Food gives our bodies the energy and nutrients that it needs and is the center of many social gatherings. Preparing your favorite recipes requires some basic kitchen safety knowledge and culinary skills. Learning these skills builds confidence in the kitchen and encourages the cook to experiment with nutritious foods.
People that attend our CHOICES Nutrition Education classes learn about the importance of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean protein and calcium-rich foods in a nine-week class series. Each nutrition lesson in paired with a recipe incorporating the food group being discussed. Our educators make the recipe and use it as an opportunity to expose participants to foods and recipes they may not be familiar with.
Our nutrition educator, Amy, enjoys making recipes that require a bit of chopping so participants practice cutting a variety of produce like beets, zucchini, cabbage, bell peppers and onions. One of her favorite recipes to prepare is a summer garden couscous salad.
“I wasn’t introduced to couscous until I was in college, so I love teaching people how to prepare it and turn it into delicious meal. Participants are always surprised by how easy it is to cook and transform,” Amy said.
Our educators understand how the lack of skills in preparing and cooking foods influences the type of food individuals eat.
During class, Amy often hears how excited participants are to learn how to cut and prepare foods they are intimidated by. When showing how to shred cabbage, a participant expressed that she loved cabbage but never purchased it because she didn’t know how to cut it. The following week she returned to class to share the different recipes she made after gaining the confidence to finally grab that head of cabbage and place it into her shopping cart.
The nutrition education team witnesses the impact the CHOICES nutrition education classes have on participants’ knowledge of how to choose and prepare nutritious foods. Our nutrition educators love showing clients that healthy, balanced meals can be delicious!
For more information about scheduling classes, contact our Nutrition Education Manager, Mary Agnew, RDN, LD at magnew@centraltexasfoodbank.org.
