NORWAY — There was a joyous, celebratory mood in the basement of the Norway Christ Episcopal Church during the last of six weekly cooking classes on Aug. 13.

“We have a lot of fun,” instructor Justine Casalinova said of the classes.

The free Cooking Matters classes were offered through the MaineHealth Stephens Hospital Healthy Oxford Hills program, along with the Good Shepherd Food Bank, the University of New England, and Maine SNAP-Ed— a nutrition education resource.

Instructors and participants in the last of six weekly Cooking Matters classes, provided by Healthy Oxford Hills, work in the basement kitchen of the Christ Episcopal Church in Norway on various tasks. Each week the class learned nutrition facts and cooked a meal and dessert. Evan W. Houk/Advertiser Democrat

Casalinova and Stephanie Cordwell led the classes, providing education on healthy nutrition and guiding the participants in making a different recipe each week.

Each member of the class received a workbook filled with recipes and took home groceries each week to recreate the recipes.

Before the final class on Aug. 13, the instructors went through a list of common soft drinks and frozen drinks at Dunkin Donuts, and how much sneaky sugar is packed into these.

One frozen coffee drink has as much as 232% of the recommended daily value for sugar packed into it, or the same amount contained in 10 glazed donuts.

Cordwell explained that she was not picking on Dunkin Donuts or making any judgments, especially since she and Casalinova both admitted to enjoying a drink from Dunkin now and then.

“It’s just an awareness thing,” Cordwell said. “Knowledge is power.”

This led to an assignment of mixing cranberry juice with plain seltzer water and fresh limes to cut down on the natural sugar contained in the juice and create a tasty and fizzy cocktail.

Cordwell explained that if a juice is labeled “cocktail,” that means it has added sugar in it. But even with juices containing only the natural sugar from the fruit, the sugar is processed differently than when simply eating a fruit because there is fiber in the fruit.

Chris Bourgoin, of South Paris, made the effervescent beverage and said he has enjoyed the class and loves to cook.

“I’ve been cooking since I could see on top of the stove,” he said.

The class then made homemade macaroni and cheese with whole wheat pasta and broccoli. For dessert, the class made a simple but delectable tart recipe using wheat bread, a cream cheese filling, and fresh fruit.

Participants in the final Cooking Matters class at Christ Episcopal Church in Norway made a dessert of homemade tart with a cream cheese filling and fresh fruit toppings on Aug. 13. Evan W. Houk/Advertiser Democrat

Casalinova explained some smart shopping tips she used in coming up with the recipes. She said any vegetable or protein can really be added to the versatile recipe, but she chose broccoli because it was on sale. Also, the container of cream cheese was used for both recipes and none went to waste.

Each of the four participants said they enjoyed the class and learned a lot about healthy nutrition, shopping, and cooking.

The most challenging assignment was finding ingredients at Hannaford for under $10 to make a meal using all the food groups— fruits, vegetables, grains, protein, and dairy.

“That was tough,” Katrina Johndro, of Auburn, said.

Chris Bourgoin, of South Paris, shreds cheese for a homemade macaroni and cheese and broccoli recipe made during the last of six Cooking Matters classes hosted by Healthy Oxford Hills on Aug. 13, as Katrina Johndro looks on. Evan W. Houk/Advertiser Democrat

Bourgoin said he came up with a BBQ chicken and broccoli flatbread meal that cost $10.05 for the ingredients.

After the meal was enjoyed and desserts were assembled, Casalinova quizzed everyone about the things they had learned over the six-week course with a fun round of Jeopardy! trivia.

The Cooking Matters class teaches the MyPlate nutrition method, which says that half of one’s meal plate should consist of fruits and veggies.

Healthy Oxford Hills plans to hold more classes in the future. Cordwell and Casalinova said they go to schools and even senior living centers to expand nutritional education to as many people as possible.

“We try to reach as many people as we can,” Cordwell said.

For more information, visit the Healthy Oxford Hills Facebook page.