Different Kind Of Cafeteria
Maddie Hayford has never actually been in the kitchen at her sorority Alpha Xi Delta. Like most students at Indiana University, she eats and runs. But even with her busy schedule, she has developed a relationship with Executive Chef Jackie Howard over her made-to-order eggs.
Howard knows Hayford's egg order by heart -- scrambled eggs with spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, green peppers and onions. It's that personal connection that drew her to this type of food service. "We're in their home, and it's so important that we create that environment for them, that they're able to have that interaction with us," she says.
Local Agenda
Hayford is studying to be health fitness specialist, so she's especially interested in healthy food options -- local if possible. She encouraged Howard to source the cafeteria's eggs locally, and Howard was more than happy to oblige.
The eggs aren't the only local ingredients in Howard's kitchen today:
- Strawberries from Heartland Family Farm
- Bread from Scholar's Inn Bakehouse
- Goat cheese from Capriole Farm
- Honey from Hunter's Honey Farm
(Keep reading to see what she makes with these ingredients!)
All that local food is expensive, which is why Howard prides herself on re-purposing as much as she can. For instance, bread that is too stale for sandwiches gets reused in her bread pudding. She also keeps all the vegetable scraps to make stock.
Kale Revolution
When Howard started cooking at Alpha Xi Delta five years ago, she says the students' idea of a good meal was chicken breast and cottage cheese, "Because that's what my mom said is healthy. But now girls line up for kale salad, and they're so pumped about it and freaking out on Facebook, ‘Oh my god, it's kale salad night!'"
She serves the same one hundred women every day, so she's constantly challenged to develop new dishes to keep it interesting. She also takes requests, which means sometimes serving pre-packaged sidewinder fries.
But if chicken tenders are on the menu, she and her staff will be making those from scratch.
"There is no shortage of chicken tenders in the world," says Howard. "Here, it's good quality food, and they deserve that."
Sweet Treats
Hayford says Howard is Alpha Xi Delta's wild card during recruitment -- that time of year when underclassmen visit sororities to decide which to join.
This isn't the time for good-for-you food. This year, Howard went for flashy with a series of desserts:
- Vanilla Bean Marshmallows
- Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake
- Rose Meringue Cookies
- Pink and White Pinwheel Sugar Cookies
- French Vanilla Soda
Hayford says Howard's food gives Alpha Xi Delta an edge. "(The recruits) get to taste the lovely food that Jackie cooks for us every day, and I think that probably ropes them in a little bit."
We were roped in by this decadent bread pudding recipe. Take a page from Chef Jackie Howard and source as many of these ingredients locally as you can. Enjoy!
