Youth Cooking Program
Youth Cooking Pilot Program
Our youth cooking pilot program hosts cooking classes for 14-18 year olds with the goal of teaching basic kitchen skills and recipes while instilling the value of supporting their local food system. Our goal is for youth to know how to confidently source fresh food and prepare a healthy meal by the end of the course!
What participants learn:
- Students are introduced to various culinary skills from a professional chef as they prepare healthy meals with crops sourced from local farms.
- From kitchen safety and knife skills to the art of sauteing and plate presentation, students walk away with a new appreciation for enjoying fresh, healthy food.
- We also discuss sustainability in relation to food choices, addressing topics like seasonality and the health benefits of eating whole foods.
- Offering a chance to experience what it takes to grow food and harvest fresh bounty, we visit a local farm where we work side by side with a farmer and see what is growing locally and why.
Video Feature
Program Slideshow
What’s Next?
Our vision is for programs like this one to engage our youth and wider community in the local food system while building culinary career skills.
We are striving to build interest in the creation of a program that supplies healthy meals to those who need it most. Inspired by Ceres Community Project in Sonoma County, we would like to bring Solano County access to medically tailored meals prepared with locally sourced ingredients and made by local community members for those who are chronically ill. With a recent bill passed that allows insurance companies to cover the cost of these meals, we see a vital opportunity to bring our community access to healthy, locally sourced food prepared by fellow community members.
From workforce development to youth volunteers experiencing giving back with a purpose, we believe this program could offer many long-term benefits to Solano County.
Interested in bringing a youth cooking program to your organization or helping us with this larger vision? Contact Program Manager Lauren Gucik at lauren@sustainablesolano.org
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Outgrowing Chicken Tenders
A student participant and our program manager both reflect on the Youth Cooking Pilot Program