On Saturday 10th August, there were some delicious aromas wafting down the corridors of Todmorden College.

A free Cheap and Easy Cookery workshop was taking place – 9 food drop-in participants were learning how to make different dishes in a friendly, supportive atmosphere. People chopped and stirred, stories and recipes were swapped, and the end result was a smorgasbord, or perhaps a Buddha bowl which everyone sampled.

All recipes relied on basic sometimes tinned ingredients and supermarket donated vegetables, and were all plant-based. In addition, all dishes were cooked using lower energy appliances such as induction hobs, microwaves and air-fryers.

Dishes made were: hearty bean and vegetable soup, spicy fried potatoes, hot root vegetable salad, mushy pea dahl, cous cous, flatbreads and rainbow salad.

“Cheap and Easy Climate Emergency Cookery” is a pioneering series of workshops helping Todmorden residents struggling with the cost of living crisis to prepare healthy meals cheaply, quickly and easily. 

Future workshops will continue to concentrate on wholefood plant-based meals that rely on low-cost, seasonal and readily available ingredients that make a much lower contribution to climate change than meat, dairy, egg and fish products.  For some tips about how to eat plant-based food on a budget, you can read a blog we published a while ago here. It’s still very relevant.

Under the terms of the project funding, there is a need for crowdfunding to cover a small element of the costs. If you’d like to make a donation, please go to https://app.goodhub.com/3-valley-vegans-11596 or scan the QR code below: