Food Shortage at a Cooking Class?

A stone soup of sorts might be on the menu for Wilton teens taking a summer cooking class this week.

The summer program, "Now You're Cookin!" is slated to start Monday. But with only eight students registered, as opposed to the hoped for 12, there is a slight food shortage. As a result the class's organizers hope local vendors will consider contributing to the kettle.

"Right now, we need as much help as possible getting this class off the ground," said Dolores Tufariello, coordinator of Wilton Continuing Education. "We do need a food donation because the registration is low."

The class is looking for help from Wilton's Ambler Farm, Stop & Shop and Village Market.

Ambler Farm might be able to spare some lettuce, kale and beets, but "they just don't have that much to harvest right now," said Emily Dowden, Wilton Continuing Education's children's programs' supervisor.

The course will be held at Trackside Teen Center. Middle and high school students will learn how to prepare healthy, quick meals under the watchful eye of Carol Leonetti Dannhauser, a TV producer and experienced cook. The students will cook in Trackside's commercial kitchen.

"This class is really what we, Wilton and the rest of society, needs right now; a wake-up call to eating healthy and loving it by introducing all sorts of food groups," Tufariello said "There is no area more ripe for collaboration than this."

Because the class will emphasize nutritious snacks and meals Dannhauser said they would also welcome offerings from kitchen gardens. Blueberries, raspberries, and zucchini are in abundance now.

"We're trying to carry the mantle for local, and sustainable eating," she said. "We're happy to take produce form people's gardens."

The program will run from July 12 through July 16. There will be a morning session for middle school students and an afternoon session for teens of any age. It costs $195, plus a $25 food fee to enroll. Interested students can still enroll on line at www.wiltoncontinuinged.org