By Fox23.com News Staff
TULSA, Okla. — Global Gardens alumni created their very own dishes alongside chefs from Et Al at a cooking camp on Monday.
“We’re here at our cooking camp with Global Gardens and the chefs at Et Al,” said Jenni Yoder, the Program Director at Global Gardens. “We have Global Gardens alumni who are now in sixth grade, but they all did Global Gardens afterschool programs when they were younger and they are here cooking dishes that they have dreamed up with the chefs of the Et Al Chef Collective.”
Yoder explained the process that led to the dishes each kid chose to create.
“In October, we met and kids got to dream about things that are important to them. Their identity, their family identity, maybe their culture, and choose a dish that they really wanted to create and make their own. Now, they’re working with the chefs at Et Al to really make that a reality and so they’re actually doing the cooking today. They’ll perfect the dish today through tasting and experimenting, and then this meal will be served at our Glow Gala fundraiser in April. The meal we serve will really be from our Global Gardeners, which is really exciting.”
Global Gardens is a Tulsa nonprofit that works with elementary school kids across the city.
“We work with elementary schools in the Tulsa area to do school gardening. We use the garden as sort of a vehicle to learn science, to practice life skills. We use it to teach peace education, so getting along with others, resolving conflict peacefully, working through our own emotions in a healthy way and we do all that through the garden. We really emphasize student voice and kids making decisions and taking ownership of a space because then they start to really believe in their own power to change maybe their life, maybe their community and our community in Tulsa as well as the world if they want to.”
Yoder gave a few examples of the dishes students worked on.
“A few of the things that they’re working on today are arepas, some Indian frybread with berries and turning it into kind of a dessert. We have tamales going. We have salsa. We have pasta with veggies and all the dishes represent something about the student as well as celebrating the garden.”
Yoder said allowing students to work with professional chefs and giving them the opportunity to share their ideas allows kids to grow confidence in their own abilities.
“It’s such a special opportunity for young people to get to work with actual acclaimed chefs and the chefs are so supportive and really listen to the students. I think the chefs have a lot of fun and our students have a lot of fun. It just shows them it’s another example that their ideas really matter and that they can make stuff happen now as young people.”
To learn more about Global Gardens, you can visit the organization’s website here.
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