities
HACCP
Assessment & Next Steps
Wellness Policy & Smart Snacks
Local Wellness Policy
Smart Snacks in Schools
Tools & Resources
SOPs

Procurement is one of the most complex processes within food service departments. In the event of shifting a program from using processed, ready-to-heat foods to scratch cooked recipes, many processes change.

Visit Overview
Getting Started
The K-12 Food System
Values-Aligned Procurement
Examples of Values-Aligned Procurement
Tools & Resources

Marketing in food service ranges from finding local sponsors, to creating a brand and promotional materials, to engaging students in cooking and menu design.

Visit Overview
Branding Your Program
District Communications
Social Media Toolkit
Partnerships
Posters & Signs

Lunchroom education activities engage students with food-focused learning opportunities. Explore the wide world of fun food programs!

Visit Overview
Tastings
Rainbow Days
Art Contests
Chef Demonstrations
Junior Chef Competitions
Farm to School
Volunteers & Interns

This section is dedicated to the “Big Ideas” - areas we think make a huge impact and will play a large role in the future of school food.

Visit Overview
Salad Bars
Assessment & Planning
Procurement
Operations
Training
Marketing Your Salad Bar
Recipes
Tools & Resources
School Breakfast
Getting Started
Operations
Menu Development
Marketing
Tools & Resources
Sustainable Lunchrooms
Plant Forward
Plant Forward Recipes
Case Study
Waste Reduction
Tools & Resources

Through our grant programs, we award special funding to schools that are committed to making real, positive changes to their food programs.

Visit Overview
Grant Writing & Management
Get Schools Cooking
Bulk Milk
Salad Bars to Schools
Chef Ann Foundation
School Food Institute
Salad Bars To Schools
SCALE
Apply for a grant
Blog
Chef Ann Foundation
School Food Institute
Salad Bars To Schools
SCALE
Apply for a grant
Blog

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Why Scratch Cooking?

School food has become increasingly more processed and less healthy. With the right knowledge and tools, schools can transform their kitchens and lunchrooms to support student health, wellbeing, and academic success.

Visit Overview
About Chef Ann Foundation
SCALE
FAQ
Supporting Research
Our Advisory Board

Recipes & Menus

Recipes and menus are the heart of school food change. These recipes have been developed by school food professionals, kid-tested, and perfected in school kitchens. 
 

Visit Overview
What is Scratch Cooking?
Recipes
Fresh Animal Proteins
Menu Development
Menu Cycles
Menu Templates

Management

Management is a general term for: fiscal management, human resources, facilities, assessment, and wellness policies. In order for a district’s food service department to be successful, the director has to be adept in a vast array of subjects.

Visit Overview
Roadmap for the School Year
Fiscal Management
Emergency Resources
Human Resources
Staff Appreciation
Professional Development
Training Videos
School Food Institute
Healthy School Food Pathway
Central Kitchens
Facilities
HACCP
Assessment & Next Steps
Wellness Policy & Smart Snacks
Local Wellness Policy
Smart Snacks in Schools
Tools & Resources
SOPs

Procurement

Procurement is one of the most complex processes within food service departments. In the event of shifting a program from using processed, ready-to-heat foods to scratch cooked recipes, many processes change.

Visit Overview
Getting Started
The K-12 Food System
Values-Aligned Procurement
Examples of Values-Aligned Procurement
Tools & Resources

Marketing

Marketing in food service ranges from finding local sponsors, to creating a brand and promotional materials, to engaging students in cooking and menu design.

Visit Overview
Branding Your Program
District Communications
Social Media Toolkit
Partnerships
Posters & Signs

Lunchroom Education

Lunchroom education activities engage students with food-focused learning opportunities. Explore the wide world of fun food programs!

Visit Overview
Tastings
Rainbow Days
Art Contests
Chef Demonstrations
Junior Chef Competitions
Farm to School
Volunteers & Interns

Fresh Food Initiatives

This section is dedicated to the “Big Ideas” - areas we think make a huge impact and will play a large role in the future of school food.

Visit Overview
Salad Bars
Assessment & Planning
Procurement
Operations
Training
Marketing Your Salad Bar
Recipes
Tools & Resources
School Breakfast
Getting Started
Operations
Menu Development
Marketing
Tools & Resources
Sustainable Lunchrooms
Plant Forward
Plant Forward Recipes
Case Study
Waste Reduction
Tools & Resources

Apply For A Grant

Through our grant programs, we award special funding to schools that are committed to making real, positive changes to their food programs.

Visit Overview
Grant Writing & Management
Get Schools Cooking
Bulk Milk
Salad Bars to Schools

Welcome to The Lunch Box!

The nation’s trusted resource for scratch cooking in schools, featuring recipes, tools, and operational knowledge.

Learn more

Finalize Your Menu for Next Year

Check out our menu development resources, like our sample cycle menu plans, food cost projection worksheet, and more! 

Explore resources

A Quest for Better Quesadillas

How building trust between farmers, schools, and communities can create a mutually beneficial local food system.
 

Learn more

Apply for California Pre-Apprenticeship

Explore a career in healthy school food through our Fall 2025 Healthy School Food Pathway Pre-Apprenticeship. 

Discover

The Lunch Box

Welcome to the largest online resource for scratch cooking in schools! A program of the Chef Ann Foundation, this site features step-by-step guides, tools, and other resources to help schools improve their meal programs and convert to scratch-cooking.

By cooking from scratch (with whole, fresh ingredients), school food programs can provide delicious, nutritious meals for students. Research has shown scratch-cooking to have incredible benefits, like increased meal participation, improved student attendance, and decreased risk of diseases like diabetes.

Read More

SCALE platform for self assessment

We’ve built the first free-access digital platform that offers the first comprehensive self-assessment focused on enhancing school meal programs and increasing scratch cooking.

Read More
You have a wealth of valuable information for school districts to use. Thanks for all you do in providing schools with the tools they need to provide nutritious meals to our students.
Terri, Food Service Director at South Hamilton School District
Great tips and recommendations here to help implement change in our public schools. I am a substitute school nurse in Northern NJ with three kids in public schools and have been searching and searching for ways to help implement change for increasing plant-based foods in school lunches. This is a little slice of gold I have found in your site. I thank you very much!
TLB User
Your website is impressive and I love the huge emphasis on nutrition education. I think this is a key component of our salad bar success!
Melanie, Assistant Supervisor at Evergreen School District

New Content Areas

With this latest redesign of The Lunch Box, we’ve added a ton of new content for school food operators. Check out our newest additions below!

Why Scratch Cooking
Benefits of Scratch Cooking
School Breakfast Resources
Central Kitchen case study
New recipes
Values-Aligned Procurement

New Content Areas

With this latest redesign of The Lunch Box, we’ve added a ton of new content for school food operators. Check out our newest additions below!

Why Scratch Cooking
Benefits of Scratch Cooking
School Breakfast Resources
Central Kitchen case study
New recipes
Values-Aligned Procurement
video-play-button

Featured New Recipe

Apple Cinnamon Sheet Pan Pancakes

This recipe was developed by CAF’s Director of School Food Operations, Brandy Dreibelbis. We love it because it is a fast and easy kid-favorite!

Meet Brandy
Recipe

Featured New Recipe

Apple Cinnamon Sheet Pan Pancakes

This recipe was developed by CAF’s Director of School Food Operations, Brandy Dreibelbis. We love it because it is a fast and easy kid-favorite!

Meet Brandy
Recipe

Program Impact

The Lunch Box provides many digital resources and tools for school food professionals. Online registration also helps us track impact and support funding initiatives.
27,539

site users registered
157,706

downloaded resources
6,794

school districts registered

Program Impact

The Lunch Box provides many digital resources and tools for school food professionals. Online registration also helps us track impact and support funding initiatives.
27,539

site users registered
157,706

downloaded resources
6,794

school districts registered

Discover More

SCALE Assessment

We’ve built the first free-access digital platform that offers the first comprehensive self-assessment focused on enhancing school meal programs and increasing scratch cooking.

Learn More

Management Tools & Resources

Looking for meal cost worksheets, menu cycle plans, or food cost projection worksheets? Check out our collection of easy downloads to help plan your program.

Learn More

Supporting Research

Check out these significant research and case studies that outline the benefits of healthy school food programs, which can be helpful when discussing school food changes with school district administration and community stakeholders.

Learn More

Help The Lunch Box!

Please help us keep our tools & resources free for all users by registering here!

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