Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship for the Hardwick Gazette
HARDWICK – A water main break couldn’t stop the young chefs of the Jeudevine Library Cooking Club from providing a meal to the community on April 23.
In the basement of Jeudevine Memorial Library, local children meet once a month with Youth Librarian Rachel Funk for the cooking club.
What started in February as a one-time event has turned into monthly gatherings where children learn new recipes in the library’s kitchen.
“I think the cooking club is important because it connects kids to experimenting with and creating new recipes, for their friends and peers, and to being part of the library and community,” Funk said.
Last month, club member Madeline Crank, 12, had the idea to prepare a meal for the community with her school friends. The goal was to fundraise for the cooking club, including for more staples and new kitchen equipment.
“We have nothing in this kitchen that we need,” Crank said of their current setup. “It was a fundraiser idea and we could provide food for the community.”
The day before the event, Hardwick posted a notice warning about the town’s water main break. With the possibility of contamination, residents were asked to boil water before using it.
But the boil water advisory didn’t slow the cooking club down, thanks to Funk, who brought in big jugs of distilled water instead.
The event was sponsored by Buffalo Mountain Market, Tops Friendly Market and Friends of the Library. The sponsors provided the funding for ingredients to make the meal.
They prepared homemade mac and cheese, cowboy caviar, a dip consisting of black beans, corn and tomatoes. They also made hummus and chips, salad and lemonade.
Just hours before the community dinner, the young chefs boiled an overflowing pot of water to cook the macaroni homemade mac and cheese. Endless boxes of elbow pasta, an abundance of cream cheese and eight tablespoons of mustard were thrown together for the main dish.
They also mixed a large bowl of hummus. As they sprinkled in more tahini and garlic, the chefs performed taste tests. When everyone liked it, they displayed the hummus in the bowl, presenting it professionally.
Club members aimed to have gluten-free food items, but between mixing ingredients and using the same utensils, they were not able to guarantee gluten-free options. Crank made a sign stating, “Cooking with care: But there may still be gluten!”
Fourteen community members attended the meal, Funk said. They raised money for the club, but more importantly, club members were able to connect with the Hardwick community.
“It feels good to make things for others so they don’t have to do it themselves,” said 10-year-old Juniper Bandit.
Next month, the cooking club will be providing refreshments for Hardwick’s youth theatre group, the Jeudevine Players.
