A Tasty Lesson

Accessing nutritious food is one thing. Knowing what to do with perishable items like fresh fruits and vegetables is another!

Luckily, we have the expertise of Stacey, a community educator through Central State University Extension, in our corner. Stacey offers food and wellness classes throughout the area, focusing on everything from nutrition education and food preservation classes to mental wellness and financial literacy.

She’s teamed up with the Greater Cleveland Food Bank to offer food demonstrations twice a month at our Community Resource Center, using products that are available in the Rydzewski Family Market. Neighbors can watch her prepare a dish, smell it cooking, and ask questions while they wait to go in to pick out their groceries.

“My theme is more veggies, less waste,” Stacey says. “It gives them ideas on how to use things so that it doesn’t end up just sitting in the refrigerator and expiring.”

In the United Way of Greater Cleveland Teaching Kitchen, she demonstrates recipes such as her Super Stir-Fry, which can include any number of vegetables someone might have on hand. “It gives them a lot of freedom, especially with what’s available in [the Market],” she says.

“You get stuck in doing what you know you can do. Especially if you’re food insecure, you might not want to try new things because you don’t want to waste the food,” she explains. “It’s an opportunity to try something different in a different way and see how it could turn out.”

This is just another way your gift to our Harvest for Hunger Campaign can enrich the lives of Northeast Ohioans. Thank you for showing you care!

Next story: Why Harvest for Hunger?