On June 20, two Pennsylvania College of Technology students will help to educate the region about healthy eating options as part of the Million Pound Meltdown, an initiative to encourage every overweight person to seize control of his or her health.
Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania, WBRE-TV and WYOU-TV launched the 11-month campaign, the first of its kind in the nation, that challenges overweight individuals to lose a combined 1 million pounds.
As part of the program's kickoff tour, Penn College School of Hospitality students and "You're the Chef" production coordinators Christine L. Faherty, Wantage, N.J.; and Jennifer R. McHenry, Lock Haven, will demonstrate how to cook "Light-and-Fit Chicken Franchese With King Crab Sauce."
All Penn College students, faculty and staff are encouraged to attend the demonstration at 10 a.m. in Room B132 of the Hager Lifelong Education Center.
Both students are working toward dual degrees in culinary arts technology and dietary manager technology. They will convert a "You're the Chef" recipe for Breast of Chicken Franchese with King Crab Sauce, which calls for such ingredients as eggs and heavy cream, to a more healthy alternative by showing the audience how to replace some of the ingredients and cooking procedures.
In addition to their studies in nutrition and cooking, Faherty and McHenry also gained experience on the set of "You're the Chef," Penn College's public-television cooking show. The show is on hiatus, but co-host Chef Paul Mach, associate professor of food and hospitality management/culinary arts, along with the two students, will continue other ventures this summer to educate the public.
For more information about the academic programs offered by the School of Hospitality at Penn College, call (570) 327-4505, send e-mail or visit on the Web .
The Million Pound Meltdown kicked off June 8 with a "walking and talking" tour of Northeastern and Northcentral Pennsylvania, with stops in 13 counties. Leading the tour are nationally known motivational speaker Gary Marino and Dr. Carmella Sebastian, chief medical officer of Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania.