GROVELAND — When Katie Wilton goes to the library, she brings her entire kitchen with her.
And a cooking teacher with a portable kitchen was just what some of the girls at Langley-Adams Library were looking for.
"We did a survey this summer to see what kinds of programs kids would be interested in, and a lot of them wanted a cooking class," said youth services librarian Gina Lipkin. "I'd heard only fantastic things about this program from other libraries, so I decided to give it a try."
So Lipkin arranged for Cooking With Katie to come to Langley-Adams, and it was a big hit.
"The program filled up immediately,'' Lipkin said. "We had to put some people on a waiting list, a lot of kids wanted to come."
When the event began, the girls sat and listened attentively while Wilton explained the recipes they'd be making, the rules of the kitchen, and some techniques for measuring, pouring and flipping the ingredients.
When she was done talking, the girls divided into groups of four or five, and started cooking.
Each group made a different recipe, pizza won tons, Parmesan pita triangles, yogurt fruit smoothies and cream cheese-filled strawberries. And of course, they got to eat when they were done.
For those who wanted to try more recipes at home, Wilton's cookbook was for sale, and is available at the library to be borrowed.
Wilton has been doing programs like this for two years. She started out as a teacher with a love for cooking, went to culinary school, and wrote a cookbook.
"I wanted to promote the cookbook and provide hands-on cooking experience for this age group," Wilton said.
She said she started doing her Cooking with Katie program at libraries two years ago, and has been doing it ever since.
"Cooking builds confidence," Wilton said. "Usually when you cook, you're cooking for someone else, and if they like what you cooked, it makes you feel good about yourself."
Wilton said she does the same recipes at each program because they teach basic culinary skills, and keeping it the same makes it easier to get the right kitchen equipment from place to place.
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