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Students at 14 Chicago-area high schools are participating in a project aiming to improve the nutritional content of the foods sold in their cafeterias, the Chicago Tribune reports. Created by the Healthy Schools Campaign, the Cooking Up Change project consists of a healthy cooking contest in which teams of students are challenged to create nutritious school lunches with limited ingredients and prep work. In addition, the students must work within a budget of just $1 per meal and must adhere to the nutrition criteria established by Balanced Choices, the guidelines used in all Chicago Public School cafeterias. For example, meals must not exceed limits on calories and fat content and must satisfy minimum standards for fiber and other nutrients. A panel of local chefs, cooking instructors, school administrators and one student judge the food items, and a winner is declared. Last year’s winners, a team of students from Richards Career Academy, were invited to Washington, D.C., to testify at hearings on school nutrition. The team also had their winning meal of stuffed green peppers, carrot quesadillas, and refrescante salad served to more than 40,000 public school students nationwide. Although the project provides fun opportunities for students, project organizers say that the cooking challenge sheds light on the challenges schools face in providing healthy meals (McNamara, Chicago Tribune, 11/4/09).