Dietetic Internship Update: “March Into Spring” Market Table Event

Are you an #RD2be? Dietitian looking to relive your intern days? Curious to see what I’ve been up to everyday? Read on and find out what I’ve been doing in my food service rotation of my dietetic internship…

Time is a flyyyyinnn when you’re having fun! Sorta, kinda, some days. I skipped this weeks WIAW and instead put together this update on what’s been happenin’ in my neck of the food service world, in the first rotation of the on-site portion of my dietetic internship.

Well, things just got EXCITING around here…yesterday was my big promotional event I was planning for the past few weeks. I executed a “market table” to celebrate spring and National Nutrition Month outside of the cafeteria.

So what exactly is a market table? Well, outside of the hospital cafeteria, I set up what was supposed to emulate a farmer’s market stand (hence all of the produce). We gave out some samples of the food items we prepared and others were for purchase.

I planned the menu with the executive chef at the hospital (thanks David!), ordered the ingredients, prepared the food (I spent hourssss spiralizing carrots, wrapping up muffins and slicing lemons!), determined costs for each menu item so I can determine my profits (hopefully…still working on that one today!) or losses (womp womp), thought about decorations for the table, coordinated with what feels like a trillion supervisors, and it all finally came to fruition in a whirlwind few hours!

Yup, all my wannabe dietitians out there…this is what you do in your food service rotation!

My “March Into Spring” event featured in-season SPRING produce…

• Asparagus
• Carrots (spiralized, no less!)
• Artichokes
• Lemons and other citrus
• Rhubarb
• Strawberries

While most of these fresh goodies probably haven’t hit your local farmer’s market, we got everyone over here excited for what is soon to come…especially if this 70 degree weather holds out!

So what was on my menu?!

Iced Green Tea with Ginger, Lemon & Mint
(inspired by this recipe)

Spring Salad with Spiralized Carrots, Roasted Asparagus & Marinated Artichokes, topped with Sunflower Seeds, Parmesan Cheese & Grilled Chicken, dressed in a Citrus Vinaigrette

Strawberry Rhubarb Chia Pudding
(it’s vegan and gluten free…I’ll share the recipe soon!)

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
(inspired by this recipe)

Nearly everything was sold (or given) out, but can you guess what went the quickest?? It was definitely the Strawberry Rhubarb Chia Pudding! Made with unsweetened coconut milk, chia seeds, strawberries, rhubarb, vanilla and a drop of honey, this sweet treat also has protein, fiber and tons of vitamins and minerals. Aside from the awesome nutrition facts and health benefits of this recipe, I think it sold out because it was SO darn puuurty!

So in addition to all of this food I prepped and plated, I worked with the chef on décor. We mostly used fresh produce that was featured in the recipes, plus wheatgrass and beautiful sunflowers! Then we borrowed huge white platters and wooden boxes from the catering department. Check out those artichokes and WHITE asparagus below…

At least 5 people asked if the artichokes were FAKE (!!) and then we got a few offers to BUY the artichokes! I have to give Chef David most of the credit for arranging everything with a clear vision in mind, but how GREAT does it look?? 

I also made recipe cards with a nutrient analysis for each recipe. Here’s an example of the front and back…

Here’s the actual deconstructed salad as it was presented on the table…

Those asparagus though…

Overall, I think (and heard) the event was a roaring success! I poured a lot of time, energy and hours into the preparation, but I had a lot of fun planning everything — even if it was a taaaad stressful at times!

Now, I only have one more event to execute in my food service rotation and it has to do with COOKIES! Then, I’m on to use all of this advice for my clinical rotations and I can say sayonara to my hair net!

RDs & interns out there — Did you have to do similar things for your food service rotation?! 

Enjoy your weekend! 🙂
XO