We have had a great time celebrating diverse cultures through cooking sessions which ranged from sushi to shortbread. We held the cooking sessions at a community member’s home. We extended the invitation to participate through connections in the Brighouse neighbourhood. At each session, we had a “leader” who brought the necessary ingredients and taught us how to make different food. While the leader ensured the basics were there, participants were quick to bring additional food which helped us stretch the budget. We had a crowd of 20 to make sushi and made so much sushi we took it to a community potluck dinner to share. The results were impressive we think! When we were learning to make Zaatar bread, we were also learning much about the customs related to the bread. We switched our plan to make maple pie to making Christmas baking. People brought recipes handed down in their families. This led to discussions about our families and traditions which was a great way for us to get to know each other better. At every session, we worked together, learned together, met people we didn’t know before and got to know others much better. At every event there was a great deal of learning, sharing, laughing and growing friendships…not to mention eating. Participants ranged from babies to grandmas, from visitors to Canada to 2nd generation Canadians. Sharing food is a great way to build community! We had so much fun and people were so positive about the cooking sessions, we are continuing to have community cooking sessions even though our NSG project has concluded.
Share post:
