Since last October at Redmond Community Centre, Manor House, a local organisation called Red Moon Roots has held weekly ‘cook and eat’ sessions. They have a focus on bringing people together from different backgrounds across Woodberry Down estate and beyond, and have been running these sessions regularly over the past two years.
People and children of all ages are welcome to come to these open workshops to learn skills and share a meal with each other, taking the time to get to know their neighbours.
Funded by Hackney council, the project highlights the plight of food waste in this consumerist culture – food that has passed its ‘sell by date’ but is still perfectly edible, a little bruised or wonky, ‘ugly’ fruit or vegetables that can no longer be sold – all are given a new lease of life in the community kitchen.
Red Moon Roots has built up relationships with local shops in the area, which crosses three boroughs of Hackney, Haringey and Islington, especially with Seasons & Blossoms on Blackstock Road and Fresh n Fruity on Stamford Hill. These shops regularly donate plant-based produce, enough to fill up the team’s bike trailer, which they then cycle back to the community centre to get creative making vegan food with volunteers.
A cook and eat session is a mix of learning, experimenting and playing in the kitchen. Sometimes the group follow a recipe, other times trusting people to create something delicious from their own experience with a little guidance on ingredients and working with what is available. This is a great way for people from different ethnic backgrounds to gain confidence and show the rest of the group something from their heritage. This means each session has a different learning objective and the outcome is a co-creative feast!
If people can’t come to the kitchen and help this process happen, they are welcome to come and enjoy a wholesome meal and offer a donation, giving value to the project and also contributing towards extra goods such as quality olive oil, gluten free options and unrefined cane sugar – ‘let food be thy medicine’ as Hippocrates said, after-all.
Over the next few weeks of March 2017, Red Moon Roots will be running their last few funded sessions of this season until further notice –
Friday 10th March DINNER SESSION – volunteers welcome from 4pm, dinner served around 6pm then collective clear up
Wednesday 15th and 22nd LUNCH SESSIONS – volunteers welcome from 11am, lunch around 1pm then collective clear up
Friday 31st LUNCH and DINNER CELEBRATIONS – the timings are the same as above plus a screening of a film and activities
For more info contact:
[email protected] / 07538 906477
www.redmoonroots.com or look at their Facebook or Instagram page