Culinary medicine cooking classes

What is culinary medicine?

Whether you want to keep your heart healthy, need help managing your blood sugars or are seeking lasting energy for your busy day, a healthy and balanced meal is key. But how do you get started with healthy cooking if you’re not familiar with it?

That’s where our culinary medicine program comes in. Hands-on culinary medicine classes, held in our teaching kitchen, combine the art and skill of cooking with the science of nutrition. 

It's an evidence-based approach to health that incorporates food and cooking with nutrition education. Through these cooking classes, you’ll learn how to make small and sustainable dietary changes to support your health by learning:

• The role of food in treating and preventing disease
• Cooking skills while making new, delicious recipes
• The principles of the Mediterranean diet

What to expect in culinary medicine cooking classes

During the cooking portion of the class, you’ll get help and feedback on techniques. Your instructor will also demonstrate new skills. After the food is prepared, you’ll enjoy it with your classmates during a guided discussion on the food and lesson.

Free of charge and open to everyone, the series of four clinical nutrition cooking classes are led by a culinary-trained registered dietitian. They're typically held on consecutive weeks or months. And you don’t need any cooking experience or knowledge to attend. 

The first class introduces you to the Mediterranean diet and cooking basics. The remaining three each focus on one of a typical day’s meals as well as a healthy eating habit.

A sample class structure might look like this:

• Class 1: Introductory class. Overview of cooking basics, kitchen safety and recipe reading. Introduction to the Mediterranean diet.
• Class 2: Quick and easy breakfasts and reading food labels.
• Class 3: Healthy lunches, protein, vegetables and portion sizes.
• Class 4: Delectable dinners, good shopping habits and legumes.

You’ll be given recipes and ingredients for dishes that correspond with the day's nutrition focus. Then we’ll break everyone into groups so you can work together to prepare the food.

You’re welcome to take home recipes, as well as any leftover food. All materials and equipment will be provided for you to use in class.

Why the Mediterranean diet? 

Proper nutrition can play a large part in preventing or helping you control many chronic diseases. The Mediterranean diet is one of the most evidence-based, sustainable and affordable diets boasting plenty of health benefits, particularly when it comes to reducing risk for (or managing) heart disease and diabetes and maintaining a healthy weight.

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes including these on your plate daily:

• Fruits and nuts
• Vegetables 
• Whole grains
• Healthy fats (unsaturated)
• Lean meats and seafood
• Beans and legumes

Where are classes held? 

All classes are held in our new teaching kitchen located in Geisinger’s Multispecialty Clinic at Selinsgrove, located at 157 Roosevelt Ave. in Selinsgrove.

Virtual classes are also available.