BUDDING chefs cooked up some tasty treats when they had a masterclass in healthy cuisine.
Food and nutrition pupils at Smith’s Wood which is part of the ambitious Fairfax Multi-Academy Trust, had a two-hour masterclass from a pair of chefs at the Belfry Hotel.
Dean Cole, the hotel’s senior head chef, and Dan Richards, pastry chef, challenged them to cook a healthy, home-made ‘take away’ meal.
More than a dozen Year 11 students – who are studying Food Preparation and Nutrition at GCSE level – were shown how to cook a chicken kofta.
Also on the menu was tabbouleh – a Persian salad served with a yoghurt sauce, naked coleslaw and pitta bread, with the Belfry also providing all the fresh ingredients the students needed.
After giving the students recipe sheets and a hands-on demonstration, Dean and Dan watched and guided them as they went about preparing the healthy take-away dish.
Dan said: “I hope that the kids learned new skills. It’s all about making them feel confident that they can try new things, and to understand that healthy cooking and eating is something that anyone can do.
“These days you can have food delivered to your doorstep at the click of a button, but the fact is that most fast food is really not that healthy, so we wanted to teach everyone that things can be done exactly the same, but with much healthier results.”
Dean said: “They reacted well to the challenge we set them – there are definitely a few stars here at Smith’s Wood.”
Chantelle Reid, associate assistant principal at Smith’s Wood, said: “For us as a school in an area which has many disadvantaged students, getting them to look at things like apprenticeships and consider different routes into employment is really important.
“So hands-on experience like this is so valuable, working with professionals who will inspire them to see what they can do.”
The masterclass was part of a growing partnership between Smith’s Wood and the Belfry, after a group of Year 10 students visited the site for a workshop, while Dean also acted as a judge in a ‘springboard’ competition to help identify future chefs.
