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Taro time

Celebrate that crucial building block of Hawaiian cuisine at the East Maui Taro Festival, Friday through Sunday in and around the Hana Ballpark.

The free event features a symposium Friday evening, covering water rights and taro genetics.

Saturday is the main event, a festival at the park. Food booths will offer poi mochi, kulolo, poi and locally-made taro burgers. Purchase taro at the agricultural tent. Hawaiian music and hula will also be featured, along with demonstrations of taro pounding and tapa-making and archival photography of taro growing.

Sunday is a day of excursions, including a visit to a taro loi. Sign up on Saturday at festival T-shirt booth.

Call Judy Kinser, (808) 264-1553.

Healthy eating ideas

Dr. Michael Greger offers a free lecture, "Stop Cancer Before it Starts," at this month's meeting of the Vegetarian Society of Hawaii, 7 p.m. next Wednesday at the Ala Wai Golf Course Clubhouse.

Greger, a general practitioner specializing in clinical nutrition and a founding member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, is the author of "Carbophobia: The Scary Truth About America's Low-Carb Craze."

He teaches that up to 70 percent of cancer deaths may be prevented through diet, and his multimedia presentation deals with plant "superfoods" that he believes may block or even reverse tumor formation.

Admission is free and open to the public. Call 944-8344 or e-mail info@VSH.org.

Culinary classes

Kapiolani Community college offers these cooking courses in April. Registration runs three weeks in advance, so it's time to sign up. Call 734-9211.

Cooking Fundamentals: Chef-instructor Grant Sato focuses on roasting, using local products, with an emphasis on Asian/Pacific flavors. A demonstration is followed with hands-on cooking, 8 a.m. to noon, April 9. Cost is $55.

Cooking for Health and Wellness Series: Personal chef Alyssa Moreau focuses on vegetarian and vegan meals in two Saturday classes, "Noodles, Noodles, Noodles!," April 23; and "Main Course Salads," April 30. Both classes run 8 a.m. to noon and cost $43 each.

Potlucks with Pizzazz: Chef-instructor Nina Jarrett offers fresh ideas for bring-along dishes, 6 to 9 p.m. April 4. Cost is $45.

Grilling!: Bring your grill to this outdoor class, 1 to 5 p.m. April 23. Cost is $50.

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