There’s a smorgasbord of culinary courses on offer. Time to dig in, says Catherine Whyte
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Rising stars
Twickenham based micro-bakery Blackbird Bread holds regular classes imparting the secrets of the wonderful art of breadmaking. All types of bread covered, from focaccia and rustic to sweet dough and even beer bread.
Classes are held at the Church Street Food Hall and run from 6.20–9.35pm. Cost £55. For dates and details visit: breadfromtheblackbird.co.uk
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Fun with fish
From Fusion and Flavours of the Med to Spanish and Seasonal Specials, there’s a fantastic selection of day courses to choose from at Four Gables Food Academy out at Ashtead. The Fish and Seafood course looks particularly useful, as filleting skills are taught. Moreover, with a minimum of seven recipes planned for the day, you’ll have plenty to take home and share.
Courses run on a regular basis. Cost: £130. Visit: fourgablesfoodacademy.com
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Make that madras
Hampton-based chef Anjula Devi holds regular Indian cookery classes in palatable bite-sized chunks – choose from two-hour, half-day or full-day sessions. Anjula has her own range of products, which she sells under the Route 207 brand, and has just written a book on Indian cooking for high street chain Lakeland.
For details visit: anjuladevi.com
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Cooking with celebrities
Leiths School of Food and Wine has a stellar line-up of guest chefs hosting classes in the coming months. Twickenham resident and acclaimed Benares chef Atul Kochhar is on board, as are Chinese legends Ken Hom and Ching-He Huang, who appeared together on the BBC’s Exploring China: A Culinary Adventure. Jorge Baumhauer da Silva – the creative mind behind Ceviche Soho – will transport you to Peru with ceviches, causas and fresh tiraditos (see below). And there are many more great contributors cooking food from all over the planet, as well as the West London school’s popular in-house classes.
Prices vary. Visit: leiths.com
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Perfect preserves
Learn to get the most out of the seasonal glut by making sweet preserves with Kylee Newton – owner of Newton & Pott and author of The Modern Preserver – at The Medicine Garden, Cobham. Her class – under the auspices of the Blid and Hatton team – covers all the essential jam-making skills, such as good sterilisation practice for making long-lasting preserves. Blid and Hatton also run regular seasonal cooking workshops at the Garden in their gorgeous Food Studio.
Prices vary. blidandhatton.com
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Blend your own gin
Choose your own botanicals and create your own gin at The Ginstitute on Portobello Road. After a quick history lesson and a briefing on the industry, you’ll be concocting a brew before you can say ‘mine’s a Martini’. At the end of the day, you get to take home a bottle of your very own gin – and, with the recipe stored on the database, you can buy more at any time!
Afternoon and evening sessions available. Cost £110. Book at: theginstitute.com
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Be daring with your daiquiri
No need to head for London to learn great cocktail making skills. The mixologists at Kokomo in Guildford will teach you how to rustle up classic and contemporary cocktails (or create one of your own) and impart some tricks of the trade (£25). Other Surrey masterclass venues include Red Bar, Weybridge and Bosco Lounge in Surbiton.
kokomobars.co.uk; red-restaurant.co.uk; hotelbosco.co.uk
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Tips from the top
Reigate, RH2 0AUWho better for your tutor than a top London chef? Hari Ghotra of Tamarind Kitchen – new Soho sister restaurant of Michelin-starred Tamarind of Mayfair – demystifies Indian cooking in her monthly classes. You’ll be cooking (and eating) lunch, sitting in on a Spice Masterclass and watching an Indian pudding demonstration – all in one jam-packed day.
Monthly classes held in Reigate (full-day and half-day options available). Maximum 8 people. Cost: £135.Visit: harighotra.co.uk
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Tante Marie Culinary Academy
Woking’s Tante Marie Culinary Academy is renowned for its professional cordon bleu courses, but it also runs a range of lifestyle classes, including a two-day food photography course – perfect for anyone who loves food blogging or is on Instagram. The knife skills course – over four consecutive Wednesday evenings – also looks amazing, promising to “unlock the secrets of using this fundamental tool of the trade”.
Costs vary. For details and dates go to: tantemarie.co.uk
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London School of Coffee
2 Princeton Mews, Norbiton, KT2 6PTEducate yourself in the art of making that perfect espresso at the London School of Coffee. Based in Kingston, the School offers a day-long course for the home enthusiast covering all aspects of the coffee-making process, from bean to cup. Practically, you’ll taste different types of coffee, learn how to set your grinder properly and work on getting that perfect crema. Milk frothing and latte art also included.
Classes held regularly. Cost: £99. Visit: londonschoolofcoffee.com
You can check out more of Catherine's Food & Drink articles by clicking here. You can also follow her on Twitter @topbirdcatwhyte
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