We aim to provide vital nourishment to our communities all year long but during the month of March we’re kicking it up a notch by celebrating “National Nutrition Month” hosted by The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. This year’s theme, “Personalize Your Plate”, promotes creating nutritious meals to meet individuals’ cultural and personal food preferences.

Our Cooking Matters team hopes to engage, encourage, and motivate everyone to make informed food choices, develop sound eating and physical activity habits you can follow all year long!  We will encourage you to eat a variety of nutritious foods, plan meals in advance, drink more water, create delicious and affordable meals at home and more!

Our top National Nutrition Month tips!

• Make Half Your Plate Fruits and Vegetables – Fruits and veggies add color, flavor and texture plus vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber to your plate. Experiment with different types, including fresh, frozen and canned.
• Get Cooking – Prepare foods at home!  They’re healthier, rewarding and cost-effective. Check out cookingmatters.org for delicious, budget friendly recipes!
• Drink More Water – Quench your thirst with water instead of drinks with added sugars. Drink plenty of water to hydrate.
• Enact Family Meal Time – Eat as a family at least a few times a week. Set a regular mealtime. Turn off the TV, phones and other electronic devices and encourage mealtime talk. Get kids involved in meal planning and cooking and use this time to teach them about good nutrition.
• Explore New Foods and Flavors – Add more nutrition and choices by expanding your range of foods. When shopping, make a point of selecting a fruit, vegetable or whole grain that’s new to you or your family.
• Plan Meals Ahead of Time – Knowing what you will cook in advance gives you time to shop and cook ahead of time and stay on track with your goals. Cook once, eat twice, make enough food to eat multiple meals.

Get Involved!

• Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more ideas!
• Join the Cooking Matters NH Team for a virtual Cooking Matters at the Store Tour workshop Wednesday March 17^th at 5:00 pm
• Sign up for the Cooking Matters email newsletter “What’s Cooking” – Receive healthy recipes, kitchen tips and tricks and upcoming class information right to your inbox!
• New Hampshire Food Bank agencies – keep your eye out for an invitation to attend our virtual personalize your plate workshop on Wednesday, March 24th at 2:00pm!