|
If you have recently attended a course at a cookery school
do get in touch by email
and submit a review. We want to know if you have had a fantastic
culinary experience that others may wish to participate in.
Cookery courses are great fun and amazingly educational if
well taught. The programmes can be surprisingly tiring and
you may have to pace the activities but if it is run by people
who know the “buzz” recipes that appeal to the
majority of the clients, you can cook and learn in an interesting
environment.
Are the courses on offer value for money? How many people
are in the class? Are the people demonstrating qualified to
teach? One question that you may not wish to ask is how much
body weight do you gain? It is easy not to notice how all
those little tastings of samples add up to hundreds of calories
over a few days!
The ‘Bread Matters – Fundamentals course’
is held at The Village Bakery, Melmerby, near Penrith, in
the Lake District. This two day hands-on course on bread making
is a fantastic introduction for non-bakers. You will learn
the five essential stages of breadmaking (mixing, fermenting,
moulding, proving and baking) as part of following a selection
of simple recipes. The course is run by Andrew Whitley, who
set up the bakery over 20 years ago and began producing hand
made organic breads which were sold in local whole food shops.
It was truly a pioneering venture in those days and now is
fully endorsed by the Soil Association as well as Prince Charles!
Students on the course learn to bake ciabatta, focaccia,
kulich (wonderful Russian bread), stolen, yeasted pastries,
croissants, etc. The best recipe was Chollah which we have
used time and time again. Younger members of ‘Friends
in the Kitchen’ made lots of Chollah for a re-enactment
of an evacuation day from war times. It was the most popular
food served because it not only tastes so good; it looks absolutely
beautiful as a plaited loaf.
You can go on other courses at the bakery for example:
Italian bread-making
Northern European baking
Sourdough for All
Baking for a Living
Although ‘Friends in the Kitchen’ only participated
in the ‘Bread Making Fundamentals’ course, it
set a high standard for the other sessions listed above as
it was first class both in baking terms and education. The
atmosphere is so relaxed and sociable that you will be amazed
how many breads you make in time to take home - take a large
bag with you. Remember to leave some space in your freezer
prior to departure as it will be well stocked on your return
with bread delights.
The courses start at £350 for two days. You take all
your breads home, (making you a very popular person in your
own kitchen) and a large folder with all the recipes to repeat
the experience. The only downside is all the kneading is quite
tiring – breadmakers must be fit!
www.breadmatters.com
Did you know Morocco is only 9 miles across the Strait of
Gibraltar and 3 hours away from the UK? Yet it could not be
more different! It seems to be the place to cook this year
as many more Moroccan cookery schools are now advertising
their businesses on the internet. A number of hotels have
their own cookery experiences so it may not be easy to choose
where to make your tagines, couscous and soups. A good question
to test their competence? How do you use your Raselhannout?
The spice mountain displayed around the city in selected shops
and many profess to its medicinal value.
Instead of shopping in the days before Christmas, ‘Friends
in the Kitchen’ went cooking in Marrakech. It was easy
to book a city break for a few days and then inquire about
the cookery scene. We went for an afternoon cookery session
organised by ‘La Maison Arabe’. You meet at the
hotel and then they organise a 15 minute mini-bus trip to
their beautiful villa, with a swimming pool available for
friends who are not cooking.
It was such a peaceful location that it truly enhances the
Morrocan cookery experience. The kitchen was very spacious
with lots of gas hobs to use and sun streaming through the
window! The class was conducted by a dada (traditional Morrocan
cook) and a glamorous translator who provided us with extra
information on preparation and the cooking instruction. All
the herbs came from the garden outside the kitchen door and
there was a huge spice cabinet. We cooked a lamb tagine with
accompanying vegetables and a selection of starters.
At the end of the cookery session we were invited downstairs
to a wonderful Moroccan-design lounge area and ate the food
we had prepared. Fantastic!
The course vary considerably in price from £60-£100
per person so quite expensive but well worth the money.
Many of the dishes are of Berber tribe origin and we took
advantage of our time in Morocco to visit Kasbah du Toubkal
(just over an hours drive from Marrakech) which is a guest
house near to Toubkal, the highest peak in the Atlas Mountains.
They arranged for us to take a mule ride into the mountains
and enjoy the fantastic views, followed by a relaxed lunch
at the guest house.
Numerous cookery courses can be found
on the web but also in the book: ‘The Guide to Cookery
Courses’ by Eric Treuille £7.99. Published by
Metropublications (2003).
Another useful and very readable book
recently published is:
‘The Accidental Foodie’ by Neale Whitaker £25.
Published by Murdoch books.
|
