Introducing Anja Dippenaar - Class of 2020
“With the students back at school, our weeks include Saturdays and Sundays - and we have managed to accomplish a lot. Our days have been filled with cooking and assessments, primarily. On the second day back, the students were told they were cooking for 600 young children. They thought I was joking! I, however, considered this the perfect way to kick them into gear for the rest of the year.”
Jackie Cameron School of Food & Wine and in turn our restaurant: Jackie Cameron Culinary School Outlet, was the lucky recipient of an Eat Out Restaurant Relief Fund so, past-and-present students have worked with me on many feeding-scheme projects. Our primary focus was on the charity entitled Feeding the Future, a collaboration of Carolyn Hancock, the chairlady of Angels Care Crisis Centre and Thembelihle School; Sarah Collins, founder of Wonderbag; and me.
In celebration of Youth Day – and with schools reopening – we were able to provide learners with a hot meal. All preparations were carried out during an electricity outage… We knew we were being tested but we all rose to the occasion and the students gained understanding from this challenging experience. Past students, and the present second-year students, collected and delivered the meals. I congratulate all those who worked so diligently, under trying circumstances, in a team effort towards less-fortunate youngsters.
Hilton born-and-raised, Anja Dippenaar, a past-pupil of St Anne's Diocesan College, was among those who helped. In Grade 11 she chose to do her ‘work experience’ at a few culinary institutions – and is now in her first year as she pursues her calling.
“The Jackie Cameron School of Food & Wine was by far the most impressive,” she says. “The students were friendly, hard-working, and competent, the equipment was of the highest standard and the food was amazing - of course.”
We were delighted that this was where Anja chose to birth her chosen career.
“I wanted to learn from the best,” she explains, adding that she started the process of enrolling immediately after the work-experience part of the college’s curriculum. Growing up in Hilton, I knew about Chef Jackie because her school was just a few minutes away from where I live.”
Anja is quietly spoken, so I did a double take when she arrived on the first day sporting a very fashionable, blue hair tinge. As the days progressed to months her true character emerged, as did her chocolate cake recipe. It was worth the wait. Chocolate cake for any family occasion has become a tradition in the Dippenaar household. Anja explains the reason for this.
“When my mother was young (before she and my dad married), she remembers my grandpa always asking my grandma to make a chocolate cake for Sunday tea. He was on the road during the week, so it became, something like, a welcome-home gift. My mom says she has memories of grating peppermint crisp for the chocolate frosting, while my grandma made the cake. In later years, my dad revealed to her that chocolate frosting wasn’t supposed to have bits of peppermint crisp in it. She was undeterred – she ‘knew’ she had a winning recipe. My grandpa passed away three years ago and, in memory of him, our tradition of chocolate cake with a peppermint crisp, buttercream frosting lives on. My sister and I make the chocolate cake every time our family meets. My grandma misses my grandpa a lot, and I think this cake reminds her of him. All the happy memories… of his deep-chested laugh that would fill a room, and the way his beard would tickle our necks when he hugged us. In my opinion, when a person dies, we tend to forget how they looked, how they laughed or their scent. But there is generally something that brings them into sharp focus. For me it’s sharing a slice of cake with someone, the way we did with him.”
Isn’t it heart-warming the way food brings people together? Please try this recipe, share your creation with family and friends – and let us know your opinion of Anja’s formula. There’s no such thing as ‘enough chocolate cake recipes’, so I suggest you diarise this one – it is a winner!
Now that we’re entering the ‘new-normal’, we eagerly await updated rules and regulations regarding restaurants, and we hope these support the hospitality industry that has experienced a heartfelt blow.
Donations from The Witness readers helped feed those in need and our sincere gratitude is extended to you.
Visit www.jackiecameron.co.za to find out more about my Women’s and Men’s Chef Clothing Range. Remember Jackie Cameron Cooks at Home and Baking with Jackie Cameron – the books highlight all my foodie adventures. I always look forward to hearing from you so please communicate via email: jackie@jackiecameron.co.za.
Jackie Cameron - owner of Jackie Cameron School of Food & Wine in Hilton, KZN - for enquires email admin@jackiecameron.co.za.
Find me on Facebook – Jackie Cameron Cooks at Home, Twitter - @jackie_cameron and Instagram: @jackiecameronincolour
Food assistant and recipe developer: Anja Dippenaar
All photos by Kathy Pitout Photography