First Class Meal
On the 1st of September I ran my First Class meal, with the help of Saskia, Jocelyn and Oliver vZS we were prepared to make an incredible meal. We were cooking a mediterranean style 3 course meal for our judges: Chris and Junior. As Junior is a professional chef we had high expectations to meet.
For our appetizer we cooked grilled peaches and string beans garnished with mint and goat’s cheese, the main was soft shell steak tacos with a mediterranean twist and some rice and beans to fill the shell, and dessert was an incredible hibiscus, mint and lemon sorbet.
The difficulty with this meal was not the fact that we had to cook everything over the fire (although that did make it difficult), it was the time scaling of all the recipes. Previously I had cooked all three meals, individually and alone, and used the times from those attempts to schedule the cooking on the day. As it turns out, the more people you have cooking the faster it will go. This led to some on-the-fly cooking adaptations of the dishes and a quick dash to the store to buy superior tortilla wraps that could handle our awesome tacos.
Fortunately, I had a great group of scouts who were very capable and eager to help out, often taking the initiative into their own hands. This led to a very successful meal that I am very proud of, with all the food being cooked through and not burnt. I was worried that there was not going to be enough for everyone, and while my fears were not entirely unfounded, nobody went home with an empty stomach.
All in all, the day was a great success with everyone having enjoyed themselves and the food. I think we were all very happy with the judges’ comments on the dishes complimenting each other very nicely. Unfortunately the sorbet did melt quickly when served, but it was still cold and delicious. I think this proved to be an insightful experience not only for myself but for everyone else too.
Big thanks to Saskia and Jocelyn Berry; Oliver van Zyl Smit; and our two judges: Chris O’Brien and Junior Kathe for taking time out of their Sunday to make this happen.
First Class Hike
My First Class hike took place from the 7th to the 8th of September, just two weeks ago. Alongside me were: Axel vBD; Sam Hoffa; and Chris du Toit, we were hiking to the hut to sleep overnight and back out the next day. It was going to be a long hike of an intermediate difficulty but it would all be worth it when we reached the hut.
Day 1
Everyone arrived at my house shortly before we were scheduled to leave at 8 so we could balance the bags as we had to split the food and extra equipment between us. Once that was finished we all hopped into the car and drove to the starting point; everyone was in a good mood and ready for the hike ahead. Our starting point was just above the turn off from the R101 up to the farm people normally hike from. Once we reached the starting point everyone geared up and we set off. It was not long into the hike when we found out that Axel’s knee was acting up due to an injury he sustained the very previous day, however he held firm and pushed forward with determination. Despite the weather forecast predicting a somewhat cloudy day with a chance of drizzle the weather remained sunny and warm for the entire day. A couple hours in, when we reached the foot of the big climb, Axel was seriously struggling and needed frequent breaks. Knowing that when the valley would only keep getting warmer as the day progressed, I decided to take Axel’s bag for him so we could avoid the heat and not risk any further injuries. Thankfully we were close and managed to get to the hut on time without further fuss. When we arrived we had lunch while we settled into the hut alongside the other people. We then relaxed for the rest of the day, eating dinner and playing board games before sleeping on the deck.
Day 2
We left early to avoid the possibility of bad weather that the forecast suggested, leaving the hut around half past 9. Fortunately, Axel’s knee seemed to be doing better than the day before as we kept a good pace heading out. Axel did slip and fall but he did not let it impede our progress. Making good time, we made it out in around 3-4 hours, however, near the end a large rain cloud seemed to be chasing us out but thankfully we were not rained on.
I would like to thank Axel, Sam and Chris for giving up your weekends and coming with me, you all made a wonderfully memorable weekend and I hope you all get some ideas for when you do your own 1st Class. I would also like to thank the parents for helping make this possible with special mention to Pierre Hoffa, the convener of the hut we went to. Not only is it a magnificent hut under his care, he helped get the booking in a short amount of time. Thank you all.
YiS
Oliver H
