We are excited to announce a new partnership between Young Chefs and East Boston YMCA. Spearheaded by Alexis Daniels (Director of East Boston YMCA Teaching kitchen, director of Community Partnerships for Parachute Teachers, Teaching Fellow/Research Mentor at the Tufts REACH lab) and Vayu Maini Rekdal (Harvard PhD student and Young Chefs co-founder), this collaboration will connect the unique Young Chefs curriculum with the resources and leadership of the YMCA to bring science and cooking education to Boston Youth.

Specifically, Alexis Daniels and volunteers will lead two five-week cooking and science classes for students enrolled in the YMCA afterschool program during the spring semester, exploring everything from the molecular basis of spiciness to the microbial metabolism and ecology. The lessons will take place in the YMCA teaching kitchen, an amazing facility teaching culinary skills and healthy easting to East Boston families, teens, adults, and seniors, as well as to youth in their after school programs.  They grow food in their community garden that is used in our kitchen, and work with the local farmer’s market, and a local farmer, to promote the use of fresh, sustainable produce and community supported agriculture. The classes will be taught in both Spanish and English, and  Vayu will support the implementation and evaluation of the lessons in this new context.

We are excited to get this started in Boston! Please email ADaniels@YMCAboston.org if you want to get involved!