Winter Recipes: They Don’t Need to Be Heavy!

By Kirsten Bourne • January 2, 2015

As we embark on a new year, it is a great opportunity to take the next step on a path towards healthy cooking and eating. In 2014, the Capital Area Food Bank created its quarterly Recipes from the Capital Area Food Bank Kitchen plan for sharing the recipes tested in our kitchen. We hosted a cooking-themed Hunger Summit in the fall, which included an Iron Chef-style cook-off using ingredients offered to our food assistance partners. We also hosted a Fresh Takes listening session, where we solicited feedback from our partners on ways to make our recipes more appealing to their diverse clientele that include clients from Central and South America, Africa, the Middle East, China, Korea, Vietnam and beyond.
So 2015 is the year to get into the groove of cooking with these recipes! Here are the three Recipes from the CAFB Kitchen for this quarter:
Chickpea stew: Patrilie Hernandez, who cooks with neighbors of Latin American descent at CentroNia, subbed cumin for thyme in this recipe to appeal to that audience. We’ve heard from other partners that raisins would go over well as an addition; and Clarence Banks from Calvary Assembly suggested adding peanuts or peanut butter for a take on a West African peanut stew!
Butternut Squash Risotto: This recipe uses brown rice instead of white for the dietary minerals. Risotto is almost never bad, so give this one a try if you’re new to cooking at home.
Baked Apple: This is a dessert that will satisfy a child’s sugar cravings, or the cravings of the child in all of us. We included the recipe in our monthly newsletter for seniors that participate in our Senior Brown Bag and Commodity Supplemental Food Programs, to go along with their monthly delivery of groceries.
Please email recipes@capitalareafoodbank.org when you make these recipes to share pictures and what modifications you made in your own kitchen. Stay cozy and tasty this winter!