Students in both the 10th grade and 11th grade Culinary Arts classes have been making some incredible meals this Fall! The classes receive weekly ‘mystery box’ deliveries from local farms and growers, such as Wayne McCraney, Sleeping Frog, Southwinds, Dreamflower, Arevalos, Rattlebox, San Xavier, and more, which are brought to us by the Community Food Bank. Then, it’s the job of the two classes to plan out their weekly menus with what’s on hand, which lends itself to some serious creativity! In addition to learning basic culinary techniques and developing skills of teamwork, the students are also learning how to make incredible, local, and unique dishes such as korean tacos with purslane kim chi, pico de gallo with nopalitos, salads with prickly pear vinaigrette, and black bean hummus with green chile.
Towards the end of the semester, the students began to see more of Tucson’s local food movement by taking a tour of Barrio Bread, and were finally able to supplement their dishes with produce they grew right here on campus- which was a real treat! It was not only delicious, but also rewarding to see the literal fruits of their labor come full circle, especially considering that any vegetable scraps or uneaten portions go back into the compost for the next harvest!
