By Glenda Anderson, Staff Reporter 
The people behind
the Grace Kitchen recipes are at it again. This time, they have
ventured into
cornmeal territory!
THEY'LL BE the first to tell you that it's 'a team thing' getting the recipes together, sourcing and creating the products, even digging and nudging to find the best foodie (and his specialty) of every community they visit. But this is how the people behind the Grace Kitchen recipes work
There's Mazie Miller, main host, chief cook and baker, there's Shereen Codner, who also does the cooking and baking, and both work in promotional and outreach activity. Then there's Promotions Coordinator, Heather White, her assistant Roxanne Brown, and promotions technician Paul McKenzie who works alongside teamster Michael Ranglin.
Last Friday another group of co-workers had come together to volunteer their tastebuds for the cause testing the freshly baked, and decorated ham and mouthwatering cornmeal pudding (with coffee sauce), with groans of delight all around.
Still only two of the group must call the tiny kitchen at Grace, Kennedy's Harbour Street location, their office for the major part of the day. We stopped by recently to find out just how everything gets done.
CRAFTING THE RECIPES
We found Miller in the middle of making a local favourite, cornmeal pudding. Pot in hand she was stirring ingredients together assuring us that not only was this a
delicious way to get persons, especially children to enjoy nutritious cornmeal, it was so easy it could be done in a snap, stovetop or oven.
She says meal ideas are 'born' every day, with each week packed with outreach activity, and in-house consultations.
"It's a 'family event' for us at Grace. There is usually a lot of input from staff, and customers calling in to ask for advice or to suggest ideas. Also whenever new products come we try to develop new recipes using these products, and the staff at all levels is very cooperative."
"We're not saying the entire meal must be made up with Grace (products), but use what we have with what you have to create a balance."
Consumers and communities also share in the effort.
"Every Friday, for example, we are in here testing. We ask our co-workers to come in and evaluate and give their comments. We also work a lot with schools, parent teacher associations (PTA), churches and other community groups. We make random visits to farming communities, and farming families, trying to find new ideas to use foods in different ways. We get requests from them for presentations, and we also work along with RADA, small farmers and farming groups, JAS, and 4H clubs.
