THE COMMUNITY OF FOOD

The community of food really brings people together and unites us in the most suprising of ways. 11 weeks ago a group of ladies unknown to one another met at the Churchill Neighborhood Centre to commence cooking classes. One class grew into 3 classes and commencing next term we will grow into 5 classes. My classes introduce basic techniques, give to understanding terms and using basic ingredients to make appealing, satisfying,hearty, healthy meals. Above all the main aim is to get people interested in cooking again, the classes are hands on and are set around a preparation bench, each person with their own station . Over the course of the term it has been wonderful to learn something of each person through their cooking experience, kneading dough or whisking eggs and sugar the stories flow. One magical class when Joan bought us to tears sharing her path to recovery from an illness which then led to a very shy Melissa opening up about her time caring for a relative with a terminal illness. Around a table with our hands busy transforming ingredients, working together we feel comfortable sharing our love of food and the journeys that have bought us to the table. There is Yvonne who is about to go on an oxygen tank and catches a bus every week to join in our classes. There`s Anita who is a very good cook with an Italian back ground and looking for inspiration, Anita`s daughter Gemma a student nurse and attends when lectures allow, possesses the same intuition towards food as her mum ..the apple never falls far from the tree. Siryani a lecturer in IT who is just eager to learn anything about food. Adriann a student who just wants to learn to cook. Cathy suffers a form of ciliacs and her son David is a very hungry young man and getting a balanced diet for their household is challenging. Heather , Jan and Leica used to love to cook and are working on finding their desire in the kitchen again. Carol comes when I`m not cooking with fish, and will experiment with the recipes to suit her tastes ie orange delicious. Gayle is a very competent sponge cook and loves the challenge of anything different. Michelle is the quiet one who listens and can follow a recipe her results are very good. Deanna is a good home cook who comes to learn and try new recipes ..how good was the swiss roll? Jenny and Sam are the latest additions to the classes, Jenny stopped me at the shops today to show me photos of the food Sam has been making. Jenny said Sam is excited about food and is suprised as Sam has never been a cook. Maybe cooking will be a way for Sam to fill the void left from loosing her beautiful dog of 17 years. Jenny loves the community of the table and trying new recipes . Thursday Class ... Butterflied Pan Roasted Quail.