Above: The Library continues to invite patrons to be part of a delicious book club, or to register for another free virtual lesson run by a cook who has travelled the world exploring the cuisine that inspires her teaching. (images edited from flyers and Facebook)
The Southborough Library has another virtual cooking lesson scheduled this month, and more lined up this spring. While I’m sharing that news, I’ll also remind about the scheduled cookbooks that will serve as the recipe source for the monthly meetings of the Cook Book Club this spring.
Here are more details on what the library is dishing up.
The Virtual Cooking series sessions invite participants to zoom in from home and follow the step by step instructions from professional cooking instructor Ploy Khunisorn, the owner of Ploy’s Kitchen.
The next lesson, is this Tuesday, March 17th. (No, it won’t be corned beef and cabbage.) The lesson will teach participants how to make laksa (promoted as “Singapore Curry Noodle Soup“):
We will start with making laksa paste from scratch and then turn the paste into the popular Singapore Laksa with chicken, shrimp, and tofu. You can choose to make laksa with just the chicken or just tofu. Nothing can beat homemade laksa!
That will run from 6:00 – 7:30 pm.
To register for the free class, click here. Participants will receive a shopping list in advance to prepare for the class.
Other upcoming classes will focus on making:
“Moroccan Pastilla” (or Bastilla)— Tuesday, April 14th:
the famous chicken pie of Morocco. A light crispy warqa pastry or phyllo dough filled with delicious, shredded chicken, egg stuffing, and sweet orange blossom almond. This sophisticated, sweet, and savory pie will be a showstopper for any occasion or just a simple day with friends and family. While the pastilla is baking, we will make Moroccan mint tea.
“North Indian Cooking” — Tuesday, May 27th:
These dishes have bold and rich flavors from ghee, cream, and spices. Learn how to layer flavors using different spices and make chicken Navratan Korma, aloo gobhi (spiced potato cauliflower), and flavored rice.
Ploy’s website shares of the her expertise in teaching how to cook dishes from an array of cultures:
She went to Suan Dusit International Culinary School while she was working as a financial analyst in Bangkok. She came to the USA to earn a Master of Liberal Arts in Sustainability at Harvard University and a Master of Education at Cambridge College. She started teaching cooking classes since 2014. Having traveled to over 30 countries, she has enjoyed and learned to cook varieties of cuisine around the world. In her 8+ years of teaching experience, Ploy has taught over 5,000 students to cook and bake Asian cuisines, vegan food, gluten free diets, pastries, and more. She is also a certified tea master.
The library’s Cook Book Club program also involves cooking at home. But that’s followed by the social element of bringing in what you prepare to share with other members. (It’s basically a monthly potluck club.)
The library encourages the public to “Join fellow enthusiastic cooks for a delicious dinner” each first Tuesday of the month.
The meetings take place on the 6:30 – 8:30 pm on the Library’s main floor. (In addition to your dish, you’ll want to bring an extra container to bring home some of the shared leftovers.)
If you’d like to take part, email your intended recipe selection to Marianna Sorensen (msorensen@southboroughma.com).
If you plan ahead, you should be able to borrow copies of the cookbooks through the library and its interlibrary loan system. So, here’s the remaining lineup of meetings and the books the group will whip up recipes from this spring:
- April 7th — Nourish by Gisele Bundchen
- May 5th — Every Day with Babs by Barbara Costello
- June 2nd — You Got This by Diane Morrisey
