“I wish we were taught to eat this way years ago!” exclaimed a participant in the Cooking Matters course at Hubbard Place.
Every Wednesday, 15 enthusiastic residents gather in the community room at Hubbard Place to learn about nutrition and cooking from a volunteer chef, nutritionist and class assistant.
It’s part of Cooking Matters, a curriculum and program developed by Share our Strength and used by the Capital Area Food Bank.
The program empowers low-income individuals by equipping them with skills and knowledge to prepare healthy meals. Through weekly meal preparation, grocery store tours, and in-depth discussions about the USDA nutrition guidelines, participants gain hands-on experience they can apply to their daily lives.
Trying something … noodle
The focus of today’s lesson is protein and lean and low-fat foods. To complement the lesson, the class prepares Asian Noodles with Peanut Butter Sauce and Fruit Smoothies with the help of their volunteer chef.
Although many participants are initially skeptical about the Asian noodle dish, once they get to prepare it themselves, they change their mind!. After chopping broccoli and carrots, mixing soy sauce into the peanut butter and stirring noodles into the dish, the class could not wait for a taste.
“This is really good!” exclaimed one student. “This would really keep me full,” remarked another.
After class, each participant took home recipe ingredients so they can make the dish at home.
Cooking Matters is offered to partner agencies and other related organizations through the Capital Area Food Bank.
If you are interested in learning more about the Cooking Matters program, please contact cookingmatters@capitalareafoodbank.org
Tamara Rushovich is the AmeriCorps Cooking Matters Coordinator at the Capital Area Food Bank