HMC Activities 2009

To celebrate Christmas, 16 participants attended a X'mas Gingerbread Man workshop at HMC for preparing a heart warm gift for their friends and lovers. One student, Ms. Chan said:"Learning cooking at HMC is a wonderful experience as the tutors are always so helpful.  I am particiularly excited this time because I learned how to decorate cakes and pastries."
Home Management Centre sponsored Yan Chai Hospital Sheung Wan Rehabilitation Service Centre for their X'mas cooking contest in December. All contestants had to make a healthy dish with ingredients that they did not flavour so much. The objective of the event is to emphasize the importance of balanced diet, healthy and correct eating habit.
Fifty HMC club members attended X’mas party in Dec. The centre prepared lucky draw and snacks for members. Some members prepared food for competing the champion of “The most Festive Food”, “The most Delicious Food” and “The best Looking Food”, while the rest will be the judge of the contest. The party ended with fun and joy.
Over 60 students from King Ling College and Po Kok Secondary School visited the Centre in November and December respectively for healthy cooking demonstration. They also visited Electrical Appliance Display Centre to know more about the benefits in electric cooking.
The “Mooncake Workshop” on 12 September was part of the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration during which 15 children aged between eight to 12 made mooncakes using cartoon moulds provided by the centre. The steps may look simple but it was not an easy task for children like Cheuk Lam who found kneading filling very difficult. “It is not easy to be a mooncake chef,” he said. However, an older boy, Yat Sing, enjoyed it as he found kneading filling was like playing with clay. The parents felt at ease allowing their children to cook in the centre as they said electric cooking was safe and clean.	Press Here for Video                      Press Here for Video
About 50 HMC club members attended a “Mid-Autumn Festival Health Talk” on 24 September. Nutritionist Tony Au recommended natural food such as grapes, tomatoes, spinach and strawberries as ingredients because of their nutritious value. Mr. Au showed how to make three healthy dishes: a cold soup with red wine, grapes and honey; spinach salad; and a seafood with tomato soup.
40 students from Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Mrs. Wu York Yu Memorial College visited HMC in October when Home Economist Clara Tse demonstrated a high fibre toast - a healthy snack. The college visits HMC regularly to encourage students to learn cooking.
Well-known film producer Raymond Wong and his daughter, Alvina, demonstrated three dishes for HMC Club members to celebrate Father’s Day. Mr. Wong shared how he communicated with his daughter and his business associates. To him, this year’s Father’s Day was unforgettable as it was the first time he cooked with Alvina in public.
To celebrate Father’s Day, Karson held a wine tasting workshop for fathers and their children. He introduced the history and types of wines, advised on how to read labels, use wine openers and the art of tasting wine. One participant, Ms. Lee, expressed: “This workshop not only enhanced my knowledge, but also improved my communication with my father.” And her father said: “This workshop is very special. I love this Father’s Day gift very much.”
To enhance communication between the elderly and young, a “Tuen Ng Dumpling Workshop” was held in May in which participants enjoyed making dumplings.
16 participants learnt how to make bird’s nest cake for Mother’s Day at the centre in May. Miss Tai, who had attended a course at the centre, said: “The steps to make a cake are not too complicated and with bird’s nest as ingredient, this cake is a special gift for my mom.”
Students from TWGHS Lee Ching Dea Memorial College and Concordia Lutheran School visited the centre in April and May. Instructor Jess introduced to the students the Seaweed and Cold Noodles dish, while Home Economist Clara demonstrated how to make Chocolate Muffin. Some Concordia students had visited the centre before and found our lessons useful because of the various recipes as well as solutions to cooking problems. After the lesson, they visited the Electrical Appliances Display Centre.
Two groups of tourists visited the Centre to learn Chinese cooking in April.  Anita showed ten American visitors how to prepare Sweet & Sour Pork, Diced Chicken with Walnuts and Crab Meat with Broccoli.  They learned how to break up crab meat and why Shaoxing wine is used to bring out the aroma and taste of many dishes.  Another seven tourists wanted to learn Chinese dishes to thank their spouses for working hard in Hong Kong. Anita took them to a wet market and introduced Chinese foodstuff to them. She demonstrated two dishes: Stir Fried Pork with Crispy Noodles and Spring Rolls, which were difficult to make, especially making the noodles golden brown and crispy without overcooking it.
To celebrate Easter, a “Parent/Child Easter Chocolate Workshop” was held in late March with 11 families participating. To most of the children who were making chocolate eggs for the first time, it was very exciting. Four-year-old Tiffany imagined she was a chef and sang “The Chef’s Song” while preparing to melt chocolate. Her mother said: “Tiffany and I never make chocolate at home because it is very difficult to control the temperature. The induction cooker is convenient and easy to control the heat making cooking so much more enjoyable.”
“Roti to Indians is equivalent to rice for Chinese. We normally cook with olive oil instead of butter because it is healthier…We usually have Masala tea in the morning because it is refreshing,” explained Indian artiste Paul Gill to a gathering at the Home Management Centre (HMC). Paul and his wife were invited to demonstrate Indian cooking for HMC club members. He shared with us Indian customs as well as tips for cooking Indian cuisine. The three dishes demonstrated were samosas, roti and Masala tea.
In March, HMC held a health talk and pudding workshop to raise funds for the Hong Kong Breast Cancer Foundation. Artiste Lily Hong, who made pudding with the participants, said: “This crossover event is meaningful; we receive health information, make donation to charity and enjoy cooking at the same time.”
HMC was invited to take part in the Hong Kong Flower Show held at Victoria Park in March. Using various electrical appliances, there were six sessions cooking with flowers and herbs as the main ingredients.
To celebrate Valentine’s Day, Artiste Vin Choi and Yoyo Chan were invited to Home Management Centre for a Valentine cake workshop. Vin had experience in making cake, while it was Yoyo’s first time. She said “I never make cake before, but this time the chef is so patient and the classroom is so well-equipped. I enjoy the lesson very much”.
On 17 January, ten families had a delightful time at the "Family Lunar New Year Snack Workshop".  The parents were delighted to find their children were good cooking partners.  The youngest child, four-year-old Cheuk Yee, said: "It was very interesting and fun to cook with mom", while her mother added "I never let her into the kitchen before, but the Centre provided a flameless cooking environment which was safe and convenient.  It was pleasant cooking with her and she was happy with the experience too."