Julia McDonnell, a senior at Unionville High School, earned her Girl Scout Gold Award this month for her cookbook that helps families served by the West Chester Food Cupboard eat better, writes John Chambless for the Chester County Press.

McDonnell, 17, created The Clean Eats Cookbook. It offers recipes using fresh ingredients to help families with low incomes eat healthier while saving money.

McDonnell, who started in Girl Scouts in second grade, put the cookbook together over the summer. As a West Chester resident, she was already familiar with the West Chester Food Cupboard and its work.

“I did all of the paperwork from about early March to April, and then I met with the people at the Food Cupboard, then started doing recipe testing,” she said.

Her project will be formally honored during a ceremony in December.

Read more about Julia McDonnell and her cookbook in the Chester County Press here.