What’s Cooking in the Two Rivers Kitchen
Published February 2024
The Two Rivers Cooking Club is heating up! This new student-initiated club is supported by club advisor and FACS extraordinaire Linda Zurn and meets weekly in the Two Rivers commercial-grade kitchen. The students, many of whom are taking culinary courses at Two Rivers, wanted to cook more in a casual setting with friends, so they approached their teacher about starting the new club. All the members share a love of cooking, and some are considering it in their career options, but mostly the club is for friends to get together and cook.
Autonomy and working as a team are on the menu in this club. “We are given so much freedom and input in the club. We always discuss together what we want to make next and how we'll price it. For instance, we made brownies a couple of months ago, and I was the one who provided the recipe and was involved in the serving size and price of the brownies. Here, everyone has a voice and advice they can give,” shares Two Rivers student Marigold.
So, what’s cooking in the kitchen? Students whip up bakery items every week and sell them during school lunch—all profits will be donated to local food shelves at the end of the year. Students are tapping into other skills, too, like math for calculating food prices and giving change while also providing customer service and interpersonal skills with their peers.
Last month, Principal Johnson approached the Cooking Club about preparing a dinner for the District’s annual Legislative Connect meeting. The students prepared and served a delicious meal of lasagna, garlic rolls, salad, and chocolate cake for all of the District’s legislators—even accommodating dietary restrictions and offering gluten-free and dairy-free options. The amount of care and detail was evident as one student who works in the hospitality industry arranged each napkin to perfection, and the food was positioned and plated professionally.
The students got a chance to talk to the representatives and share their hopes and dreams—and got plenty of encouragement. Representative María Isa Pérez-Vega asked the students what got them interested in cooking, and students were eager to share their personal connections to cooking. Preparing a meal of this size was a new experience for many of the students, and they look forward to more opportunities.