Thursday was the first meeting of the new semester of The Autrey Mill middle school cooking club. We have 27 students again this semester from grades 6, 7 and 8. The first meeting I try to have a pretty simple recipe since we only have an hour and we do have to talk about what the kids want to do in cooking club. 

Thursday I decided broccoli soup would be good. Broccoli is plentiful and delicious now, soup is good for winter, everyone usually likes soup. 

We had a crowd in the science room and they made soup, ate soup and crackers and enjoyed the soup. No comments about not liking broccoli, the only question was "can we have seconds". Of course! 

I cooked with kids again yesterday at The Cook's Warehouse in Decatur. There were only 8 students yesterday but we had a pretty full menu to make. We made Broccoli Soup, Artichoke and Spinach Bread, Stuffed Acorn Squash and Butternut Squash Pie with Gingersnap Crust. 

I asked various kids what they liked the best and they all replied "it was all awesome". High praise from ages 10 to about 14. One girl asked why the class was called Seasonal Cooking and I explained that broccoli was available in Georgia now along with the various kinds of squash. She thought about that for a minute and then said "are there different foods available in the summer, spring and fall seasons?".

I never thought about seasonal cooking and ingredients not being a concept that was familiar. And if you think about it, it makes sense that people might not be aware. Look at the store, things are available always. They don't always have flavor but if that's what you think is normal, you might not know better. So I'll keep teaching and keep trying to use things in season. 

If you are looking forward to the Superbowl this winter season, you might want to try the bread. Everyone agreed it is awesome.

Artichoke and Spinach Bread adapted from The Kitchen Link

1 pound loaf of frozen bread dough, thawed

10 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and drained

1 cup Mozzarella cheese

6 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 clove garlic, chopped

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

6 ounce jar of marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

olive oil to drizzle

1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Roll out dough to make a 9x13 inch rectangle. Drizzle with a little olive oil.
3. In a large bowl, combine spinach, cheeses, garlic and artichoke hearts. Add breadcrumbs and enough olive oil to make spreadable. Blend well.
4. Spread on the dough. Do not spread too close to the edges. Fold over to make a square, seal edges. 
5. Place seam side down on a parchment covered pan. Tuck ends under. Allow to rise for 30 minutes. 
6. Drizzle with a little olive oil. Bake until golden, about 25 minutes. Allow to stand 10 minutes before cutting.

I taught at the new store on Tuesday this week. The class was open to students over the age of 10 and I'd guess that the majority of the 11 kids were in the 12 to 14 age range. I'm not very good at having any idea how old or young people are. We had a mix of girls and boys and had a great time. 

The class was titled New Year, New Breakfasts and we made four different recipes good for breakfast - Baked Oatmeal, Baked Eggs, California Gold Muffins and Sausage Sticky Buns. 

Part of cooking is a clean work space with everything ready to go. What a great job!

Muffins!

California Gold Muffins source unknown

makes 12

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon allspice

2/3 cup yellow squash, grated

1/3 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/3 cup golden raisins

2/3 cup carrots, grated

2 large eggs

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine the dry ingredients.
3. Whisk together eggs, butter and vanilla.  Fold into the dry ingredients. 
4. Mix in the remaining ingredients. 
5. Spray muffin tins with cooking spray. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. 

On Tuesday evening I taught a class at the Toco HIlls Library. This was a second visit for me, I was invited two years ago to present a program. I love to be asked back. This year the class was Gifts from the Kitchen. Of course there are no pictures because I was by myself and did 4 recipes in one hour. Lots going on.

I demonstrated Cookie Dough Truffles, Pistachio Cranberry Bark, Decadent Cookie Bars and Caramel Sauce. Since the group wanted to also eat the items that I made, the class went over time about 10 minutes. No one complained though.

Yesterday evening was a field trip with the Autrey Mill Cooking Club. Mrs. Purwin contacted the Publix cooking school and set up a cooking class for the group. We were all excited about cooking with real kitchen appliances in a kitchen. I was just a chaperone and only watched the kids cooked. Eighteen of the club members came and made Balsamic Grilled Vegetables, Stuffed Chicken, Rice Pilaf and Strawberry Blueberry Tarts. They did a great job and enjoyed the meal.

Our regular monthly cooking club meeting is this afternoon. Since we cooked yesterday we're doing something different today. I invited a guest, Nan McCulloch who is a food stylist. We're going to make fake ice cream, learn some tricks and have some fun as always. This is the last meeting of the semester. 

Of course we'll still need a snack since it's after school, so I baked cookies this morning. Chocolate chip with oatmeal. And used the new addition to the family. No, not a cat. A new, 7 quart, KitchenAid mixer in Candy Apple Red.

Eight dozen large cookies in a snap! 

The buses start coming around 3:15 and it's a good idea to get into the parking lot before the buses all arrive. It's also good to be safely in the science room before the bell rings for dismissal of 1100 students at 4:05.

We vote in the club and decide what sounds good for each meeting. Last month the majority of students thought Asian sounded good. We had 20 students today, 3 teacher helpers, 1 mom helper and the science teacher (it's his room). 

We made chicken bundles, a vegetarian pasta dish and three kinds of roll ups - shrimp, chicken and tempeh. Everyone could eat something. 

This is the fastest hour ever. I arrive, the kids arrive, Maria takes attendance, we cook and eat. This seems to take seconds but a look at the clock shows it's been an hour. 

I have so much fun and love to hear  "Let's put the shrimp on the blue tray, the tempeh on the green and the chicken on the pink." and "I'm not sure what I like better, shrimp or tempeh".

 "I don't like carrots, but I'll try the pasta salad", "Can I take pasta salad home, I don't want it to be left". 

We have fun, we learn, we taste new things. What could be better?

This year we had 40 kids sign up for club and this semester have 27. We'll get the others in next semester.  We do have some students from last year that signed up again this year. I love that some kids returned.

We cook and we eat and of course that's great.  Cooking club does so much more though.  

The teachers pointed out that all grades were interacting with each other.  No one cared who was in 6th grade or 7th grade or 8th grade.  We all like to cook. Also we have some vegetarians, some who eat kosher, some who only eat whipped cream but we are all learning about each other. 

Students shared knowledge. Everyone could not make crepes at once. We took turns and the ones that started showed the others how to do it. They showed them how with consideration and caring. Some groups made fillings, some made whipped cream and then walked through the process with the rest of the group. 

We did math after school. Some of the recipes needed to be doubled. We did science. We needed to cool the peach filling quickly using an ice bath. We learn time management and organization. We have 1 hour for club and we can't fill crepes if either crepes or filling are not done.

We learn respect for other's property. We are guests in the science room so we need to make sure to leave it clean and neat. We all work together to do that. 

Think about getting involved with kids. It's so much fun and they aren't the only ones learning.  

Saturday I got to teach the 3 to 5 year olds and the class was titled Mini for Me.  The classes for the younger kids run for 2 hours and the kids do a good job.  As the teacher I need to make sure they all have something to do, no one roams away, hands get washed, knives don't hurt anyone. 

We had 8 children so we had 3 groups.  Each group makes all the recipes so they get to do everything.  The menu was mini turkey meatloaves, muffin mashed potatoes and mini ice cream sandwiches.  

First we washed hands to get the germs off.  Then the fun started.  I decided to use the food processor for the turkey prep.  The kids all took turns chopping the bell pepper and onion then shredded the zucchini.  They then mixed vegetables, turkey, egg, put in a muffin tin and brushed with barbecue sauce.  

After the meatloaf was in the oven we cubed potatoes and got them boiling for the mashed potatoes. 

Of course we need to make sure to keep our cooking stations clean and do dishes as we work.  

The ice cream sandwiches don't require a recipe but they are very tasty.  We had fun making them and eating them so try some for yourself.  All you need is your favorite flavor of sorbet, we used cherry, mango and lemon.  Then you need vanilla wafers, I love Trader Joe's.  Then you sandwich some sorbet between cookies.  Eat or wrap and freeze for later. 

I told the kids I was going home to take a nap after class and they looked at me kind of funny.  They were heading to birthday parties, movies and who knows what else.  They however are 4 years old and I am not!

I planned my menu for the week hoping that I'd be able to cook but made it easy enough for my husband to do after a hard day of work.  Monday the plan was leftover beef stew from the freezer since I was pretty sure I wouldn't be cooking.  Tuesday I had leftovers from the weekend and I felt pretty good.  I told my husband he didn't have to work from home on Wednesday. 

My plan for Wednesday wasn't extreme.  I wanted to change the sheets, run a load of whites, relax.  Maybe knit.  The plan worked until I took the clothes from the washer.  I didn't do anything strenuous, I just reached into the washer and felt something in my back.  Something that hurt.  I stood there surprised, it didn't go away so I hobbled to bed, took some aspirin, fell asleep.  About 1:00.

Woke up about 2:00 and couldn't really get out of bed.  Oh, this was bad.  On the other hand my eye was doing well.  I did make dinner and relaxed, but went to see another doctor on Thursday.  I have iced my back and can move better now, still some pain.  No pain in the eye! Going to the doctor for the back again today.  Maybe I'll even get to the library.  

I plan to work tomorrow.  I feel much better today and I'm sure tomorrow will be even better.  I am teaching a cooking class with the 3 to 5 year olds - Mini Sized for Me.  No, I will not be lifting any of the kids.  We will however chop, shred, bake and eat.  We are making meatloaf, mashed potatoes and mini ice cream sandwiches.  

And then I'll relax a little more on Saturday. 

We roasted some chicken breasts and thighs and made soup with some of the chicken.  She'll have the rest for lunch or on a salad, lots to do with cooked chicken.  We roasted one pork tenderloin and made stir fry with the rest.  We made some Greek burgers with a yogurt sauce so we learned searing.  We cooked things more on the well side than on the medium side because she doesn't really know how she likes her meat cooked, she has to learn.

Saturday morning I taught a cooking class at The Cook's Warehouse in Decatur with the over 10 year olds.  This was an all pancake class with two savory and two sweet.  We made the squash pancakes and the corn basil cakes first, then had a break to eat the delicious cakes. 

After the break it was back to cooking blueberry ricotta cakes and cornmeal cakes with maple yogurt topping. 

The pancakes were all very good, but the majority favorite was the yellow squash. In fact one of the students said she didn't like vegetables much and was surprised her favorite pancake was the squash pancake.  Enjoy!

Parmesan Squash Cakes from Eating Well Magazine

serves 4

A few things are the same - Mrs. Purwin, Mrs. Chereck, Mrs. Keurer, the science room for meeting.  A few things are different - the French teacher is joining us, the science teacher is new but happy to loan his room, there is a new principal.  

We also have some of the same kids and lots of new.  We had 40 students sign up for club so Mrs Purwin held another lottery.  We feel 25 is a good number of students for the club.  We'll do two sessions of camp again so we can let everyone experience club.

I chose an easy recipe for the first meeting so we could talk about future meetings and also eat.  The students are pretty hungry at 4:00.  They've had a long day at school. 

I brought one burner and we have an induction burner donated by All Clad to The Chefs Move to Schools program.  I brought pots, pans, groceries and we started.  Some of the kids made the salsa.

While I talked with the students we started cooking.  I had students saute and stir while we met.  Love our burners! 

So, Border Pork Roll-ups for 30.  Coming right up! Here is the recipe for 4 servings.

Border Pork Roll-ups adapted from Pillsbury Fast and Healthy

• 8 ounces crushed pineapple
• 3/4 cup salsa
• 1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced in strips
• 4 flour tortillas, 6 inch

1. In a small bowl, combine pineapple and salsa, mix well, set aside. 
2. Cut pork in half lengthwise and cut into 1/2 inch thick slices.
3. In a medium bowl combine the brown sugar, chili powder, and vinegar. Mix well. Add pork, toss to coat.  Let stand at room temperature 15 minutes to marinate.
4. Spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray.  Heat over medium high heat until hot.  Add pork mixture, cook and stir 3 minutes. 
5. Add onion and pepper, cook and stir 2 to 4 minutes until pork is cooked and vegetables are soft.
6. Roll in tortilla, top with salsa. 

I did some desk work and then decided to do some knitting.  When I knit I like to have something on the tv.  It doesn't have to be anything that I need to concentrate on since I have to follow a knitting pattern, but I like some talking. 

I have no idea what I was watching, but the commercials really bothered me.  They've actually been bothering me for a while now, I just had overload yesterday. 

I do not have children.  I do have pets. I love my pets, I take care of them, I feed them, they go to the vet.  I work with children a lot. I teach cooking classes for ages 3 and up and have for about 12 years. 

This is what advertisers want your pet to eat, it's a refrigerated pet food and here are the ingredients: