How Chef Michael Solovey and Darcey McVanel are using flavor, science, and accessibility to impact lives
“The foods that we eat are the greatest opportunity to influence our long-term health,” shares Michael Solovey, who leads our regular virtual cooking classes. “We can arm our bodies with the greatest arsenal to fight whatever comes our way.”
The virtual cooking classes recently celebrated a major milestone: their 150th session. Started during the pandemic, they were a way for us to safely provide cooking classes to Gilda’s Club members. “When we first started these, we saw it as a survival tactic,” remembers Chef Michael. Now, they’ve become a way for people to join the classes regardless of their location in Wisconsin or how they are feeling.
Virtual cooking is just one of two regular culinary offerings at Gilda’s Club. The other, Accessible Cooking, is led by volunteer Darcey McVanel and held in person at the clubhouse with assistance from staff member Allison Olson. This hybrid approach allows members to choose the style of class that best fits their needs—or comfortably attend both.
Both Chef Michael and Darcey wanted to find a way to meet the unique needs of those experiencing cancer, whether they have a diagnosis or are a caregiver. They recognize the challenges related to food and nutrition that can come along with having cancer enter your life.
Darcey: Comfort and Energy Management
Darcey held her first class in the Gilda’s clubhouse last July, and they have continued ever since. “I really love the atmosphere at Gilda’s,” she shares. “It feels like you’re being welcomed into somebody’s home by friends who really care.”
Driven by her own chronic health issues, Darcey wanted to share the adaptations she made in her own kitchen with others facing health crises. “Because I love cooking and have had to learn to manage my own energy levels- why not teach people ways to manage their energy levels and cook healthily?” she recalls. After meeting with the Gilda’s Volunteer Coordinator, Christine, Darcey created her own curriculum that focuses on low-effort, healthy, and budget-friendly meals.
Her recent class held in June was “Accessible Cooking: Rainbow Veggie Picnic,” and included no-knead focaccia, healthy dips, and colorful vegetables. The session ended with the group enjoying an indoor picnic together and discussing what they learned.
Chef Michael: Exciting the Palate
Understanding how cancer treatments can drastically impact appetite, his mission is to get people excited about eating again. “For me, the highest achievement we can get in these classes is to get people nourishing themselves and trying new things,” he explains. “Flavor science and neuroplasticity are interwoven.”
Chef Michael constantly furthers his own education, recently attending a seminar on viewing food through a medicinal lens. The experience reinforced the importance of not just eating nutrient-dense foods, but eating a variety of them. So, one of his goals is to gently push people outside of their comfort zone. “Getting people to move outside of their paradigm is just as important as eating nutrient-dense foods,” he explains.
Recent classes have included “Anytime Superfoods – Power Bowls & Protein Blends” and “Citrus Marinated Tofu with Cucumber and Mint.”
A Community of Nourishment
For both instructors, the ultimate reward is seeing their “regulars” return class after class. Darcey fondly recalls a participant who made the stuffed acorn squash recipe she learned in class to share with a neighbor. Meanwhile, Chef Michael loves when attendees bring up things that they learned several classes ago, and especially when they’ve shared those teachings with others. “The loyalty and the faces that we consistently see…it reminds us of this window that we have to make a difference.”
The impact goes both ways. “It changed my life for the better,” Chef Michael says of his time with Gilda’s Club. Darcey echoes this sentiment, grinning, “I leave every class feeling like my heart is full.”