Summer season cooking classes Waiheke

Lunchtime Cooking Classes & Summer Sunset Classes with Shared Kitchen Waiheke Island

Woo-hoo! We’ve got a really exciting round of classes for February!

We’ve gone out on a limb for the February Summer Season of cooking classes on Waiheke, incorporating Thai and Middle Eastern classes, a Vegetarian Extravaganza, a really useful and practical barbecue class featuring Marinades & Rubs along with everything you need to know about cooking successfully on a barbecue, whether it be meat, fish, vegetables or fruit. And we’ve gone one step further after lots of requests, and have planned a Vegan Barbecue class, too. We have also included a class for those of you who are less confident in the kitchen, whether you are just starting out or whether you find yourself behind the 8-ball and want a refresher course to get you up to speed so you can turn out some snappy dishes to impress your friends. If that rings a bell, Cooking 101 is the class for you.

But the biggest change is the Summer Sunset Classes. These run from 5.00-7.30pm during Waitangi weekend, and each subsequent Friday in February. They’re designed to allow you a day on Waiheke, either gadding about the Headland Sculpture on the Gulf event, or a day shopping, visiting art galleries and taking in lunch and a wine tasting, or enjoying some of the amazing walks the island has to offer, with your day culminating at my place in Rocky Bay for a class of tasty tidbits and fabulous wines. You’ll go away replete (you won’t need dinner), titillated, and longing to get into your own kitchen to whip up the nibbles and treats you’ll enjoy for your own friends. And you’ll be in time to catch the 8.00pm ferry back to Auckland if that is where you are headed. Waiheke rocks during the month of February with art, music, food and wine making it a great time to visit.

Summer Sunset classes run from 5.00-7.30pm each Friday during February, plus the Saturday and Sunday of Waitangi weekend. The classes have differing content (Class 2 is not a repeat of Class 1).

Lunchtime classes run from 1.00-4.00pm when held on a Thursday, Saturday or Sunday, but from 11.30-2.30pm when held on a Monday.

All classes $125.00 pp. Booking essential. Email [email protected] now to ensure you don’t miss out on your choice. Schedule below.

Schedule for the rest of February

Saturday 18 Lunchtime Class 1.00-4.00pm BARBECUE RUBS & MARINADES * Places available

Sunday 19 Lunchtime Class 1.00-4.00pm VEGAN BARBECUE * Places available

Monday 20 Lunchtime Class 11.30-2.30pm VEGETARIAN EXTRAVAGANZA

Friday 24 Summer Sunset Class 5.00-7.30pm approx. TAPAS MEZZE (2) * Places available

Saturday 25 Lunchtime Class 1.00-4.00pm BEST OF THE MIDDLE EAST (Moroccan, Egyptian, Persian, Lebanese, Israeli dishes) * Places available

Sunday 26 Lunchtime Class 1.00-4.00pm BEST OF THE MIDDLE EAST (Moroccan, Egyptian, Persian, Lebanese, Israeli dishes)

Find our more about class content here:

TAPAS MEZZE (1)

A selection of delicious and easy nibbles and finger food to serve at parties and gatherings, handy things to knock up quickly, and perfect for when people drop in for a drink, or for you to ‘make and take’ when the dreaded ‘bring a plate’ request arises. Useful recipes with a Spanish, Greek and Turkish bent, with a little Italian and Kiwi kitchen thrown in, too, recipes you’ll come to love and use again and again with great confidence.

TAPAS MEZZE (2)

A selection of delicious and easy nibbles and finger food to serve at parties and gatherings, handy things to knock up quickly, and perfect for when people drop in for a drink, or for you to ‘make and take’ when the dreaded ‘bring a plate’ request arises. Useful recipes with a Spanish, Greek and Turkish bent, with a little Italian and Kiwi kitchen thrown in, too, recipes you’ll come to love and use again and again with great confidence. *Course content differs from Tapas Menu (1)

VEGAN BARBECUE

Oh yes! I’ve been asked for it, so here it is, a class of great dishes without meat, fish, dairy and eggs, to cook on the barbecue. The class is perfectly suitable for vegetarians. And meat-eaters, you will find you won’t miss a thing.

THAI FLAVOURS

Kaffir lime leaves, coriander root, tamarind, lemongrass, shallot, coconut, Thai basil, ginger, galangal … just reeling off the list of ingredients is enough to induce uncontainable excitement! This class will feature dishes with layers and layers of flavour, featuring a jab of fresh heat from chillies, a clean fresh lift from lime, and pungent kick from garlic and fish sauce. Think Larb, Green Chicken Curry, Beef Pepper Salad, Green Mango & Vermicelli Salad, Sizzling Satay with Nam Prick …

COOKING 101 – GETTING STARTED

Are you frustrated because you failed Cooking 101, or because someone else was doing all the cooking where you lived, or you just weren’t that interested, but now you find yourself way behind the 8-ball and all your mates are showing you up? Sound like you? If you wish you had a handy repertoire of recipes that you could rely on so you could whip up tasty little dishes when it‘s your turn to cook or when you are asked to take a plate of half-decent food somewhere, this is the class for you. You’ll learn heaps, in a non-competitive atmosphere, but more importantly, you’ll gain confidence. Just a few simple tricks up your sleeve and you’ll be off …

VEGETARIAN EXTRAVAGANZA

If you are looking for ways to expand the plant-based dishes in your repertoire, while still enjoying summer fare and an occasional tempting whiff of barbecue smoke without the snarlers or burnt steaks, this will be a great class for you. Fresh seasonal vegetables are the star, but we’ll also incorporate grains and pulses in interesting ways. You’ll come away inspired, and with a terrific set of recipes.

BARBECUE RUBS & MARINADES

Do you know the differences behind a rub and a marinade, and when to use one or the other? Do you have trouble gauging how long to cook food on a barbecue so sometimes just guess (and sometimes get away with it but other times not)? Are you bored with the same old dishes you cook on a barbecue? This class will cover great spice rubs and marinades – the sort of thing that adds stacks of flavour and turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. Plus there’ll be heaps of tips for barbecue cooking. Yes, it is a meat class, and there will also be fish, but it is the tips and techniques that make this class a standout. Oh, and the delicious recipes!

BEST OF THE MIDDLE EAST

Mmmm. This is a smashing class. Yes, we’ll smash garlic, grind spices, mash pulses, chop herbs, grill, char and fry, and the result will be a glorious feast of colourful, zesty, food, singing with spices and imbued with a whiff of smoke here and there, dishes you’ll want to call your own. Great for summer, perfect for autumn. A class not to be missed.