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Local Voices

Wholesome Tummies offers healthy catering menu

LAKE IN THE HILLS - When Wholesome Tummies opened a year ago in Lake in the Hills, franchise owner Jennifer Bychowsky aimed at serving local children healthy school lunches.

 

The goal was to provide nutritious options while still maintaining a child-friendly menu, so that chicken tenders, macaroni and cheese and other kid favorites would be available, but in healthier formats.

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Now that several contracts are under way and plenty of parents are choosing to provide smarter food choices for their kids, Bychowsky is looking to provide those same smart choices to the rest of the community in the form of a catering menu.

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The franchise’s “healthy school option” format will be followed in Wholesome Tummies’ catering package, meaning customers will be able to choose from a variety of popular appetizers, sandwiches, salads, soups, sides, entrees and desserts, but with the knowledge that all food is cooked from scratch daily using fresh, all-natural and organic ingredients.

 

In essence, loaded baked potato skins can still be on the menu, Bychowsky says, but it will be a healthier version.

 

“Simple substitutes - like using wheat flour instead of white flour, yogurt instead of sour cream, whole grain breads, pasta and rice instead of their white counterparts - can make catering favorites healthier, but they still taste great,” Bychowsky says.

 

Wholesome Tummies food items never include high fructose corn syrup or artificial trans-fats, artificial flavors or colors, artificial nitrates or artificial MSG, she adds.

 

Plus, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, vegetarian and Kosher-style catering options also are available, Bychowsky says.

 

“When you’re serving a large group, you want to impress your guests,” she says. “But that doesn’t mean you have to forget about nutrition. Our goal is to prepare fresh, nutritious an exciting foods for you - you CAN get the best of both worlds.”

 

Bychowsky and her team - comprised of chef Cathy Saso and several delivery people - work with customers to customize their menu, finding just the right food combinations for staff meetings, home parties or sporting events.

 

An added bonus to receiving a healthy menu from Wholesome Tummies is a customer’s ability to order just 36 hours in advance for parties of 50 or fewer. Paper plates, napkins and flatware are included, while extra trays and sternos are available for an additional charge. There is no charge for store pick-up; delivery costs $9.95. A 12-person minimum order is required.

 

From homemade soups to made-from-scratch dessert options like whoopie pies, fruit cobbler and personalized cookies, Bychowsky says Wholesome Tummies is a great catering option for all occasions.

 

“We opened this franchise to help educate kids about smart food choices so they could grow up to make healthy decisions,” she says. “Why wouldn’t we want to offer those same healthy opportunities to adults?”

 

To learn more or to order from Wholesome Tummies, located at 9471 Ackman Road in Lake in the Hills, call 224-858-4421, email greaterchi@wholesometummies.com or visit wholesometummies.com.

 

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