Cooking Matters is helping end childhood hunger by inspiring families to make healthy, affordable food choices. Our hands-on educational programs teach parents, caregivers and adults with limited food budgets to shop for and cook healthy meals.
Cooking Matters courses meet for two hours once a week for six weeks and are offered in several formats:
Through hands on cooking and discussion participants learn about cooking skills, meal prep, grocery shopping, food budgeting, and nutrition. Participants also take home a grocery bag each week to practice their new skills.
Cooking Matters at the Store, includes two versions: one for adults and one tailored to WIC parents. Participants learn to find whole grains, buy fruits and vegetables on a budget, compare unit prices, and read food labels in order to buy ingredients for balanced family meals.
Cooking Matters at Home includes eight different workshops for parents which can be offered on their own or as part of a series. These sessions share information about interpreting nutrition labels, healthy cooking techniques and food choices, and how to substitute ingredients when faced with picky eaters or insufficient food. Becoming informed shoppers, confident cooks, and meal planners not only improves household nutrition and relieves budgets, but also enables the next generation to acquire the nutrition knowledge, skills, and experience needed for good health.
Share Our Strength’s Cooking Matters is a national program that empowers families at risk of hunger with the skills, knowledge, and confidence to prepare healthy and affordable meals. Cooking Matters brings together local culinary and nutrition experts, as well as the Nutrition Connections Staff from Nutrition Connections and enthusiastic volunteers, to lead hands-on courses that give participants the know-how to select tasty and low-cost ingredients, stretch them across multiple meals, and use healthy cooking techniques and recipes that help them provide the best nourishment possible to their families. We partner with various organizations to host classes for their communities such as Schools, Family Resource Centers, Food Pantry’s, Head Starts and more! All programming is offered to partners and participants free of cost.
Cooking Matters has been held in New Hampshire since 2000, and in 2003 the New Hampshire Food Bank began hosting the program in an effort to serve its mission of educating the public about the nature of, and solutions to, hunger in New Hampshire.
The success of Cooking Matters classes depends on dedicated teams of volunteer culinary and nutrition professionals, as well as individuals passionate about living a healthy and affordable lifestyle.
Interested in becoming a volunteer? Visit our Volunteer Opportunities page for more information!
If your organization is interested in hosting a Cooking Matters class, fill-out our Cooking Matters Organization Application. Applications can be emailed to Cooking Matters, or mailed to the New Hampshire Food Bank with Attn: Cooking Matters. For additional information about the Cooking Matters Program, please contact Cooking Matters by email or at 603-669-9725.
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