Food Goes to School : Cooking to Learn

Cutbacks have hit the 97th Street Elementary School in South-Central Los Angeles hard. There’s no money to install an adequate public address system, and the present one is so creaky students can’t hear each other recite at weekly assemblies. All field trips have been canceled. Even pencils and other small rewards for good attendance have become luxuries.

“The Stuffed Tiger,” a cookbook compiled by the parents, teachers and staff at the school has stepped in to help.

Since 1987, the students at 97th Street have made remarkable academic advances. In that year it became one of 10 South-Central schools with low academic standing selected to participate in a five-year campaign to raise performance levels in basic skills. At the end of that campaign, 97th Streeters had taken giant steps in reading and math.

The program has been such a success that for three years in a row, the school won a commendation from the state Department of Education for outstanding academic growth. According to principal Charles Barrett, 97th Street is the only school in the Los Angeles Unified District to exhibit progress so consistently. And there’s more to come.

“The first five years were so successful we’ve decided to go another five years,” Barrett adds. And because the district has no extra funds to spur on these hard-working students, the parents and teachers got together to raise money with a cookbook.

Buyers will be handsomely rewarded with wonderful recipes that reflect the diversity of Los Angeles. Salsas, tacos and chilaquiles share pages with barbecued spareribs, Creole gumbo and sweet potato pie. Won tons and gyoza appear along with tabbouleh and baklava. A kolach recipe goes back generations to Czechoslovakia. And you can learn about three styles of tamales--Guatemalan, Salvadoran and Mexican.

Principal Barrett contributed his wife’s recipe for pinto beans with ham hocks and chorizo; secretary Adriana Calderon revealed how she makes chicken enchiladas with green sauce. And kindergarten teacher Florence Kubota, who served as cookbook editor, has peppered the book with personal favorites including a fine, tender Jewish apple cake.

The children’s favorites include the giant gingerbread man that has become a school tradition. At the beginning of the year, the cookie is baked in the kindergarten class--and promptly disappears. This sets off a two-day search that takes the new students through the school offices and introduces them to the staff. It’s a wonderful way to ease them into a new environment.

That’s just one of the creative ways that food has become part of the curriculum here. Kindergarten students cook regularly, learning numbers and reading from recipes written on the blackboard. One afternoon, teacher Beth Anderson guided her class through churros. Along with sticky fingers, the lesson gave them practice in using the ch sound. (That recipe is also in the book.)

Even the cookbook became a tool for teaching. When it came time to give the cookbook a cover, the school held an art contest for students. The winner is a drawing of a tiger (the school mascot) clad in apron and chef’s hat, mixing ingredients. Other drawings, used as chapter dividers, show the tiger in the act of cooking, eating or commenting on the food. And because this is a bilingual school, his words are sometimes in English, sometimes in Spanish.

To order “The Stuffed Tiger,” send $9 to 97th Street Elementary School, 419 W. 98th St., Los Angeles 90003. The price includes tax, postage and handling.

GREEN ENCHILADAS 1 (3- to 4-pound) chicken 1/2 cup chopped onion 2 cloves garlic, crushed Oil 3 dozen corn tortillas Green Salsa 1 pound ranchero cheese or queso fresco, shredded 1 onion, chopped Sour cream

Boil chicken in water to cover with onion and garlic until chicken is tender, about 45 minutes. Cool, then shred chicken, discarding skin and bones.

Heat 1/2 cup oil in medium skillet. Add tortillas 1 at time and fry just until softened, not crisp. Add more oil as needed. Drain on paper towels. Place some of chicken on half of each tortilla. Fold other half over chicken and place enchiladas in baking dish. Top with Green Salsa.

Bake at 350 degrees just until heated. To serve, top with cheese, chopped onion and sour cream. Makes 3 dozen enchiladas, or 18 servings.

Each serving contains about: 354 calories; 481 mg sodium; 48 mg cholesterol; 19 grams fat; 28 grams carbohydrates; 16 grams protein; 0.39 grams fiber.

Green Salsa 1 pound tomatillos 7 serrano chiles 1/2 onion, sliced 1/2 cup chopped cilantro Salt

Place tomatillos and serrano chiles in saucepan. Add about 1 cup water and bring to boil. Boil, covered, until tomatillos and chiles are tender. Drain.

Place in blender with onion and cilantro and blend until pureed. Season to taste with salt.

PINTO BEANS AND CHORIZO 1 pound pinto beans 1/2 pound ham hocks 1 large onion, chopped Salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1/2 pound beef or pork chorizo

Wash beans. Combine beans and ham hocks in cold water to cover generously. Bring to boil over medium-high heat. Add onion, salt to taste and pepper. Stir, cover and cook over low heat 4 to 5 hours. Add water as needed.

Remove skin from chorizo. In skillet, cook chorizo on low heat until done, stirring to crumble. Drain off fat. Add chorizo to beans and stir. Simmer 20 minutes. Makes 8 servings.

Each serving contains about: 326 calories; 315 mg sodium; 32 mg cholesterol; 10 grams fat; 38 grams carbohydrates; 21 grams protein; 3.49 grams fiber.

KOLACHES (Kolac) 1 envelope dry yeast 2 tablespoons warm water 1/2 cup sugar 3 cups flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup butter, cut up 2 eggs 1 cup warm whipping cream Grated zest 1 lemon 2 teaspoons lemon juice Apricot or Prune Filling Poppy Seed Filling Ishka

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar.

Combine flour and salt in large mixing bowl. Cut in butter until mixture forms pea-size crumbs.

Beat eggs, add cream, lemon zest and juice. Add egg mixture to flour mixture. Add yeast mixture and beat well. Cover and let rise until doubled. Stir down and let rise again. (If desired, refrigerate dough overnight and use next day.)

Turn dough out on generously floured board and roll out 1/4 inch thick. With glass or 3- to 3 1/2-inch cookie cutter, cut out circles of dough. Place on greased baking sheets. Make indentation in center of each by pressing down with finger. Place heaping tablespoon of Apricot, Prune or Poppy Seed Filling in indentation. Sprinkle Ishka on top. Let rise until doubled in bulk. Bake at 350 degrees until browned, about 15 minutes. Cool on rack. Makes about 40.

Each apricot kolach contains about: 172 calories; 106 mg sodium; 37 mg cholesterol; 10 grams fat; 21 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams protein; 0.24 grams fiber.

Each poppy seed kolach contains about: 198 calories; 116 mg sodium; 40 mg cholesterol; 13 grams fat; 19 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 0.39 grams fiber.

Apricot or Prune Filling 1 pound dried apricots or prunes 1 quart water, about 1/2 cup sugar 1 slice lemon, if using prunes

Place fruit in saucepan. Add water to barely cover. Add sugar and boil until fruit is well done. (Add lemon slice if using prunes.) Cool. Mash fruit to jam-like consistency. Makes 4 cups, or enough for 64 kolaches.

Poppy Seed Filling 1/4 pound poppy seeds, ground 1 cup milk 1/4 cup sugar (or honey or to taste) 1 tablespoon butter

Combine poppy seeds, milk, sugar and butter in saucepan. Bring to boil, lower heat and simmer 15 minutes or until thick enough to spoon. Makes about 1 1/4 cups, or enough for 20 kolaches.

Ishka 3/4 cup flour 3/4 cup sugar Cinnamon 1/2 cup butter

Combine flour and sugar in bowl. Add cinnamon to taste. Cut in butter until mixture forms small crumbs.

OTHA’S ICE TEA 12 lemon balm leaves 12 mint leaves Juice 2 lemons 1 tablespoon sugar 1 whole clove 1/4 cup tea leaves 5 to 6 cups boiling water Honey

Crush lemon balm and mint leaves with lemon juice, sugar and clove. Add tea leaves and boiling water. Stir thoroughly, cover and refrigerate.

Strain tea and serve in tall ice-filled glasses. Accompany with honey added to taste. Makes 6 servings.

JEWISH APPLE CAKE 5 or 6 large pippin or Rome beauty apples, peeled and thinly sliced 5 tablespoons sugar 2 teaspoons cinnamon 3 cups flour 2 1/4 cups sugar 3 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup oil 4 eggs 1/3 cup orange juice 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Combine apples, 5 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon and set aside.

Combine flour, 2 1/4 cups sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Add oil, eggs, orange juice and vanilla and beat well to combine.

Grease 10-inch tube pan and line on bottom with wax paper. Alternate layers of batter and apples in pan, starting with batter and ending with apples. Bake at 350 degrees 1 hour 30 minutes or until wood pick inserted in cake comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack 10 minutes, then turn out to cool completely. Makes 10 servings.

Each serving contains about: 587 calories; 271 mg sodium; 85 mg cholesterol; 25 grams fat; 88 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 0.45 grams fiber.