AD | Gifted event organised by Jet2Holidays. We enjoyed a complimentary cookery class and a meal afterwards.
Jet2Holidays recently invited me to participate in a Greek cookery class in celebration of their new destinations for Summer 2020. I haven’t attended a cookery course for a long time so I jumped at the chance to learn some new skills.
We gathered at Jenius Social which is an event space in Islington, London. They provide cookery classes and team building food and drink packages to private parties. For example you can learn how to create mexican street food, brush up your knife skills in a sushi masterclass, rustle up an authentic Thai or learn how to make fresh pasta the Italian way.
Jenius Social had designed a selection of Greek dishes for us to make. Think of the freshest mediterranean mainstays such as aubergine, peppers, tomatoes and olives. Of course Greek classics such as feta, greek yoghurt and meats were included for those that wanted to use them, but they had also prepared adapted recipes for those of us with special dietary requirements.
The cookery class itself was fun and chaotic! Our teacher showed us each step and then we followed along… or should have! Being bloggers, we were all trying to take photographs and video of the experience. This meant that we kept falling behind, missing instructions and getting it wrong! The chef team were fantastically patient however and with their guidance we managed to prepare some scrumptious looking dishes.
Admittedly, we didn’t have to do much of the hard work! Our benches had been laid out with all of the equipment and ingredients that we’d need. All we had to do was follow along with what we were being shown; chopping and mixing and rolling and folding our creations. The Jenius Social team then whisked away our efforts to bake in the oven.
Meanwhile, we sat down at a beautifully laid out table to spend some time with the Jet2Holidays team.
If I could have jumped in a time machine at this point I would have. I’d have gone back to when I was choosing my GCSE subjects to tell myself not to drop Geography! That way, maybe I would have aced the Greek quiz that followed.
Alas, it turns out that I can’t identify the historic Greek landmark the Parthenon from a picture or name the countries that border Greece. My measly five correct answers predictably surrounded food. What’s also known as ‘Greek Caviar’? Taramasalata. What drink do you enjoy at the end of the night? Ouzo of course!
The lucky winner’s prize was a holiday to one of Jet2Holiday’s new Greek destinations for Summer 2020: Lefkas and Parga. We then got to hear more about them, which made us all wish we’d done better at the quiz.
Lefkas is an island surrounded by the Ionian Sea. If you’re looking for unspoiled white sandy beaches and turquoise water that requires no filter, this is a hidden gem.
Then on the West Coast of mainland Greece you’ll find Parga. Parga Town is an Instagrammer’s dream of cobbled streets and pastel painted buildings, as well as plenty of seafront restaurants. The area of Sivota features a marina and Lichnos Beach is another picturesque beauty spot surrounded by lush green hills.
As we all imagined jetting off to Greece, our food arrived. What a heavenly feast it turned out to be! It all looked beautiful and really did remind me of the mediterranean holidays I’ve enjoyed in the past. Greek food is social food, to be enjoyed with friends around a big table.
We tucked into warm flatbreads, lashings of hummus, stuffed tomatoes and peppers and baked aubergine. I’d been shown how to make a veganised version of the Greek classic Spanakopita, a spinach pie flavoured with herbs and onion and enveloped in a crispy filo pastry. Our version was made bite sized and we’d learned how to fold the pastry into neat little triangles. The end result was delicious.
I got home and got Oliver to take the quiz. When he discovered that I hadn’t been able to name the Parthenon, he said: “We need a holiday to Greece then.” I’M HOLDING HIM TO THAT!
I must say a massive thanks to the lovely ladies at Jet2Holidays who organised such a brilliant (and tasty) event. The idea of a Greek Cookery Class was inspired.
The team at Jenius Social were equally fabulous and made the whole event a giggle. If your work are looking for a fun team building activity, I can’t recommend them enough!
