San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Chefs inspire older adults to create nutritional meals
Three meals a day, plus snacks. It seems like a simple thing, especially for older adults who have been feeding themselves for decades. Yet for many in their late 60s and up, nutrition needs can change. There can be a greater need to eat healthy dishes to reduce disease risk, while at the same time, wellness issues can reduce appetite.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, individuals ages 65 and up may find that medications they take affect their desire to eat. The USDA also notes that getting enough fresh fruits and vegetables can be difficult if slicing and chopping is a challenge, and diets may not include enough potassium, calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, minerals and dietary fiber. Fixed or limited income can create more concerns, as people may cut corners on fresh, premium food.
One solution is to take chefguided cooking classes. Not only does working with a professional chef help create healthy, sometimes customized diet plans, the classes themselves are fun, usually done in groups to offer socialization, a bit of physical activity and skills that are enjoyable to continue in the home kitchen.
Another solution is to participate in communityrun cooking programs, many of which are lowcost or even free. With Fresh Approach, for example, clients can access free cooking and nutrition classes, as well as food vouchers.
The nonprofit was founded in 2008 by the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association to help address studies showing that when people have access to affordable and healthy food, they have lower rates of dietrelated chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease.
Through the past year’s pandemic, chef Joe Wittenbrook has been unable to hold his popular, handson cooking classes for individual students at his Chef Joe’s Culinary Salon in San Francisco.
But in June, the certified executive chef and former Le Cordon Bleu/California Culinary Academy chef instructor was able to resume classes for fully vaccinated groups of friends and family members, and he hopes to reopen individual student classes by
September.
“I get private group class bookings that are mixed ages and may have parents, grandparents or to celebrate a 60 or over birthday,” Wittenbrook said. “Maybe 50% of students are in their 20s to 30s and work in tech, but I’ve done a fair many of the 60over private group classes over the 14 years I’ve been open. Most want to increase their skills or just have something fun to do to get out of the house and be engaged.”
Regardless of age, students are asking for healthier recipes.
“I focus on clean cooking, no matter what the cuisine,” Wittenbrook said. “Fresh ingredients from local markets, good technique, solid methods of cooking, no processed or packaged ingredients except things like canned tomato products and condiments. I don’t do a ton of red meat, though people still love learning how to do a classic beef Bourguignon.”
The classes can seem pricey at $95 to $125 per person, but they cover a lot of bases, led by the classically trained chef. A July “Essentials in Chicken Cookery” leads novice cooks though a feast of dishes, including whole roasted freerange chicken with herbs and lemon, chicken jardinière braised with pancetta, vegetables, mushrooms, white wine and herbs and sautéed chicken
breast paillard with tomatoes, white wine, garlic, oregano, basil and olives.
Students also learn to cook with the seasons, incorporating more healthy fruit and vegetables in their diets. Another July class focuses on “Tomato Harvest Fest,” celebrating the summer season with Sunburst tomatocheddar biscuit cobbler, insalata di pomodoro e mozzarella, heirloom tomato puff pastry tarts and tomatoavocado fattoush salad.
Variety, too, keeps students happily cooking at home, Wittenbrook noted. Since its founding in 2008, the Salon has been popular for its diversity of classes ranging from Spanish tapas to Southern comfort, tacos with homemade, hand pressed corn tortillas and zippy salsas, French café favorites and brunch classics.
And all students receive personal attention, with classes limited to 12 people maximum. After cooking, students get to eat their work.
Cooking classes are a draw for clients of Fresh Approach based out of Concord. The nonprofit started as a way to help connect communities to the fresh produce available at farmers’ markets in their neighborhood, and the project has grown to include a freeofcharge “VeggieRx” curriculum taught in a 16week series of eight classes. Qualifying participants receive “prescription” vouchers for fresh fruits and
vegetables at local farmers’ markets, giving a nocost opportunity to learn to shop for and prepare more fresh produce.
For the past year, the classes have been virtual, but as California reopens, plans are to reinstate inperson classes offered at multiple health clinics, schools and community center throughout the Bay Area in partnership with LifeLong Medical Care, said Yeun Byun, Fresh Approach marketing and communications manager.
“This year, these classes were taught by trained AmeriCorps fellows as part of our trainthetrainer program and a few of our program sites work specifically with senior populations,” Byun said, adding that bilingual staff teaches in both English and Spanish.
Many older adults join the classes by learning about them from other supportive networks.
“When we are planning a class, we get in contact with community based organizations that serve our target demographics of food insecure populations and people at risk or suffering dietrelated diseases,” said Fresh Approach Nutrition Education Specialist Ana Pereda. “Over the past year, we have directly worked with a senior center in Daly City and a clinic in Berkeley.”
The classes help participants expand their knowledge
to make healthy choices and lower their risk of dietrelated disease, Byun noted, including healthy cooking demonstrations and skillbuilding. Participants gain an understanding of how nutrition can affect their health and wellbeing, while learning how to shop for and cook healthy foods that their families will enjoy.
Recipes emphasize seasonal fruits and vegetables, and to make access to fresh produce easier, clients can now subscribe to free delivery.
“We just launched a pilot program with the working title ‘VeggieRx Wellness Boxes,’ ” said Byun, who is a project coleader. “These boxes distributed to East Palo Alto seniors are filled with fresh produce from our East Palo Alto Farmers’ Market along with nutrition education materials including recipes and tips catering to aging populations. Our first wave of boxes went out on June 16th, packed by volunteers.”
The organization plans to expand the Wellness Box program to other Bay Area regions later this year.
In the meantime, older adults are embracing the complete VeggieRx program.
“They are evaluating their diet through their life and trying to improve it,” Pereda said. “Seniors may have more time, and this means that they can do more research, which creates more specific questions. They ask things like ‘is consuming too much soy bad for you? Can you teach us how to cook an eggplant, and why is it good for us?’
“My other realization is that there is a lack of variety in their diet, and that is why they love the classes so much,” Pereda added. “They get to see us preparing a wide range of dishes that may be out of their daily diet, and realize that is important to eat more colors and include all kinds of protein and carbohydrates to enjoy a healthy lifestyle.”