The Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Cuisine and Publications Committees met this month to form a new Cookbook Subcommittee with the goal of publishing a free, student-created recipe book.
WUD, which is composed of 12 student-run committees as well as other subcommittees focusing on involvement and outreach, develops and executes programming and events at the Wisconsin Unions.
The newly founded Cookbook Subcommittee, which plans to meet biweekly in Union South, will hold planning meetings open to all UW-Madison students.
Publications Committee Director Katerina Stuopis and Cuisine Committee Director Rohan Waghray, who collaborated to form the new group, told The Daily Cardinal they are looking to create a book “by students, for students.”
To them, this includes catering to many different tastes and diets.
“Students tend to be picky about the food they eat, so we want to cater to what students want,” Waghray said.
Stuopis and Waghray also emphasized the importance of accessibility to all students, including those with dietary restrictions and allergies.
The group will draw recipes for a student cookbook from past events and workshops hosted by WUD Cuisine but also wants to make space for submissions from students.
“We’re going to tell stories about recipes that students submit,” Stuopis said. “Students have… recipes they really love.”
“We want students to be able to come to us and provide ideas, because the more ideas we can get in the room, the more we can do,” Waghray added.
Some of the recipes that might be included come from cooking demonstrations and workshops that WUD Cuisine has hosted around the UW-Madison campus.
“With those [workshops], we’re actually really trying to help students learn how to cook at home, maybe not eat out as much, budget… really learn how to live outside of where food is provided for you,” Waghray said.
WUD Cuisine programs provide students with opportunities to cook dishes from a broad range of cuisines and occasionally partner with other student organizations or guest speakers to develop workshops, working together to celebrate diversity in the realm of cooking.
The Cookbook Subcommittee looks to extend this to a recipe book.
“We want to actively seek out recipes from different cultures,” Stuopis said. “I think that’s really important.”
The cookbook will be made available to UW-Madison students free of charge once completed.
The subcommittee’s next meeting will be Tuesday, Oct. 10 in Union South.
