Carrots, mushrooms, spinach, garlic and ramen noodles? 

Those were just a number of ingredients that were on the menu Thursday night in Klehm Hall as they had an open cooking class.  

The class presented to students, faculty and staff by the Health Education Resource Center (HERC) was aimed at providing cooking tips and healthy food options. 

Graduate nutrition and dietetics student Yolanda Joseph is the teacher of the course and said she wanted the class to help build confidence in students who cook.  

“I want to empower people to be able to do it by themselves and to be confident and have like that self-efficacy to know that they can prepare this one thing,” Joseph said. “Even if it’s just one thing it’s one thing that they can do really well.” 

Jospeh has cooked ever since she was in elementary school and said cooking has remained a way of bonding for her family.  

“It’s something that I’ve grown up doing,” Joseph said. “We celebrate around food, and we mourn around food.”

According to another graduate nutrition and dietetics major Dawson Rhoads, his mother was his introduction to cooking.  

Rhoads said that he has one signature meal he enjoys cooking, learned from his mother’s recipe.  

“I’ve learned to make my mom’s custard pie which is something I always have during the holiday season,” Rhoads said.

Clarence Carmody, a sophomore public relation major who attended the class, said they too had an early start in casually cooking as well.  

“I’ve been cooking for myself since I was [in] like seventh grade,” Carmody said. “I know I’ve been working on cooking healthier than maybe what our parents teach us for years.”  

Carmody also said that cooking reminds them of their mother and the simpler times in their childhood.  

“She passed away when I started cooking for myself,” Carmody said. “I know she would get flack for letting me sit in the kitchen with her and help her because I was like maybe four or five cutting up vegetables for dinner and stuff like that.”  

Carmody said they think it is important to know the values of cooking and the nutritional values knowledge can have on someone’s health. They also said the class can help those who are trying to cook while living on campus and even has a funny story to prove it.  

“In my dorm last year, one of the electric stoves caught fire because somebody was figuring out how to cook and spilled stuff,” Carmody said.” So you know, they were really embarrassed about that, but it’s good. I do really think it’s good to learn.”  

According to Rhoads, college students need to learn so they can take care of themselves while being nutritious. 

“A lot of them are going to be moving away from home so they’re not going to have the same things they had at home,” Rhoads said. “So learning how to fend for themselves and be able to eat healthy but still have to manage budget that’s missing. It’s good to know.”  

Drew Coffey can be reached at 581-2812 or at akcoffey@eiu.edu.