The Hirsch’s Kitchen Capers events that have been held virtually since the beginning of the pandemic have been a great boon to people who want to find out more about different cooking styles, diets and the appliances used to whip up and cook the variety of meals that have been churned out over the months by guest chefs and Margaret Hirsch herself.
Margaret has hosted the events remotely – on Zoom and Facebook Live, but recently she got together with the team from LG and prepared and cooked a magnificent 22 dish feast entitling it Christmas Dinner Inside and Out - in the LG Neo Chef, which Margaret says is definitely one of her favourite appliances and one that she would recommend to anyone looking for a gift this Christmas.
Dishes prepared included a variety of traditional Christmas favourites, from turkey, ham, a variety of salad and vegetable dishes to Christmas pudding, Christmas cake, a Pavlova and Baked Alaska. The idea behind the variety was to show the audience how easy it was for the dishes to be served inside – or in usual South African fashion, outside on the veranda or patio. A great deal of thought was put into decorating the tables effectively for both eventualities.
At the end of the cooking session, Margaret and the Hirsch team headed off to the Uitkoms Home For Girls in Observatory, Johannesburg to give them a surprise Christmas feast!
Uitkoms began as a shelter for pregnant girls way back in 1944. The home has operated without interruption since then and was registered as a Children’s Home and Place of Safety in 1999. Today, they operate as a residential facility and they provide residential care & protection, education, professional therapy, life skills training, recreational programs and spiritual support. Although they receive a per capita subsidy from the Department of Social Development, this only equates to about one third of the cost of maintaining each child. Uitkoms, and the entire welfare sector, have an on-going battle to make ends meet. Corporate funding is almost non-existent and the increase in the cost of living has seriously affected assistance from the private sector.