The Human Needs Food Pantry has 50 or more extra food requests due to our lame economy. And Montclair Mom Alison Bermack wants us to band together to make a lot of dough. Not Wonder Bread, mind you. She’s after our real homemade bread for local families in need.
She runs a group called Cooking With Friends. And be warned that I am totally biased. This group is true food and fellowship. I’m in it; I’ve made friends, and my freezer is stocked with fresh, gourmet foods from our recent Sauce Swap.
I asked Alison a few questions about her involvement with Human Needs.
MontclairKids: What is your goal for this bread drive?
Alison: To help other families enjoy Thanksgiving with homemade food during this difficult time. And, to make as much bread as possible — say 200 loaves.
MK: What’s so good about homemade bread vs. store-bought bread for the Human Needs Food Pantry?
Alison: The
fact that people are taking and making time to bake together will have
a tremendous amount of meaning for those who give and receive. As for
those who receive, the fact that people came together, mixing, pouring
and baking, with so much thought and additional time, will have more
meaning than a store bought loaf of bread. Not to mention, homemade
food is much healthier and delicious.
MK: Why do you think it’s important for CWFs to get involved in community projects like this?
Alison:
I think people go through life, often in their hectic routines, not
noticing that people so close to us are struggling. Projects such as
this not only make us think about ourselves–what we have–but it
connects us to our friends in a meaningful way and also puts people in
touch with the greater community.
Donate Your Own Dough:
Who: Anyone who can turn on the oven–you can even buy dough or a bread mix from the grocery store.
What: Thanksgiving Bread Baking Event for the Human Needs Food Pantry/Cooking With Friends
When:
Bring your baked, frozen bread to Alison’s or to Abby Colen’s from
Montclair Kids in Action, by this Sunday, Nov. 23, between 9 a.m. and 2
p.m. Email them, below, for exact locations.
More info: Email Alison or Abby
Need More Tips?
- Bake
a loaf or two of bread this week with your friends or kids. You can
have a baking play date too. Kids play, mommies bake (or vice versa). - Don’t know how? Go to All Recipes to get some ideas, or buy a mix!
- Label it with a sticker from the Cooking With Friends website, or make your own label, including the type of bread and ingredients.
- Stick it in the freezer.
- Feel
good that someone who is struggling and getting their food from a food
pantry will have some delicious homemade bread this holiday season.
Do you do any community outreach over the holidays or during the year?