WHERE The Foodworks Cookery School, near Cheltenham (foodworks cookeryschool.co.uk)
THE COURSE Sensational Salads and Summer Sides cooking class & lunch, £58 (half day; includes wine)
TESTER Laura Day
WHAT IT’S LIKE The Foodworks Cookery School is set in a purpose-built barn in the heart of the Cotswolds. Owner Harriet met us with a big smile and ushered us upstairs to the mezzanine, where we had enough time to grab a cuppa, have a chat and enjoy the view over the bright, well-equipped school below. There’s plenty of space and each student has a set of chef’s tools. The school takes 12 students at a time, just the right number for a buzzy but uncrowded learning environment.
WHAT I LEARNED Erin Baker, our tutor, is a vegetarian chef with a fascinating range of recipe ideas and knowledge of flavours. Her tips, tricks and titbits peppered our learning throughout the day. Before we got to work on the cooking, we dabbled in a sort of salad dressing playtime. We were like children being shown the dress-up box: Erin presented a basket of oils, vinegars, mustards, herbs, chillies and citrus fruit as she shared her first rule of salads: “The key to making a good one is the dressing. A chef never sends a salad out naked.”
Laura Day 