Cooking with Elena

Elena is passionate about sharing experiences and knowledge of food preparation. St. John’s Farmers Market is her favorite place in the city, where she is the friendly face behind “Newfound Perogies”. Perogies are handmade dumplings, filled with a variety of savory or sweet ingredients. She has adapted local ingredients and methods to complement traditional recipes. 

As a vendor, Elena loves the opportunity to share stories with customers. As a food animator, she wanted to reach more families with easy, fresh, affordable meal ideas.  She created a video series, featuring 4 family-friendly lunches, from her kitchen turned studio. Local dietitians with Eastern Health and NLESD collaborated to ensure the recipes were perfect for back-to-school.

View Elena’s video series on YouTube

Elena and Alex share their recipes for two hearty salads, chicken and couscous, as well as tortilla wraps. The videos are easy to follow, with practical food skills such as peeling and grating raw vegetables, for viewers of all ages.

Elena shared, “ My son and I were very happy to be involved in a project that promotes a healthy, easy and affordable way of packing school lunches at home to families with young children. We hope our audience will find it useful and bring them to their daily school preparation routine.”

Through this project, each food animator was able to develop a unique community project and share their passion for food. Elena contributed to a “Comfort Food” focus group with Guide to the Good, highlighting unique partnerships that have supported her food business. This is one of the many ways entrepreneurs of the food system innovate and connect!

Find Elena at the market, or find her products in stores, as her business grows.