Brainfood

The goal of Brainfood is to use food as a tool to build life skills and promote healthy living. This program targets youth living in Washington DC. Brainfood provides youth with a safe and structured environment where they can take healthy risks, challenge themselves, learn new skills, and make healthy choices.

Local high school students can participate in a variety of Brainfood programs, all designed to address the capacities, strengths, and development needs of youth. Brainfood Kitchen All Stars and Brainfood Community are year-long programs, while Brainfood Summer Institute is a five-week program conducted in the summer. Activities during these programs include hands-on cooking classes, lectures, field trips and community service projects. Topics covered during the classes include, but are not limited to: kitchen orientation and safety, knife skills, baking, vegetable dishes, healthy breakfasts, and seasonings and spices.

The goal of Brainfood is to engage young people in healthy, creative cooking activities to build life skills and promote healthy living.

For the 2010-2011 school year, 92 students enrolled in the Brainfood After School program. Evaluations at the end of the program revealed that 82% of participants rated their cooking skills as "I can cook anything" or "I'm pretty good," compared to only 43% in September. Also, 73% of participants said that they could work out their problems and 98% said that they have goals and plans for the future and plan to graduate high school and attend college. Some participants were invited to cook alongside professional White House chefs, prepping food for holiday gatherings, the Congressional Picnic and the 4th of July picnic for military families.