In collaboration with the University of Mississippi Nutrition Clinic, William Magee Center and Chicory Market, students kicked off the fall season by learning a budget-friendly recipe on Nov. 6 at South Campus Recreation Center.
Shannon Richardson, the William Magee Center’s assistant director for wellness education, said the event is in line with the center’s goal to help students with all aspects of wellness.
“There are so many wonderful resources available to students, but sometimes it can feel overwhelming and hard to know where to start,” Richardson said. “That’s where we come in — we are a starting point for all things wellness.”
Selena Ross, facilitator and second-year master’s student in the coordinated program in dietetics, was selected to lead this cooking class as part of one of her clinical rotations and plans on using this experience as part of her masters portfolio.
“I recently was given the opportunity to teach cooking classes to students in the Tupelo public schools through my general community rotation,” Ross said. “This kind of experience for young people can be very positive in the way that it helps build their self-sufficiency and their confidence in a very critical part of life, which is nutrition.”
Ross taught attendees how to make a hearty vegetable chili, starting with stressing the importance of knife safety by demonstrating how to properly dice, cube and mince each vegetable to be put into the soup.
“I hope that this class helps students gain confidence in their ability to prepare food. I hope that they are able to be knowledgeable of knife technique, knife safety and that they become more aware of the health benefits of eating more vegetables,” Ross said.
Andie Armstrong, a junior finance major, was glad to learn these skills, as she felt like she could now cook with a more professional approach.
“It was not only interesting to learn about the nutrients from all of the vegetables but also how to cut them safely. I usually cut things more lazily just to get it done quicker, but now I know skills I wouldn’t have known otherwise,” Armstrong said.
Junior exercise science major Winter Piraino was glad to bring home a recipe that she can make with her roommates.
“I saw a post for the event on Instagram and immediately made my roommates sign up with me. It seemed kind of daunting to go alone, but I also knew it would be very useful for us,” Piraino said.
After knife safety, students were shown how to properly sauté the vegetables while also learning safety tips in the kitchen. Other ingredients such as kidney beans, tomatoes, corn and spices were then added to complete the recipe.
While the soup simmered, Ross went over detailed nutrition information about each ingredient in the chili and how it can benefit different parts of the body.
Lily Langley, a graduate assistant at the UM Nutrition clinic, also took the time to tell students about cooking for convenience during their busy college lives.
“A good practice for students to implement into their busy lives is planning ahead and knowing when you’re going to be busy so that you can cook something like this soup to then freeze it to warm up during a time like finals week,” Langley said.
After two hours of preparation and cooking, the facilitators and students enjoyed the soup.
Lindsey McGee, a junior mechanical engineering major, attended the event.
“I really enjoyed talking with everyone and learning in depth about all of the different things that went into the recipe and how each ingredient will provide for our bodies,” McGee said.
