What's Cooking?

A semester full of flavour

The Food Technologies kitchens have certainly been busy! From welcoming new Year 9 and Year 10 classes into the kitchen to showcasing our students’ culinary skills at Open Day, there has been no shortage of delicious food, new challenges and opportunities for students to develop their confidence in the kitchen.

Food Technologies was on full display at this year’s St George’s Open Day, with a fantastic group of students spending the entire day in the kitchen cooking for our visiting families and showcasing what Food Technologies at St George’s is all about.

Throughout the day, students tackled three different recipes, beginning with mini blueberry crumbles, before moving on to making pizza dough completely from scratch and transforming it into an impressive collection of homemade pizzas. To finish the day, students put their skills to the test making pork potsticker dumplings, including preparing, folding and cooking their own dumplings.

It was a big day in the kitchen, but our students rose to the challenge brilliantly. They worked collaboratively, managed their time, kept their workspaces organised and demonstrated the practical skills they have developed through Food Technologies. Most importantly, they represented St George’s wonderfully for the many families who visited the kitchen throughout the day. After spending an entire school day cooking, there was also a well-earned reward: an impressive food haul to take home! Our Open Day chefs should be incredibly proud of what they accomplished and the enthusiasm they brought to the kitchen.

Year 9s go full steam ahead

Semester Two has brought a brand-new group of Year 9 students into Food Technologies - and they have wasted absolutely no time getting into the kitchen!

Students have already been developing their practical skills through a wide variety of recipes. They have whipped up veggie fritters, cooked a hearty chilli, baked choc-chip cookies, and even explored international flavours by preparing dahl, an Indian lentil curry.

These practical lessons are about much more than simply following a recipe. Our Year 9s are learning how to confidently navigate the kitchen, work safely with equipment, manage their time, collaborate with others and understand how different ingredients, flavours and cooking techniques come together.

There is plenty more cooking still to come this semester, and if the first few weeks are anything to go by, our Year 9s are certainly going to keep the Food Tech kitchens busy.

Year 10s up the ante

Our new Year 10 Food Technologies class has also hit the ground running this term, tackling increasingly challenging recipes while building their independence and creativity in the kitchen.

So far, students have prepared a range of delicious dishes, including tacos with homemade salsa and risotto, before taking on an even bigger challenge for their first assessment task: designing and producing their own recipe.

Rather than simply being handed a recipe to follow, students were challenged to make decisions about ingredients, flavours, techniques and presentation before putting their ideas to the ultimate test in the kitchen. The results certainly did not disappoint! Among the creations were a very indulgent Cheesy Chicken Sausage Gnocchi Bake and Chicken Teriyaki Bao Buns, demonstrating just how creative our Year 10 students can be when given the opportunity to experiment.

With so much already accomplished in just the beginning of Semester Two, there is still plenty to look forward to. We cannot wait to see what our students cook up next in the St George’s Food Technologies kitchen.

Ms Olivia Andrew

Head of Food Technology