Cooking Connections

Published in our April 2025 newsletter

Project Coordinator Dan arrived early for his weekly lesson with Ms. Harris’s 10th grade class at South Philadelphia High School. Today’s class was the next session in the DRAGON Project, a curriculum that empowers high school students to lead wellness projects in their school communities As the students trickled in, it was easy to see the bond between the class and Dan, aka “The Food Guy”, as the students affectionately called him. From the easy way he chatted with several students while they finished their lunches to Ms. Harris’s glowing reviews of the programming, Dan’s presence was clearly meaningful.

The students were excited to find out what they would be cooking that day (chicken jambalaya) but were just as eager to share their own health wins. One student compared the amount of water she had been drinking with Ms. Harris while another showed Dan how she had saved a mango pit from a recent food distribution, planted in a pot with soil she’d brought from home, and placed on a sunny windowsill at the back of the classroom.

Dan started the group off with a movement break, asking them to move from one side of the classroom to the other to indicate their preferences on a variety of lighthearted “this or that” questions. From there he and the students discussed the surveys they took last session and how they would be able to survey the rest of their school to gather information for designing a wellness project that would be achievable and impactful in their community.

Finally, it was time for what the students had all been waiting for: the cooking activity! The cooking volunteers knew what to do, jumping up to wash their hands and put on gloves without being asked. Dan helped the students divide up tasks as there were plenty of ingredients to chop. The session itself was a lesson in kitchen creativity as well as nutrition; the South Philadelphia High School Food Pantry had some extra ingredients, including fresh tomatoes, poblano peppers, and canned salmon, that they’d given to the class to incorporate into the jambalaya cooking activity.

The class had clearly cooked before, settling into an easy rhythm while prepping. One student peeled the garlic while another chopped. Others divided up dicing the tomatoes and peppers, as well as chopping the chicken and separating the bones from the pieces of salmon. Before long the classroom began to smell delicious from the sizzling of fresh vegetables in the hot skillet. The students took turns adding ingredients and sautéing, tasting and seasoning as they went. With black pepper, thyme, and a jerk-style seasoning made from cinnamon, allspice, smoked paprika, and cayenne pepper, the lesson was a great opportunity for students to see first-hand that low-sodium cooking could be delicious and flavorful!

When the dish was finished, several students worked together to plate and serve tastings to their classmates. While most students were excited to try the jambalaya, several others needed encouragement from their classmates. Some of the students enjoyed the recipe as is while others added hot sauce for an extra kick.

While the students were cleaning up (they were just as quick to volunteer to wash dishes as they were to cook!), several members of the class brainstormed with Dan to determine the next recipe they would cook. Several students suggested Mexican food, like burritos or quesadillas, while one student mentioned that she wanted to learn to make hummus from scratch. The students also began to discuss what type of wellness project their school could benefit from, with many students agreeing that incorporating mindfulness was a good idea.

While the students were reluctant to leave at the end of the lesson, they were already looking forward to the next week. From here, students will continue to develop and explore steps to create a project that builds school wellness and mindfulness. If their enthusiasm and energy during this session is any indication, it will be exciting to see what they achieve next.

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