{"id":134228,"date":"2026-08-04T01:54:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T06:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/?p=134228"},"modified":"2026-08-03T18:15:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T23:15:08","slug":"mmi-cooking-camp-teaches-independence-real-life-skills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2026\/08\/04\/mmi-cooking-camp-teaches-independence-real-life-skills\/","title":{"rendered":"MMI cooking camp teaches independence, real-life skills"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The smell of freshly cooked breakfast wafted through the second-floor halls of the Munroe-Meyer Institute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it wasn\u2019t breakfast time or even lunch time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead the meal \u2014 pancakes, eggs and toast \u2014 was whipped up by a handful of student chefs in cooking camp mid-afternoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The camp, hosted by MMI\u2019s Department of Occupational Therapy, is in its third year. Campers meet once a week for five weeks.  <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"IMG
Ashton Gleaves, right, scoops pancake mix into a measuring cup during cooking camp at the Munroe-Meyer Institute.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cIt lets them practice independence and real-life skills,\u201d said Sam Montemarano, an occupational therapist who led the cooking sessions. \u201cIt takes something scary \u2014 knives and heat \u2014 and in this controlled environment, it shows that this can be fun.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other sessions offered by the department include arts and crafts, LEGO and shoe tying. All the camps, regardless of theme, teach campers new skills and build confidence in practicing fundamental abilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first week of cooking camp had participants selecting their own menu \u2014 quesadillas and nachos, breakfast, dirt cups and personal pizzas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the start of camp, chefs don their paper chef hats. Montemarano outlined the day\u2019s plan of making pancakes \u2014 plain and chocolate chip \u2014 and \u201cegg in a hole.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMan, this is going to be fun,\u201d one chef said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chefs started by washing their hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then they divided and conquered. One chef got to work buttering toast and dropping it on the griddle where it sizzled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other chefs read directions on the box of pancake mix before taking turns measuring and whisking ingredients. A few performed quality control measures by sampling chocolate chips before adding them into the mix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Logan Hansen carefully poured batter onto the hot griddle and waited patiently before flipping them over. Another chef exclaimed: \u201cWhoa! I\u2019m loving how these turned out!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chefs, who ranged in age from 11 to 14, sat around the table adding butter and syrup to their pancakes before tucking in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And to get the full cooking experience, they also got to take turns washing\u00a0and drying dishes.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The camp is hosted by the MMI Department of Occupational Therapy. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":140,"featured_media":133870,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"38771,37937,26690,18547,35893,64537","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-134228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","topic-community","topic-outreach","department-munroe-meyer-institute","department-unmc-today-todays-headlines","author_override-kelsey-kirk-unmc-strategic-communications"],"yoast_head":"\nMMI cooking camp teaches 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