Thursday, 26 April 2012

Cookery Demo

You may have heard that I had my first live cookery demo at the weekend. I’ve done a few smaller ones before but they were more a case of me trying to persuade people to try my wares as they walk past; people seem to think I'm trying to sell something so they tend to steer clear. Or maybe people don't want to eat cabbage at 9am on a Sunday morning.
This time it was all proper; kitchen, stage, mirrors above the worktop and everything. Fortunately it was inside so I didn’t have to contend with the weather as well as my nerves. I had no idea what to expect and not a clue how it was going to go. There were a few things that I had in mind to say but nothing particular. I had a bit of time to prep and get organised before I started but that went by in a flash.
My demonstration was all about asparagus; three different ways to cook it and three different flavours to complement it. Firstly boiled asparagus with lemon, orange and black pepper butter, secondly griddled asparagus with crème fraîche and chive dip and lastly raw asparagus salad. The boiled asparagus had to sadly be left out of the demo as I was using an induction hob and the pan I had brought to boil in wouldn’t work. Luckily my griddle pan was hob compatible so there were two bunches griddled and one bunch raw. It was remarkable that I managed to get it all ready at the same time, I didn't leave anything out and it even looked slightly presentable. 
I started the demo at 2.30pm and at around 3pm I stopped talking. I don’t really have any recollection of what happened in that half hour, I just remember there was a lot of asparagus. Apparently it went well but for all I know I was talking complete nonsense. I was just pleased I managed to make it through with no burns, no cuts and no tripping over.
I didn’t have any leftovers after everyone had tried the dishes which must mean they were tasty! The raw asparagus left most people surprised and it even managed to convert an asparagus hater. It was really nice to see people enjoying something I’d made. Let's hope this demo wasn't just beginners luck, the next one involves a microphone.

21 comments:

Mark Willis said...

Glad to hear it went well! Must have been scary. I'm a Lecturer so I talk to people all day long but I still sometimes get nervous.

Kiri W. said...

How cool! Congrats on the success :)

Ruth said...

Great that it went so well! Where we're you? Maybe you can start doing video blog posts! x

Alida said...

Wow! That's great! Well done you! It must have been scary but how rewarding being able to host a class. XX

Rachael said...

That's great, you look super calm and focused in the pic. Here's to many more spotlight moments :)

Belinda @zomppa said...

Congratulations! You are looking AWESOME up there! A natural.

ritacooksitalian said...

I believe you need a lot of confidence for cooking demo. Congratulation, you must feel very pleased with yourself.

Bloggy Writer said...

Congratulation on your success. It really takes a lot of confidence at the beginning to do a cooking demo in front of people outside the kitchen. Great job.

Toni @ Boulder Locavore said...

Wait! I feel like I missed something.....where did you do this, is this part of your job? A hobby? I watch enough TV cooking show host competition shows to know this must be very hard! I can't imagine trying to charm an audience AND really cook! I get distracted hosting dinner parties and finishing the meal with guests present! Congrats to you Caroline, that's a big deal! I'm sure your asparagus was great (I recall these 3 methods from your blog posts!)

Emma said...

Wow, I would have been completely wiped out from nerves I think, sounds like you were a star - good for you :):)

Soni said...

That's great!!Congratulations, looks like you did a good job!Its not easy to go out there in front of people without getting distracted or nervous!

Navaneetham Krishnan said...

Great demo and congrats. I am sure it was all worth it after reading your post.

Hester @ Alchemy in the Kitchen said...

Well done - and the next one will go even more swimmingly. Congrats!

Jenn Kendall said...

Congratulations! I would be way too nervous to attempt to do that! Awesome job and awesome recipes!

Marmaduke Scarlet said...

I love performing to an audience, but the thought of doing it with "food" is terrifying. Congratulations and here's to many more demos!

Mzungu said...

Congrats. Glad it went well, and the first of many no doubt.

Green Dragonette said...

Congratulations! How great to spread the word that asparagus is so great and to give people new ideas. All the best for next time-with the microphone too!!

firefoodie said...

What a hoot! Glad it went well, congrats! A.

Janice said...

Well done, I can imagine how nerve wracking a live demo must be.

Marina@Picnic at Marina said...

I am sure people loved this demo, and also that you did well. It is always hard to do for the first time. Congratulations and good luck!

Choclette said...

Oh well done, it sounds immensely scary, but I bet you did really well. Good luck with the microphone next time.