Whitney Andrus’ Whole Heart Health empowers families to turn food pantry staples into nutritious and delicious meals
Whitney Andrus is changing the conversation around food insecurity one manna bag at a time. While her mission began with the goal of defeating disordered eating, it has evolved into a hands-on movement that provides nutrition education and food access to individuals in need across the Greater Baton Rouge community.
Manna bags and the recipes they contain are the heart of Andrus’ nonprofit, Whole Heart Health. Designed to be easily portable and prepared without adult supervision, each plastic gallon bag is filled with nonperishable, protein and fiber-rich ingredients for hearty meals such as chicken pot pie and shepherd’s pie. But the bag is much more than a meal. It’s a toolkit.
The longtime personal trainer and nutrition coach has worked with adults throughout their medical weight-loss journeys through her business, Half Belly Health, for several years. And the more she has worked with adults, the more passionate she has become about changing the culture around food and helping kids build healthy relationships with their bodies, nutrition and food.
“I thought, how can I work myself out of a job?” she says, discussing the early days of what has become the nonprofit. She set out to local classrooms, carrying her food pyramid poster and a box of sensory items for demonstrations. “I started going into schools and PE classes, really any class that would have me and any age group, from three-year-olds to seniors in high school,” she says. As she discussed nutrition density and plate building, shared easy-to-make recipes like banana and peanut butter sushi, and answered the kinds of questions only kids can dream up, more and more students shared the same sentiment. “I had a lot of kids tell me, ‘That’s great, but I don’t have access to those things. I get to eat what my mom makes me, and we don’t have money, or we rely on benefits.’” So she began building and bringing manna bags with her on her visits.
Inside each, she includes a recipe card with cooking instructions and nutritional tips on reducing sodium in canned goods and substituting fresh vegetables and meat when available. Her focus on plate building and nutrition density is teaching children and their families, especially those in foster care or those who rely on food pantries or benefits, that a balanced and delicious meal is possible, no matter where you shop.
“The most important thing at the dinner table is not necessarily the food, it’s the conversation,” she says. “I don’t want the conversation to be, ‘This is terrible.’ I don’t want people eating without dignity. I want them to feel very proud of that meal that they put on the table.”
Each manna bag recipe starts at her family’s dinner table. “If my family won’t eat it, I don’t expect yours to,” she says.
Today, Whole Heart Health stocks several food pantries across the Greater Baton Rouge area, including two Little Free Library-style pantries Andrus and her husband built. She has enlisted the help of art classes at schools that host her to decorate them, and is working to secure resources and community commitments for several more locations in Baton Rouge and surrounding parishes.
To learn more about Whole Heart Health, including how to get involved or book a classroom workshop, at wholeheart.health
Creole White Bean Soup
As Andrus began sharing recipes on TikTok, she discovered Baton Rouge native Peter Trostclair (@beauticianandthefeast), who shared this Creole White Bean Soup recipe. “When he posted it, I knew we could adapt it,” Andrus says. “I gave him credit, and he has been such a fun person to follow and a huge support.”
2 cans white beans
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 can SPAM or similar
1 chicken bouillon cube
2 cans water
Cajun seasonings, to taste
Dice Spam or other meat and sauté in hot pan until a little golden.
Put all ingredients in pot and heat until all ingredients and flavors come together. Season as needed.
Enjoy!
Things of note:
To reduce the sodium level, rinse the beans. The SPAM contains a lot of salt, so don’t add anymore until you taste it. Canned goods are naturally higher in sodium due to the canning and preserving process. If you want to add any other seasonings, go for it. This is a good base recipe.
For more protein, you can add another can of SPAM, chicken or beans.
If you are feeling fancy, feel free to use dried beans (soak before) or frozen beans. You could also use diced lunch meat, rotisserie chicken or sausage.
