Barbara Gates donned a tiara as she introduced herself to students at the Oceanside Public Library. She leads the Cool Beans Club once a month and goes by “Queen Bean.”
“I'm crazy about beans,” she said. “They’re economical, they're versatile, multicultural. They have a long shelf life. They're pennies on the dollar. It's the most high value protein food.”
Each class in her nine-lesson curriculum features a different bean from around the world. Along with the environmental and health benefits of beans, kids and caregivers learn about cultures that cook with them. Monthly lessons align with holidays.
Wednesday’s class was about soybeans and the Lunar New Year. Attendees tried edamame and made lettuce wraps with tofu, snap peas, mandarin oranges and teriyaki sauce.
“I think they’re going to be delicious,” said Olive Lyons, age 9.
Her grandfather, Raymond Lyons, said it’s important to encourage healthy eating habits at a young age. This class also teaches kids to respect other cultures and the environment, he said.
“It’s teaching them about good nutrients, and it’s also teaching them, ‘Hey, we’ve got a big, broad world and so we’ve got to take care of it,’” he said.
Gates came up with the idea about 25 years ago, when her kids were in elementary school. She saw a need for nutrition education that emphasized plants, not just dairy and meat.
“I grew up on classic American food: burgers, hot dogs, pizza, chicken nuggets,” she said. “I remember the first time I was introduced to lentils. It probably took me another five years before I started eating them. It was so foreign to me.”
Lisa Ferneau-Haynes is the senior librarian for youth services at the Oceanside Public Library. She saw Gates’ curriculum as a perfect fit leading up to the summertime, when they partner with local organizations to give out boxes of food. Those boxes usually include beans.
“I would have families tell me, ‘Oh my God, I loved that. Thank you so much. But I don't even know what this is or what to do with it,’” she said. “I wanted to find a program that uses basic pantry items and basic fruits and vegetables that everybody knows of. If they don’t, then they learn it in the class.”
Next month’s class is about lentils and the Hindu festival Holi.
Teachers who want to bring the lessons to their classrooms can access the Cool Beans curriculum online for free. Gates’ organization, Healthy Kids Happy Planet, also offers grants to cover food costs for culinary activities.
