About Us

       Laura’s Kitchen & Mentoring Gardens is a fund-raising project of The Educare Foundation (an-IRS-certified-501c3) and The ARK Schoolhouse, a modern one-room schoolhouse serving families and children Nursery-12^th grade, offering individualized education and home school support, opportunities for senior citizens to mentor and assist with children, as well as outreach programs to the community.  Extra curricular activities are Home Arts, Fine Arts, with opportunities for writing and developing new screenplays, radio dramas, other activities like investigative field trips, Chess club and of course, Business Innovation, Research and Development! The Mentoring Gardens project is teaching students to think creatively and develop solutions in their communities.  Often, lack of finances is just one of the obstacles in doing good things.   Since we’ve chosen NOT to compete for funding with other 501c3 non-profits who provide essential services in the community, that leaves us in somewhat of a bind. Looking through the solution-lens, bind just means we have to be more creative and come up with new ideas. Make no mistake, we are still in need of funds to sustain the programs, to keep growing new ideas into flourishing businesses, and to teach children to never give up the heart to do good things for others! Something can always be done to help, to work, and a challenge can always become a victory if we keep pressing forward. Learning how to do this in a creative, clean and sustainable way is essential!

 About our Products for People and Pets:

We have over ten kinds of gourmet Granola bites, with seasonal specials available!  Our granola is not rolled in oil and honey, but is carefully prepared to offer mostly nuggets that can be a snack, crumbled into cereals, yogurt or salads, even as a topper for baked or mashed potatoes and other vegetables.  Try the cocoa or toffee kinds for a nourishing, grain-full dessert.  This season, try our Pumpkin Harvest, and Cinnamon Apple Pie for some country comfort, or Cider Granola to celebrate Indian summer. This winter, try Cappuccino Spice, or Hot Cocoa, and did I mention Peppermint? If you don’t see information here, don’t forget to ask about our Certified Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free, Egg-Free, even Oat-Free varieties. We make-to-order any special dietary requests and try to be creative with them too!    Our Herb Granolas are great for less sweet uses such as replacing croutons, sprinkled on dishes, used as breading before baking, or just a savory snack.  Pooch Packs are made from the same Herb recipes for our furry friends to share and the best part is, their treats are safe for human consumption. Don’t forget to ask about our Old Country Biscotti and Lemon Knots. My grandma’s 96 year-old recipe enjoyed by several generations, brought to you with a fresh dose of love, whole wheat or Gluten Free varieties, and don’t forget the fresh lemon!

 IL Department of Public Health Process Authority and Approval granted to move forward with more recipes!

Finally, with the long list of “to-do’s” and approvals needed to make and sell foods legally, they have given us the green light!  We celebrate the approvals given to us by the Illinois State Department of Public Health to move forward with the making and selling of the rest of our recipes! Our chefs are busy creating specialty foods to bring to the market place and include Unique Vegetable and Fruit Relishes, Salsas, Pickled Vegetables, Italian Spinach Pies, Marinara, Salsettaâ [our Salsa Bruschetta mix] various Hummus dips, Olive Relishes as in Mufaletta, and other specialty items such as our Carrot Cake Jam! Things you can do with our unique salsas, jams and relishes: Use as a glaze on meats before baking, roasting or grilling! Use the Sweet or Hot Carrot Salsa as relish on hot dogs, sausages and other sandwiches! Use the relishes as a stand-alone garnish, mix with refried beans, mashed potatoes, or cream cheese for a chip or vegetable dip! Cranberry and carrot relishes can also be mixed with stuffing, heat and serve on top of baked potatoes, vegetables, or try sour cream for a spicy twist! Our pickled vegetables and spicy beans can be used as sides, top off main dishes, chopped up for a spunky salad topping, or used in tomato juice drinks! Possibilities are endless! Thanks for sharing!

About "Our Kitchen"

While the kitchen is not ‘ours’ per say, we have local community members to thank wholeheartedly for sharing their commercial, certified and licensed resources with us so we could get a start on this fund-raising project.  We owe very big THANK YOU's and acknowlegement to some very special people and organizations in our community! (We need to get permission before naming names!)                                                     

How to purchase and where to find us!  Visit Us At Winter Indoor Markets!

Please visit us at the following locations Saturday December 17th: The Evanston Ecology Center Artisan Market 9-1:00PM, The Woodstock Farm Market at the Farm Bureau Building 9-12:00PM, and The Elgin Winter Market at the Haight Building 9-3:00PM!  Several of these Indoor Winter Markets will run through April and May! Stay tuned for information on the Holiday Bazaars! !

We’ll also deliver, ship, set up vending routes, and are currently looking for counter or display space at existing retail locations in communities we’ve attended Farmer’s Markets.  If you know of a retail place or are aware of companies that would like to be on our vending route, we’ll gladly supply some healthy, energetic and unique snacks!  We also do special orders, themed events with special labeling and gift-wrapping! Have an idea you want help materializing?  Let us know! The kids are always up for a new challenge! If you happen to be looking for somewhere to make a tax-deductible donation, they may be made to The Educare Foundation c/o The ARK and mailed to the below address.  We thank you for your patronage this season and look forward to serving you in the months to come!            

Laura’s Kitchen & Mentoring Gardens Market is an educational, youth business mentoring and fund -raising project of The ARK Schoolhouse & The Educare Foundation, Inc. (an IRS certified 501c3 non profit.)