MaristChef - Year 8

Dear Year 8 Students,

Firstly, congratulations to all of you who participated and completed our “Kokoda Challenge” Year 8 retreat day last week. It was a fantastic experience all round and I hope you were able to challenge yourself and grow your skills in teamwork and collaboration…and cooking!

Secondly, as part of your preparation for Year 9 camp (and beyond), I would like to announce the inaugural Year 8 “MaristChef” challenge! During the April school holidays, each student is encouraged to prepare one meal for your family or friends, take a photo of the dish AND a photo of yourself holding the dish, and submit it.

This is not a compulsory activity, but each of you is warmly encouraged to participate. You can click this link to find ten simple recipes which you may wish to use, but equally, you can cook whatever you like. There will be a winner from each house, who will receive a Red Balloon Gift voucher which can be used towards a cooking class or another exciting activity.

>>> Please submit your photos through your House page on Stile >>>

Why are we doing this?

1. Cooking is an important skill in life

In the short term, you will be required to prepare and cook your own food as part of the Year 9 Camp next year. In the long term, however, learning to cook is not a skill that you develop overnight, so it’s important to learn and practice skills on a regular basis, which will hopefully prepare you for your future.

2. Cooking changes your mindset

Whether it be knowing what ingredients go into a specific dish; the nutritional value/benefit of a meal; promoting a healthy lifestyle or the re-thinking the perceived social reputation that only certain people belong in the kitchen – cooking allows you to tangibly think about what goes into the process of preparing a meal and how you can be an active participant in this process.

3. Cooking promotes community

Gathering around a meal is an age-old tradition and in the post-covid western world, we should be taking every moment to socialise and get together as friends, family and community. Sharing a meal is a prime opportunity to do this and I encourage each of you to make an occasion of this challenge by getting together with whoever you can, to share your meal with you.

We look forward to seeing your submissions and good luck!