Apna Ghar, Chicago nonprofit, releases cookbook collected from gender-based violence survivors
The Chicago-based nonprofit Apna Ghar announced Tuesday that it has released a cookbook of 29 multicultural recipes collected from survivors of gender-based violence.
Apna Ghar, based in the Uptown neighborhood, works against gender-based violence through outreach and advocacy across communities, including immigrants, refugees, and marginalized groups.
The new cookbook, "Recipes from Our Home," is composed of recipes that were collected over several years by gender-based violence survivors who used Apna Ghar's emergency housing and joined its cooking groups. The cookbook includes everything from breakfast crepes to stews and curries, and represents the strength of both the people who submitted them and their cultures, Apna Ghar said.
"This book leaves me in awe of the incredible courage and resilience of the survivors Apna Ghar serves," Neha Gill, executive director and chief executive officer of Apna Ghar, said in a news release. "'Recipes from Our Home' demonstrates how survivors find more than safety at Apna Ghar. They also find community, healing, and empowerment."
The cookbook also features commentary from survivors about their experiences.
Apna Ghar serves gender-based violence survivors from 50 countries, and 75% of participants are immigrants and refugees. Food allows for a connection between participants even if they don't speak the same language, Apna Ghar said.
"Our cooking groups are powerful moments for survivors to share traditions with one another and create new, empowering memories," Tegest Enyew, program coordinator at Apna Ghar and a recipe collector and tester for the book, said in the release. "It is so wonderful that everyone who reads 'Recipes from Our Home' will have a chance to share that connection and continue to pass it along among their own communities."
"Recipes from Our Home" also features artwork, copywriting, and designs from artists from South Africa, India, and Singapore, Apna Ghar said.
The book is available through the Apna Ghar website as an eBook and on paper, and will be in bookstores in the winter. Purchases directly benefit Apna Ghar and its services.
"This book leaves me in awe of the incredible courage and resilience of the survivors Apna Ghar serves," Neha Gill, executive director and chief executive officer of Apna Ghar, said in a news release. "'Recipes from Our Home' demonstrates how survivors find more than safety at Apna Ghar. They also find community, healing, and empowerment."
The cookbook also features commentary from survivors about their experiences.
Apna Ghar serves gender-based violence survivors from 50 countries, and 75% of participants are immigrants and refugees. Food allows for a connection between participants even if they don't speak the same language, Apna Ghar said.
"Our cooking groups are powerful moments for survivors to share traditions with one another and create new, empowering memories," Tegest Enyew, program coordinator at Apna Ghar and a recipe collector and tester for the book, said in the release. "It is so wonderful that everyone who reads 'Recipes from Our Home' will have a chance to share that connection and continue to pass it along among their own communities."
"Recipes from Our Home" also features artwork, copywriting, and designs from artists from South Africa, India, and Singapore, Apna Ghar said.
The book is available through the Apna Ghar website as an eBook and on paper, and will be in bookstores in the winter. Purchases directly benefit Apna Ghar and its services.
