A unique program that teaches where food begins, how to prepare it, and then offers students a chance to create a complete meal was explained by Sycamore High School Ag teacher Christian Thurwanger at this week’s Rotary meeting.  It’s called “Farm to Fork.”   Thurwanger is a Sycamore High School and University of Illinois graduate.  He has a long history of interest in agriculture and started showing livestock at county fairs which he continues to do today.  He said that 80% of the jobs in Illinois have some type of connection to agriculture but realized that many students don’t understand the full link from the farm to a finished meal ready to eat.  Referring to what he calls “culinary leadership,”  Thurwanger talked about how the class helps students understand the source of ingredients, how to use them for different styles and tastes, and how to prepare them for a pleasing plate that is ready to serve.

 

Thurwanger said “Farm to Fork” is an 18-week course with a meal prepared about every 10 days.  He said lessons start with kitchen basics using work stations at the high school that include a mix of gas and electric ranges.  Safety is the first skill addressed, especially understanding what cautions to take around open flames or hot stovetops.  Thurwanger said the next step is focusing on the why and how of using ingredients such as carbohydrates, starches, acids, and meat proteins.  Students then move onto the techniques of preparation.  Not only do students get a chance to sample their own cooking, but once a month the classroom doors are open to faculty who pay $10 to enjoy a meal prepared on site.  Thurwanger believes the class demonstrates the practical side of firsthand learning associated with skills that are part of a student’s home and career development.

July 21, 1899 – Nobel Prize winning author Ernest Hemingway is born in Oak Park, Illinois

 

July 24, 1783 – “The Liberator”, Simon Bolivar, is born in Caracas, Venezuela.  He is known as the George Washington of South America for his efforts to liberate Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia from the rule of Spain.

 

July 24, 1897 – American pilot Amelia Earhart (the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic  Ocean and to fly solo from Hawaii to California) is born in Atchison, Kansas.

 

July 25, 1954 – Chicago Bear Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton is born in Columbia, Mississippi.  Nicknamed “Sweetness”, he played 13 seasons with the Bears and is widely considered one of the greatest football players of all-time holding multiple league records when he retired.

July 20, 1969 – A global audience watched on television as Apollo 11 Astronaut Neil Armstrong took his first step onto the moon.  He remarked, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

 

July 23, 1934 – Bank robber John Dillinger (Public Enemy #1) is shot and killed by FBI agents while leaving the Biograph Movie Theater in Chicago.

 

July 24, 1911 – American archeologist Hiram Bingham gets his first look at the ruins of Machu Picchu, the ancient Inca settlement in Peru that is now one of the world’s top tourist destinations.

 

July 26, 1953 – Fidel Castro begins his “26^th of July Movement” to topple the dictatorship of Cuba by Fulgencio Batista.  He is eventually successful when Batista flees Cuba on New Year’s Day 1959.