June 2020
By Christiana Constantinou
As all student-related events and activities were suspended or postponed due to the pandemic until further notice, the Student Services team introduced online events to our students and, whenever possible, joint events with staff and faculty. During the month of April, an online cooking competition was announced, the ‘International Food Festival from home’, where participants presented dishes from around the world in five different categories.
A total number of 28 dishes were submitted. An ad-hoc committee reviewed the dishes and on 15 June announced one winner per category. Each winner received a 30-euro Amazon voucher.
Congratulations to the winners and a special thanks to all the participants!
A few words from the winners:
Most creative/innovative
‘An Ode to Cyprus’
from Annefa Georgina Burke
I chose this dish because I wanted to showcase what Cyprus has to offer in terms of ingredients, especially ones that trend to be underutilized in cooking. My dish was made with all local ingredients; some ingredients were hand-picked by me (loquats, lemon, basil) and others bought locally and produced in Cyprus. I had a great time inventing this recipe and was very pleased with the result once I was able to eat it and share it with friends.
Best presentation
‘Sibpolo Zaferini’
from Sobhan Motamedian
You will be amazed by the taste and design of the combination of Safran and dill in a flower shaped, two-layered rice dish.
Budget friendly
‘Kookoosabzi’
from Hosna Motamedian
What could be cheaper than a handful of greens and an egg?! Totally student-friendly and delicious.
Family favourite
‘Zereshkpolo’ – a traditional Iranian dish’
from Hosna Motamedian
Zereshkpolo is one of the most popular traditional and favourite dishes in Iran. For this reason, it’s commonly used in formal and informal gatherings.
Quick and easy dish
‘Spring Rolls’
from Alisa Thuy Anh Pham
I have many reasons to love this traditional Vietnamese dish but there are three main ones that keep me coming back to this recipe:
- It is easy and friendly: a saviour since I consider cooking a mystical art that I struggle with: Whip all the ingredients together and it is done!
- It is forgiving: even if you do not have all the ingredients listed, it is completely fine! Use what you have, and all is well! And if you cannot dice well? It does not matter; the wrapping shall mask it all!
- Planning! Planning! Planning: You can freeze the ingredient mix for wrapping later or freeze the already wrapped spring rolls for later use. Just thaw, deep fry, and you are done. Caution: Be aware of others (and yourself)! These extremely addictive rolls easily disappear during the frying process!