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Children & Youth Programs

Category: Children & Youth Programs

Winter Break Fun – Baking Cookies

Day 3 of Winter Break Fun at the Cambridge Food Bank! ❄️

There is nothing better than getting messy in the kitchen. Make your home smell yummy and start baking!

Here are a few of our favourites for you to make!🍪

Don’t forget to take pictures and tag us online

Happy baking!

Five great reasons kids should learn how to cook

As parents, raising a child who is a picky eater can be challenging especially if you’re trying to develop a healthy eating style.  What if it didn’t have to be difficult?  Google can show us many ways to avoid picky eaters, but reading doesn’t create results, actions do.

The Cambridge Food Bank believes that raising a child who genuinely enjoys eating nutritious food takes practice.  Our Wellness Hub features a weekly youth program run by Vanessa, to help support parents in the Cambridge and North Dumfries area to raise children who are nutritionally diverse in their eating styles. 

Here are Vanessa’s top five reasons kids should learn how to cook

  1. Kids build confidence and comfort in the kitchen
  2. Kids are more likely to try new foods prior to forming an opinion of them
  3. It expands their pallets to more nutrient-dense foods
  4. It increases their kitchen knowledge, safety, and terminology
  5. It creates a sense of pride

The youth program is disguised as fun for kids but contains many educational lessons.

Parents share their child’s 2022 program experiences

  1. “Ada has learned how to do many things in the kitchen. She now has the confidence to make the family breakfast.”
  2. “The Food Bank programs provided simple and healthy recipes that children loved to make. The reality is, if my child makes it, she’s going to eat it. So the inclusion of so many fruits and veggies has made her diet more diverse.”
  3. “Vanessa makes the classes so much fun plus they get to snack and try new foods while they cook. Also, the look of pure pride on her face when she makes a delicious meal for her family is priceless.”
  4. “My daughter loves the programs because she likes to eat, wants to know how to do more in the kitchen and because Vanessa is awesome!”
  5. “I have so many stories to share about our experiences with the Food Bank classes. It has made cooking time, family time. But my favorite story has to be where my daughter and her friend spoiled their dinner on veggies and a healthy yogurt dip they made with Vanessa. Let me say that again, they spoiled their dinner on veggies!!! Unheard of. As stated before, these classes are great and I tell all the other parents about it. My daughter’s friends are constantly asking to come over for the classes and quite a few of these recipes have become family favorites.”

Visit our website to learn more about the 2023 Wellness Hub, contact Vanessa at 519-622-6550 ext. 109 or vtoncic@cambridgefoodbank.org

**This cooking program is provided at no cost and all supplies are included.

4 Budget-Friendly Tips On Eating Healthy With Diabetes

Living with diabetes can be a challenge, but it doesn’t have to break the bank. If you’re feeling stressed out about choosing the right foods for your Diabetes-friendly diet because you’ve got limited funds to spend at the grocery store, read on for 4 budget-friendly tips on eating healthy with Diabetes.

Make a List Before You Shop

The next time you go grocery shopping, take the time to make a list. It’s common knowledge that shopping with a list saves you time and money in the store. This is because you aren’t as likely to make impulse purchases when you’re shopping from a list. Making fewer impulse buys also means you’re more likely to stick to the healthy foods that are on your list.

Buy Healthy Foods On-Sale & Freeze

One great tip is to buy the more expensive – but healthy – foods in bulk when they go on sale. Then prepare and freeze it at home for future use. It’s a great way to save money while ensuring you get the most bang for your buck at the store. And don’t sweat it – your frozen fruits & veggies retain their goodness in the freezer because they’re frozen at their ideal ripeness. Plus you can wait for weeks or months before you use them and reduce the waste of uneaten food. It’s a win-win for your health and your wallet.

Pre-Plan & Prepare Your Meals At Home

One important way to eat healthy with Diabetes is to pre-plan and prepare your meals ahead of time at home. This will save you money and you’ll be less likely to opt for less-than-healthy take-out food options when you’re hungry. Because eating healthy meals when you have Diabetes is so important, eating fast food often can seriously impact your health.

You can also buy fresh fruits, vegetables and meats and cut them up at home. This will save you money, versus buying the pre-cut foods at the supermarket.

Plan Your Leftovers

When you make too much food, you’re going to have leftovers. But that’s not a bad thing! Leftovers can be used in all sorts of creative recipes that won’t aggravate your Diabetes.

If you cook too much healthy food, you can reallocate that extra lean chicken breast or soup for another meal the next day or even later in the week. Freeze extra foods and get creative with healthy recipes that can utilize the additional food you have left over from today’s meal.

Eating healthy can be expensive if you’re not careful while shopping, but with a little planning ahead you can reign in your food budget and achieve your healthy-eating goals. Take some time this week to sit down, make a list, and plan out your Diabetes-friendly meals for the week. Your body (and your doctor) will thank you. Just don’t forget to splurge on healthy treats every now and then too, because you deserve it!