Little chefs
What do you give the person who has everything?
For some years, a ticket to walk to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge or a ride in a hot air balloon have seemed the best options. But now, a gift certificate for some culinary education is rivalling the bridge climb.
Everyone has to eat, and occasionally cook, and an increased interest in what we eat has fuelled an explosion of cooking classes.
From simple meals to a dinner party feast, there are plenty of options to discover.
Some classes are straightforward "Here are your ingredients, this is how you prepare them" while others offer the more complex flavours of exploration and history.
At Greekalicious you don't just learn to prepare a dish, you learn to "breathe" it as well.
Maria Benardis hit upon the Greekalicious concept while on the Greek island of Mykonos.
She is based in Sydney and conducts a range of classes and tours to Greece that have made the company one of the leading cooking schools in the state.
Ms Benardis has spent years learning about Greek food, and a few years ago when she was wandering the streets of Mykonos it dawned on her that if she enjoyed finding out about Greek food, the ingredients and the history behind them, others would too.
"I love discovering new ingredients and dishes and the little restaurants tucked away in the back streets," she said.
"But most of all, during my travels, I enjoy cooking with old friends and people I meet along the way to see what real Greeks eat."
As well as the classes, there are tours to Greece so you can immerse yourself in Greek flavours in the marketplace, at farms or at a restaurant.
"You will learn the story and history behind each dish, adding an element that will make the whole experience truly memorable," Ms Benardis said.
Her cooking classes are held in a kitchen but, as she explained, many of her students feel transported to a sunny Greek isle.
"Participants also receive the recipes and learn the essential techniques so that they can go home and re-create the flavours and memorable dishes for friends and family in no time."
AT the Olive & the Grape at Mount Broke Wines you can plunge your arms into flour as you learn to make pasta the traditional way.
The Tuscan-style cooking classes begin with pasta-making and you learn the art of turning semolina flour and free-range eggs into raw pasta, with laughter and sticky fingers the other major ingredients.
Adrienne Newman has been teaching these pasta classes since 2001 and her students have ranged in age from 5 to 90, and from young women celebrating a hens' night to sporting teams and corporate groups.
There are scheduled classes each weekend and private classes at other times, including twilight classes.
"Our demographic is any one who can stand and hold a wine glass," Ms Newman said.
"Our oldest student was in her 90s and she came with her family as a birthday present."
The focus is on pasta, but Ms Newman said it was more than just a cooking class.
"The twilight classes are special too, as a lot of city people have heard about the Southern Cross but haven't seen it, and here in the middle of a working property on the tranquil side of the Hunter you can see the stars.
"One twilight class, the Black Angus cows got into the shiraz vines which were just about to be picked and everyone had to down tools and head out and get the cows out of the vines. You see, we are in the middle of a working property."
In her classes Ms Newman shows students how to make a basic pasta recipe, then how to tweak it by adding colour and flavour with fresh herbs and other ingredients.
"We make a meal from the pasta. The entree is a stuffed agnolloti, which means little hat, then there is fettuccine for a main," she said.
"But we talk about adapting the recipe, adding colour, herbs for flavour, how to use the basic recipe to make other pastas."
For more about food visit the My Food section of Essential Baby.
