Centre Dufferin’s Co-op Corner

Student: Samantha Miller

Placement: Healthy Cravings

This week Samantha Miller from Centre Dufferin District High School shares a little bit about her experience and how Healthy Cravings Holistic Kitchen is contributing to our community's future. 

Healthy Cravings Holistic Kitchen is more than just a cafe. Brenda is trying to bring awareness of who makes your food and where your food comes from. At Healthy Cravings they use only fresh, locally sourced food. Brenda, Chef and owner, is a Holistic Nutritionist so she knows how to prepare your food so that it gives you the most nutrition possible. The food prepared at Healthy Cravings is designed to be health enhancing, and they make all of their own sauces and condiments in order to ensure everything served is as fresh as possible.

My title at Healthy Cravings Holistic Kitchen is a Barista/Prep Cook. Some duties I have are opening up the front of the cafe, making coffee, making smoothies, taking orders and prepping some ingredients. At Healthy Cravings some equipment we use is a blender, food processor and a meat slicer. Some of the training I received when I started at Healthy Cravings how to use the cash register, how to prepare smoothies and how to get the bread ready for the day. My training is ongoing as I am learning new skills and tasks every day.  Some other jobs that I have become aware of since starting here are a Holistic Nutritionist, a Caterer, a Chef and a Baker. 

Even though Healthy Cravings Holistic Kitchen has only been part of the community for 2 years Brenda is a part of our community. She stays open during downtown events like Fiddle Fest and the Street Festival that happens in June. Brenda adheres to “farm to table food” and gets her milk and dairy products from Sheldon Creek Dairy. She gets her bread from a local baker, and gets her mushrooms as well as her meats from local farmers. Brenda gets most of her baked goods that she sells from Shine Baking Company which runs out of the basement of her café. Shine Baking owner Rosie makes all her delicious baked goods gluten free and vegan so that everyone can enjoy them.