Growing Great Schools To Launch Kids Cooking Classes

Registration is open for elementary and middle school students for the ‘Get Cooking!’ series, sponsored by West Hartford-based non-profit Growing Great Schools.

Lindsay Perkins (left) and Rita Neal in the kitchen at Auer Farm. They will be teaching cooking classes on behalf of Growing Great Schools. Courtesy photo

By Ronni Newton

Growing Great Schools (GGS) will launch the “Get Cooking!” series for kids in elementary and middle school beginning this February as part of the West Hartford-based organization’s mission to create a culture of wellness and to help children understand what is in the food that they eat, and the difference between processed vs. whole foods.

The classes, which will be taught by experienced local chefs, will be held at several sites and broken down by age groups in order to provide an engaging hands-on experience for participants to “feel, taste, and experiment with healthy, local food.” Students will be able to bring home recipes as well as videos to help them create healthy foods with their families.

Experienced culinary professionals Rita Neal and Lindsay Perkins will teach the classes.

Neal, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, is also a nutritionist with more than 20 years experience in the food industry. She is currently the owner of Cook Happy, which teaches cooking classes to children, teens, and adults.

Perkins is a graduate of Connecticut Culinary Institute’s Pastry and Baking program and has more than 10 years experience at Truffles Bakery in Farmington. She is the founder of the custom cupcakes and party planning company Confetti Cupcakes, and a culinary counselor at Camp KO.

“Chef Rita and I have a developed a wonderful curriculum along with delicious recipes that will show the kids all of the fun aspects of cooking – the chopping, the stirring, the tasting – using our healthy, simple recipes that they will have no trouble recreating at home for their families. The circle of wellness will then extend further than the ‘Get Cooking!’ kitchens, and that is one of the reasons that makes the mission of Growing Great Schools vital to our community,” Perkins said.

“Kids are adventurous and we are going to expand on their natural curiosity by actually letting them cook, while teaching them the fundamentals of healthy eating and about why buying locally-grown produce is so important,” said Perkins.

Neal agreed that kids are more likely to try foods when they are involved in the process of preparing them. Plus, she said, it’s fun.

Perkins said that in the spirit of “try it, you’ll like it,”the final week of classes will involve cooking with vegetables that “generally get a bad rap” from kids. “If afterward, the students go home and use our recipes to cook these foods with their families, as a culinary educator, I’m not sure what could be a more satisfying feeling,” she said.

“In effort to create a culture of wellness Growing Great Schools is thrilled to be partnering with talented chefs, ShopRite, Kingswood Oxford Middle School, Auer Farm and West Hartford Leisure Services to offer healthy cooking classes to kids of all ages,” said Susan Kamin, registered dietitian and executive director of Growing Great Schools.

The four locations have donated their kitchen spaces to GGS for use in the program.

The four-week “Get Cooking!” program will begin the week of Feb. 22, 2016. The cost of the program is $80, and the one-hour classes will be held after school by age group for students ages 5 through eighth grade.

“Get Cooking!” will also run at Charter Oak International Academy and Smith STEM School in West Hartford as an after-school program this spring, with the GGS underwriting the cost. Classes are also planned at local preschools.

Growing Great Schools President Muniba Masgood said that not only will the program be important in teaching kids about nutrition, but it will also provide participants with a valuable skill. “Cooking is one of the most important life skills children can learn to help them live a healthier life,” Masood said in the release.

“GGS wants kids to understand where and how their food is grown, why local, seasonal food is beneficial, how to read food labels and decipher food advertising and the multiple benefits of eating whole foods. By teaching children about healthy food at an early age, GGS hopes to establish the importance of healthy food for their bodies and the planet,” the release states.

Space is limited so early registration is recommended. For detailed information and registration information, visit www.growinggreatschool.org.

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