Beyond Ramen - FALL 2026 Session
Beyond Ramen - FALL 2026 Session
Beyond Ramen: A Crash Cooking Course for High School Seniors and Young Adults
Heading off to college or life on your own soon? Beyond Ramen is a practical, hands-on cooking course designed to give high school seniors and young adults the kitchen confidence everyone should have before leaving home.
Over the course of eight weeks, students will learn how to prepare simple, affordable, healthy meals using real ingredients and basic equipment — no prior cooking experience required. The class covers essential life skills like knife safety, grocery shopping, meal planning, reading recipes, stocking a pantry, and cooking a variety of versatile meals that can be adapted on a student budget.
Recipes focus on nourishing, flavor-packed dishes that are faster, cheaper, and healthier than takeout or instant noodles, from hearty grain bowls and sheet pan dinners to soups, pasta dishes, breakfasts, and grab-and-go snacks.
Along the way, students will learn how to improvise in the kitchen, reduce food waste, and feed themselves well during busy, stressful seasons of life. The goal isn’t perfection — it’s confidence, independence, and knowing how to make something delicious out of what’s in the fridge.
By the end of the course, students will leave with a repertoire of foundational recipes, practical kitchen skills, and the ability to go far beyond ramen.
Overview: An eight-session, hands-on cooking course designed for high school seniors and young adults preparing to live independently. Students will build practical kitchen skills, learn how to shop and cook on a budget, and gain confidence in feeding themselves well in college and beyond. Dinner included!
Target Audience: Students ages 16-20. Dietary restriction-friendly (GF, kosher, vegetarian, etc.)
Schedule:
FALL SESSION: Tuesdays 5-7:30 p.m.
September 29
October 6
October 13
October 20
October 27
November 3
November 10
November 17
Cost: $125 per 2.5-hour session x 8 sessions, plus a one-time $125 materials fee, for a total of $1,125 due at time of registration. Contact Laura for alternate payment plan or to apply for limited scholarship.
About the Instructor: Laura McLively is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, food writer, and award-winning cookbook author of The Berkeley Bowl Cookbook (Parallax Press, 2018). She has over a decade of experience teaching cooking classes to students of all ages and backgrounds, from corporate wellness programs and community workshops to youth cooking camps and hands-on nutrition education.
Through both her private nutrition practice and cooking classes, Laura is passionate about helping people build a healthy, joyful relationship with food, their bodies, and the environment. Her teaching emphasizes curiosity, confidence, flavor, and practical skills, showing students how to create nourishing meals using accessible, affordable ingredients. She believes cooking can be a powerful tool for connection, creativity, cultural exploration, and lifelong well-being.