The Recipes for Life program began when County Extension Homemakers identified the need to support the development of life skills for youth in the community.  Skills such as nutrition education, food preparation, food and kitchen safety, recipe reading, kitchen and cooking organization, and math and science were lacking in our youth.   The goal of the program is to teach the necessary skills that lead youth to a better quality of life.

For the third year in a row, the Carroll County Cooperative Extension Service has partnered with the Carroll County Middle School to do the Recipes for Life program. This year we were able to add an additional school to the program to bring in 24 more students.  A total of 157 students participated in the program including 90 female, 67 male, with 25 Hispanics and 2 African Americans.

The Agriculture and Natural Resource Agent, the 4-H Youth Development Agent, and the Family and Consumer Science Agent all participated in the program along with 15 other Homemaker and Extension volunteers. Students divided into groups of five and each group made two recipes for everyone to try. Participants tried food from all five food groups. 

A pre and post- test was given to the students.

Nutrition knowledge improved from 10.39 in the pretest to 13.03 in the posttest, out of a maximum score of 17.00. Similarly, cooking self-efficacy increased from 25.37 in the pretest to 28.06 in the posttest, out of a maximum of 32.00. Also, attitude toward cooking improved from 29.53 in the pretest to 31.60 in the posttest, out of a maximum of 35. 

After participating in the program:

• About 94% of the students strongly agreed/agreed that they plan to eat more fruits. 
• About 79% strongly agreed/agreed that they plan to eat more vegetables. 
• About 90% strongly agreed/agreed that they plan to try new foods. 
• About 91% strongly agreed/agreed that they plan to help prepare food at home 

Of the students responding to learning/improving their kitchen skills:  On average, students surveyed increase their knowledge level by 20.4% on skills such as how to hold a knife correctly, using a cutting board to cut raw meat, washing your hands properly, using the correct tools to measure dry ingredients, correct order of meal preparation, safe positioning off pans on a stove and how to keep a kitchen clean.

The program was funded by a grant from the University of Kentucky.