NATCHEZ — A pinch of this, a dash of that ­— those are lessons that our grandmothers taught us. These days, it’s a bit more structured.

The Mississippi State Extension Service, along with nutritionists Tammy Stampley and Paula Gaylor, has put together a Master Cooks Course for students ranging in age from 10 to 15. The course is designed to teach the students the importance of nutrition.

During the two-week course, students will learn ways to maintain a healthy body weight with proper diet and exercise.

Once in the kitchen, students help make a variety of healthy dishes. Monday, the recipe was for sloppy joes. After washing their hands and donning plastic gloves, each student was given a task. Kasim Garner learned the proper way to cut an onion. Asia Green cut the bell pepper.

Several students took turns measuring ingredients and browning the ground beef.

When all the cooking was finished, the students sat down to a healthy meal. Suquetta Sewell led the blessing before helping herself to lunch. She said that this class was very helpful to her.

“It helps me learn so when I get older I can know how to fix meals for myself,” Sewell said.

Some students were there for completely different reasons. Keundra Washington said she was looking toward the future.

“Working in the kitchen helps me with my future goals,” Washington said. “I want to major in the culinary arts and become a chef. Eventually, I want to own my own restaurant and catering service.”

After the food was eaten, the dishes were done and the leftovers were put away, the students talked about the importance of eating a healthy diet. Stampley and Gaylor used the food Pyramid to teach what kinds of food were healthy and what kinds of food were not.

Exercise was also a topic of discussion. Stampley is confident that with the proper knowledge, kids can make good choices about the foods they eat.

The Master Cooks Course is offered once a year at the Mississippi State Extension Service. This year’s course ends on Wednesday.