Heat Transfer

Today campers learned that this camp isn't called "The Basics" for nothing!  We started slow, with Video Flash Cards that showed cooking methods and a discussion about temperature and heat transfer.  We cook food to make it safe, to make it more digestible, and because soon we will be making the food more interesting! Who wants to live on raw fruits and vegetables all the time? (Some people do!) Cooking can make food more interesting. Mise en place was gone over and over and Chef Corr even demonstrated how to do the mise en place for today's demonstration recipes. Very basic chicken breast cutlet and raw broccoli were used to illustrate the various types of cooking methods--roast, boil, steam, poach, microwave and stir fry--and the campers sampled them all.  While many asked for hot sauce or ketchup, it was interesting to see how the products turned out with the different methods. It's a first step!  Next week we will introduce seasoning and flavoring and move more toward the type of cooking that tastes good. After the cooking demo the campers learned about the special day that it is today  World Environment Day! We had a discussion about the benefits of recycling and composting and some camper families do that already.  If you have a garden you want to save your compost so your vegetables will have more natural nutrients.  "Going Green in Red Stick:  A Green Living Guide for Baton Rouge" were handed out to each camper and counselor and will go home as a resource guide for the families. Then Ms. Debbie and Ms. Crystal came in and took everyone's numbers, measuring height, weight, arm span--all sorts of numbers for the study. Data, data, data--that's what a study is all about. The campers were escorted to the Lab School for lunch and for physical activities with Mrs. Marshall, who had a new fun toy to roll out.  Late in the afternoon was refreshment time and today's was a fresca like the one served at the parent's orientation meeting, only it had fresh blueberries, watermelon, ice and a splash of water.  Cold and refreshing on a 97 degree afternoon!  Tomorrow and Thursday--field trip to Whole Foods for half the campers at a time. And one of those days Chef Tonya will be Making Groceries!