Food Stories Episode 17 : Delicious Vegelicious @ Waste Not Want Not, Buxton

Fresh food, new flavours and plenty of community spirit are all on the menu in the latest episode of our Food Stories Podcast.

This time, we took our microphone to Buxton to visit Waste Not Want Not at Buxton United Reformed Church, one of FareShare Greater Manchester’s brilliant Community Food Members.

On the day we visited, the team was hosting one of our Delicious Vegelicious cookery demonstrations.

Fresh food with a fresh approach

Our Vegelicious scheme was created to help get more fresh fruit and vegetables out into the community.

Through the scheme, Community Food Members can receive bulk deliveries of fresh produce, helping them make healthy food more accessible to the people they support.

But getting unfamiliar fruit and vegetables into communities is only part of the story.

That’s where Delicious Vegelicious comes in.

Our pop-up cookery demonstrations give people the opportunity to see the produce being prepared, pick up ideas for cooking at home and, most importantly, have a taste.

Cooking up something delicious

At Waste Not Want Not, our community chef Kala Mandviwala was joined by corporate volunteer John O’Callaghan for a busy lunchtime session in the outdoor kitchen.

Together, they cooked up a colourful veggie stir fry and a citrus and beetroot salad using fresh produce supplied through Vegelicious.

Visitors stopped by to watch the demonstrations, sample the food and discover new ways of using fruit and vegetables they might not have tried before.

We hear from Waste Not Want Not Project Coordinator Catherine Sterndale about how the organisation began and the important role food plays within the community.

Kala also shares why she loves taking Delicious Vegelicious out into communities, while John tells us about spending his corporate volunteering day helping out as Kala’s sous-chef.

And, of course, we hear from some of the people enjoying the food!

More than just a meal

For the team at Waste Not Want Not, the Delicious Vegelicious demonstrations are about much more than sharing a recipe.

By giving people the chance to taste something new and see just how easy it can be to cook with fresh produce, they hope to encourage visitors to become more adventurous with their food choices and enjoy a wider variety of ingredients.

It’s a simple idea with the potential to make a real difference – helping people build confidence in the kitchen while making the most of fresh, nutritious food that might otherwise have gone to waste.

You can find out more about Waste Not Want Not here, on Facebook and on Neighbourly

Want to join our Community Food Membership?

If you’re supporting your community with food and want to know more about our membership, please get in touch! Contact our Membership and Information Coordinator, Karina by email : membership@emergemanchester.co.uk or give us a call on 0161 223 8200 (Option 4).