Twin Cities Clinic's Cooking Class Helps Students Live Better
WOODBURY, Minn. (WCCO) -- The decision to eat better and have a healthier lifestyle has some folks going back to school.
Hundreds of people are taking cooking classes at a special kitchen inside a Twin Cities clinic. It is the HealthEast Ways to Wellness Kitchen in Woodbury. It's next door to Woodwinds Hospital. An executive chef teaches cooking classes there that are open to the public.
As we discovered, he focuses on cooking from scratch... and his students are seeing results.
Getting back to the basics helped Mary Kill and Gayle Adair lose weight and drop some of their prescribed medications. They did it with the help of executive chef Jeremy Reinicke. He says cooking in a healthy way is not as time-consuming as you may think.
"It can be, but it doesn't have to be. If you know some of the tips and tricks, it can really reduce the amount of time that you are spending in your kitchen," he said.
Chef Reinicke works here full-time showing people how to make changes to the way they cook and the ingredients they use.
"We really want to help people get back in touch with cooking real food again. Whole fresh foods, and being able to do that in their own kitchens at home," he said.
Many of his students have dramatically improved their health.
Kill used to have high blood pressure... until she lost 50 pounds.
She says exercise played a big role, but eating better was important too. She has Crohn's Disease.
"I was still having the issues continually with my stomach. And once I came here and started eating much cleaner, 90 percent of the symptoms went away," Kill said.
Adair is a breast cancer survivor who used to struggle with the effects of menopause.
Not anymore.
"I have seen diminishing hot flashes, clearer thinking. I had a lot of memory issues at that time as well. I think by eating right that did a lot for me," Adair said.
Chef Reinicke says a common mistake people make is to add packaged seasonings and bottled marinades to meats and vegetables.
"Those guys are going to be full of artificial stuff, artificial stabilizers, artificial colors, artificial flavors, all that good stuff. You can make all those things at home," Reinicke said.
The cooking classes include a lecture, a demonstration and participation by the students.
"People experience fear and stress just by walking into their kitchens sometimes. If you arm yourself with the skill and the knowledge, that can all go away, and it can make cooking fun again," Chef Reinicke said.
The HealthEast Ways to Wellness Kitchen offers a wide variety of classes.
You can take a single cooking class or a series.
The typical cost for one class is $49. In March they are offering a series of four classes for $149. Click here for more information.
Below is the recipe for the salad Chef Reinicke prepared with students in the video above.
Mixed Green Salad with Citrus, Walnut and Pomegranate
Serves 6
- 2 oz Sherry Vinegar
- 1 oz Orange Juice, fresh
- 1 T Maple Syrup
- 1 T Mustard, Dijon
- 1 small Shallot, trimmed and quartered
- 1 t Salt, Kosher
- 3 oz Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 oz Canola Oil
- 10 oz Mixed Greens
- 2 Oranges, cut to supremes
- ½ c Walnuts, roughly chopped
- ½ c Gorgonzola, crumbled
- 1 Pomegranate, seeds removed
Place sherry vinegar, orange juice, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, shallot and salt in the bowl of a blender. Pulse to puree and combine. While running on low, slowly pour in the two oils. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Place the salad greens in a large bowl and toss with just enough of the dressing to lightly coat the greens.
Plate the dressed salad greens and top with orange supremes, walnuts, gorgonzola and pomegranate seeds.
