Cooking Classes Provide Youth with Dietary Alternatives

As sautéing onions give up their enticing fragrance and the smell wafts out the door, the teens and children who weren't sure they wanted to join a cooking class can't resist. Remaining classroom seats fill up and expectant students settle down to listen to their teacher, Martiza Hernandez, as she reviews her healthy recipe for vegetable enchiladas.

Once a month, the community center at Gateway Apartments in East Palo Alto is transformed into a culinary academy where about 20 young people prepare a meal that showcases tasty, low-fat, low-sugar recipes that are easy enough for all ages and abilities.

"We get popular recipes and make them healthy," says Hernandez, who piles red and green peppers, onions, carrots and potatoes into her baked enchiladas. The idea is to show participants — who range in age from 6 to 17 — that eating healthy doesn't have to be a drag. The hope is that the class will foster lifelong changes that will lead to better health and wellness.

Click here to read the entire article in the Mercury News Holiday Wishbook.

Click here to read more about the Mid-Peninsula Housing Corporation (Owner of Gateway Apartments in East Palo Alto).