It was a chilly, but beautiful day in Boston today. I enjoyed the nice weather by getting off the T a few stops early, and walking the rest of the way to my class. I enjoyed my leisurely stroll through Boston Common and the Public Gardens. 😎
Fresh Approach: Writing About Food
My food writing class, “Fresh Approach: Writing About Food,” was held at the Boston Center for Adult Education (BCAE).
The BCAE is a nonprofit adult education center that offers a ton of interesting classes– from Cupcakes and Cocktails to a Moonlight Canoe Tour to The Rose Nose: A Clowning Workshop. They even have an upcoming class called Blog On. BCAE really has something for everyone!
For the foodies, BCAE has a ton of food and wine classes— many of which are taught in their brand-spanking new kitchen facilities.
I first heard about this food writing course a few weeks ago, and it seemed right up my alley. My friend is the Communications Manager at BCAE, so I expressed my interest to her and she totally hooked me up. Thanks, Jenny!
Fresh Approach: Writing About Food
This class is ideal for anyone who wants to become a better writer, and anyone specifically interested in this fast-growing genre. Enhance your understanding of contemporary food issues, review the canon of food writing, and learn how to incorporate successful techniques in your work.
I’m happy to report that I really enjoyed the first class! 😀 The course includes 3 sessions, each devoted to a different food writing topic: recipes, reviews, and personal/memoir-style writing. Tonight, we talked all about recipes.
After some brief introductions (there’s only 6 people in the class), we were given our first exercise: create a recipe for making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Easy enough, right? Well, it was… for the most part. We learned that recipes need to be clear and easy to follow. Your goal is to create a recipe that people want to make, but if your directions skip a step or leave the person asking questions, it’s not a very good recipe– even if it did taste really great when you made it!
Other interesting tidbits from tonight’s class:
- When publishing a recipe (print or online), the ratio of ingredients is not copyrighted. The narrative/instructions, however, are copyrighted, so you need to rewrite these in your own words.
- As you probably know, most people who read blogs don’t have a lot of time to prepare elaborate recipes, so try to keep your recipes simple. Also, be sure to keep in mind who is your blog audience.
- For a personal touch, add a shopping tip or special cooking technique to your recipes– like how to select a certain herb at the farmers’ market or recommend an ice cream scoop to portion cookie dough onto a baking sheet.
Our homework for next week’s class includes reading reviews by Mark Bittman and Anthony Bourdain as well as an excerpt from Eat, Pray, Love. It’s pretty much the best homework I have ever been assigned! 😉
Snack
During class, I sipped on an iced coffee with soy milk.
I also packed a bunch of snacks for “dinner,” but I only ate the apple, cereal, and granola bar.
When I got home, I ate a bowl of American Chop Suey that Mal made for dinner. It hit the spot. I was really hungry!
I can’t believe how quickly Monday flew by! Time to get ready to BED!
Good night!