ZEELAND, Mich. — It’s not your average after school activity. Students at Creekside Middle School in Zeeland are mastering their skills in the kitchen as one science teacher offers a different sort of lesson in chemistry.
That teacher’s name is Lara Minnear. She described the recipe for she was teaching the class that week, saying, “We’re making oatmeal carmelitas, which is a phenomenal little bar with lots of caramel and chocolate.”
The virtual cooking club started during the COVID-19 shutdown when students were learning from home.
“I was looking for a way to be able to connect with my kids and to be able to give them an opportunity to connect with each other and I’ve always felt like food brings people together,” said Minnear.
She never expected the program to continue beyond the pandemic. It’s now in its fourth year.
“I grew up watching the Food Network and it was kind of a natural connection for me,” said Minnear.
Brody Visser is a Creekside Middle School eighth grader who said, “I never had a lot of things to do after school and I really wanted something to do and then I found out there was a cooking club.”
Finley McKee is another eighth grader who takes part in the program. She said, “I was kind of scared of cooking because it’s kind of intimidating. There’s a lot going on and a lot of room to make mistakes.”
Minnear explained, “My hope for my students is that they learn how to follow a recipe and that they just learn to enjoy cooking and that it’s not as intimidating as it might seem.”
“I have nothing else to do on Tuesday, might as well, and my mom will like it because she’ll get food out of it too,” said McKee.
During each session, Minnear said, “We read through the recipe, we prep everything, and we dive in.”
It’s not always dessert.
“We tend to alternate between sweet and savory,” said Minnear before adding, “That’s the thing that I love about doing this is you don’t have to be an athlete, or you don’t have to be a musician to do this. Anybody can follow a recipe.”
“It doesn’t take any transportation or anything which is a big issue for extra curriculars,” said McKee.
Visser revealed that, previously, “I thought cooking was a waste of time because it just took too much time just for something small and then I realized it’s not and it’s really fun to do and it’s something really nice to do for your family.”
“We made a soup last year and I burned the garlic, and it completely ruined the whole thing, and I learned from it and now I know don’t cook garlic on such high heat,” said McKee, who also said, “After doing this for three years, I’m a lot more comfortable with cooking and I like it now.”
“Just like with life, it’s a learning experience and you learn most, I think, from the times that you fail, and you move on, and you just do better in the future,” said Minnear.
The teacher went on to say that one thing she’s enjoyed most about the program is seeing students invite family or friends over to take part in the virtual cooking club with them. She says that’s always what she was hoping for, to bring people together with cooking.
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