We’re all getting tired of processed food arent we? Especially considering the availability of such quality produce in this country.
Being subsumed by American fast food culture and national issues of obesity and diet related illnesses don’t help either. But perhaps with the amount of quality TV food shows on offer and the preference for a ‘holistic’ diet things may change. Even if those shows are being sponsored by ads for takeaway franchises.
But as the saying goes, “wherever there is poison, the antidote lies near by”, and to achieve that balance you need education.
This is where academic and foodie, Angela Nicolettou comes in. Nicolettou has for many years been working in the university system, specifically in the area of teaching teachers how to teach effectively. Looking at her impressive academic CV, Nicolettou has more qualifications than a four-star general has medals.
Thankfully, Nicolettou has none of the military bombast when she speaks, with a quiet and inspired manner about her career. Uniquely, her career has been about developing a balance in methodologies as well as in her own life, that fluctuates between teaching at a tertiary level and teaching cooking at the CAE.
“Although I have worked in universities almost all my life, I always kept up my passion for cooking,” said Nicolettou. “I know this sounds cliche but I received my inspiration from my grandmother. I would spend hours in her kitchen watching her cooking.”
The irony of the Nicolettou story is that her family back in Greece ran take way shops. The difference back then was the produce may have been organic by default, and the shops were run by families, not franchises. So with her food pedigree simmering in the background, Nicolettou has been determined to manifest her food passion, but with a difference.
“In 2008 I decided to take a break from university life and work full-time as a cook in the Journal Canteen.” This is the celebrated restaurant on Flinders Lane in Melbourne run by hospitality iconoclast ‘Johnie’ Vaklis and Melbourne cook Rosa Mitchell.
“I wanted to get my hands dirty in the hospitality industry; I needed to get that professional element in my life, and at the same time I was running cooking classes.”
Nicolettou explained she developed her appreciation for good food when she was in Greece as a child.
“It’s the simplicity of the cuisine there that I like, and that not many ingredients are required to create a great dish.”
These skills in simplicity are what Nicolettou’s classes are all about and the range of styles on offer is wide. ‘Classic Greek Cooking’; ‘Greek Seafood’ and ‘Spring Salads of the Mediterranean’ are but few of the courses she provides.
“I get a lot of Greek Australians, who want to polish up on their Greek cooking knowledge and in one seafood class the men outnumbered the women.” When asked if cooking would become full time, Nicolettou said,
“Maybe in two or three years. At the moment I’m building an extension with a large kitchen in my home in Northcote. Once that’s done I’ll have more control of what I can do and then perhaps I will take it up as full-time business.”
More info: www.angelaskitchen.com.au