When we heard that Chef Rocco DiSpirito has a Now Eat This food truck making its way around the West Village earlier this week, we knew that we had to try it for ourselves. When I arrived, I was surprised to see Chef Rocco himself taking orders and dishing out healthy meals.
Despite the lunch crowd, Chef Rocco answered my questions between orders with good cheer. “I want to change how people eat, by showing them how good healthy food can taste,” said Rocco. The truck serves up a selection of dishes featured in Rocco’s Now Eat This! cookbook, all of which are less than 350 calories.
I was told to come hungry, and I wasn’t disappointed. I devoured the Mama’s meatballs over kamut pasta. For dessert, Rocco offered up a gluten-free chocolate brownie cupcake, which is made with black beans. The kamut pasta didn’t have the too-chewy texture that most whole wheat pastas are guilty of, while the cupcake was amazingly moist and fluffy for a gluten-free product. The whole meal contained just 454 calories. The day’s menu also included chicken soup with Shirataki noodles and cheesy turkey or vegetarian enchiladas.
The Now Eat This truck is doing more than serving delicious lunches to Manhattanites, it’s also feeding them to underprivileged kids in the city. The truck is headed to a school each week, and all of the truck’s proceeds will go to serving lunch and educating kids about healthy food. That’s a lunch you can really feel good about.
Most of the customers I spoke with found out about the truck simply by walking by, but like any good food truck, they tweet their location (@noweatthistruck). For our readers outside New York City, all these recipes and more can be found in the cookbook, and the truck may be bound for other designations in the future. Rocco said they haven’t made plans yet, but that he feels the truck is a means to promote his message. “I would love there to be trucks like this all over the country.”
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In “Now Eat This,” Chef Rocco Dispirito Makes Over America’s Favorite Comfort Foods