In mid-September, we hosted an amazing cooking class with food educator, land steward, and long-time vegan/vegetarian chef Mama Yawah Awolowo! Yawah was raised in East Knoxville and operated a vegan restaurant here for many years. She now stewards her ancestral land in Cuba, Alabama while continuing with her food education, cooking, and food systems advocacy.
Yawah and her team prepared a fully plant-based, home-cooked meal that we shared together at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in East Knoxville. She taught class participants to make nut-based paté that can be used in a variety of ways in the kitchen! She also shared an allergen-free, pumpkin seed version for those with tree nut allergies.
We also shared a hearty kale salad, sautéed yellow squash, green beans, eggplant, and mixed veggies!
We appreciate our community partners at the Knox County Community Gardens and Growers Alliance (KCCGGA) for providing us fresh veggies from the Pastor Richard S. Brown Jr. Community Garden that truly made this meal farm-to-fork!
Mama Yawah teaching the class how to make nut pate (and telling stories!)
Mama Yawah adding nutrtional yeast to the nut pate
Two home garden participants holding glass tupperware and a knife set that they get to take home to their kitchens
The recipe is secret!
Class attendees enjoying the meal together after the live demonstration
We were also able to distribute to every participant various kitchenware of their choosing from meal prep containers to peelers to knife sets. This was all thanks to a donation from our friends at Nourish Knoxville, an organization that promotes local farms and farmers markets.
Our goal with our programming is not just for community to grow food but to feel empowered to prepare and eat that food & share it with loved ones and neighbors. This is how we care for ourselves and one another.
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