Events

Batch Cooking Basics to Improve Blood Sugar

Presented in partnership with EmblemHealth Neighborhood Care

Busy days shouldn’t get in the way of healthy eating! Let Plant Powered Metro New York show you how to set yourself up for success. In this interactive class, you’ll learn simple approaches to batch cooking that can help you eat well all week long while improving your blood sugar. Plus, enjoy a live food demo and tasting featuring an easy, affordable plant-powered recipe that you can prepare in bulk and share with your family.

Take Charge of Diabetes with Plant-Powered Nutrition

Presented in partnership with EmblemHealth Neighborhood Care

Food is a powerful tool to control and even reverse type 2 diabetes. In this interactive class, join Plant Powered Metro New York to clear up common myths about diabetes and reveal how eating a plant-rich diet can improve blood sugar, reduce the need for medications, and boost overall well-being. Whether you’re newly diagnosed, managing diabetes for years, or supporting a loved one, you’ll walk away with practical tips to put the power of plants to work for you.

Food is Medicine for Healthy Longevity

Healthcare professionals, students, and community members alike are invited to Food is Medicine for Healthy Longevity, a day-long conference presented by SUNY Downstate University to explore how nutrition and lifestyle behaviors can help us live more vibrantly as we age.

You’ll learn how to maintain and enhance strength and mobility, preserve cognitive vitality and mental health, and incorporate food-as-medicine in light of significant changes in the field — such as the dramatic increase in GLP-1 medication use and precision nutrition. Sessions will also highlight equity in access to healthy food and evidence-based strategies to address overweight and obesity. The conference will feature keynote speaker Wayne Dysinger, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Blue Zones Health, discussing what we can learn from the world’s longest-lived communities to support health in our own communities.

Attendees will enjoy a plant-based breakfast and lunch. After lunch, an educational cooking demo and tasting led by Plant Powered Metro New York’s team members, Chef Rebecca Johnson and Marty Davey, RD, will include healthy, festive foods that can prevent and treat hypertension and diabetes.

Whether you’re interested in supporting your own health, caring for a loved one, or helping patients and communities thrive, Food is Medicine for Healthy Longevity will offer practical information to increase both lifespan and healthspan.

Plant Powered Potluck in Astoria (November 2026)

Share in great company and enjoy a wholesome potluck meal with Plant Powered Metro New York when we gather at The Lifestyle Building in Astoria, hosted by Enrica Sacca, PPMNY co-founder and lead organizer.

For the potluck, please choose a plant-based recipe with whole plant foods — whole grains, beans, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Please, no animal-based foods, vegan processed foods, white flours, or added oils, and we ask you to minimize added sweeteners and salt.

If this sounds intimidating, don’t worry! Contact Enrica at enrica.sacca@ppmny.org to discuss simple dish ideas or check out our recipes at: ppmny.org/recipes.

It’s a good rule of thumb to double a recipe you would make at home! Please bring a serving utensil for your dish.

Plant Powered Potluck in Livingston (November 2026)

Enjoy a nourishing potluck meal and community connection with Plant Powered Metro New York and Livingston Healthy Community Healthy Youth at the Livingston Community Center. We’re gathering monthly for the remainder of 2026!

For the potluck, please choose a plant-based recipe made with whole plant foods — whole grains, beans, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Please, no animal-based foods and vegan processed foods, and we ask you to minimize added oil, sweeteners, and salt. Please bring a printed list of ingredients or a printed recipe.

It’s a good rule of thumb to double a recipe you would make at home — everyone wants to try it! Please bring a serving utensil for your dish, and to help us make this a low-waste event, bring a plate, utensils, and water bottle from home.

Not sure what to bring? Reach out to info@ppmny.org for simple dish ideas or explore recipes on our website at ppmny.org/recipes.

Hosted by PPMNY’s Steve Barbag and Karina Pearse

Dinner Social in Jackson Heights

Join Plant Powered Metro New York for an evening of delicious food and community at The Queensboro, a neighborhood restaurant in Jackson Heights participating in our Plant Powered Plates initiative. Known for its creative takes on American comfort food, The Queensboro brings neighbors together over fresh, flavorful dishes inspired by seasonal ingredients.

Guests will enjoy a whole food, plant-based menu prepared exclusively for our group, menu TBA.

The fixed price of $47 includes your meal and gratuity. All dishes are prepared with minimal oil and are low in added salt and sugar.

All reservations are requested by 12:00 PM on Monday, November 9. After this time, limited space may be available, and we may not be able to honor refund requests.

Plant Powered Potluck in Astoria (December 2026)

Share in great company and enjoy a wholesome potluck meal with Plant Powered Metro New York when we gather at The Lifestyle Building in Astoria, hosted by Enrica Sacca, PPMNY co-founder and lead organizer.

For the potluck, please choose a plant-based recipe with whole plant foods — whole grains, beans, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Please, no animal-based foods, vegan processed foods, white flours, or added oils, and we ask you to minimize added sweeteners and salt.

If this sounds intimidating, don’t worry! Contact Enrica at enrica.sacca@ppmny.org to discuss simple dish ideas or check out our recipes at: ppmny.org/recipes.

It’s a good rule of thumb to double a recipe you would make at home! Please bring a serving utensil for your dish.

Cooking with Chef Carole

Virtual

Explore the delicious world of plant-based baking and cooking without added oils, salt, or sugar. This month, Chef Carole Levy, PPMNY Culinary Educator, will be using what’s available in her kitchen to create dishes without recipes! Tune in live to find out what she’s cooking up off-the-cuff.

Event access is by donation or free to anyone unable to contribute. Please choose the option that fits you best and join us!

Registrants will receive recipes and a Facebook Live and YouTube link on the day of the event. Please note that Facebook Live and YouTube streams are available to viewers with or without Facebook or YouTube accounts.

Presented in partnership with the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan

Plant Powered Potluck in Livingston (December 2026)

Enjoy a nourishing potluck meal and community connection with Plant Powered Metro New York and Livingston Healthy Community Healthy Youth at the Livingston Community Center. We’re gathering monthly for the remainder of 2026!

For the potluck, please choose a plant-based recipe made with whole plant foods — whole grains, beans, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Please, no animal-based foods and vegan processed foods, and we ask you to minimize added oil, sweeteners, and salt. Please bring a printed list of ingredients or a printed recipe.

It’s a good rule of thumb to double a recipe you would make at home — everyone wants to try it! Please bring a serving utensil for your dish, and to help us make this a low-waste event, bring a plate, utensils, and water bottle from home.

Not sure what to bring? Reach out to info@ppmny.org for simple dish ideas or explore recipes on our website at ppmny.org/recipes.

Hosted by PPMNY’s Steve Barbag and Karina Pearse