During the Revolutionary War, the United States' military created its first ration for soldiers in the field. The meal consisted of primarily beef, peas and rice, and it was portioned to feed a man for one day. As the armed forces evolved over the centuries, soldiers' food was improved alongside their weapons; the military traded muskets for machine guns and peas for MREs. Although the modern military ration was designed without taste in mind, food science teacher Tiffany Zook issued a challenge to Penn Manor High School students to turn an MRE into a tasty feast.

The MRE, which stands for Meal, Ready-to-Eat, was developed by the Department of Defense in the '60s using modern culinary resources. The government's goal was to manufacture a lightweight replacement for the canned ration that was used at the time. The end product was a nutritionally augmented pack that could withstand parachute drops and harsh conditions.

In October, Zook invited Sgt. Dustin Jeardoe and 2023 Penn Manor graduate Pvt. Kaylee Godshall of the United States Marine Corps to give her class a presentation on the MRE and its history. The students received multiple boxes of MREs to taste test as they brainstormed ways to make the meal more appetizing. Zook divided her class into five teams, and she gave each team five MREs and $10 for additional ingredients. The groups devised different plans and traded components from the packages to prepare for the contest, during which they would only have one hour to produce an appetizer, a main course, a dessert and a drink.

"This is a challenge I had seen before, and I was so excited to incorporate it," Zook said. "Kids are competitive in nature, and we kind of played it like we were on a cooking show." Once the teams' hour was up, the contestants were instructed to drop their oven mitts. Each team presented its final product to Jeardoe and social studies teacher Matthew Rayha, who acted as judges for the contest.

The winning team comprised Alexa Maillis, Hunter Nichols, Audrey Boyce and Charlie Wood. Using bacon and jalapeno cheese spreads from an MRE, the students cooked grilled cheese bites for the appetizer, and the main dish incorporated ravioli and meatballs from a separate MRE. An Oreo and M&M milkshake was served for dessert, which the team made with MRE protein powder. Despite the team members' best efforts, Jeardoe and Rayha were unable to be parted with their milkshakes after the sampling concluded.

"Each team was so proud of their creation. It didn't matter if they didn't win because they saw something go from start to finish and they followed through," Zook said. "My hope was that they learn to let success in one area of life pour into others, knowing they can take on whatever challenge they're presented with." The winning team was rewarded with accessories from the United States Marine Corps.

Zook said she plans to make the MRE challenge a recurring activity in her classroom, and she noted that Jeardoe is interested in collaborating with other schools across the county to offer the contest. "It's been a real highlight of the semester," added Zook. "I'd love to see this offered in every high school because of the success we saw with it."