FARMINGTON – A student at the University of Maine at Farmington is working to assemble a virtual cookbook of recipes from University staff, faculty, and students. Mariah Langton came up with the idea for a communally constructed cookbook at the beginning of the year when she was trying to devise activities as a new Community Assistant. In her past years as a student, she’d observed certain clubs and Community Assistants organize “diversity dinners” in which students would come together and share recipes, cooking in communal kitchens, and get to know one another over a meal. With the COVID-19 pandemic, sharing a meal wasn’t an option, so Langton tried to think of the next best thing. If she couldn’t give students a chance to share a kitchen, she could at least get them to share recipes.
“Cooking is universal of everyone. What better way to get everyone to know one another at this time than with a cookbook?” Langton said.
Submissions were slow, she said, but with some help from faculty member Linda Beck, she’s gotten over 10 submissions so far. She hopes to get at least 20, but part of that is controlled by the deadline that Langton has set. Submissions will only be accepted until Nov. 20, at which point Langton will begin assembling the individual recipes and personal stories into a collective drive that she plans on sharing with everyone on campus.
The cookbook will include categories such as soups, appetizers, vegetarian recipes, vegan recipes, as well as many others that would normally be found in a printed cookbook. Though extending the deadline might afford her more recipe submissions, the current date is set in an attempt to be able to provide students and staff with the opportunity to bring a piece of UMF home with them for the holidays when the University ends in-person classes and transitions to strictly virtual instruction for the duration of the Fall semester.
“I want it to be something for students to bring home with them for Thanksgiving,” Langton said.
By keeping the cookbook as a virtual copy, this makes distribution easier as well. While she isn’t opposed to making a physical copy available, she’s also aware of current limitations and concerns regarding exchanging materials. As a senior, Langton doesn’t have a way to ensure this, but she does have hopes that the UMF Campus Cookbook becomes an annual tradition.
“Cooking is a way to come together, even if it’s just over zoom. This cookbook is a way to connect when we can’t physically be together,” she said.
Those wishing to submit to the cookbook can send recipes and a story to accompany it, if they wish, to Mariah.langton@maine.edu.
