Little cooks

There was much excitement and enthusiasm when youngsters got together to learn how to cook in Mandy's kitchen.

At the first class, the children learnt how to make hamburgers - from scratch - and toffee apples.

The menu for the week included a London tea with cake, crumpets and scones, a traditional South African braai, with chicken sosaties, potato bake, salad and chocolate pudding, and a pizza with two toppings and a milo milkshake.

Mandy says she has always wanted to offer the activity since she did it herself as a child. She experimented on her own two boys and their friends - and decided on which foods to offer after this kind of practical market survey.

It was clear that while children were cooking, they were also learning to measure ingredients - which helps with the practical application of maths - and they were learning the chemical processes involved in cooking and why things were done in a certain order.