Instructor Listings
From trained chefs and restaurateurs, to local producers, wellness specialists and talented home cooks, we partner with and host a variety of instructors.
Chef Paige Vandegrift
Chef Paige is a professionally trained chef. She is a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu in London and has worked at the award winning American Restaurant, The Pastry Goddess and the Culinary Center of Kansas City. Additionally, Paige has worked in France, both in Provence and with cookbook author Susan Herrmann Loomis in Normandy. Currently, Paige spends her time teaching cooking classes and preparing fine dinners in private homes through her chef service, simple food. To learn about her business, visit her website. Paige also keeps a food blog filled with cooking lessons, recipes and the things she cooks in her “off” time.
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Rachel Ciordas
Rachel's love of cooking started early, in fact her very first word was “cook-cook!” She went on to a career centered around food, bringing her kitchen enthusiasm to the public through cooking classes since 2010. Rachel loves to share her knowledge and experiences through great storytelling and practical advice for every cook. She is passionate about teaching, learning, and traveling the world. She finds her greatest joy in empowering people to find a world of delicious flavors right in their own kitchens.
Rachel is a cooking teacher and recipe developer in the greater Kansas City metropolitan area. She offers cooking classes for adults and for children as well as private cooking classes and dining events.
Specialties: Gluten-free
Types of classes: Demonstration, hands-on
Store location: KCK
For more information and to contact Rachel, click the button below:
Mari Ruck
In 1983, Mari opened a specialty food store in Kansas City called The Food Bin that she and her sister operated for over 21 years. During that time, she graduated from the Culinary Program at Johnson County Community College in Overland Park, Kansas. She has been teaching cooking in Kansas City and Lawrence for over 10 years. She cooks at home almost every night and now, her husband cleans up after her. Mari loves good food, which can only be made with good ingredients.
Specialties: Breads, cinnamon rolls, cookies, scones, biscuits, pizza, knife skills, gourmet vegetarian
Types of classes: Hands-on, demonstration
Store location: Lawrence and KCK
To contact Mari, click the button below:
Sarah Salzman
Sarah is the co-founder, owner and head fermentista of Wild Alive Ferments. She is passionate about sharing her love of fermentation with Lawrencians. She works with area farmers to preserve the seasons and utilize the immunities in our local soil. Her mission is to share her love of the deeply ancient and cultural practice of fermentation with others. To bring a new level of nutrition, passion, and magic into people’s lives.
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Ashley Combs
Throughout her time working in public schools and education-based non-profits, food and nutrition were always Ashley's passions. She decided to dedicate more time and energy into this hobby by going back to school. She graduated from K-State in Nutrition and Dietetics and is currently going through her rotations in order to earn certification as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. In this second career, Ashley is able to utilize her years of experience in educating and mentoring youth for this new venture in teaching nutrition to her community. She is passionate about making nutritional education accessible for all and empowering people to take their health into their own hands. Her favorite topics to teach include, but are not limited to, nutrition for mental health and gut health, nutrition for different life stages, non-toxic living, and how to establish healthy sustainable habits.
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Emily Henry
Emily Henry is a Holistic Nutrition Practitioner and Garden Consultant. In her practice, The Whole Body Movement, she works with individuals to heal their bodies through food, movement, and mindfulness. She also teaches cooking classes, caters small events, and offers garden consultations to people who want to start or maintain their own home gardens. Emily believes that a garden not only nourishes the body, but also the senses and the soul. Follow her on Instagram @thewholebodymovement, or visit her website.
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Material presented in class reflects the views and opinions of the presenter and is not an endorsement of products sold or philosophies held by The Merc Co+op.