Future Chef Cooking Club "Cajun Edition"

Students will learn about the Acadians of South Louisiana through the foods that they cook and eat.  They will learn about some of the traditions of South Louisiana, such as cooking red beans and rice on Mondays because Monday is Laundry day.  They will learn about many of the festivals and special holidays that are celebrated throughout Acadiana.    
Students will be taught about a variety of tools used every day in the kitchen.  They will learn proper technique for measuring ingredients, preheating the oven, creating different foods from recipes.  

There is no better application of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) than through cooking and baking. 
We will discuss the science behind the way some foods are made.  We will use a variety of kitchen equipment and discuss possible solutions of substitutions of equipment and ingredients. We will use math skills when measuring using standard and nonstandard measuring tools.

This will be an ongoing club where learners can sign up for cooking classes according to their preferences.   Louisiana recipes will be showcased.  We will bake with and without yeast, we will make a variety of Cajun and Louisiana dishes.  We will cook some dishes that are more popular during certain times of the year such as New Orleans King Cake.  We will take a little trip to Louisiana every week through the cuisine that has made it so famous.

Some of the items we will cook include chicken and sausage gumbo, e'touffe'e, pastalaya and jambalaya as well as red beans and rice.  A few of the desserts we will make include New Orleans Bread Pudding with rum sauce, fresh strawberry pie, blackberry cobbler, Louisiana Pecan pie.
Depending on the number of learners and their skill sets class might possibly end prior to the 55 minute set time.

We will learn about measuring and reading recipes at every club meeting.  Prior meetings are not required before attending other club meetings.  We will talk about the science associated with cooking foods and sanitary and hygienic practices in the kitchen.  Students will be encouraged to share their food preferences as well as foods that they are interested in learning to cook. 

I do not cook alongside the learners. Instead, I walk them through following recipes. I feel this is the best way to devote 100% of my class time to meeting student’s needs.