By Beverley Edwards-Haines, Nutritionist,
Let’s Move Kelowna Community Health Coordinator

It was a cold winter’s afternoon when 35 warmly dressed individuals arrived at the Recipes to Warm Your Wintercooking class on Sunday, January 19. A few hours earlier, 11 other individuals had arrived ready to prep and cook the delicious recipes. Held at the Kelowna Lifestyle Centre, the community outreach arm of the Kelowna SDA Church, the cooking class was another of the growing list of classes Ruth Smith, Retired Home Economics Teacher, and Bev Edwards-Haines, Nutritionist and Let’s Move Kelowna Community Health Coordinator, have teamed up to facilitate in the Kelowna area over the past few years.

With introductions by CHIP Coordinator Marleen Wirtz, the event was underway. Carrot Juice, Mock Salmon Spread on Carrot Crackers, and Savoury Walnut Spread on rice crackers were followed by a nicely warming Caribbean Black Bean Soup with Mango Relish. Then it was on to the main course, Loaded Lentil Natchos with a dollop of velvety cheeze sauce that you would never guess was made entirely of vegetables and some cashews, and Asian Cabbage Salad with Crispy Tofu. Dessert was a trio of delectable offerings, including: Raw Carrot Dream Cake, Cranberry-stuffed Hasselback Apples, and Jewelled Avocado Chocolate Pudding. Most of the recipes were taken from the excellent publication, Forks Over Knives magazine, Winter 2020 edition.

Following this delightful meal, Ruth Smith demonstrated how to “hassleback” various vegetables and then showed how easy it is to make the luscious Jewelled Avocado Chocolate Pudding.

Watch out for the photo bomber. 🙂

Bev Haines and her husband, Randy, then presented on the health benefits of juicing, demonstrated how to juice carrots, and discussed how to use the pulp in various recipes such as the Mock Salmon Spread.

From all accounts, a delicious, fun evening was had by all. Special thanks to the kitchen staff who generously donated their time to make this cooking class a success. A really lovely footnote is that a few days after the cooking class, Bev received several reports of attendees who started juicing or who wanted to purchase juicers. The evidence is clear: juicing is a terrific way to kickstart your health!  Be encouraged to try it yourself!