The fifth grade aspiring chefs were more than eager to start their first cooking class as they bounded into the school kitchen. Estafania Baustista waved her hands with excitement as she looked over the ingredients, cutting boards and knives laid out on the prep table.
“It’s our first time cooking!” Estafania said.
Not so, for Amir Leon, who goes by Prince. “I know how to do the bear claw,” he announced. He ably demonstrated the safe way to hold a knife for his classmates, folding his knuckles under on the hand that wasn’t holding the knife, to protect them from being cut.
We reviewed the rules of the kitchen, warning about hot pans and sharp knives and sharing all the jobs, even dishes. Then read over the recipe and identified all the ingredients for the mini frittatas with spinach and onions and cheese.
Estafania and Yariel “Yaya” Nunez worked diligently on mastering the proper technique for holding a knife and dicing an onion. Sofia “Kitty” Gutierez oiled the muffin tin, while Kevin Peralte and Prince Amir cracked the eggs and whisked them and Jason “Magic” Mora grated the cheese.
We worked through all the prep in no time and Prince Amir wanted to take on the job of sautéing the onions and spinach. He proved more than capable, even though he was not thrilled with the cooking set up. We were working on an electric cooktop as there is no longer a stove in the school kitchen. We had to plug in the cooktop in a large storage closet, the only place where we could find a working outlet. “It’s a little tight in here for me to sauté,” he said, giving his shoulders a shake to loosen up. But the space did not impede his work. He sautéed like a pro. The other kids gathered around and were encouraged to use all their senses to see how the vegetables were cooking. “I can see the onions changing color,” said Amir. “Getting more clear,” said Estafania. “I can see some smoke,” said Kitty, “And I can smell it.” Yaya noted that she heard it sizzling. “All great observations,” I told them. “It’s not just about following a recipe, it’s about using your senses to learn about how ingredients change as they cook.”
Once the onions and spinach were cooked, Kevin took the vegetables and divided them into the muffin tin, while Estafania ladled the egg mixture on top, and Magic topped each muffin cup with a sprinkling of cheese. Into the oven they went.
These kids were great about cleaning up the space and writing in their journals, most of them writing that they signed up for class because they wanted to learn to cook for their families.
When the frittatas were ready to come out of the oven, Magic recognized them as something familiar. “Oh, its just like an omelet!” he said.
“I don’t know if it’s because I’m hungry, or it’s just really good,” said Kevin.
“It’s amazingly super-duper good!” said Magic. When Prince Amir separated out the spinach, Magic gave him some advice. “You will grow to be a man if you eat the spinach.”
Kitty also echoed that it was “amazing” and their were “MMMs” and “So good” from everyone.
They all wanted seconds and were excited for the next week. Perhaps Prince Amir had the best endorsement of our first class: “The other kids that didn’t sign up for this are really missing out,” he said.
