Gastronomic London
Day 5 – Friday 5 July
After a quick Shoreditch breakfast to keep our strength up for the hard work ahead, we bused east past Old Street to St Luke’s Community Centre where the Central Street Cookery School has operated since it was set up in 2012 as a self-funding kitchen space tackling local issues to improve the well-being of the area.
Here the chefs, Mikael and Sofia, put us through our paces and tested the skills we’ve developed this week as we worked together to produce a Mexican feast. It was a great way to end the week, and (sadly) our last ever day of Activities Week – all thanks to Mr Cook, Mrs Doyme, Mr Aldham and Mr Holmes.
More photos will soon be available via the Google Classroom, along with great opportunities for work or volunteering with some of the kitchens we visited.
Day 4 – Thursday 4 July
School of Wok was a great opportunity to hone those knife skills from Monday as we cooked ourselves a Japanese lunch, from the gyozu to the teriyaki.
After a quick break in Covent Garden we headed for Hotel Chocolat off Seven Dials, where we separated the nibs from the husks, tasted the raw products and saw how they are turned into the chocolate we know and love. We also learned the history and issues around Fair Trade. With pestle and mortar and ‘tempered’ chocolate we ground and finished our own, and the goodie bag was a welcome treat!
Day 3 -Wednesday 3 July
Today started with the Bake Off competition, adjudicated by Latymer’s own chefs. It was close, but Hip and Felix emerged victorious with their brownies, which boasted some unexpected ingredients from peanut butter to kidney beans.
After lunch at Borough Market, the Neal’s Yard Dairy treated us to a tasting, expertly guiding us from a creamy goat’s cheese to a Stilton, and taught us how each is manufactured and sourced. Everyone commented on the flavours and textures, asked questions and scored the cheeses: today’s winner was a rich and tangy Irish Gubbeen.
Day 2 – Tuesday 2 July
The morning was spent in Soho, sampling its cosmopolitan culinary styles – and ice cream. Then it was time to get baking for the competition tomorrow.
Day 1 – Monday 1 July
A great first day learning the tricks of the trade at Waitrose Cookery School on Finchley Road. Chef Andy taught everyone knife skills and we prepped, cooked (and ate!) our delicious Vietnamese summer rolls and mixed kebab skewers. Now we know how to debone chicken, peel and cut garlic chef-style, and to wash hands in cold water when we’ve been handling chillies. “That’s shallot!”
