Our Multicultural Language Cafe
would not be a good 'Cafe' without some multicultural food every now and
then. We can present our countries and teach our languages, but
sometimes a delicious example of our national cuisine can be much more convincing, or heartwarming. When we eat, we can use all our senses, and it doesn't need translation.
Last
Wednesday I gave a Dutch culinary workshop in the community center of
Godzieszowa, a small village only 15 kilometers away from Wrocław.
Actually, because of the time it takes to get there - and the huge
contrast between the two places - I thought this village was somewhere
far far away. First I had to take a tram, then a bus, then somebody had
to pick me up by car, and after more than one hour of travelling I was
in the middle of nowhere, called Godzieszowa.
There,
a couple of women were waiting for the Dutch chef - i.e., me. ;) The
culinary workshop took place from 11 AM to 4 PM, and the participants
were free to come and go whenever they wanted. When I heard this I
became a bit nervous - what if there wouldn't be enough food? But
fortunately there was just enough for everybody: the estimated number of
participants (10-15) was close to reality.
The
traditional Dutch cuisine doesn't differ much from the Polish one - I
think mostly because of the similar climate - and a lot of Dutch dishes
are heavy winter dishes, so it was quite a challenge to come up with a
good menu. The food had to be suitable for a hot summer day, and of
course it had to be Dutch, but not Polish, and not too Dutch. (You can find Dutch Gouda cheese almost everywhere, but good old Leyden cheese... Different story.)
Cooking
Dutch food together with the participants was a nice experience. You
should know that normally I cook maximum two things at once - if I have
to work with three pots at the same time, I freak out. Therefore, in the
beginning I had a hard time supervising the participants, but soon I
realized that I was working with experienced cooks who only need some
instructions, and from that moment on I was able to enjoy the workshop
as much as they did.
For those of you who want to try some Dutch food: the Dutch cultural evening will most likely take place in September!
Na razie! / See you! / Tot ziens!
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