Youngchurch
Snack on this Y
outh attending the day camp aftercare program at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church,
Berkeley, Calif., think they are just enjoying the snacks they had fun making. And they are. But Catherine Baca says they are
learning more than just the plea- sure of cooking for themselves and others. She developed Bible Time Cooking to teach habits that lead to healthy eating, educate about bibli- cal culture, provide lessons on hos- pitality and manners, and ensure that the youth eat a healthy snack in the afternoon. Bible Time Cooking has three
Send stories of your youth group (pre- school-confirmation age) to: Andrea Pohlmann Kulik , 8765 W. Higgins Rd., Chicago IL 60631; andrea.pohlmann@
thelutheran.org.
parts: • Circle time. Youth might gather to learn about Bible food rules (for example: no shellfish; throw crumbs under the table for the dogs; men and boys eat first). Baca sometimes introduces foods, passing around spices, lentils or wheat. Another option is to tell a Bible story in which food plays an important role. • Snack time: The youth snack on foods they prepared earlier in the week. They eat biblically, with a boys’/men’s table and a girls’/wom- en’s table. Parents, grandparents and parishioners are invited to snack time and join the appropriate table. A typical snack might be pita bread, flavored cheese the kids made from scratch, dates or grapes. All ingredients are organic, whole foods and whole grains. The youth aren’t required to eat any- thing but must sit and socialize. So far, getting them to try the food hasn’t been a problem. “The kids see the adults trying
40 The Lutheran •
www.thelutheran.org CATHERINE BACA
Will Traynor (left), Dan Kreter-Killian and Connor Robertson, all members of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Berkeley, Calif., and Charlie McGinley, Emerson Schwarz and Jack Cockle from All Souls Episcopal Church, Berkeley, enjoy whole wheat pitas with cheese, dates and goats’ milk during Bible Time Cooking. Day camp youth who stay for the aftercare program at Shepherd of the Hills make their own snacks using organic foods and whole grains, all while learning about biblical culture.
different foods and voicing their opinions, pro and con, and so [they] learn to try new things without the horrid ‘Try it, you’ll like it (or else),’ ” Baca said. To help appease all tastes and provide options for kids with allergies,
Baca makes sure there is always a selection of snacks. Only once did a child say he didn’t like anything, she added. While they eat, the kids work on basic manners, such as taking a small
helping first so everyone can get a taste. Snack time ends with a prayer of thanks for the food. Then the youth can play or cook a snack for later in the week. • Cooking time: The youth do all of the cooking except for things like put- ting pans in the oven. Baca said the recipes are made with kid power and basic tools, such as mortar and pestle or food dryer. The youth learn how to measure and read a recipe. They can also experiment with ingredients and seasonings until they find a taste they like. Baca provides basic ingredients used in Bible times. They cook primar- ily vegetarian food because it’s easier for the kids to handle and keeps costs down.
Cooking projects often relate to circle time activities. For example, one day Baca read them the story of Elijah and the widow (1 Kings 17:8-15). Afterward the youth made widow’s loaves from wheat, millet, garbanzo flour, barley or mixes of these, grinding much of it themselves. It was a sim- ple recipe to remind the children that the widow didn’t have much flour left. At the end of the program, each child gets a book of recipes.
For more information, contact Catherine Baca at
cbaca7@hotmail.com
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