CrackingGoodFood - Cooking Summary Jan 2010 - Jan 2015

Cracking Good Cooking Sessions
Summary of Cooking Activity: January 2010 January 2015
Year
Sessions
Community
Public
2010
49
10
2011
62
2012
Total
Participants
Total
Community
Public
69
1153
107
1260
28
90
1275
325
1600
85
41
126
971
515
1486
2013
86
45
131
2457
516
2973
2014
81
35
116
1654
458
2112
Total:
363
159
522
7510
1921
9431
A Manchester based cooking network
E-mail us
We have run over 500 hands-on cooking sessions
We cook in the community and with the paying public
We cook from scratch with local seasonal food
We have cooked with nearly 10,000 participants
We have cooked & worked with over 80 organisations to date
We run cooking programmes and individual bespoke sessions
We have over 100 volunteers & 20 cooks
We train people up as co-ordinators and cooks
We are a not-for-profit social enterprise
We boost our local economy by buying local and employing local people
We are a part of Manchesters sustainable food network
Photos/blogs all hyperlinked in report
Where we have cooked so far

Please click here to see the full map with a list of location
Adele Jordan adele@crackinggoodfood.org

Juliet Lawson juliet@crackinggoodfood.org
Call us
0845 652 2572
Adele Jordan 0791 067 3113
Juliet Lawson 07815 113510
www.crackinggoodfood.org
#2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abbey Hey Primary School, Gorton
1
Action For Sustainable Living
1
Adactus Housing Association
1
Barlow Hall Primary School, Mersey Bank Estate, Chorlton
2
Benchill Primary School, Wythenshawe
3
Biospheric Foundation, Salford 4
Bite, Mental Health 4
Boaz Trust
5
Buddleia 5
Bury Council
5
Cheetham Hill High Street Revival
6
Canon Burrows Primary School, Ashton
6
Chorlton Arts Festival
7
Chorlton Community Central
7
Chorlton Good Neighbours 8
Chorlton Green Farmers Market 9
Chorlton Green Festival
9
Chorlton Library
10
Contour Housing Association
11
Dandelion Food Community
11
DEP (Development Education Project) 12
Dial Park Primary School, Stockport
12
Didsbury Dinners Low Carbon Cookbook: Book Launch 13
Didsbury Dinners Low Carbon Cookbook: Cooking programme
Emerge & Fareshare Zipwire Fundraiser
15
Fareshare Greater Manchester 15
Feeding Manchester 15
Feeding the 5000
16
Food Futures 17
Friends of the Earth Festival
18
GMWDA (Greater Mcr Waste Disposal Authority) 19
Glebelands City Growers, Sale
20
Growing Manchester 21
Hickson & Blacks Delicatessen, Chorlton
21
14
Horse & Jockey Food Festival, Chorlton21

Hulme Garden Centre
22
Jamie Olivers Food Revolution 22
JNR8 Youth & Community Centre 22
Kindling Trust 23
LEAF: Link in Education & Farming
23
Loreto College 24
Lost Plot Allotment 24
Love Food Hate Waste 2011 - 2012
25
Love Food Hate Waste 2013 2014
26
Manchester Art Gallery
27
Manchester City Council
28
Manchester Food & Drink Festival
28
Manchester International Festival
29
Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust, Hi Tea Event, Albert Square 30
Manchester Museum 31
Manchester Veg People
31
Manchester Youth Service 32
Mersey Bank Estate. Riverbank Community Caf & Market Garden 32
Mosaic Young Persons Drug & Alcohol Service, Stockport
33
NACRO
33
Natural Recovery, Sale
34
Nell Lane / Arrowfield Estate, Chorlton 35
OLC (Europe) Ltd
36
Old Hall Drive Primary, Gorton
36
Oldham Borough Council 37
OTAGS Old Trafford Amateur Gardeners' Society 38
Pankhurst Centre
38
Parkview Primary School, Miles Platting, East Manchester
39
Places for People Housing Association 39
Post Box Caf, Chorlton
40
Probation Service (Greater Manchester Probation Trust) 40
Real Junk Food Project
43
Recycle for Greater Manchester - Museum of Science & Industry Fashion or Rubbish fashion show
Red Rose Forest
44
43
Reddish Vale Technology College 44

Sale Grammar School
44
Salford University
45
Seymour Road Primary School, Clayton, East Manchester
46
Smithfields Market, East Manchester 47
Social adVentures
47
Shoots
48
Stockport Council
49
Sustainable Consumption Institute
49
Thames Primary School, Blackpool
50
Tonge Moor School, Bolton 50
Trafford Health & Wellbeing Day based in Stretford
51
Trafford Housing Trust
51
Unicorn Co-Operative Grocery 51
Unity Festival. St. Margarets Primary School, Whalley Range 52
Vegetarian Society 53
Village Greens Co-operative, Prestwich
53
Wentworth High School, Eccles 53
Youg Persons Addiction Counselling
54
Young People Support Foundation
54
Zest
55
COMMUNITY COOKING
1.
Community Group /
Client
What we achieved
Abbey Hey Primary

School, Gorton
We spent a very busy day cooking with

60 Year 4 kids. They were split into
groups of 20 at a time and we taught
them how easy, cheap and delicious
savoury filled pancakes are to make.
They loved them!
2013
Cool for School Photos
Action For
Sustainable
Living
2011
Feedback
The event was brilliant, the session was fun, the children
really enjoyed taking part and they learned a lot about
healthy eating in the process. Thanks, Vicky. Yr 4
Teacher.
Cool for School Blog
2.
Photos
We have collaborated over the years,

mostly with the Lost Plot allotment,
residents of Nell Lane Estate & Meat
Free Monday.
See Lost Plot for further details.
Outside Winner Photos
3.
Adactus Housing
Association
2013, 2014 & 2015
Filling Station Photos

NEW! Our Cook now
cooks with residents of
their sheltered housing
scheme on a regular basis.
Our trial was so popular
that some funding was
found by them & its
The CGF team set up a stall in Miles

Platting as part of a fun day for
residents. There were craft stalls,
workshops and a bouncy castle, so, to
keep up everyone's energy, we made
spiced gram flour pancakes stuffed
with a tasty veggie filling made using
donated produce from Fareshare.
Our cook Maz with our volunteer
Claire, sauteed mushrooms, onion and
garlic and the mixture was then served
on a bed of lettuce and tomatoes and
rolled up into delicious handheld
pancakes. Everyone went away with
the recipe to try themselves at home.
Cracking Good Food provided us with some fantastic

food for our Summer Festival in August. Residents
thoroughly enjoyed the really tasty recipes and were
pleasantly surprised that they were made from
ingredients from Fareshare in Openshaw.
Isobel Howard. Resident Involvement Officer,
continuing. A happy ending!
4.
Barlow Hall Primary

School, Mersey
Bank Estate,
Chorlton
2013
We ran 2 x 4-week cooking

programmes with the parents at the
school, funded by Southway Housings
Community Fund. Driven by a very
focused member of the schools staff,
the enthusiastic response and results
exceeded all expectations.
2 participants from the first
programme then volunteered to help
at the second.
Over the course, they cooked up
vegetable stir fry, chicken & vegetable
Madras curry, fishcakes & salsa with
poached eggs, stew, fruit cheesecake,
Rendang curry & tasty chicken wings.
We supplied everyone with a useful
Spice Starter Pack at the end of each
course so that they can continue to use
Results:
100% participants found that cooking by scratch can
help make your money go further. 17% were consuming
4+ pieces of fruit and veg per day at the start of the
course, whilst, 77% were doing so at the course end.
100% said that they had made new friends.
22% didnt feel the session could be improved, 44%
would have liked longer sessions or a longer course,
whilst the remaining 3 people said they would have liked
a smaller group; more vegetarian/vegan recipes or to be
able to do more cooking.
89% chose being given some more ideas of meals to
cook at home as one of their top 3 reasons for doing the
course.
Feedback:
Go along and learn something new, have a laugh and
educate yourself on healthy diet, gain confidence in
their new-found skills. We also

provided them all with their own
cooks apron.
Food was provided by
Fareshare North West, a
charity that re-directs
short dated food from
composting to those in
need.
On occasions participants
were able to take a bag of
surplus fresh fruit & veg
home.
We were keen to know whether

attending the sessions contributed to
feeling more positive about their skills
in the workplace and specifically the
catering industry. 56% felt that their
chances had improved because they
know more about food, that good food
doesnt cost as much as theyd thought
and one participant would like to
explore jobs in catering.
Various Barlow Hall

Blogs
Malaysian must haves
Photos
Home made fish cakes &
salsa Photos
Barlow Hall get chopping
Photos
Let them eat fishcakes!
Photos
Spicing Things Up
Photos
Open Sesame Photos
Stew & Strawberries
Photos:
All felt their confidence (when

cooking) had improved over the
course, with 56% feeling their
confidence had greatly improved.
cooking
Really enjoyed it and would have loved to do another few
weeks
The course is brilliant and you learn a lot
Learns you alot and meeting new people.
Am proud of myself with this cooking
Had a great first class today, thank you
I just really enjoyed it and 100% would love to cook with
you again
Motivated to be bothered to get kids interested in healthy
food - Loved it all thanks
Thank you so so much - great people
Enthusiasm and excitement of instructors & sense of fun
rubs off. I find cooking at home less boring now.
Truthfully everything.
After completing 2 very successful Cracking Good Food
4 week courses, the parents and myself are sad to say
Good bye. Tracey, Miranda and Kim have been one of
the best outside agencies I have had the pleasure of
working with!
CGF team have delivered what they said on the tin and
more! They have provided all equipment/ food/
everything. From a school point of view we provided the
room, tea and coffee and not forgetting our lovely
parents!
CGF team have given many parents not just cooking
experience. But skills for life, to impact on healthier
children and themselves! This has been one of the best
experiences I have been able to share with our parents.
The CGF team has changed not only the way I look at
food and food waste, but that of a school! A BIG thankyou
from all the parents and most of all ME! Hope to carry on
with this great work!
Sharon, Barlow Hall Community School Oct13
5.
Benchill Primary
School,
Wythenshawe
We ran 2 x 4-week programmes for

parents and children after school,
cooking up dishes that they chose
themselves from our display of 10
options. We cooked up pasta sauces,
Punjabi dhal and chapattis, burgers
and spicy wedges, stew & dumplings,
pizzas, lasagne & savoury pancakes.
4 week course, funded by

Manchester City Council.
Each group received a Spice Starter

Pack at the end of the programme:
various spices, herbs, fresh ginger,
garlic, chilli and lemons, to help them
on their way so that they could make
dishes again easily at home.
2013
For parents and their

children at the school.
They didnt want the cooking to stop!

Top this photos
Discovering the sauce photos
Various Dial Park School

Blogs
I loved cooking with my son, plus the food was gorgeous.

Brilliant teaching Rachel
Making pizza with my son and daughter Tyra and Tydell
and having a giggle while making it Naomi
Plenty of equipment for all & working together as a team,
learning and sharing the making of pizzas from scratch
Mary
Had a brilliant time learning about different foods and
ways of cooking foods I wouldnt have thought of to give
the different tastes Mary
I have really enjoyed cooking with the team & being able
to use ingredients & spices Ive never used before - Anna
Thank you for this opportunity Hayley and Jonathon
Learning how to make a lasagne from scratch and using
different vegetables instead of meat Anna
Making something I have never tried or never tried to
make before. Trying new things such as sunflower seeds
and beetroot Emma
Overall I have enjoyed this experience so have my
daughters. I have used ingredients I never thought of
using before ie lentils rosemary, fresh beetroot Anna
For me all the event was enjoyable because its an
entirely new and nice experience Adebola
Had a lovely experience and will definitely use this to my
advantage Anna
Definitely going to attend the next sessions at Benchill
Primary School Mary
6.
Biospheric
Foundation,
Salford
We ran two high-end bespoke cooking

sessions for the public with food
sourced/grown in Salford as part of
the Manchester International Festival.
Free for participants.
July 2013.
7.
Bite, Mental Health

2010
Partnership between
Manchester Mind &
Manchester Mental Health
& Social Care Trust
Linked to Harp.
Work with people who
have experience of mental
health issues.
8.
Boaz Trust
2014
The Boaz Trust is a
Christian organisation
serving destitute asylum
seekers in Greater
Manchester.
We ran 2 outdoor cooking sessions

based at their allotment in Southern
Cemetery with their clients who have
learning difficulties
No future funding available at the
time.
Hopping In Great Outdoor Blog
Our half day bread session (Breaking

Bread) was spent baking a basic loaf,
naans and focaccia with 12 ladies
representing so many corners of the
globe; Cuba, China, Iran, Kenya,
Uganda and many more. Some were
able to share their own native
breadmaking styles, whilst a lady from
Eritrea demonstrated how they
decorate their own flat breads using a
fork - simply stunning.
Bread Matters Photos
What aspects did you find particularly

interesting / useful?
I learnt all aspects, I learnt how to hold a knife correctly
which was good and how different flavours of food went
well together Rowena
Well organised, professionaldelivered in a relaxed
manner. Knowledgeable, effectively involved all
attendees in the preparation and cooking of both dishes.
I found the recipe print out useful as well as the
nutritional info. It also helped that the food was very
tasty! Dan
Feedback:
The clients were really engaged and seemed to enjoy their
time. They have said they will continue to bake bread at
home in the future and would love to do something similar
again. The management was amazing on the day, (as was
the pizza) and it was completely relaxed and enjoyable.
They were fantastic, the clients that attended had varying
levels of English, however they all seemed to understand
well. Kat Whitehead, Organiser
9.
Buddleia
Buddleia is a new commissioning

agency for art and public space, based
in Manchester, England
We first worked together on the Manchester International

Festival at the Salford Biosphere then with the Cheetham
High Street Revival.
http://www.buddleiacommissions.word
press.com
10. Bury Council

2014
Freshen Up Photos
Using food from Fareshare we cooked

dhal, zesty raita and rice served on a
dressed spinach salad for over 70
people attending the Brighter
Futures service user community
event funded by Bury City Council.
Everyone received a Take Away kit
filled with ingredients & recipes to
cook again.
Attendees left feeling they had learnt to cook something
new which was cheap, nutritious and accessible in their
local area.
11.
Cheetham Hill High

Street Revival
2013
In November, we went up to
Cheetham Hill to get a group of local
residents cooking from scratch in the
Unit 16 empty shop run by the
Buddleia organisation.
Shopping and Chopping

Blog
We "reclaimed the high street",

shopping local for the veg to make our
saag aloo, raita and gram flour
pancakes. It was a really inspiring
event and free for participants, who
were really keen to help out Cracking
Cook Kim and the days assistant Maz.
Shopping and Chopping

Photos
Shop Local Photos
Thanks to Matthew
Shanley for these great
The following responses were given when asked what

aspects they found interesting/useful: Social engagement
| Getting the community together/ New cooking skills |
Meeting new people | getting children involved.
Nothing (could be improved) I loved it and thought (the
session) was perfect - A Sharmoon.
The beetroot was a new fascinating thing, also the
parsnip was enjoyable - A Ilyas
100% said they would cook the dish again
Buddleia worked with Cracking Good Food to deliver a
shop and cook session in their pop up shop unit25 on
Cheetham Hill high street in November. We worked with
local parents and their children to shop locally and
seasonally, then cook together back in the shop space. It
was really great way to engage parents with their
children, many of the vegetables had not been used by the
group before and it was an impressive menu produced on
photos!
12. Canon Burrows

2014
Primary School,
Ashton
School Trip Photos
a very small budget. It was a really inspiring and

thoroughly enjoyable day, everyone learnt something
new that day.
Kerenza McClarnan. Curator.
Maz & Kim cooked lipsmackingly

good Mexican-inspired quesadillas
and salsa with representatives from
each year group, in 8 consecutive
sessions throughout the day.
The cooking was really good because we got to eat everything

we had cooked - Libby, Yr3
Really really tasty, also it was scrumptious April - Yr3
My classroom smelt like a Mexican restaurant! - Mrs
Thompson, Teacher
AMAZING - Lydia, Yr3
It was very well organised & run. The children enjoyed it so
much they all said Can we do cooking more often? - Mrs
Holland, TA
It was fun & I learnt how to make really nice wraps.McKenzie, Yr5;
Very well organised, excellent time keeping, super- efficient.
All the children had a wonderful learning experience. - Mr
Clark, Teacher
13. Chorlton Arts
Festival
2010 and 2011 & 2014
Open to the general public

shopping in the Chorlton
Precinct, for over 2 years.
Live Lunch on Chorlton
FM Blog
We collaborated with Chorlton FM,

twice, to cook live on air. We ran
another outside Quality Save. We
cooked Mumbai sweet & sour lentils,
Bengali mushrooms, fish cakes & naan
bread.
The footfall was enormous and the
interest was very high. We applied for
funding to use the empty radio station
unit as a drop in cooking station but
were not successful.
This is always subject to funding. We
were only able to run these sessions
because of our LFF funding.
What aspects did you find particularly interesting /

useful?
What you have to put in first because when I am older I
will need to (k)now and I do now Xena
Learn how to cook with my hands - Jock
Great for kids to have an opportunity to prepare, cook
and eat their own food. Thanks for the opportunity - Lisa
An inspired concept - Dee
People are really enjoying it. The staff are very nice and
helpful Marina
The ingredients were interesting and also what was
useful was that you got to know what particular
ingredients were good for which things/food Matilda
They are great informative interactive Kate
Do them more central and in schools! - K McClare
Radio Days Blog

In Air For Second Time
Blog
Chorlton Arts Festival
Street Feast Photos
Market Traders Photos
14. Chorlton
2011
Community
Central
Members of the Skills For

Success training
programme.
We ran a one-off, hands-on cooking

session with a group of teenagers.
Participants learnt to cook two easy
and tasty veggie stir-fry dishes and
then everyone sat down to eat at the
end.
We were working on a funding bid
with them to develop further
collaboration, especially within areas
of Adult Learning, but this was not
successful.

useful?
Use of some unusual ingredients. Looking at the
nutritional value of the food Karen
It was cooking quickly 2) Save time and money as well 3)
Enjoy to cook Matt and Zohreh
Joining a new group. Participating in the cookery
activity. Enjoying the tastes of new flavours and textures
Tracy
Preparing the dish before cooking. Learning about using
different flavours and ingredients I would not normally
use Conor
Stir-fries For Success Blog We have also given a presentation to

their Skills for Employment group.
Photos
15.
Chorlton Good
Neighbours
2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
and ongoing.
We have run sessions there for 4 years

now, and have cooked a wide range of
dishes with them: Pasta, Stews, Soups,
Pumpkin Pie, Parkin, Fish, Tofu and
even Moules Mariniere.
Many of the group are quite elderly,
and some have quite conservative
tastes in food, whilst others are more
adventurous. There is a wide range of
cooking ability and we try to maintain
a balance between dishes that they
might be familiar with and
introducing them to new ingredients
& flavours.
Community group for the

over 60s.
Various Chorlton Good
Neighbours Blogs
Gone fishing Photos
Stew good Photos
Chorlton Good
Neighbours Photos
We will continue to cook with them as

long as funding allows. Even Moules!
The order in which you cooked the food Carol

I have learnt some cooking today, it was great. I am
going to try at home Matt and Zohreh
Both tutors were very friendly, helpful and explained
everything in understandable detail. They also gave help
and tips with regards to recipe Tracy
I have been very impressed with CGF, in particular their
willingness to receive feedback and adapt to the clients
needs, and the low key, friendly manner in which the
cooking sessions are delivered.
Helen Hibberd, Co-ordinator, Chorlton Good
Neighbours
useful?
Considering I haven't had stir fry before I really enjoyed
this meal Kathleen
Different ingredients in stir fry were new to me anonymous
It was all interesting, especially learning how to make
suet pastry + to boil pumpkin/squash to make peeling
easier. Tasty! Gemma
The combination of pumpkin sweet potatoes
mushrooms. Excellent programme Jenny
Very entertaining & informative Joyce
Watching the ingredients cook and eating them later
Wendy
Everything was explained so clearly, it was good that we
could ask questions Enid
Good atmosphere Dorothy and Peter
Everything was very enjoyable Jean
Cooking and demonstration together Halina
General atmosphere. Very sociable also Barbara
It was interesting finding out about new vegetables that
I've never heard of Susette
Clearly explained in detail + I'm going to try this out
June
Very nice, happy atmosphere. Easy to follow Joyce
Baines
16. Chorlton Green

2010
Farmers Market
For the general public.

An awareness event.
17.
Chorlton Green
Festival
2010 (launch), 2011 and
2012 & 2014
We cooked up apple & parsnip soup as

an awareness and profile-raising
exercise at this local Christmas
farmers market outside the Horse &
Jockey.
Questionnaires were handed out, asking people what

theyd like to cook with us. We have been able to act upon
this information in developing our public and community
programmes.
We developed new contacts with the

producers of fine food there.
We launched here in 2010 so these
were our first ever cooking workshops.
We have cooked there twice since.
Unfortunately the festival wasnt
running in 2013 as there were not
enough people available to organize it
but theyre hoping to get it off the
ground again in 2014 and wed love to
deliver workshops there again if we
can find the funding.
In 2010 we cooked stir-fry.
In 2011 we cooked Punjabi stuffed
parathas and dhal.
In 2012 we collaborated with
Stretford Pizza Ovens to make pizzas
from scratch.
We ran rolling fully participatory
workshops throughout the day with
groups of no more than 8. Everyone
then sat down to eat.
In 2011 we ranked first out of 13 great
projects for Manchester City Councils
U Decide scheme to run our session at
the Chorlton Green Festival 2012.
Video of Cracking Good Food at
Chorltons Big Green Festival 2011

useful?
2010
Really enjoyed learning about the basics and creating a
meal to share Leanne
Local produce team effort. Good idea for local groups
except schools etc. to encourage healthy eating. Good
luck with your venture Katie
Group teamwork was enjoyable and using tofu and
sauces made a big difference to the food that Ive never
used before. Lovely people in charge Rhosyn
The speed and simplicity of making stir-fry. Discovered
some veggies Ive not used before. Staff very helpful
Vicky
2011
Listening to all the top tips of how to kneed and make
the chapattis. You would never get that in a recipe book
Rachel
I have always enjoyed everything at Cracking Good Food!
Rachel
Demo how to cook chapattis properly by a real
expert. The whole demo was excellent, friendly,
educational James and Eva
How to use spices for the dhal very tasty dhal Mark +
Hanae
Finding more elaborate + delicious ways to make things I
can sort of make already Katie
Using a variety of new spices Great event, fun + good
organisation - Sarah
How the instructions were easily set out Harry
Spice mix & eating parathas for first time very
Short film of us in action cooking

pizzas at Chorltons Big Green Festival
2012
Cracking Day for Cracking

Launch Blog
Spice Girls Blog
Pizza Action Blog
Cracking Good Food
Launch Photos
Big Green Birthday
Photos
Pizza the action Photos
Spring festivals 2014
18. Chorlton Library
2010
From Plot to Pot.

A cooking session with Glebelands
Market Garden, Sale, using their
organic seasonal produce picked that
morning.
We cooked a delicious soup with
seasonal squash, cavolo nero and
nutritious faro grains.
www.glebelandscitygrowers.co.uk
Cooking Books Blog

From Plot to Pot Photos
Funded through the library.

No more funding available.
enjoyable - Emma Barrett

Using different spices, watching the expert - excellent
way to spend 1 hr for little money Gayno
How to make curry without using fat really enjoyable +
great value Fran
Specialty cuisine Yumm...Great session, I'm glad there
was a vegan option!! - Luke
2012
How the instructions were easily set out Harry
Everything. Was lovely. The people and the pizza was
excellent Eliana
Finding new food types (and tasting them before putting
on pizza) Billie
Making + resting dough. Adding a pear for sweetness +
less is more for topping James
The whole experience was awesome from the start.
Especially baking outside Scott
Really enjoyed learning about the basics & creating a
meal to share Leanne
Using pears in a tomato (pizza) sauce cooking in charcoal
oven Liz
It was fun! Non-judgemental so anyone can come Liz
Yes using spinach and pears for pizza Ali and Nargis
This was more of an informative event with the members
of Glebelands able to talk to people about what they had
picked that morning and what they were cooking.
The library kindly provided a prize hamper for those that
entered their name into the raffle. The hamper was made
up of freshly picked produce from Glebelands that
morning.
19. Contour Housing

2013
Association
In July and August 2103 we pitched

up for financial inclusion events in
Salford & Oldham, cooking up savoury
stuffed pancakes for the residents
using food sourced from Fareshare
NW.
Following on from the fantastic feedback weve had from

our previous road show in Salford, we would love to
acquire your services again for another road show that
were putting on in Oldham on 22nd August
Mr Rob Davies, Financial Inclusion Officer.
Contour Homes
We also provided 75 Take Away Kits

which contained the raw ingredients, a
breakdown of the costs so that people
can see how cheap it is to make &
recipe sheet so that it could be easily
replicated at home.
What a take away!
Blog
Curry in a hurry Photos
20. Dandelion Food
Community
2012
Harjinder taught participants how to

make a fabulous vegetarian curry
using affordable vegetables &
chickpeas with her secret blend of
spices which made this even more
delicious.
Funding permitting we would like to
run more sessions with this group.
Tree Of Life centre in

Wythenshawe
General community group
instigated through Sustain
Right Curry On Blog

useful?
The name meaning + origin of the food. Also, the Asian
way of making an Indian dish Julie
The use of spices, bit of this & bit of that like Alchemy
Pauline
Everything very interesting/useful, and edible. Many
thanks Peter
Find out how 2 cook Indian food Carol
21. DEP (Development
Education
Project)
2013
5-week breadmaking
courses for unemployed
adults living in Greater
Manchester, with priority
to residents from Old
Trafford, Chorlton,
Whalley Range, MossSide, Fallowfield and Old
Moat.
This was based at St
Margarets Centre,
Brantingham Road,
Chorlton, M21 0TT
Various DEP breadmaking
sessions Blogs
In collaboration with
the Development Education Project
(DEP) www.dep.org.uk we ran 2 x 5week bread making courses.
For 3 hours each week, a group of 10
worked with our artisan baker Rob,
cooking up a range of breads: soda
bread, wholewheat, rye, bagels, pizza,
focaccia, finishing off with hot cross
buns and Chelsea buns for their
celebratory party and certificate
presentation.
The skills they learnt and the
confidence they built up over the 5
weeks was remarkable.
They all want to continue to meet up
with their newly found friends, to
cook!
A recipe book was produced to
accompany this project
Naughty, with spice Photos
Well raised Photos
Soda so good Photos
I liked sharing and making the pizza and focaccia

Zienab
Every moment was surprising for me, especially when I
was making focaccia because its new for me. I am very
happy today - Gulsham
I found new things for example, anchovies, fish,
rosemary flower and crunch. Now I am confident in
baking Gulsham
Going through the making whilst being demonstration. I
will remember the actions - Liam
I found it interesting when my bread rose up to the tin
and when Rob described the definition of yeast very
clearly and his hand made bread was amazing Rozina
I was excited about bread making. I learned basic bread
today, it was great. Its so easy and interesting Amber
Development Education Project ran a 10 week Bread
Making course for unemployed adults at St Margarets
Centre early this year. We worked with Cracking Good
Food who provided the expertise and equipment and the
participants on the course were all really inspired by the
passion and knowledge of Rob the Baker as we
affectionately called him.
Clare Cowell. Director DEP
Flat pack Photos
All you knead is loaf Photos
Baking hot Photos
22. Dial Park Primary

2011
School,
Stockport
This was our first course. We realized

that a one-off cooking session can
leave an impression but far more
input is needed to change peoples
perceptions and habits for the long
term and to genuinely increase their
skills & confidence.
Click here for testimonial from Jill Smith,

Business Manager, Dial Park Primary School
The team have provided a brilliant experience for our
parents @ the school, thank you Jill
Tasty event, something new for children to eat which
they enjoyed Natalie
For parents and their

children at the school.
4 week course, funded
through the Co-operative
Membership fund.
They wanted to set up a
cooking club when we left
(they were so enthused)
but due to lack of
funding /help sadly this
hasnt happened yet.
We ran a series of 4 sessions with the

school kids and their parents. The first
week was intended as a demo just to
warm things up gently but the kids
couldnt wait to get stuck in.
The parents werent so interested....at
first, but the enthusiasm of the kids
won them over and by the end of the
4th week, we had a group of parents
who were intent on setting up a
cooking club.
Once encouraged to help (as we
phrase it), they were in.
We are actively pursuing funding
opportunities with the Departments of
Health & Education about delivering
more of these courses, but have not
been successful to date.
Various Dial Park School

Blogs
Cool for School Photos
Stockpot in Stockport
Photos
Currying favours Photos
23. Didsbury Dinners
Low Carbon
Cookbook: Book
Launch
2011
Based at the Albert Club in Didsbury.

This was a demo event to help
promote the cookbook.
We cooked up our recipe from the
book a vegetable jalfrezi. Everyone
took the recipe home.
Getting everyone involved *using sharp knives and

showing the safe ways *knowledge of ingredients +
combinations Blake
Try to cook different kind of food. THX I really did
enjoy cooking tonite. I never try before cooking stir-frys
food. Is always good learn something new. I LOVE IT!!!
Justyna
Helped this time and did not sit on my bum Ian
The squashing one in mash and fish Lewis Heyes
The way garlic makes yogurt spicy Ryan
I liked the way everyone was involved and like the
burgers we made. Peeling carrots and grating them
Russell + Danielle
Yeah I have learnt how you can get your children to eat
vegetables in a meal Clare
All ingredients for stir fry, which, will try at home
Natalie Heyes
I really did enjoy cooking tonite. I never try before
cooking stir-frys food. Is always good learn something
new Justyna
Kids tasting new things Colette
Trying different food that I would not normally get. Also
I did it with my daughter so it was nice doing it with just
her Emma
I found the cooking very useful, all the tips came handy
Natalie
I really did enjoyed Justyna
All of it was great. I would be happy to come again it was
fab Gemma
Children involved with veg + cutting of it with making
dumplings Natalie
Audience were very friendly and interested, asked lots of
questions about the food and the Low Carbon idea.
Everyone seems to enjoy the food and were keen to take
the recipe to try at home.
Nicola (volunteer)
For the general public,

promoted by The Albert
Club and Didsbury
Dinners. Many were Club
regulars
We have sold many copies of Didsbury

Dinners: the Low Carbon Cookbook,
at our public cooking sessions. All
proceeds go back to help fund further
projects.
Didsbury Dinners Blog

Didsbury Dinners Photos
Didsbury Dinners
Low Carbon
Cookbook:
Cooking
programme
2011
Funded entirely by sales of
the Didsbury Dinners:
Low Carbon Cookbook.
For low income
individuals who had a lack
of cooking skills, selected
via an application process
handled by Didsbury
Dinners
Veggie Good Blog
Rookie Cooks Blog
Feeling Chilli Blog
Learning to cook Photos
Rookie Cooks round two
Photos
A 4-week low carbon (vegan) course

based at the Didsbury Sure Start
Centre. The group cooked up stir fries,
pasta dishes, curries & a Mexican feast
followed by a delicious vegan
chocolate mousse!
Run in collaboration with Amanda
Woodvine, editor of the book. All
proceeds go back into community
cooking projects.
They are now running a Level 1 course
themselves with the help of volunteers
who they have trained up.
We continue to sell the book and
incorporate much of the valuable
content in our handouts.

useful?
Too bad course is only 4 times Mario
How simple it is to make tomato sauce Smelling new
spices Swapping tips and ideas - A friendly tutor/chef
has been very helpful! Pricilla
All Aspects. Brilliant. Tasted wonderful Jo
Stir-frying, making the dressing tips to reduce
energy/time Curries! And how easily tomato sauces
can be made. I love the curry! Soyoung
All the yummy quick recipes were useful & delicious
P.Reilly-Hurst
All the different ingredients, some of which of I had not
seen put in use before. The co-operative between the
students in chopping etc was fun Jo
Real good value meals Patricia
Loved the enthusiasm of the teachers! I enjoyed finding
about the different herbs and spices to make it tastier.
Covering of all the basics, explaining chopping
techniques and how to make dressings. Friendly
atmosphere, would like to know how to grow my own veg
if theres a handout on that! - Rebecca
Tips for chopping garlic keeping veg fresh in the
freezer + doing it in batches Alison
Interesting to see different veg Ive never used before
Graeme
New veg and how to chop. Really enjoyed the recipe
Michael
Would you recommend the course?
Yes, oh yes; To everyone I know: Yes, definitely!
24. Emerge & Fareshare
Zipwire
Fundraiser
2011
Event open to the general

public in Salford Quays
outside the Lowry Gallery
& Theatre
Getting Your Fair Share
Blog
With other Manchester chefs we

cooked up Risotto & Vegetable Jalfrezi
with short-dated food that would
otherwise have gone to landfill or
compost sites.
This was not a participatory event as our concern was to

work with Fareshare, bringing an awareness of their redistributing of short dated food to community groups.
It was a fundraising event to help bring in desperately
needed funds for this invaluable community work.
We continue to work with Fareshare

who donate food for our community
cooking sessions where possible.
We also collaborated with Fareshare &
www.feeding5k.org to raise
awareness of food waste in Spring
2013 at the Feeding the 5000 event.
There we cooked with unwanted
short-dated food (see separate item
below).
Thanks very very much again for your support with the
Zip slide. Please pass on sincere thanks to your team, they
were really great and the food was yum.
Lucy Danger, Chief Executive Emerge 3Rs /
Fareshare.
We continue to regularly work with

Fareshare who donate food for our
community cooking sessions where
possible. Our collaboration began with
the F5k event (see below).
FareShare Greater Manchester was launched in October

2008 to support communities to combat food poverty and
food waste in and around Manchester. The operation is
run by EMERGE 3Rs.
Cooking challenge Photos

25. Fareshare Greater
Manchester
26. Feeding Manchester
We will further collaborate with

Fareshare on the GM Poverty Grant
project in 2015, working with 3 local
food banks and cooking with their
service users.
We are networked with Feeding
Manchester, an organisation that
promotes advise, support and
infrastructure for a truly sustainable
food system within Greater
Manchester as well as on a National
level.
www.feedingmanchester.org.uk
An example of the range

of fresh food that we
regularly receive:
The team redistribute food to over 100 charities and

community groups and new organisations are welcome all
the time.
www.fareshare.org.uk
They have run nearly

20 sustainable food
networking events
which we have been a
part of.
More Photos from a recent networking event with
over 60 people
27. Feeding the 5000

2013
In addition to the main event,

Cracking Good Food cooked with and
fed almost 800 additional people in 3
outdoor pods, cooking up curry with
the public, on the hour, from 12 till 4.
It went on a lot longer of course
People were staggered by the huge
amount of perfectly good food being
wasted when so many families have
insufficient food. All the fresh food
used was supplied by Fareshare, the
charity that re-distributes unwanted,
short dated food.
www.feed5k.org
In June 2013, Cracking
Good Food, Manchester
Friends of the
Earth and Fareshare NW
collaborated with
International Campaign
group Feeding the
5,000 to cook up a free
feast in Piccadilly Gardens
in central Manchester, for
5,000 people, with food
that would otherwise be
wasted.
Funded by Awards 4 All
(Lottery) and Manchester
City Council.
Feeding 5,000
Manchester Photos
Feeding the 5000 Short
Film (setting up).
Since the event, we now
Over a third of the worlds food is

being wasted. Join the global
movement against food waste by
signing the Feeding 5k pledge and get
involved www.feeding5k.org
Nearly a tonne of veg was chopped by
40 volunteers the previous day, one of
whom was 91 years of age!
Has the event changed your thoughts about wastage?

Food for thought!
To use leftover ingredients for a healthy meal
There are ways to use out of date food
I sometimes do, but hopeful I want to change
Not to waste food
I will try to use up all the food and even give leftovers to
friends
No food should be wasted as we can make some nice
meals from them
Feed leftovers to our 4 chickens
How to cook food to keep nutrients & try to minimise
wastage
Not really, already a convert & try to save food
Make an effort to use food efficiently
Will now try and use up more items
Alot, and inspired me to cook like this more often
because sometimes its tempting to get a take-out
Crazy how much food is wasted
I think there should be school cooking classes. I enjoy
cooking with my son. Thank you
Try and keep an eye on food before it spoils
Will be more careful
I already cook from scratch all the time
Already aware
help to promote gleaning

events in the North West
and we have always
highlighted issues around
avoidable food waste in all
our sessions.
Let us Glean Photos
Gleaning 2,000 cabbages
near to Preston in June that
would otherwise have been
dug back into the ground.
3 of these crates of cabbages
were given to Barlow Hall
Primary School, Mersey Bank
Estate the following day, to
distribute amongst the
parents.
28. Food Futures

Manchester City
Council
2012
We were commissioned to run 6

Cooking with the Cooks sessions. The
participants were Community Cooks supported by NHS food workers - who
cook in the community with young
people in transition, and people in day
centres, residents associations and
luncheon and learning disability clubs.
We ran 3 bread-making sessions, a stir
fry, a curry session and a one pot
wonder session (stews).
These were located in Miles Platting,
Wythenshawe and Ardwick.
Our Team for the day

What aspects did you find particularly interesting / useful?
Learning new skill. Rob was very knowledgeable and
enthusiastic! I really like the sharing of food and team
work - Emma
Very thorough teacher - good pace for beginners. Makes
you feel very comfortable Rose
Learning more about bread rather than just cooking.
Could not be improved, excellent course! - Leslie & Cy
Easy recipes - lots of enthusiasm! How easy dumplings
and pastry are to make - Naomi
Seeing how many different meals you can make with a
few ingredients - Hazel
Being able to take part in a group and getting good tips
Causing a Stir Photos

Hearty Types Photos
Various Food Futures
Blogs
Rice is nice Blog
Well Bread Blog
Flour Power Blog
29. Friends of the Earth
Festival
2010
Rice is Nice Photos

Flour Power Photos
Loafing Around Photos
Bread Winner Photos
Cy and Jason
The relaxed way it was delivered, every step was
explained in details with demonstrations Brenda
The whole event was instructive friendly I enjoyed all
of it Dena and Nephra
Rob has lots of knowledge and is very enthusiastic about
bread making. Enjoyed learning new recipes and getting
tips on bread making. E.Murphy
I have not made bread before and I really enjoyed the
process - Bernie
Learning new cooking skills and trying it myself. Looking
forward to another session-thanks - Bolanie
Everything! Learning the masala base & knowing how to
adapt it for other recipes/meat .etc- Emma
Step by step-easy-cheap-friendly-new ingredients to tryFantastic session - Ruby loved it
It was an easy One Pot recipe which I could use with my
cooking groups. Simple, liked that gave good tips eg;
don't need scales/rolling pins, not complicated recipe.
Session was well planned and organised. Aimed at the
right level and the recipe could be used for community
groups. Seasonal, cheap and easy. Eleanor
Easy recipes - lots of enthusiasm! How easy dumplings
and pastry are to make Naomi
We cooked with over 70 people in the

park, showing a group of them how to
make the dishes, which enabled them
to show others, which helped to build
confidence across the group quickly.

useful?
The fun, the helpful guidance, the enthusiasm. It
couldnt have been better - Eileen
Yes, very interesting - Falguni
We cooked up falafels, warm potato

salad with fresh herbs and butter bean
pate. Recipes were given out to
It was an extremely busy day. We fed over 70 people with

over 30 people being involved in the cooking.
Feedback sheets werent a priority at the time hence
everyone.
there are only a few.
Funded jointly by Friends of the

Earth, public donations on the day
and ourselves, through the core
funding we had at the time.
For the general public as a
part of Meat Free
Monday at Manley Park,
Whalley Range.
World Environment Day Photos
Volunteering with Picnic

in the Park Blog
30. GMWDA (Greater
Mcr Waste
Disposal
Authority)
2014
Banghra Style, Oldham Photos
Feedback from GMWDA co-ordinators:
Mossley Photos what to do with old

breadcrumbs
Extremely well attended events in all geographical areas.

We engaged with some of the communities across Greater
Manchester who are experiencing great difficulties trying
to survive on diminishing household budgets.
Burger Fun at Brew community Caf

in Oldham Photos
Autumnal Cooking Photos
Burgers Galore Photos
Love your Leftovers Photos Bolton
Blog
Love your Leftovers Blog
All events were extremely busy so the opportunity to get

feedback was waivered so CGF staff could share good food
messages and distribute the free goody bags. Goody Bags
were distributed using foods from Fareshare North West.
31. Glebelands City
Growers, Sale
2010
For the general public,
publicised through
Glebelands & our
networks.
glebelandscitygrowers.co.uk
Fresh Ideas Photos

Fresh Air Fresh Food
Blog
The 4 co-operative members took

turns to show groups around their 3acre organic plot.
With freshly picked produce, they
cooked up fried courgette flowers in
tempura batter, tabbouleh, spicy
courgette bhajis, chickpea & spinach
tapas, squash & kale soup and finally,
home-made basil pesto!
Glebelands is an excellent example of
small scale, sustainable farming in an
urban environment; they aim to
challenge perceptions about how food
is produced and inspire people
towards positive change.
They continue to produce wonderful
crops which are predominantly sold at
Unicorn Grocery.

useful?
Picking the fresh food We had a brilliant time please
do this again! Alex
Help from Adam about how to stop my potted herbs
dying! - Would love to help out regularly! Marion
Scope of Glebelands growers/ their set up. The level of
sustainability volunteering opportunities James
Cooking foods from fresh, abundance of natural textures
& flavours Kathy
Everything! The growers' and cookers' knowledge was
extensive and useful. It's been a really informative and
inclusive event Charlotte
Apple pressing, cooking Margaret
All, apple pressing, green house etc All was perfect
Sandy
The food - scrumptious recipes! Knowledge of the
growers @ Glebelands - some great tips for growing own
veg Tony
It's been a really lovely day and I've thoroughly enjoyed it
- Charlotte
They also work alongside Manchester
Veg People with whom they work to
promote the use of seasonal local
produce.
32. Growing Manchester
Getting Out in the Garden

Blog
Hulme is where the Heart
is Photos
In March 2014, we opened up 'Round

3' of Food Futures food growing
programme, 'Growing Manchester',
inviting new or established food
growing groups across the City to join
them in their shared ambition to live
and grow, sustainably!
Commissioned by Food Futures to
show growers how to use & enjoy
every bit of their produce.
Kim showed them how to make
courgette bhajis, stir-fried beet tops
and seasonal greens with a yoghurt
and tahini dip. What a colourful, tasty
sustainable feast!
33. Hickson & Blacks
Delicatessen,
Chorlton
Cooking in the street for
the general public
2010
hicksonandblacks.co.uk
34. Horse & Jockey Food
Festival,
Chorlton
Two pasta dishes for the public to

sample, cooked by Deli owners &
chefs, Jay & Steve. They subsequently
became Cracking Cooks for our Public
and Community programmes
Cooks on the hop Photos
This was not a participatory session so we did not ask

people to fill in feedback forms, but the food was certainly
devoured with a lot of gusto and licking of lips! And people
went away with the recipe to try at home.
Cracking Good Food actively supports local independent
delis and shops by purchasing our food from them.
Maz introduced herself, her culinary

skills and Cracking Good Food at this
monthly community event, selling her
wonderful sweet and savoury pies.
What pies!
35. Hulme Garden
Centre
with Growing Manchester

2013
Commissioned by Food Futures to

show growers how to use & enjoy
every bit of their produce.
Kim showed them how to make
courgette bhajis, stir-fried beet tops
and seasonal greens with a yoghurt
and tahini dip.
What a colourful, tasty sustainable
feast!
Getting Out in the Garden Blog
Hulme is where the Heart is Photos
36. Jamie Olivers Food

2012
Revolution
Bramhall shopping
precinct.
For the general public
We were asked to run this
session as a part of
Jamies Food
Revolution.
We ran this without funding, to raise

awareness of our community activities
in a new geographical area.
Cracking Cook Harjinder cooked up
her fabulous lentil dahl and hot off
the tava rotis and served up samples
to members of the public.
This event was a demo and public engagement event, not

participatory, so no feedback was collected from people.
They all certainly enjoyed the dahl & chappatis though and
many went away with the recipe and a leaflet about our
cooking sessions and what we do as an organisation.
Talking About Revolution Photos
Talking About Revolution

Blog
37. JNR8 Youth &

2010
Community
Centre
JNR8 is a hub of activity

for young people aged 7-19
in Whalley Range, South
Manchester.
JNR8 is about generating
positive energy and ideas
for engaging young people
through over 100
workshops.
Positive Energy Photos
38. Kindling Trust
2010 - ongoing
We ran a one-off cooking session as

part of their Come to Tea
programme. Cracking cook Nina
taught young & old alike how to make
a tasty veggie stir fry with noodles.
All under 18s were supervised by a
parent or carer. One of the
participants brought along a
pineapple for afters and the centre
also rustled up some pudding. A really
lively event.
Wed like to work with them again but
this is dependent upon funding.
We were asked to collaborate with

them & Manchester Veg People to
help incorporate more vegetables into
school meals throughout the schools
under the umbrella of Oldham Council

useful?
The variety of people participating young and old (ish)
cooking and eating is a great way to come togetherAlison
The people who ran the workshop were good at
interacting with people involved with the cooking and
treated all ages equally and explained everything
thoroughly Chris
Thanks so much for a great experience Janet
Lovely food. Good to see familiar faces and meet some
new ones. Great to see kids joining in with food
preparation - Jill
The Kindling Trust run the Feeding Manchester

Programme, set up Manchester Veg People and the Farm
Start programme.
www.kindling.org.uk
39. LEAF: Link in
Education &
Farming
2011
For the 70 attendees at the
second annual Let nature
feed your senses
conference.
www.leafuk.
org/leaf/home.eb
Conference Call Blog
Feeding our Senses
Photos
(shame we had to wear
silly hats and white coats!)
Photos
40. Loreto College

2012
We ran two simultaneous, consecutive

workshops that aimed to inspire
conference delegates, who were
mainly farmers, to run something
similar in their own rural farm
settings.
We gathered at Reaseheath College in
Cheshire and the day buzzed with
inspiration!
Jesper ran a workshop on foraged four
wild leaf soup complete with toasted
Himalyan balsam seeds and Beths
workshop focussed on savoury and
sweet pancakes/blinis.
We were approached directly and
wrote a bespoke course for the day.
We would love to work with each
other again funding dependent.
We ran a bread-making day, where

the group made standard loaves &
rolls in the morning session and then
naan breads in the afternoon session.
We would like to work with this group
again but lack of funding has
prevented it to date.
Working with a group of

their special needs
students with Downs
Syndrome.
A huge thanks to Cracking Good Food! Everybody loved

your workshops, making wild green soup and seasonal
pancakes at Let nature feed your senses! Tasty! Great
stuff. The Let Nature Feed Your Senses team
useful?
Small pancakes easy to share with all, lovely way to use
oats other than flapjacks Sue
All of it! Excellent Jane
Simplicity Team event Farm produce Paul
Learning what is edible that is by many hedgerows
Helen
The creative use of pancakes both ingredients +
presentation. Some good ideas for use with Wildlife
Trusts. Well done Michael
Using plants in the wild that are edible! Plus how to turn
them into delicious food. Michael
Very well presented in short space of time Andrew
Our ignorance of wild plants as nutritional source
Patricia
Really inspiring will go home and have a go Julia
Recipes, enthusiasm of tutors Susan
useful?
I have really enjoyed the day. Rob & Sarah were brilliant
with the students. I would definitely recommend' Maria, Special needs support worker, Loreto College
Great course, very enjoyable. Rob and Sarah were both
great teachers and worked very well with our students.
Thanks! - Kevin, Support worker, Loreto College
I really enjoyed it. Thank you. We love you Sarah and
Rob - Thomas, student at Loreto College
41. Lost Plot Allotment

2010 & 2011
Cooking with AFSL

(Action for Sustainable
Living) & Southway
Housing.
For the residents of Nell
Lane/Arrowfield Estate
See under Nell
Lane/Arrowfield Estate
We began working with AFSL (Action

for Sustainable Living) at the
allotment, which they ran at the time.
This developed into cooking with the
residents of the Estate over a 2 and a
half year period and were still cooking
there when funding allows!

useful?
Chopping up garlic and cooking and I learn how to be
professional chef. I had a very nice day Catherine
Picking spring onions straight from all. Fantastic, well
organized, attention to hygiene Sam
Fantastic loved the community feel, ideas, enthusiasm
+ it was outdoors loved it! Bridget
Great fun, informative and a great chance to meet
neighbours Andy
Brilliant, very helpful staff. The people in charge were
great. Was great for my 4 year old daughter Karen
The Lost Plot Photos

Happy Halloween Blog
Outside winner Photos
Out and about Blog
42. Love Food Hate
Waste 2011 2012
We were commissioned to run 9

hands-on sessions in and around
Greater Manchester Salford, Bury,
Rochdale, Bolton, Levenshulme,
Altrincham, Oldham, Ashton and
Stockport, cooking up a great veggie
curry & rice with up to 20 participants
per session.
The messages we successfully
communicated:
New ideas of how to cook and how
to save money Rachel
Its amazing how we could use food
that we would sometimes throw in
the bin Gladys
Thanks for the day it was great and I would

recommend your services to anyone.
Regards,
Jo, Waste Minimisation Officer, Moorhey Street
Depot
useful?
The simple ingredients used to make top food A
Mcgrath
Really enjoyed meeting new people learning new ways of
how to prepare food and new types of spices and pulses.
Found it very informative and fun Rachel
Very informal, very informative, instructions very clear
Gladys
Take part in the preparation, learning new methods of
utilising food, no waste simple cooking - Ken
Love Food Hate Waste

Blogs
Waste Not Want Not #5
Photos
Photos
Photos
Pasta Photos
Parts of veg I would normally

throw away I will use in future
Janet
Never throw food always try to use
it make something like curry
Paula
The importance of not wasting
food Ken
How recycling can be fun and easy
to do - Sarah
Best to use all the food bought and
not throw away Roger
Not to waste food and make use of
the food you have Debra
Use left overs Jack
To shop more wisely and plan food
shopping Ben
Never waste leftover food- it can be
frozen - Anne
We also cooked at Shaw Market &
Stockport Market, delivering demo
sessions, handing out recipes and
sample sizes of food.
And in 2011 our cooks independently
ran many LFHW demos through
Fareshare at Brinnington, Bury,
Bolton, Ashton and other markets
around Greater Manchester, as well as
at restaurants and care homes.
Love Food Hate

Waste 2013
This has been our second year

delivering the cooking element of the
Love Food Hate Waste Campaign. We
worked in partnership with Greater
Manchester Waste Disposal Authority
Learning about not wasting food - Janet

Very enjoyable and informative. Watching different
ingredients mix together Maxine
Child friendly, relaxed. Friendly, knowledgeable chef
Gideon. Nice fresh produce. Recipe cards -lovely and
free! Arkhards
Enjoyed learning with other people - cooking demo was
very interesting Carolyne
Cook with other people. Be inspired by the session to
cook my prawn curry. Informative. Learned a lot. Met
other people. Smells good , looks good -Ilka
Very informative, got some good ideas. Friendly and
informal atmosphere Vicky
Cooking with fresh ingredients, different spices Frank
All the different spices Sandra
Communal food preparation David
Quick easy recipe for a curry Carissa
The way everything was prepared and was easy to do
Lynne
Really enjoyed meeting new people learning new ways of
how to prepare food and new types of spices and pulses.
Found it very informative and fun Rachel
Very informal, very informative, instructions very clear Gladys
Learning about not wasting food Janet
Making curry and cutting veg Paula
Take part in the preparation, learning new methods of
utilising food, no waste simpe cooking Ken
The curry recipe very simple to prepare Sarah
Making curry learning new ways to cook with food in the
home instead of wasting it Debra
Nice to learn how to cook different foods John
Learning as part of a group and getting advice Rachel
Everyone was friendly Pam
Learning new ways to chop onions and coriander Ben
I love cooking even more now! Fresh food - good food healthy food. Excellent teamwork - Patricia
2014
Monster Mash Cheadle

Hulme Photos
Food For Thought Levenshulme Photos
More or Less - Altrincham
Photos
Waste Not Want Not
Tameside, Duckingfield
Photos
and the project was funded by them.

The extended project extended to run
over 24 venues across 9 boroughs of
Greater Manchester, from September
2013 to March 2014.
The sessions have been extended to
allow for more cooking time and also
to include a group discussion exercise,
where participants work in teams to
share ideas on meals that can be made
from long-forgotten store cupboard
items they have at home, or things
leftover in their own fridges.
Autumn recipe tasty tagine with
golden mash
Winter recipe vegetable & bean
chilli with rice
Spill the beans, Rochdale

Photos
Spring recipe a Spring vegetable

soup with stuffed flatbreads
No Waste Zone Photos
Over the course of the project, we will

cook with over 400 participants
attending one of the free community
cooking sessions in their area.
Colour Therapy Photos

Chipotle with everything
Photos
Celebrating 103 years of
International Womens
Day with the Women's
Welfare Association in
Rochdale, dishing up
homemade quesadillas
and spicy salsa to the 150
ladies present.
2014: Ladies joined us at the Elms

Community Centre in Whitefield,
Bury, to make quesadillas, re-fried
beans and salsa from a lovely mix of
fresh, colourful ingredients.
Made me think about what I can make and waste less

Jayne
Very enjoyable, great session, glad I cam Paul
I will do a veggie chilli at home, without the meat its a
different meal! Angela
Enjoyed the group and sharing ideas. Thanks, very good
class! Jane
Knowing how to use up leftovers Margaret
I will now waste less of vegetables when chopping Jill
Mexican Street Food Photos: (far

right)
2014 - cooking more quesadillas with
residents of Ordsall, Salford.
43. Manchester Art
Gallery
2013
The Art of Foraging Blog

The Art of Foraging
Photos
Cracking Good Food's resident

foraging and wild food expert Jesper
Launder gave an introductory talk on
the wonders of wild food at a
Manchester Art Gallery Thursday
Lates event, culminating in a cook-up
for attendees to taste the hand-picked
produce.
Excellent speaker, great enthusiasm. Discovering the

non-edible was fascinating Steve
Mushroom + plat advice. Cooking suggestions tied in
with science. - Dan
Good as a basic course on foraging relevant to the time of
year. Jesper explained health properties in addition to
cooking/eating. - Paul
Tasting the foraged plants hints on finding and
identifying insights into medicinal use - Anne
General information which was accessible delivered in
an imformal, interesting way. Practicle cooking uses
which I would like to try. Enjoyed the tasting - Janice
The whole thing was fascinating and I enjoyed Jesper's
broad knowledge Richard
Understanding how very many edible mushrooms grow
locally in the UK. Particularly enjoyed learning about the
turkey tail and it's useful medicinal purposes. My eyes
have opened a little to my natural surroundings - Max
44. Manchester City

2013
Council
Pancake Day Photos

Pancake in the Precinct
Blog
In June the Councils Cash Grant

scheme funded us to provide a
growing and cooking workshop, for
members of the public, in Chorltons
Precinct.
Stuart showed them how to sow seeds
to take away in their own pots, whilst
Kim, Ian & Miranda showed passersby how to cook up cheap and easy-tomake savoury stuffed pancakes, and
everyone took away the recipe to cook
it up themselves.
The children were equally engaged in the sowing exercise
as with the pancakes, whilst the adults we engaged with
(over 50) were enthused and inspired to go and buy the
gram flour to make this economic and nutritious dish at
home.
3 people also expressed an interest in volunteering with
CGF!
45. Manchester Food &
Drink Festival
2011
General Public
In Pickle Blog
Collaborating with newcomers Trove

from their Levenshulme Deli /Caf,
who make jams / chutneys from local
organic produce, we set up shop in the
main marquee next to where Hugh
Fearnley-Whittingstall was signing
copies of his latest book and our
groups of participants made damson
jam.
It was such a busy day with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

doing a live cookery demonstration with a subsequent
book signing so everything was behind schedule.
We didnt have time to collect feedback we just made
cracking good damson jam!
46. Manchester
International
Festival
2013
Commissioned cooking
workshops with us to cook
from the Biospheric
Foundation, Salford.
Funded By Manchester
International Festival
Manchester International
Festival Blog
International Bright
Young Things Photos
Biospherical Tasting
Photos
With rising food prices, climate

change and growing urban
populations Cracking Good Food
showed the public how to cook truly
sustainable food, grown within and
around the Biospheric Foundation,
Salford.
The Biospheric Project, previously a
derelict mill, has been transformed
into a thriving agricultural space. Part
farm, part laboratory and part
research centre, this disused
industrial site has been filled with
innovative sustainable food systems,
from agroforestry to aquaponics
exploring how one could help forge a
new way of urban living.
The Cracking Good Food workshops
put local food into action by teaching
how to cook whats grown there.
Working with a newly planted crop
list, the chefs worked out their menus
accordingly.
Kim cooked wild shitake mushroom
risotto (foraged the day before) using
homemade stock with a parmesan
crisp and micro herb salad followed by
a layered pudding of seasonal fruit,
rose tinted hazelnuts, yoghurt and
borage all served in an up-cycled
chilled jar.
Jules cooked Salford snail porridge
with sorrel & purslane tempura fritter,
sprinkled with red amaranth micro
herb followed by paper-wrapped,
sustainably-farmed rainbow trout
with nettle & wild garlic pesto on a
black pea, chickweed and foraged
Im so happy that this could be done as a free event-what

a treat. L Healey M21:
Brilliant, chilled, happy, fun, lovely evening, Thankyou. L
Burscough M32
Brilliant, well put together, charismatic, passionate
ladies. R Lehner M7
This was a fantastic 2 days, i enjoyed both and have
learnt so much. i am not an adventourous cook, but this
has inspired me. The health aspect of your ingredients is
a bonus. thank you to the friendly team. P Nyabadza M4
Jules was great, introduced me to some great ideas,
especially the pesto, thanks. R Banks LA1
It was a fun and inspiring event, thanks to all involved.
Ali M16
Have had a great time, very interesting for a person who
normally doesnt enjoy cooking, will be back for more. P
Nyabadza M4,
Everybody involved was amazing, very approachable,
good spirited and knowledgeable. Congratulations to all
staff & volunteers for creating a great atmosphere. Food
should be made in an environment full of love &
excitement and you've achieved this, thank you. A
Tzoumas M16,
Lovely atmosphere, many thanks to the whole team for
contributing to this. A Lowe M16
You were all absolutely lovely, very supportive and
positive. Felt really welcomed. A McCauley M16
Thanks again- the event went well, it was really
enjoyable and everyone had a great time Kerenza.
Curator.
Fantastic evening, great people running it, P Ashpole
M20
Exciting, new daring combinations of locally
grown/produced food. A McCauley, M16
green salad and sweet pickled

nasturium 'capers'. For pudding,
lemon verbena posset with Biospheric
berries infused in angelica.
Between them, they left people in do
doubt that local sustainable and
foraged wild food can be very highend indeed.
47. Manchester Mental
Health and
Social Care
Trust, Hi Tea
Event, Albert
Square
2013
Photos
A far cry from a sunny day...but Kim's

savoury pancakes put smiles on
everyones faces! Kim flipped over 200
pancakes on Wednesday 11th
September as part of Manchester's
Mental Health 'Hi Tea' Event outside
the Town Hall. The queues were
continuous and many stood, ate and
shared their comments as they were so
pleased to sample an alternative to the
sweet pancake." Ill be making these
for breakfast theyre so good, I had to
come back for another simply
delicious I always thought sweet
pancakes were my favourite, but these
are now were just a few of the
comments made...needless to say
(Barry McQueen) Manchester's
fabulous Town Crier shouted...Oh yay!
Oh yay! when he collected his free
Take Away Kit (raw ingredients & a
recipe sheet so that he can replicate the
pancakes at home). A fabulous
afternoon, thanks also to fresh
ingredients collected from Fareshare
and 2 Cracking Good Volunteers.
Thanks for these, the day was a huge success we had just
under 700 attendees! The girls were brilliant and quite
rightly there was some really positive feedback for
Cracking Good Food. Please thank them again for me.
Ben Curley, Communications Officer
Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust
In 2014 we talked about our activity at the Low Carbon

event in the Town Hall
48. Manchester Museum

2011, 2012 and 2013
For the general Public
Various Manchester
Museum sessions Blogs
Museum Musings Photos
We have run regular cooking

workshops in Manchester Museums
allotment space in the courtyard
outside the museum.
Family visitors enjoyed seasonal cookery demonstrations

at the Manchester Museums Allotment on Saturday 22nd.
Many gathered at the allotment and got some top tips
from Cracking Good Foods Kim as they made a curry
that smelt delicious and tickled tastebuds.
Cracking Good Food encouraged visitors to swap recipes.
Vicky Grant, Curator, Manchester Museum
So far, weve cooked up stir fries,

curries, tortillas & salads, soups and
more. Theres always a steady stream
of people who want to get stuck into
the fun, drawn by the delicious smells
of cooking.
What aspects did you find particularly interesting / useful?
We also run foraging sessions, with

our resident foraging expert Jesper
Launder at the helm.
Outdoor Entertainment
Photos
49. Manchester Veg

2014
People
We were asked by the Kindling Trust

to do a Cook & Taste session for cooks
in Oldham schools using locally grown
organic veg. Our Cook looked at how
more veg could be incorporated into
the menus. The tastings proved very
successful.
We continue to promote locally grown
veg at every opportunity.
INCLUDEPICTURE
"http://www.sustain
web.org/resources/i
mages/covers/Growi
ngManchester_sm.gi
f" \*
MERGEFORMATINET
Chopping the veg Amelia + Helen

Recipe + getting to cut up new roots Ryan
Showing the children how to prep vegetables + show
them how vegetables are composted Carol
Interaction encouraging children to participate,
plenty of learning opportunities Alice
It was great that the children could participate in all the
preparation of the making of the veg. curry. The chefs
were very child friendly Mrs Berriman
I found it useful because now my brother knows how to
use a knife properly when cutting up food Maria
Seeing raw ingredients info cooked food visual
Alisha
Info on growing plants - the curry was fab Holly
The recipes the hands on Sean
Aims of the collaboration:
The package will focus on developing a menu that:
1. Uses veg from the most local organic growers to
Manchester
2. Comes within budget
3. Meets Food for Life criteria and is a low carbon menu
aiming for 20% less carbon emissions than an average
school menu
50. Manchester Youth
Service
2011
A city council based
service working with
teenagers.
51.
Mersey Bank Estate.

Riverbank
Community
Caf & Market
Garden
2009 and 2012
Over 50s and the Youth
group.
Various Mersey Bank
Estate Blogs
Various Barlow Moor
Community Blogs
We ran a fully participatory stir fry

session with them, where everyone got
stuck into lots of chopping and there
were tasty results.
Further work with this group will be
funding dependent.
We originally ran a one-off outdoor

cooking hop on the High Street in
Mersey Bank Estate in 2009. Again at
the allotment in January 2012, then 4
consecutive cooking sessions for the
Over 50s and Youth Group and two
BBQs in the allotment in the summer
(although it was wet!)
We have cooked stir fry, dhal and
chappatis, seasonal tortillas with
dressed salad, and spicy BBQ with
salads & veggy frittatas.
We would like to work with the
residents again but as with all these
things, it is subject to funding

useful?
Working as a team to make sure we had enough
measures of the ingredients and I enjoyed making the stir
fry sauce. I would attend another cooking event again
because cooking is essential in life and I dont know how
to cook many things Carys
How to sort a garlic out Jamie
The cooking part, useful information anonymous
useful?
I found the 1st part relating to herbs v interesting and I
particularly like the cooking, especially the tasting.
Frank
Use of herbs Laura
The mixture of so many different foods anonymous
Making the bread Tygon
Definitely making the chapatti Harry
Making the dough Ryan
All the spices Charlotte
The cutting part Owen
The build up Nick
All of it was useful Jake
The way you chop the veg Terea
Variety of ingredients. used Lorraine
Helping lunch Olwyn

Yes I found it very good Helen
It was very nice - Sheila
Teenagers making curry & chappatis:
What did you find particularly interesting / useful?
Making the bread Tygon
Definitely making the chapatti Harry
Making chapattis anonymous
Making the chapattis Carys & Mikey
Making chapatti Nrah
Making the dough Ryan
All the spices - Charlotte
Tales from the Riverbank

Photos
Funded by Mersey Bank
Riverbank Community
Cafe
52. Mosaic Young
Persons Drug &

Alcohol Service,
Stockport
2013
After an earlier session with staff and

service users, where we cooked up a
Laksa (a Malaysian coconut curry with
noodles), we were invited back to
work with a group of men who have
issues around drugs and alcohol use.
The group cooked up a range of
Mexican food, led by Cracking Cook
Kim.
Aimed at young people

aged 25 and under,
MOSAIC provides drug
and alcohol treatment as
well as support for those
young people whose
parents misuse
substances.
The staff were wonderfully open and

friendly, enabling in-depth
discussions around existing
knowledge & ideas to take place
within the class. All those that
attended said they would cook the
dishes again.
53. NACRO
2011 and 2012
We have run a range of one off

cooking sessions in a number of their
hostels for both men & women.
More recently we completed a run of 4
sessions as part of their Community
Space Challenge Project.
We made up goody bags of tomato
plants & basic ingredients.
Photos of the participants are not
included for confidentiality reasons.
Nacro is the national

crime reduction charity
which focuses on crime
prevention, offender
management and helping
to re-settle ex-offenders.
The residents of NACRO
hostels/projects have
complex needs and issues
including: homelessness,
drug & alcohol misuse
issues, financial/debt
problems, risk of reoffending, domestic
violence problems, anger
management issues, lack
of skills /qualifications
and unemployment
54. Natural Recovery,
Sale
2011
Clients with mental health
issues and special needs.
In order to continue working with

NACRO we would need to embark on
joint funding bids. This would enable
us to run a proper cooking programme
within one of the more appropriate
hostels, where participants could
develop genuine and longer lasting
skills and confidence in cooking. We
would like to provide the participants
with a starter pack of basic pans,
utensils and a few spices / ingredients.
Various NACRO Blogs
Very enjoyable day. I particularly liked the end result

being able to swap ideas with others. I have an idea
through participating in 2 day for recycling food. And
want to go on to looking into volunteering for Emerge.
Thanks for this opportunity
Lisa (cooking with leftovers March 11)
useful?
It was brilliant, pleased I got involved thank you Margaret
Introduction to new foods Id never tasted before ie.
sweet potato and couscous - Deborah
Making good quality, highly nutritional food for cheap
it was great! Everyone should have the CGF workshops,
it would benefit the nation Sam
Just a quick email to say thank you to both yourselves
and tenants participation for our BBQ project! It was
rewarding and encouraging to see all tenants taking part,
working well as a team and enjoying themselves! The
food was yummy and it was nice to be able to sit down
and eat together.. and even wash and tidy up
together!!!
Jenny Whitworth, Service User Involvement
Coordinator, West and Wales, Nacro
Film stir Photos

Souper Community session Photos
Barbecuing with Nacro Photos
We ran a cooking session within their
residential garden, using home grown
produce. The group cooked up a
veggie sweet & sour noodle dish, a
variation on our stir fry dish.
Further work with this group would be
funding dependent.

useful?
Cooking the vegetables Erica Fletcher
I enjoyed doing the stir fry work and helping the people
here today anonymous
Sarah is a very nice kind person and Leon James Tony
and Carolina too Anonymous
Everything was perfect and the food delicious

Anonymous
Natural High Blog

Out and about Photos
55. Nell Lane /
Arrowfield
Estate, Chorlton
(linked to the Lost Plot)

We regularly cooked there
in 2010, 2011 and 2012
The residents of Nell
Lane/Arrowfield Estate.
Various Blogs Nell Lane
sessions Blogs
Film made at the end of
one of the recent 5 week
programmes
A Good Grilling photos
We have run lots of one off-sessions

both indoors and at the Lost Plot,
their community allotment, and
delievered two 5-week cooking
programmes, where participants were
presented with certificates of
completion at the end and in the final
week they have chosen between them
one of the dishes that they have learnt,
to cook for family and friends at a
celebration event.
These programmes were part funded
by Southway Housing and Bike Track
Funding.
At the end of each course we had an
award ceremony with certificates.
We have run 2 further sessions as
focus group / celebration sessions,
and will evaluate the longer term
impact of the cooking programmes, so
that we can make any changes which
need to be made to maximize the
positive impact of our work on the
estate. We hope to keep cooking with
the residents for years to come.
So far, weve cooked stir fries, pizzas,
curries, stews (meat & veggie), fish
pies, Italian aubergine bake, Thai
curry, fish cakes, burgers & wedges &
plenty of salads & dressings, BBQs,
pancakes, and plenty more besides.
Cracking Good Food have been instrumental in breaking

down barriers and encouraging community cohesion in
an area which is recognised as having a high level of
deprivation and social segregation. The group provided a
valuable resource for the tenants living on the Arrowfield
Road Estate. The sessions encouraged and brought
together individuals and tenants who would not have
normally mixed under any other circumstances.
I fully support their work and feel that their contribution
to the community has a massive impact on the social and
economical wellbeing of the people they engage with.
Tina Murphy, Customer Involvement Officer,
Customer Involvement Team. Southway Housing
Trust.
I would like to say how much I admire the work people
from Cracking Good Food and the Lost Plot have changed
the way people from Nell Lane estate think of each other,
many people have never met until they came to the Lost
Plot and Cracking Good Food, although they have lived
on the same estate for at least thirty years, its amazing
how eating food can really bring all sorts of people
together its about time, and I would hate it to stop. Marilyn McCullough (Mal), Resident of Nell Lane
Estate for 30 years
Best session today pancakes very good. Never would
have thought to make them myself. - G. Tellow
I am enjoy coming here to meet new people and have a
laugh and learn how to cook -Catherine
Sitting down and socialising at the end Delbra
The ingredients really surprised me, like with the part
where we chopped/diced the onions + chillies Janica
Making dumplings & getting eggshell out of egg. Using
Rain didnt stop play

photos
Pancake Day photos
Totally Tropical Taste
photos
Certified Goodness
photos
We would also like to try to facilitate a

way for the residents to club together
to buy decent quality everyday dry
store & tinned items in bulk to save on
the cost to each person, which would
help them to keep cooking all the great
dishes they have learnt, as disposable
income is a real issue on this estate.
Participants were asked whether they
would continue to cook what they had
learnt:
Plover Terrace Hop

Photos
Italian trip Photos
The full range of options were:

Yes, Definitely, Probably, Some of it
maybe, no not at all
56. OLC (Europe) Ltd

2013
Spice Magic Photos
We designed and ran 2 training

workshops for this training
organisation in Bolton, for a group of
Libyan delegates who work in catering
- focussing on health & safety,
seasonality and more sustainable
cooking practices.
proper knives Vicky

After cooking for many years I have finally learned to
make a good sauce Mal
Learning how to chop an onion properly & using sharp
knives properly. Nice to meet other local people too
Vicky
I found the way that the food tasted quite interesting
even though it was vegetarian Nicole
Very friendly atmosphere. Like very much. Chef is very
good. Nice attitude. Chopping. Mixing butter with flour
Sophia
Very smooth and easy. Learning a new dish to cook
Gillian
Different ways of preparing familiar things Tobias
Learning how to chop an onion properly & using sharp
knives properly. Nice to meet other local people too.
Making dumplings & getting eggshell out of egg Vicky
Roll pastry and whisk eggs Britney (aged 8)
57. Old Hall Drive
Primary,
Gorton
new
Cauliflower Creations
Photos
Delicious Dhal Photos
Beefless-Burgers Photos
Heat it all up Photos
As part of our Awards 4 All Lottery

funding we ran simultaneous 6 week
cooking courses for parents in 3
primary schools, with a view to them
setting up their own cooking clubs.
We talked too about global food
issues, food waste & how to make use
of what you have on very tight
budgets.
All food was provided by Fareshare
Greater Manchester, who redistributed the food otherwise
destined for composting.
We set up a specific Facebook page
connecting all 3 schools together :
Cooking Up a Storm in Schools
We are now working on supporting
their independent progress!
Everyone received a certificate and a
starter spice bag at the end of each
course.
Talking, cooking - Joanne

Everything, I've tried foods Ive never tried beforeHeather
Learning new recipes, meeting new people, learnt

more about whats in processed food - John
Learning how to put the ingredients together and
balancing everything- Jennifer Howard
Enjoy meeting new people, experience different
cooking foods- Leeza
All of it, meeting new people and learning about
foods- Kelly Malone
I like and enjoy the course cooking- Lilie
I really like meeting new people as well as I really
like to try new foods. Very tasty and fresh flavour
-Azza
I really enjoy the day and know more about
cooking and meet new people- Patricia
Making more meals without using meat was new to me

Anne Morris, Teacher. Park View Primary School
Other schools are:

Seymour Primary, Miles Platting &
Park View Primary,Clayton.
58. Oldham Borough
Council
2013
On Tuesday 5th November 2013, we

took part in a staff awareness day for
environmental issues, cooking up
loads of yummy tarka dahl with the
group, Cracking Cook Kim leading the
prep!
Everybody enjoyed the food and took
away one of our Takeaway Kits, so
that they could make it for themselves
Id like to say a huge Thank you to your colleagues that

delivered the sessions yesterday.
The cookery demonstrations were a big success. Your
colleagues were very friendly and informative and
engaged well with staff.
A couple of my colleagues may be in touch to ask you to
deliver similar sessions at their place of work.
Justine Collins, Environmental Policy
Development Officer, Oldham Council
at home.
Curry on Cooking Photos

59. OTAGS
Old Trafford
Amateur
Gardeners'
Society
2011
For the general public
although information was
circulated within the
allotments.
www.otags.org.uk
We ran a preserving workshop with

this resourceful group, recruiting a
passionate leader / expert from the
allotment group to run it.
This session was specifically about low
carbon preserving. Therefore nothing
we made at the session required
boiling for hours or required
electricity to keep it in its preserved
state.
Again, further work with this group
would be subject to available funding.
Preservation Society Blog

Preserve Reserve Photos
60. Pankhurst Centre

2011
Women Matta Project - a
unique partnership
between the Pankhurst
Centre and Women in
Prison, which supports
women with complex
We ran a successful one off cooking

session where attendees of the drop in
session learnt to cook stir fry and
noodles. There was a wide range of
cooking ability, from none at all to
quite a lot, and most, if not all the
group, were introduced to new
vegetables.

useful?
It being a practical workshop, so hands-on, very
enjoyable. Having the hand-out to take away with the
recipes on Siobhan
All of it! It was great to actually see + taste already
prepared food. Whole approach was excellent very
informative, informal + great fun. Thank you Lorna
Lots of very useful information about
picking/dehydration/etc Ian
Chatting to others about preserving techniques
learning from Vickis knowledge trying new recipes in
supportive environment. A great mix of structure +
informality in training plan. A very enjoyable workshop
Laura (Vicki is not a regular at the allotment but lives
locally)
How to make wines from fruit Monica
Practical/hands on experience making the preserves to
take away Pete

useful?
Everything, especially chef made everyone involved in
the process, like cutting the chopping the veg Devi
Getting together with everyone. More meat! Amanda
The different Chinese spices mixes - Sam
Not all participants felt comfortable with giving feedback.
needs who are in touch

with the criminal justice
system or women who are
at risk of offending or reoffending.
Cuts in funding for this project have

prevented us from doing more work
with them to date
Ladies Day Blog
www.thepankhurstcentre.org.uk/
61. Parkview Primary
School, Miles
Platting, East
Manchester
2014 & 2015
Stalk Talk Photos

Dhal & Chappatis Photos
Beefless burgers &
wedges! Photos
On a Roll Photos
Heat it all up Photos
Ladies Day Photos

We are now working on supporting
their independent progress!
Other schools are:
Old Hall Primary, Gorton &
Seymour Primary, Miles Platting
course.
What did you learn/find useful:

Using different veg. Toni
Using beetroot and peppers. Gaynor Lang
Beetroot in fresh form. Dorothy Robertson
Using different veg. Laura
Using different veg. Shante
Learnt how to cook stirfry from scratch; timings
and seasonings. Dorothy
I enjoyed everything about the session. Toni
I learnt something new by cooking stirfry. Shola
Meeting new friends and learning new skills.
Vicky
learning how to make different foods. Shante
learning how to make a stirfry and tasting it.
Gaynor
Cooking and cutting veg in dofferent ways. laura
It's great to hear from you, we are very keen to get our
cooking group going, I just need to meet with the parents
regarding dates for the visit (to Fareshare).
Ann Morris, Teaching Assistant & Healthy Schools
Co-0rdinator. Jan 15.
62. Places for People
Housing
Association
2014
Cracking Good Food delivered a

cooking workshop at Places for People
(Horwich), an organisation
specialising in property management,
development and regeneration. We set
up at the residential setting as part of
a Community Involvement Day event.
Happy in Horwich Photos
63. Post Box Caf,
Chorlton
2013
64. Probation Service
(Greater
Manchester
Probation
Trust)
2012 - 2014
Convicted criminals who
have served the requisite
proportion of their
sentences in prison and
This was very much value for money, as we were able to

cater for all the residents as well as providing an
entertaining and informative session.
Impressed with the thought that went into the types of
food that was delivered, i.e. recognising that the residents
were elderly, so providing recipes that were easy to make,
did not require much dexterity, and were freezable etc
Catherine Bell. Place for People.
We collaborated with the Vegetarian

Society to run our hands on fully
participatory cooking session to help
promote Vegetarian Week. It was very
wet and windy & outside, but we
certainly inspired folk to cook
Quesadillas.
Initially we developed, in
collaboration with The Manchester
College, and delivered, 4 x 6-week
hands on cooking courses, combined
with theory / written work around
healthy eating, budgeting, health &
safety, food hygiene, cooking
techniques, seasonality and the basics
of nutrition & digestion. This was
funded by The Home Office through
their Community Action Against
Crime: Innovation Fund. The
The feedback below is anonymous for confidentiality

purposes
Enjoyed it, shame it was only once a week its definitely
improved my confidence. I enjoy cooking more now.
The pans (which were given to each participant) are
better than ones we had already. Really enjoyable,
initially didnt think I needed to be taught how to cook,
the CGF team changed my attitude as they were easy to
learn from and talk to.
Cut back fats, chips, have omelettes, no salads
are serving the required

remainder of the term on
licence under a condition
of residence within a
Probation Service run
Approved Premises.
Generally High Risk
Offenders on the ROSH
scale (part of Oasys
grading system). Issues
include history of
violence/anger
management issues, lower
than average literacy
levels, dyslexia, lack of
skills/qualifications, lack
of basic life skills /
institutionalization.
Various Probation Service
Blogs
Commended in the GM
Probations Trusts
staff awards under the
Partnerships category
2012.
Funded by:
evaluation results were very positive,

demonstrating a significant increase
in skills & confidence around cooking
and food choices, as well as a positive
impact on re-offending figures.
Participants have also attained level 2
awards or certificates, awarded
through TMC.
Courses were extremely well received
by the managers of the Approved
Premises, Manchester College and
Greater Manchester Probation Trust,
and we were commended in the
Trusts staff awards under the
Partnerships category.
Second year of 3 courses was then
funded through an ESF Community
Learning grant.
We were funded direct by GM
Probation Trust until April 2014, and
we extended our offering to 3 other
Approved Premises in Greater
Manchester. With all the
organisational changes, the Trust was
not able to continue funding the work
after April 2014.
Photos of the participants are not
included for confidentiality reasons
Participants received either a
saucepan starter pack, utensil starter
pack or spice starter pack at the end of
the course, according to what was
available, to help them continue to use
what they have learnt once they leave
the Approved Premises. Their folders
are also full of photographic evidence
of what theyve cooked, recipes and
Some results:
2/3 of the 6 participants on the first course said they
wanted to eat more healthily
At the end of the course, half of them said that their diet
was slightly healthier and a sixth said it was much
healthier. Bearing in mind they dont have daily access to
cooking facilities, this is very positive.
2/3 of them said that their cooking skills and knowledge
had improved a lot
2/3 said that they felt a lot more confident about cooking
3 months later, when most of the participants had left the
hostel 3/4 of them were still eating more healthily than
before they attended the course
3/4 of them still felt more confident using the skills they
had learnt
3/4 of them have cooked from scratch for other people
Statistics below are based on the data collected from the
beginning and end of course questionnaires.
Do you feel more confident about cooking than you did at
the beginning of the course?
handouts.
The cost of ingredients was kept as
affordable as possible so that it is
realistic for the participants to
continue to practise what they have
learnt and calculated each session
with the group, to work out cost per
person.
The dishes were also shared amongst
other hostel residents and staff.
In collaboration with:
Mexican Rave photos

Talking Italian photos
What a Curry On photos
All the Pies photos
Alison, Rob, Kim and Maz delivered

12 courses, totalling 72 sessions in all,
plus an additional 2 taster sessions
which ran during the summer of 2013
at Chorlton. The men continued to
engage, co-operate well and
contribute to the sessions, vocalising
their eagerness to start cooking the
dishes and buying different
ingredients on their release. At
Chorlton their attitudes/feelings were
recorded prior to the session start and
after on a flip chart outside the
cooking room its delightful to see
just how good cooking is for the soul!
Participants were asked whether they would continue to

cook what they had learnt:
Mexican Magic photos

Store Cupboard Cooking
photos
Suet Good photos
Vegging Out photos
Fab Fast Food photos
There are many other
photos available.
Cracking Cook Kim successfully had

the Salford Approved Premises group
"eating a rainbow" by the end of their
six-week course, when they rustled up
a feast of tuna pasta bake with bright
spinach and tomatoes served with
homemade cheesy garlic bread, plus
apple and rhubarb crumble for a
seasonal and colourful pudding.
All things bright & beautiful Photos
2014
Chicken madras, taka dhal & homemade naan. All those spices!
Flat Pack Photos 2014

Rainbow Warriors
Photos - 2014
65. Real Junk Food
Project
2014 ongoing
We are collaborating with Corin Bell, a

freelance Sustainable food consultant
to set up Manchesters first waste food
caf in the city centre.
www.realjunkfoodmanchester.co.uk
The project intercepts food that
We are currently trying to take over a lease from the

Council for a dis-used building in the city centre where we
hope to run a Training Kitchen. This will enable us to teach
more people how to cook from scratch, but most
importantly, enables more food to be saved from
composting and re-distributed to those most in need.
would otherwise go to waste from

supermarkets, restaurants and a
number of other sources, and turns it
into healthy, nutritious meals for
those in need on a pay-as-youfeel donation basis.
66. Recycle for Greater
Manchester Museum of
Science &
Industry
Fashion or
Rubbish
fashion show
2013
Life on the Veg Photos
We currently run pop up events to promote the project.

Article about the project
Food waste is an issue much bigger than most of us can
imagine. In 2012 it was reported that UK households were
throwing away 4.2 million tonnes of household food and
drink annually; the equivalent of six meals every week for
the average UK household.
We attended the Fashion or Rubbish

fashion show organised by Recycle for
Greater Manchester at the Museum of
Science and Industry.
We provided information about consumption and needless

food waste. People passing the stall took part in some
thought provoking games, allowing us the opportunity to
share ways of reducing waste and preserve food.
The event was very well attended and

all of the upcycled outfits on the
catwalk were both inspiring and
incredibly stylish. We were at the
event to promote reducing food waste
and visitors to our stand were
astounded with the results, when they
took part in our portion size game.
We were delighted to meet a couple of participants from

last years sessions one lady said that since attending the
class, her children have actually commented on how her
confidence when cooking has improved so much, and that
they have never eaten so well!
We cooked at Demesne Community

Centre in Middleton cooking two
dishes at a special recycling event with
Recycle for Greater Manchester. Tasty
vegetable tagine with couscous and a
lentil tarka dhal with rice, showing
how to use up store cupboard
Style Gurus Photos
Feeding the
participants at the
recent Feeding
Manchester conference
with food otherwise
destined for
composting.
ingredients and veg that looks past its

best. Everyone left with a bag of veg saved
from composting by Fareshare to cook at
home following their CGF recipe sheets.
67. Red Rose Forest
Beside the Seaside

Photos
68. Reddish Vale

2012
Technology
College
Students from the College
Flat Pack Blog
We collaborated to team up with

Thames Primary Academy
School in Blackpool to teach about
the benefits of growing - and eating home grown fruit and veg. Red Rose
Forest have helped the pupils to create
an allotment as part of the Big Lottery
Fund's Local Food Project so we ran a
cookery lesson using fresh produce
plucked from the plot to make
quesadillas stuffed with refried beans
and veg and served with a cold salsa
and sour cream.
Feedback from children:
Organised by the Kindling Trust and

collaborating again with Stretford
Pizza Ovens we made pizzas from
scratch largely using produce from
their allotment.
Time was too short to get feedback at the time! Everybody

was too busy making and eating!
I tried something new, I would try it again

I tried something thing new and was very pleased
Best Ive ever had, I enjoyed the session and the food - I
had two plates
It was fun and I liked making the wrap
I cant believe Im actually cooking!
www.kindling.org.uk /
www.feedingmanchester.org.uk
www.stretford-pizza-ovens.co.uk
Flat Packed Photos
Big Green Thank You Event Photos
69. Sale Grammar
School
2013 & 2014
Oodles of Noodles Photos

Back to School Photos
We have been drafted in for 2

successive years now to take part in
the Sixth Form Issues Day where
Cracking Cook Maz twice showed
different groups of students how to
cook up a tasty but healthy spicy stirfry with noodles
Feedback from Client:

Everything! Easy to organise, cooking leaders arrived early
and the sessions were fun and very well received by our
students. We had excellent feedback for the day.
70. Salford University

2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014
Healthy Lifestyles Expo

Event for University
students
University Challenge Blog
Cheap and Cheerful Blog
Totally Souper Blog
Healthy Pulse Blog
Cheap and Cheerful
Photos
University Challenge
Photos year 1
Burgerlicious Photos
year 4
Dhalicious Photos year
4
We have cooked for the last 3 years of

the Healthy Lifestyles Expo event.
Last year Harjinder demoed how to
rustle up a cheap but delicious veggie
curry.
In collaboration with LFHW Kim also
cooked up different flavoured versions
of tomato soup (spicy vs. herby!)
We want to develop further links with
the University to deliver proper
cooking programmes to their students
in University accommodation. They
are looking at ways to fund this but it
hasnt been possible to date.
I just wanted to drop you an email to say a HUGE thank

you for having your stand at the Healthy Lifestyles Expo
and all you did to help make it such a great event for
students. We were thrilled with how the hall looked and
how interactive many of the stands were. We had lots of
things for students to take part in and we have had some
excellent feedback which is brilliant.
Amanda Rigbye, Healthy Lifestyles Manager,
Student Life Directorate
all the different flavours, its healthy (vegetarian)

easy/clear step by step guide -Volta Shurdon
I was able to participate - Rime
finely chopping mushrooms - Syeda
live cooking demonstration - Naomi
It was fun - Nabiha
learning how to make healthy food Jaqueline
Chopping technique preparing garlic (salt etc)
Laura
Chopping technique / facts Jessica
Facts on food storage recycling anon
Recipe, how to chop an onion Katy
The simple ingredients used to make top food Anon
The event was great thanks we had over 600 students

engage in healthy events over the fortnight, which included
71 students in the 6 sessions cracking good food offered.
Thank you to Kim, Rob and Helen who did a great job and
the students really enjoyed the sessions so much some
attended both. The isolated event worked really well and
the venue offered better access to facilities so it was much
better in terms of experience for the students than being
part of a large event.
Amanda Rigby, Healthy Lifestyles Manager,
Student Life Directorate
71.
Seymour Road
Primary School,
Clayton, East
Manchester
2014 & 2015
Fresh & Tasty Hot Pot

Photos
Cool as Cucumbers
Photos
New Year, New Club
Photos
Simply Pasta Photos
To pie for Photos

Photos
We are now supporting their
independent progress and
helping them to develop their
own cooking clubs.
Other schools are:
Old Hall Primary, Gorton &
Parkview Primary, Miles Platting
course.
What they enjoyed & learnt:

How to cook spices, adding them to new food. Yodit
Being taught how to cook and eat healthy every day,
especially making a vegetarian dish. Carolyn
Cooking together and getting new ideas. Petra
I enjoyed all of the event. Sharon
I enjoy using a different way of cooking. Kayleigh
Everything, really enjoyed meeting new people. Adessa
I enjoyed meeting new people and making new food.
Mama
learning new dishes with limited ingredients. Also
learning new ways of cooking, variety dishes plus new
ways of cooking that you wouldn't normally use. Bobby
The hand full of pasta is your portion size. Tisha
Different types of meals made from pasta. Kayliegh
Different food to make. Adessa
Different types of food. Paul
Finding out what you can make using limited
ingredients. Debbie
New things I havent cooked or tried and learning new
ingredients and how to cook things with my kids, new
to courgettes. Carolyn
Cooking is very helpful. Adele
Ways of cooking from chefs and participants, especially
pasta. Yodit
Cooking from scratch. Petra
Hi this all sounds great and we would very much like to

be part of it. The visit sounds great just this morning at
our parent group we were talking about a visit to
smithfeild with a view to start cookery after half term so
your e-mail is perfect please let me know what infomation
you need from us thanks. Chris Willott. Teacher. Jan
2015.
72. Smithfields Market,
East
Manchester
2014
Cooking Roadshow
Photos
Funded by Awards 4 All,
National Lottery
73. Social adVentures

2011 and 2012
Social adVentures is an
exciting social enterprise
jointly owned by service
users, its employees and
local Salford people.
Such a great day yesterday at New

Smithfields Market, East Manchester
for our first Community Cooking
Roadshow (hopefully the start of
many!) As ever, all the food was
supplied by the wonderful Fareshare,
an organisation who re-distribute
short dated/unwanted food from
composting, to people in need (and
that need is growing daily). Without
such organisations around the
country, food is just sent to landfill.
Feedback
It was very good and I would like to cook more - M
Johnson
Good to learn about reducing food waste - Mr Hubert
I enjoyed sharing with other people - C Lockwood
It was educational - S Ani
I learnt how to chop vegetables
And cook without using meat
I enjoyed seeing my son cook - T Turner
Learning about all the different foods and textures - E
Dunbar
We cooked 3 recipes in 3 separate

pods, engaged with over 100 people,
distributed all but 6 of the FREE Take
Away Kit Bags (raw ingredients in
each to replicate again at home) and
gave away nearly 2 pallets of food that
was deemed as waste and destined for
composting Id say that was a
successfully 3 hours! Everyone also
received a booklet of recipes and top
tips of how to save money. All in all,
pretty delicious all round!
We ran four, 6-week cooking from
scratch courses with groups of local
community members covering all the
basics: soups, stews, fishcakes,
burgers, salads, curries, pasta,
Mexican. We compared cheap
processed versions of some foods and
did direct taste, cost & nutrition
comparisons. We covered seasonality
and food labelling.
We evaluated the more long term
impact of the courses through
feedback collected at a focus group
evening.
The team at CGF have provided a well rounded 6 week

course focused on the basics of healthy cooking.
Feedback has been extremely positive, trainees have
made positive changes to their diets, made new friends
and as one trainee said the course has ignited a love for
cooking that I didnt know I had! Were really looking
forward to the next course.
Emma Smith, Positive Impact Manager and
Director. Social adventures
I now use fresher ingredients and also herbs and spices,
which I never did - S.Noakes
Every session was excellent, learning about new
ingredients - T.Leech
Based at the Angel Centre,

Salford.
We ran this in
collaboration with the GP
Prescribing Scheme.
Various Social Adventures
Blogs
Social in Salford Photos
Fishcakes for compliments
Photos
74. Shoots
2012
A community cooperative
based in St. Helens that
purchases food in bulk for
re-distribution within the
area.
This was arranged for
community members of
the co-operative. Arranged
through Sustain.
New Breads On Block
Blog
The courses continued, still run by our

Cracking Cook Kim, but through the
National Adult Course Provider WEA
who have the funding to put them on
for free.
80% of participants noted an
improvement in the overall
healthiness of their diets after
attending the course.
60% stated that their intake of fruit
& veg had increased during the
course.
60% of participants stated that the
amount of processed, ready-made
sauces they used in a week had
decreased after the completing the
course.
60% noted a reduction in the
amount of take-away meals they
had throughout a week.
We ran a bespoke 4-hour breadmaking session using 100% organic
ingredients, making bread, rolls,
focaccia and garlic naan.
We would very much like to work
further with this inspirational and
very resourceful group, but as ever,
the possibility of doing so is subject to
funding being available.
New Breads on the Block photos
The tutor shared tips and tricks in a really friendly way A.Berry
I now try more recipes with a better range of vegetables
and fresh herbs - A.McCartan
Kim is really a good chef Muriel
Enjoyed the whole evening, the cooking, teachers and
atmosphere. Everybody getting together! The food was
wonderful Pax
Just joining in, all the colours textures and tasting

the finished dish! Liz
All, I do not cook much and my efforts are usually
very boring, so I found the event interesting Moira
Made me more aware of spices - L Morris
Didnt know I enjoyed cooking so much people
made all the difference - P Williams
I use more fresh veg and make my own sauces now M Meaney

useful?
All very interesting & informative. Would definitely go on
another course Pamela
Good to learn how to cook your own bread. Interesting
ideas. Will be using what I learnt today Jennie
All Bob
Learning how to bake bread/naan bread. I can now try it
as it has been a very interesting course to learn Janet
I felt all of this event was interesting + useful Sheila
75. Stockport Council

2012 & 2014
Delivered a 2 hour GMWDA Love

Food Hate Waste session using up old
fruit and veg.
Cooking up limp veg from the fridge to
make Carrot, Leek & Parsnip Soup
with Chilli & Cheesy Croutons and
bruised fruit from the fruit bowl to
make Caramelised Autumn Apples
with warm Spices.
Waste Not, Want Not #6

Blog
Blogs
76. Sustainable
Consumption
Institute
at the University of
Manchester for the Love
Food Festival
2012
Cracking Good Love Food
Blog
Feastival Festival, 2014

We made and dished up a tasty
vegetable and bean chilli and gave out
healthy eating information and
recipes at the Feastival event in
Stockport when organisations and
charities were awarded funding from
the council.

useful?
Participating in preparing and discussing food June
Tips on Olive oil and leeks Adam
About oils on what to use and what not to use
Andrew
For when you get your own place Diane
Information on Olive oil v Sunflower oil Anna
The smelling and peeling and tasting Nathan
Preparing it all Lisa
Client feedback
The community members we spoke to really enjoyed it and
felt they learnt a lot from it.
Good Scents Photos
We ran 3 consecutive hands-on stir fry

sessions as part of this public
engagement event, teaching 8 people
in each session.
Client group was 16-19 year olds and
their families, organised by the
Sustainable Consumption Institute at
the University of Manchester

useful?
Different chopping techniques & use of the bits of veg
people dont like?! Julian
Teamwork, fun, socializing activity. Good tip on how to
finely chop a garlic clove Joanna
Just found it nice cooking outdoors with a group of
people Cecil
Use of oils/spices/ingredients Gareth
Which vegetables to put in the wok when (in what order)
Charly
77. Thames Primary
School,
Blackpool
2014
Beside the Seaside

Photos
78. Tonge Moor School,
Bolton
2011
We teamed up with environmental

not-for-profit organisation Red Rose
Forest to show pupils from Thames
Primary Academy School in Blackpool
about the benefits of growing - and
eating - home grown fruit and veg.
Red Rose Forest have helped the
pupils to create an allotment as part of
the Big Lottery Fund's Local Food
Project & ran a cookery lesson using
fresh produce plucked from the plot to
make quesadillas stuffed with refried
beans and veg and served with a cold
salsa and sour cream.
Red Rose Staff:
the cooking leaders were great and
fantastic at managing the class of
children. Thought recipe selection and
the way it is organised in terms of
getting the children to all chop up the
vegetables and herbs was really good.
It meant that every child got equal
opportunities and enjoyment from the
session.
We ran a demo session, with our
cooks rustling up delicious dishes with
food from their allotment, for
everyone to enjoy. People ate sample
size dishes and went away with the
recipe to try at home.
Invited to run the session by Action
for Sustainable Living.
School children, parents

and community
We would like to further develop links

with this group and hopefully we will
be back for this event next year.
I loved every single minute since I started, all the

teachers were nice. Thankyou. Lucy
I tried something new, I would try it again
I've really enjoyed this fab session about cooking
Fabulous, tasty, delicious, good cool exciting and
brilliant
I loved the food and would love to do this again
I enjoyed cooking the cooks, I loved every second,
thank you very much
I loved the quesadilla; it was fun making. I loved every
step
Enjoyable fun, educational and nice to do. Summer
I enjoyed the food and even the creation of the meal. I
would like to make this meal at home. Everyone of the
staff were nice. Taylor
It was really good, thank you for teaching me to cook
I have tried something new today
I tried something thing new and was very pleased.
Best Ive every had, I enjoyed the session and the food I had two plates
It was so good that Id give you a 5 star
I can't believe I'm actually cooking
Cracking Good Food provided an integral aspect to our

Eco / Harvest day in Sept 2011. Our intention was to
prove to our pupils, their families and the local
community the benefits of a sustainable lifestyle and this
included sessions on growing your own produce. Our
pupils harvested food from our allotment area and CGF
provided a cookery demonstration using schools fruit
and vegetables. .an inspirational experience with many
attendees commenting that they were surprised at how
tasty healthy food could be if it was cooked correctly and
that a nutritious meal does not have to involve hours
slaving away in the kitchen! We will definitely be inviting
Cracking Good Food back to our school for our next Green
Day celebrations. Janet Pendlebury. School Business
Manager. Tonge Moor School
Trafford Health &

Wellbeing Day
based in
Stretford
We ran a hands-on workshop cooking

up stir fry with members of the public
at this drop-in health and wellbeing
day.
NHS Trafford Trust.
We would like to develop further links

with this group.
2011
Really helpful Mark

It was very enjoyable Robert
Very interesting and fun to watch - Caroline
The students were keen to assist us as volunteers at future
events.
Predominantly for
students as well as being
open to the public.
A drop in session.
Healthy Imagination
Photos
79. Trafford Housing
2014
Trust
We took part in Trafford Housing

Trusts event Live, Love & Cook!
offering up samples of our stuffed
savoury pancakes and sweet potato &
bean burgers to their local tenants in
Stretford. The food went down well
and everyone took away one of our
takeaway kits with recipes and
ingredients inside, so that they could
make it again at home.
Live, Love & Cook! Photos
80. Unicorn
Co-Operative
Grocery
2010 and 2012
For shoppers at the

Unicorn Grocery as well as
We ran a demo outside the shop in our

early days in 2010, to raise awareness
of what we do. Kath, one of our
Cracking Cooks, cooked up stir fry for
all to watch and taste.
We were able to promote our 5-week
dairy free programme based at
Chorlton High funded mostly by
Unicorn in 2010 for the public.
We also helped celebrate Unicorns

useful?
How to make a delicious authentic dhal. Techniques of
making chapattis Sara
New spices. How to cook chapattis Jo
Use of spices e.g. storage mixture shelf life Patrina
Techniques of how to make chapatti (now I know why
mine never worked!) Also the tarka to finish the dhal,
which I never had seen before Katy
The simplicity of the recipe. Good clear instructions
Cara
passers by along
Manchester Road.
www.unicorngrocery.co.uk
16th birthday party by rolling out 3 x 1

hour full participatory cooking
sessions under the gazebos in the car
park - dahl & chappatis with
Harjinder. so cheap to make once
you know how!
Quick + simple meal - Cazz

The chapattis were amazing! Miriam
Ingredients + method of cooking chapatis different
how some ingredients raw in dahl and some fried Lucia
Really enjoyed making chapattis Jane
The ingredients explained and their uses hands on.
Tutorial very friendly session great excellent thanks
teacher (cook) Vic
All of it really. Learning the techniques + making
beautiful food accessible Francine
Making chapattis from scratch was great Steph
We ran a series of hands-on stir fry

sessions at this rather chilly festival,
using an incredible variety of fresh
seasonal vegetables and some great
flavours. Gerald Kaufman even paid a
visit!

useful?
Good equipment, selection of ingredients super. Great
advice and instruction. Well organised and presented
Sandra
How easy it is to cook and the taste of the various veg.
No, Everything was perfect Leslie
The co-operative feeling about it. People celebrating
cooking good food together (GREAT FUN)! Catherine
All of it. Chopping, understanding vegetable cooking
times etc.
The use of fruit and coconut in the food Dann
Discussing order of stir frying. Fantastic idea, thank you
Sonad
Lovely to cook fresh wholesome food & sauces. Very
helpful staff Janet
All of it wonderful produce and helpers. I would like to
volunteer for you! Kath
Hop to it Blog
Sunday Roti Blog
Sunday Roti Pictures
81. Unity Festival.
St. Margarets
Primary School,
2010
Whalley Range
For the general public as

well as parents/ friends of
the school
Celebrating Good Food
Blog
Celebrate Festival Photos
We were invited to come back and

cook with them again at this festival in
2013 but we werent able to take them
up on their invitation as we were no
longer funded and neither are they.
82. Vegetarian Society

2014
83. Village Greens Co2014
operative,
Prestwich
We were asked to help promote

vegetarian week, so we cooked
quesadillas with the public outside the
Post Box Caf on a Saturday.
The vintage fair was all around us too
so an interesting hub of activity!
Feedback:
As something to raise awareness of National Vegetarian
Week I think its good value. It may not necessarily make
people more likely to be veggie, but it could help them see
how easy it is to cook a meat-free meal.
Graham @ The Vegetarian Society
Rob introduced our new Breadmaking

course in Prestwich to local residents
one evening in a tasty making &
sampling of his renowned garlic naan
in the pan!
Tasty Tasters Photos
84. Wentworth High
School, Eccles
2014
INCLUDEPICTURE
"http://www.wentworth
highschool.org.uk/BSF/
BSF Images/blazer
badge.jpg" \*
MERGEFORMATINET
We were at Wentworth High School in

Eccles running a cookery session for
kids who were involved in growing
their own food. First off, the group
made individual no-bake cheesecakes
with fresh raspberries so they could go
in the fridge and chill while we got on
with our main course of savoury
pancakes, fried mushrooms and salad
leaves.
Through Red Rose, same as the
Thames Primary one in Blackpool
Too busy at the end of the session, run out of time for
feedback.
We thought the cooking leaders were great and fantastic
at managing the class of children. Thought recipe
selection and the way it is organised in terms of getting
the children to all chop up the vegetables and herbs was
really good. It meant that every child got equal
opportunities and enjoyment from the session Beth
Kelsall, Red Rose
Sweet & Savoury Photos

85. Youg Persons
Addiction
Counselling
March and Nov 2014
86. Young People
Support
Foundation
2013 & 2014
YPSF Oldham Street, 52

Oldham Street Manchester
M4 1LE
We cooked pancakes with teenagers

during March & in November we set
up outdoor cooking pods in a
community garden next to the Church
of the Apostles in Miles Platting. We
cooked bean burgers and a colourful
vegetable stew, all made with surplus
produce from Fareshare Greater
Manchester that would otherwise have
been composted. Great events all
round.
Winterlicious was really great. The team were extremely

organised and created a great vibe. The members of the
community responded really well not only to the cooking
but to the food and recipes. Andrew Seedall, Project
Manager, YPAC and HAPPY Families
A YPSF volunteer applied for and won

a competition run by the University of
Manchester providing small grants for
students to try out ideas for small
enterprises. They brought in Cracking
Cook Kim to work with a small group
of young people from the Work It!
group to prepare the buffet for the
Trustees Meeting in January. The
young people decided themselves
what they wanted to make, and Kim
worked alongside them in the kitchen
to teach them how to make their
chosen dishes from scratch.
Outcomes
A lot of the produce came from

Fareshare.
Pancake Day Photos

Somethings Stewing Photos
Volunteers used food received from Fareshare to prepare

and serve lunches to learners attending the Work It!
programme. This had a number of positive outcomes:
Young people on the course were able to observe and talk
to volunteers working in a role that they could
realistically see themselves succeeding in. Many
expressed an interest in volunteering in this role and
were keen to give something back to YPSF and help
other young people.
Learners were able to benefit from more healthy, home
cooked food.
Work It! staff were able to concentrate on course
delivery and leave the provision of lunch for learners to
They cooked:
- Carrot and potato samosas, served
with a homemdade tomato and red
onion chutney
- Rustic beef & leek mini shortcrust
pies
-Omelette and seaweed nigiri, served
with a chilli, lime & coriander infused
soy sauce dip
- Apple & pear filo tarts
87. Zest
2014
Funded by Manchester
City Council
We were invited to join them in

Cheetham Hill to lead a cookery
demonstration and discussion about
diet and health as part of Zest Health
Week, run by Manchester City
Council.
We made gram flour pancakes stuffed
with a healthy, vibrant spicy red
pepper and tomato mix, the vegetables
sourced from Fareshare.
Go zest, go Photos
another service.
Feedback:
the cooking instructions and recipe were good

I loved this, I thought it was perfect
I used different vegetables and learnt different ways to
cook
Getting the community together was good, working
together and getting the children together
My child got more confident to get involved
www.crackinggoodfood.org
Cracking Good Food Manchester Ltd
A not-for profit social enterprise limited by guarantee
Company Registration No. 7369862
Tax Reference No. 1416425954.

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Cracking Good Cooking Sessions

Summary of Cooking Activity: January 2010 January 2015

A Manchester based cooking network

Where we have cooked so far

Adele Jordan adele@crackinggoodfood.org

Horse & Jockey Food Festival, Chorlton21

Reddish Vale Technology College 44

Abbey Hey Primary

We spent a very busy day cooking with

Cool for School Photos

Cool for School Blog

We have collaborated over the years,

Outside Winner Photos

Filling Station Photos

The CGF team set up a stall in Miles

Cracking Good Food provided us with some fantastic

continuing. A happy ending!

Barlow Hall Primary

We ran 2 x 4-week cooking

their new-found skills. We also

We were keen to know whether

Various Barlow Hall

All felt their confidence (when

We ran 2 x 4-week programmes for

4 week course, funded by

Each group received a Spice Starter

For parents and their

They didnt want the cooking to stop!

Various Dial Park School

I loved cooking with my son, plus the food was gorgeous.

We ran two high-end bespoke cooking

Bite, Mental Health

We ran 2 outdoor cooking sessions

Our half day bread session (Breaking

What aspects did you find particularly

Buddleia is a new commissioning

We first worked together on the Manchester International

10. Bury Council

Using food from Fareshare we cooked

Cheetham Hill High

Shopping and Chopping

We "reclaimed the high street",

Shopping and Chopping

The following responses were given when asked what

12. Canon Burrows

School Trip Photos

a very small budget. It was a really inspiring and

Maz & Kim cooked lipsmackingly

The cooking was really good because we got to eat everything

13. Chorlton Arts

2010 and 2011 & 2014

Open to the general public

We collaborated with Chorlton FM,

What aspects did you find particularly interesting /

Radio Days Blog

Members of the Skills For

We ran a one-off, hands-on cooking

What aspects did you find particularly interesting /

Stir-fries For Success Blog We have also given a presentation to

We have run sessions there for 4 years

Community group for the

We will continue to cook with them as

The order in which you cooked the food Carol

16. Chorlton Green