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Apples to Zucchini Cooking School is celebrating its tenth anniversary, marking a decade of bringing people together around the table through hands-on culinary education.
Founded as a non-profit organization in Santa Barbara in 2016, Apples to Zucchini began with a simple idea: cooking is an essential life skill, and everyone deserves the opportunity to learn it. What started with cooking classes for local children has grown into a countywide organization offering afterschool programs, camps, family and adult classes, free community programs, and paid teen culinary internships.
“When I started Apples to Zucchini ten years ago, I kept thinking about all the kids growing up without ever being taught how to cook,” said Nancy Martz, founder of Apples to Zucchini Cooking School. “I wanted to create a place where children could get their hands messy, try unfamiliar foods, learn to make a meal from scratch, and then sit down together and enjoy what they had made. Ten years later, I’m incredibly proud that those simple ideas—cook together, eat together, and yes, clean up together—remain at the heart of everything we do.”
Over the past decade, Apples to Zucchini has expanded its reach throughout Santa Barbara County, bringing hands-on culinary education into schools, community organizations, libraries, parks, and other gathering places. Its mobile teaching kitchens allow instructors to bring the cooking school directly to students, while partnerships with local nonprofits make classes available to families and individuals who might otherwise have limited access to culinary education.
As the organization enters its second decade, Executive Director Jill Barton is focused on building upon that foundation and extending its reach by introducing free community classes for housing/food insecure neighbors and cementing partnerships with other local nonprofits.
“Our first ten years proved how much this community values practical, hands-on cooking education,” Barton said. “Our next chapter is about reaching more people while preserving what makes Apples to Zucchini special: small classes, cooking from scratch, gathering around a shared meal, and giving every student the confidence to say, ‘I can make this myself.’ We have an extraordinary foundation to build on, and I’m excited about where the next ten years will take us.”
The need for culinary education has only become more important, said Dr. Ann Fristoe, President of the Apples to Zucchini Board of Directors.
“Knowing how to prepare nourishing food is one of the most practical tools we can give a young person,” Fristoe said. “Culinary education helps children develop confidence, independence, curiosity, and an understanding of how the food they eat affects their health. Just as importantly, cooking and eating together strengthen families and communities. These are skills and habits that can benefit our students for the rest of their lives.”
Throughout its tenth anniversary year, Apples to Zucchini will celebrate the students, educators, volunteers, donors, and community partners who have helped the organization grow from a local idea into a thriving culinary education nonprofit.
“Ten years ago, we started by teaching kids how to cook,” Martz added. “What we discovered along the way is that cooking is about so much more than food. It’s about confidence, connection, generosity, curiosity, and the simple pleasure of sitting down together. That’s worth celebrating.”
To join the celebration, the community can buy tickets to “A Decade of Dishes” at the Black Sheep restaurant on Tuesday, September 29th: https://secure.qgiv.com/event/adecadeofdishes/
About Apples to Zucchini Cooking School
Apples to Zucchini Cooking School is a Santa Barbara County nonprofit that brings people together over shared meals by teaching children, teens, and adults to prepare delicious, nutritious, affordable meals using seasonal and local ingredients. Through hands-on classes, students build practical cooking skills, explore new foods, and experience the connection that comes from preparing and sharing a meal together.
