Home-grown talent: Wendy Van Wagner of In The Kitchen

THE LURE OF THE BIG CITY IS costly to small towns. The talented young people often move away. “Bring them home” has been the motto of local economic development proponents.

We’re glad to celebrate home-grown talent whenever we can—in this case In The Kitchen owner Wendy Van Wagner. Wendy’s In The Kitchen cooking school and catering business, in a marvelous Craftsman-style home in Nevada City, has been a catalyst to our local food movement.

Wendy grew up in Nevada City, went away to Pitzer College, studied at Bauman College in Berkeley and became a certified Nutrition Educator. She worked at a student-run cafe, Bay Area catering and events companies and was a resident chef at a Napa Valley winery.

In 2007, Wendy moved back to Nevada City and opened a brand new teaching kitchen and dining room. The classes boomed as did partnerships with healthy lifestyle groups such as Briar Patch Co-op, Fit Culture and Live Healthy Nevada County.

“When I returned to Nevada County, the local foods movement was crystallizing and starting to take hold,” she recalls. “In 2008, the Nevada City Farmers Market was just beginning and there were more and more small organic farms popping up.

“In The Kitchen became a place where people could come and learn how to prepare nourishing meals and learn about the availability and importance of supporting local food and farmers.

“Our classes have always emphasized simple and delicious ways to cook and nourish while adding to your quality of life.”

One of her most cherished partnerships is with Briar Patch Community Market, which offers a weekly cooking class at In The Kitchen.

Wendy also is an original member of Live Healthy Nevada County, which offers farm-to-table programs, as well as a healthy school lunch menu for local school districts.

Wendy was recently hired by the Nevada County Department of Social Services to be part of a program to offer cooking and nutrition classes to low-income adults in the community. “I am going to offer several series of classes geared toward practical and hands-on education,” she says.

She also will partner with retail outlets such as Grocery Outlet to offer cooking demonstrations, recipes and food shopping tours. “I will bring almost 10 years of education and cooking experience to our community,” she says.

Wendy also is helping to organize a Farm-to-Table Tour in Nevada County on September 13-15. It celebrates the county’s rich sampling of local, farm-fresh food and award-winning wine with a two-day self guided tour of working farms, ranches and vineyards. Some proceeds go to help support the Nevada City Farmers Market.
InTheKitchenNC.com

Read our magazine’s Special Report—The New Gold Rush:
How chefs, farmers, winemakers & artists are resettling the Sierra foothills here.

(photo: Simon Weller)