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Fresh simple
COOKING
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SHIRLEY LE GUERN CHATS TO DANIELLE DU TOIT OF LOCAL COOKERY SCHOOL, PHEKA
ood is about relaxing and bringing people together – which was just what Danielle du Toit’s collection of “lockdown recipes” for everyday living did at a time when people were feeling most isolated. Her passion for food and teaching probably started during childhood and culminated not only in the creation of her cookery school, pheka, in 2006, but also in the writing of her recipe book pheka fresh simple cooking last year. “I spent about five years travelling the world with my husband. We had a ball backpacking and eating our way around the world. I worked in Chamonix in the French Alps, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean on private yachts. I spent time in Europe, Asia and South America and absorbed everything I could regarding the food and culture of the places I visited,” she says. On returning home, the couple spent time working in kitchens at bush lodges and hotels. That, she says, fuelled her passion for people, travel and local food. When the du Toits set up home in Botha’s Hill 15 years ago, Danielle started a small cookery school that offered courses for domestic workers. “I needed to create a business that was going to work for me and my new family, and so I tested out my idea on a few close friends and family. Everyone was delighted,” she recalls. This still forms the bulk of her work. “Cleaning and ironing can be very mundane. It’s great to be able to give
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people new skills that they can not only use in the workplace but also take home. They can make a beautiful loaf of bread, a homemade pizza or a curry for their families. The messages and the photographs I get from my students are very rewarding,” she smiles. Danielle also does cookery classes for youngsters during school holidays and admits to surviving the odd flour fight. “Cookery classes for adults are aimed at those who are passionate about cooking,” she adds. Lessons are delivered either in her large, welcoming home kitchen or in the kitchens of clients. Her school is essentially a mobile one.
LEFT: Danielle in her kitchen at home trying out a new recipe. BELOW: Danielle presents a certificate to one of her cookery students.
Danielle also does cookery classes for youngsters during school holidays and admits to surviving the odd flour fight
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