Earlier this month, Laura Hernández, First Spanish and Classics Teaching and Learning Leader, led an interesting and fun workshop combining Cooking and Literature, for our students in Year 11. Divided into different groups, our kids learned how to cook 3 separate dishes from recipes taken from Laura Esquivel´s book, “Como Agua para Chocolate”.
Nobody is quite able to take us into such a magical world, in which cookery and literature come together. In Como agua para el chocolate, one can read about food, tastes, smells and new sensations, as if they were being gently cooked for us. “...and his eyes met those of Pedro. And at that precise moment, he understood perfectly what it must be like for a doughnut, when it first comes into contact with boiling hot oil”.
During the workshop, our students learned how to prepare 3 of Tita´s recipes, the main character in the book: torrijas, chicken fajitas and a sponge cake. But that was not all. Our young chefs also took away some important cooking tips such as, how to place ones hands when cutting different foods, and how to drop food in a hot fryer, without splashing the oil and getting burnt. And, of course, they also learned about some of the basic health and safety measures, so necessary before one gets cooking on a stove: the importance of wearing a hat and gloves, etc...
It was a very practical workshop, combining literature and great fun, with some delicious results!!!