April 17,2014
Dear Year 3 / 4 Parents and Grandparents,
What a fabulous first term we have had in our Garden to Table Program!! I have been
so impressed by the students’ attention and enthusiasm in our kitchen classes.
We started the year off making a variety of dips using vegetables from the garden.
The flat bread to go along with the dips was a huge hit. Students had the opportunity
to use food processors, electric frying pans, graters and sharp knives. They really
showed their maturity by listening carefully and following all safety instructions.
Our second session together involved lots of vegetable preparation for our
Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls and also grating of zucchini for our “sweet” zucchini
muffins. Our rice paper rolls took on a variety of shapes, as the technique can be a
little tricky, but they sure tasted delicious.
The Classic Kiwi Burger was the theme for our final session of the term. In keeping
with kiwi tradition, it was great to have some dads out working the BBQ with their
children. The ANZAC biscuits were fantastic and one group discovered that accidently
adding twice the amount of butter called for is not necessarily a bad thing. They
needed to add a little more flour but their cookies were delectable.
I’ve been pleased with the students’ willingness to try new things. Your child may
have shared my rule of “a little” “a lot” or “a taste” and “even if you’ve tried something
and didn’t like it the first time you should try it again as you might just like it the second
time.” Many students have discovered that they now like something they previously
didn’t like. I do hope you’ve had the opportunity to talk to your child about what they are learning
in the kitchen and perhaps you’ve even tried some of the recipes at home.
A program such as this can not run without the help of parent volunteers. I’d like to
take this opportunity to say a very big thank you to all of the fabulous parents and
grandparents who have come out to help us in the kitchen. You are an invaluable part
of our program. For me it is particularly heart-warming to see grandparents in the
kitchen with their grandchildren. You are creating some very special memories.
As a thank you, I have drawn the names of 6 volunteers who will each receive a jar of
relish made from our garden veggies. The Zucchini Bean relish was made with last
years crop be Tiffany Hamilton, our Garden to Table Coordinator. The Zucchini Relish
was made by Miss Toye’s and Mrs Oldrige’s classes just last week.
The winners are: Paul (rm. 20) Catherine Fink (rm.16) Cornelia Didenco (rm. 14) Amy
Shields (rm. 17) Charlotte Ried (rm. 15) Kirsten (rm 16)
Our Program will start back up in week 2 of term 2. Your childs’ teacher will let you
know which weeks their class will be participating. I do hope to see many of you back
next term and perhaps even some new faces . I hope you all have a happy Easter
Holiday.
Thank-you again,
Dana Kloss
Kitchen Specialist
