NUTR3040/ AFST3097: African Diaspora Foodways and Health

We are excited to offer a new nutrition course in collaboration with Africana Studies. In this course, we will explore the history of African American Soul food, tracing its roots from Africa. The course satisfies the DEI and History (HP) BOKs, and has a culinary lab component.

It is also a service-learning class. For the service-learning portion will be working in the Camp Washington community gardens and produce market alongside the residents. The final project of the class will focus on developing a culturally tailored nutrition education program with the community advisory board in Camp Washington emphasizing cooking foods that align more with the African Heritage Diet and embody that AHA Simple 7. Register to explore, learn, and taste the complexity of African American cuisine and its implications for health. 

Description from Catalyst:
This course will enable students to explore and better understand the rich culinary history of the African diaspora and the impacts of slavery, colonization, voluntary migration, social movements, and protest on dietary patterns and health. The focus of this course is on the various pathways of African foods and cultural practices from the continent to what became the African Diaspora. Through service-learning and culinary lab experiences, students will explore the growth stages of Afro-diasporic foods as well as the tastes and smells from traditional African foods to North American Soul Food.