Tempe’s first community garden on public land, started more than a year ago to provide the Escalante community with access to organic foods, is teaching residents how to cook nutritious budget-friendly meals.
Free cooking lessons, sponsored by the Tempe Community Action Agency and the Escalante Community Garden, focus on teaching people how to cook with fresh foods in a friendly open workshop atmosphere, said Neal Wepking, Escalante Community Center food resource coordinator.
“Cooking food is definitely more economical than eating out at a restaurant,” Wepking said. “This is a great way to teach people the benefits of cooking with fresh foods.”
The classes are held every Monday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Escalante Senior Center Kitchen until the end of June.
Each cooking class teaches a new, affordable and healthy recipe led by a different instructor.
The class is encouraged to ask questions, work together, and make requests for recipes to learn for the next week, Wepking said.
“We try to shoot for simple, healthful, and time-efficient meals,” he said. “After the cooking class is finished, the members are encouraged to stay and eat the meal together as a community dinner.”
The Escalante Community Garden and the Tempe Community Action Agency provide fresh, organically grown food to use for the classes.
The cooking classes use the crops harvested from the Escalante Community Garden in the class’s weekly recipes, Wepking said.
“A person understands cooking better when they know exactly what is going into their food and where it comes from,” he said.
Elementary education sophomore Leyan Ammar said students are usually so busy with school and work they tend to forget how essential it is to make sure their body is receiving the nutrition it needs.
“Sure it is easier to pick up something off the dollar menu at McDonalds than it is to cook, but that is not doing any good for your body,” she said. “A healthy diet for me means more energy, stamina, and confidence that I am making the right choices for an overall better lifestyle.”
People who learn how to cook will see that it is more beneficial for them in the long run, Associate Director of the ASU Nutrition Faculty Carol Johnston said.
“These cooking classes will make people realize that fresh foods taste better,” Johnston said. “They will acquire confidence and satisfaction from cooking and find out that it doesn’t take that long to prepare a healthful and affordable meal.”
Reach the reporter at gqolson@asu.edu
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