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“Today’s
class is chocolate decorating. We will make
chocolate muffins following the steps of a recipe.
While these are baking we will make chocolate
crackles. Once the muffins are cool, you can
create chocolate designs to decorate the muffins and
use different coloured icings and sprinkles. We then
have dried apricots, banana pieces and pineapple to
dip in the remaining chocolate. You will take all
your creations home with you, along with a copy of
all the recipes we have used today.”
The
questions come thick and fast once cooking is under
way. The children are eager to bake and, of course,
taste!
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By
the time everyone has had a turn at adding
ingredients and stirring, the muffin mixture
is spooned into the muffin tins. Each child is
doing four muffins.
While the muffins cook, the children are busy
making chocolate crackles. Naomi has
ingeniously worked out a colour for each child
and they are able to fill eight mini baking
cups each.
A plastic bag, snipped at the corner, makes a
great piping bag. The children are soon busy,
with milk and white chocolate, making patterns
on their greaseproof paper.
Yellow and pink icing caps the muffins. Next
some of the children have used M & M’s
while others have chosen the sprinkles. Their
chocolate creations, now hardened, are added.
The
microwave is kept busy with Naomi softening
the chocolate as the children dip their fruit
and lay it on their greaseproof paper to
dry.
All too soon it is time to pack up. Suddenly
some of the children realise they haven’t
brought their containers and Naomi quickly
sets to with serviettes and paper bags to
ensure safe transportation of their creations.
Parents
come to pick up their children and many
exclamations are made about the wonderful
designs.
Another class is over and Naomi is left to
clean up and do the dishes before the next
class, due to start in an hour.
Every two months Naomi puts out a newsletter
advertising classes.
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Cooking
books for children
Getting
children to eat is always a battle, no matter what
their age. One way to tackle the problem is
getting the children interested in cooking their own
food. There are many cookbooks and websites
available.
Kate
Wadsworth, Wadsworths Bookcentre Ltd, New Plymouth,
advised that the most popular books they sell are:-
Australian
Woman's Weekly - Kids in the Kitchen, RRP: $25.00
flexi-bound softcover
“With
easy instructions and step-by-step photographs, this
book teaches kids how to make everything from
biscuits and cakes to dinner for the family.
There are fabulous pizzas, tacos, sensational
open sandwiches, Mother’s Day breakfast and much
more. This is the starting point for the next
generation of celebrity chefs.”
Edmonds
Beginner's Cookbook, RRP:
$25.00 spiral book
“The
much-loved Edmonds 'junior' cookbooks have now been
fully updated with 20 brand new recipes. All are
easy to prepare and, with simple step-by-step
instructions, great for learning to cook. Not only
do kids and beginner-cooks want fun foods - they
want to have fun making the recipes. Every page in
this cookbook contains photographs, illustrations
and great colour - all appealing to today's kids and
teenagers. With Edmonds you can feel confident that
the recipes will work, that your kids will enjoy
themselves, and that your kitchen will stay in one
piece! A must for all young aspiring chefs.”
Another book that our family use a lot is:-
The Junior Cook by Family Circle, RRP: $12.95 A4 size
book
So,
it’s time you learnt to cook. Whether you want to
bake a batch of banana muffins for your mum, make a
roast chicken for your friends, or astonish your
sister with your cunning chicken cacciatore, our
step-by-step pictures show you exactly how it’s
done. But let’s start with the easy stuff.
Our ‘how to’ chapter gives away some of
those kitchen secrets ... how to stop your cake
sticking to the tin, how to make a lump-free gravy,
how to cook pasta that isn’t gluggy and -
the biggest and best-kept secret of all ‘how to
boil a perfect egg.’
Usborne Internet-Linked Children's World
Cookbook
A new kind of cookbook incorporating the use of the internet
is The Usborne Internet-Linked Children’s World
Cookbook. It is a fascinating book enabling
the children to discover the countries as well as
recipes in an entertaining and interactive way.
“This book includes more than 40 simple, delicious
recipes from around the world. There’s lots
of information on what is traditionally eaten in
different countries and the ingredients that are
used. You’ll also find fascinating
photographs of places, from floating markets in
Thailand to Italian delicatessens, Mexican food
markets to exotic fruits and spices.
All the recipes and lists of ingredients can be
downloaded from www.usborne-quicklinks.com
.”
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Classes:-
New
Plymouth
– Etcetera
Classes have a maximum of eight children per
class from 5-year-olds upwards. You can bring
your own apron or they can be
supplied. At the beginning of the
class there is a discussion on
hygiene. Great importance is placed on
washing hands and cleaning benches. During the
two hours of the class the children will spend
time baking and decorating. Remember to bring
a container to safely transport their
creations home.
Themed
parties are proving popular. Guests make their
food and then take it to the party to
enjoy. One group met at the shop with
their sleeping bags, baked and went on to the
birthday girl’s house to eat it as a
midnight snack. Classes are $18 per child for
2 hours of creativity. This includes all
ingredients. Naomi Ward, 18 Devon St East, New
Plymouth, Phone : 06 758 6957, Email : etceteranp@clear.net.nz
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Auckland
- Selwyn Community Education is based at Selwyn College in
Auckland's eastern suburb of Kohimarama.
They offer “Kids In The Kitchen” classes for 6+ years.
The course runs for seven weeks at a cost of $75,
which includes ingredients. Telephone: (09)
521 9623, Fax: (09) 521 9624, Email: info@selwyncomed.school.nz
Street Address: 203-245 Kohimarama Road, Kohimarama.
Postal Address: PO Box 25 744, St Heliers, Auckland
1740
Auckland
- Parnell Studio runs a course called Little Chefs. The
course runs for 10 weeks during term. Little chefs
provides aprons, menus, ingredients, kitchenware and
produce. Each lesson is for 1 1/2 hrs at a
cost of $380 for the term.
They inspire children to be hands-on in the kitchen.
This dynamic course is unique and tailored for the
junior chef. It teaches important life skills,
offers confidence in the kitchen and provides valuable
information about sourcing ingredients, reading labels,
understanding nutritional values and offers sound food
preparation. Students will learn how to use a
variety of cooking accessories and equipment with skill
and care. They will be shown how to create culinary
delights with flair and imagination. Call Keren Cook,
Phone : 09 524 2460, Cell : 021 460 775, Email : info@parnellstudio.co.nz
Dunedin - www.garvan.co.nz
Joanna's passion for cooking has inspired many people over
the years to improve their own skills. This winter is a
great opportunity to learn more about cookery in the
Garvan Kitchen. Please contact Garvan Cooking School for
details of our new classes. NZ$49.00 per person, NZ$20.00
kids cooking. Groups of six people or more can arrange a
private cooking class tailored to suit the group.
Joanna
Lowrey's Cooking History - Joanna has drawn on
nearly 20 years' experience. Former Executive Chef at The
Park Royal Hotel, Sydney, owner of a catering company in
South Canterbury ‘Chef on The Run’, Polytechnic Chef
Tutor at Aoraki Timaru, Chef Trainer for the South Pacific
Hotel in Papua New Guinea and mother of two children.
Her food is influenced by the experiences working in and
with people from Europe, Japan, Australia, Thailand, Papua
New Guinea, and urban New Zealand, while her character was
baked in the farmhouse kitchen of rural South Canterbury.
Joanna started out at age eight cooking for shearers on
the farm and filling the cake tins. She entered her first
cooking competition at 12 years of age and won the adult
section. Her recipe was published in Alison Holst's
cookbook Lamb Tastic. At age 16 she started at the Hyatt
Kingsgate in Queenstown as a kitchen-hand before going to
Otago Polytechnic in Dunedin to start her chef’s career.
She is currently owner, with her husband, of Garvan
Hotel, Fine Dining Restaurant and Cooking School at
Lovells Flat, 30 minutes south of Dunedin City Airport.
Garvan Hotel, State Highway 1, Lovells Flat, RD2,
Milton.E-mail: garvan@garvan.co.nz,
Web: www.garvan.co.nz
Phone: 03 417 8407, Fax: 03 417 8408
Christchurch
- New Zealand School of Food & Wine is registered as a
Private Training Establishment with the New Zealand
Qualifications Authority.
The Director is Celia Hay, BA, MBA, a qualified chef and
restaurateur who has used her experience in the
hospitality industry to develop a range of courses
targeted to provide students with the skills and
information they need whether for a career in the industry
or to know more about the preparation and enjoyment of
food and wine.
www.foodandwine.co.nz
/ part-time courses / part-time cooking classes / kids in
the kitchen. The kids in the kitchen classes are designed
for 12-15-year-olds. The Director, The New Zealand School
of Food and Wine, Box 25-217, Christchurch. 63
Victoria Street, Phone (03) 379 7501, Fax (03) 366 2302. www.foodandwine.co.nz
Christchurch - www.freshnfast.co.nz
are looking at setting up classes within New Zealand using
schools' technical block kitchens. At the moment
they are based in Christchurch and can be contacted on ph
03 322 1088 for any further enquiries.
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