Jess Dang – CookSmarts Nourish 2017 – Lesson 1 Cheesy Quesadilla & Green Salad with Vinaigrette

“Jess and the team did a tremendous job! I almost felt like I was taking personal cooking class. It was obvious that Jess really cares for the course and the people taking it.” -Elena M.

“It may sound a little dramatic, but this was a life-changing event for me. It made me realize that I can make healthy and delicious meals for my family and not spend hours in the kitchen. I work full time and spend 2+ hours a day commuting. I don’t have a lot of time to get dinner on the table during the week, but since I started this program, I’ve pulled it off at minimum 4 nights a week.” -Erin B.

“What I love the most about Nourish is that it delves into the reasons behind kitchen techniques. This course has improved my cooking skills and I now have a deeper understanding as to how flavors work together and how to season appropriately.I feel like this makes me a smarter cook!” -Jessica F.

“I loved waking up every Friday morning to a new Nourish lesson! Jess has a great way of training, and her enthusiasm and love of cooking really shines through. It inspires me to be a better cook – she makes it look so easy and fun, and has a laid back way of pulling it all together. Nourish taught me thatconfidence in the kitchen can be built through breaking cooking down into small, easy-to-learn steps.” -Fran M.

“Nourish has greatly increased my confidence in the kitchen. I now recognize what meals I can make with ingredients that I have on hand, without having to rely on specific recipes. My knife skills have improved as well. Now that I know how to chop properly, I not only don’t mind doing it, but I am much faster. This is worth its weight in gold!” -Christy T

For your family

Wouldn’t it be lovely to end the day by enjoying a simple home cooked meal with your family?

Becoming a mother has been one of the best things that has happened to me, but it’s also been one of the most challenging.

Pre-parenthood, I already felt like I didn’t have enough hours in the day to get everything done. Now I long for all the free time I had!

However, understanding how to cook and therefore how to whip up a meal just by looking in my fridge and pantry has made my to-do list so much lighter. Instead of being stressed out at meal time, I feel completely in control.

Plus, I’m so excited to be able to pass on my love of cooking to my daughter (and future children). They may not love everything we cook and probably will go through various phases of picky eating, but hopefully when they’re older, I’ve equipped them with the skills to care for themselves through cooking.

For your health

Are you worried about how your current food choices might affect your health later on?

There are so many food options out there these days, and unfortunately, not all of them are great for us.

I by no means feel that we need to make the healthy decision 100% of the time. We are human, and if we choose cooking most of the time, we will never have to worry when we make the decision to indulge in that sinful (but well deserved) treat.

When we choose cooking, we choose to take control over what goes in our bodies. We choose to treat our bodies with love, respect and nourishment.

The meals offered in Nourish’s lessons are not about depriving yourself. Instead, they’re all about empowering yourself with the skills to cook real, whole foods.

Because you deserve it

When was the last time you invested in yourself?

As adults, we often forget that we still deserve to gather new skills and develop new interests. But life is long and it’s never, ever too late to make changes that will positively affect how we enjoy our days.

It’s easy to think of cooking as another chore you have to do, but I’m gonna ask you to think about it as a time for self care, which is another thing we so often neglect in our demanding lives.

When people are sick, our first inclination is to bring them something comforting and nutritious to eat. You don’t have to be sick to realize that good health starts with good food, and we need to start treating ourselves in the same way.

You deserve to carve out time to care for yourself, to create, to nourish.