I skipped out on dinner with my own family a few weeks ago to check out how community cooking at The Stop Community Food Centre works. I’d never heard of a community kitchen before and I was intrigued. Oh, and I also got to prepare a meal with Lynn Crawford. So, you know, that was pretty cool too.
The Stop is one of several community kitchens across the country where members of the community can come together to prepare and eat a meal. It provides fresh food for people living in what is known as a food desert, an area without access to grocery stores or affordable sources of healthy food. It also teaches people how to prepare meals from scratch and, perhaps most importantly, gives them friends in the community to share it with.
Chef Scott MacNeil tells a story about three men who showed up just before closing during a summer heat wave. Looking for reprieve from the heat, they walked up to the community centre from the rooming house where they lived to check out the community cooking program they’d heard about. They loved it so much, they’ve become regular figures in the kitchen and help new comers learn the ropes.
We made roasted chicken, a chickpea and veggie salad and apple spice cake from The Spot’s cookbook, Good Food For All. It was all really simple and delicious.
The Stop and other community kitchens across Canada receive support from the iögo, supporting goodness program by way of financial contributions, iögo product donations, a visibility campaign and a corporate volunteer program.
I think the whole concept is super cool. Keep community food programs in mind if you or someone you know is looking for a volunteer job, buy their cookbook and spread the word.