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Young Mamaqtuq cooking club chefs inspire cookbook

With the end of the school year the Mamaqtuq Nanook Cooking Club celebrated the successful completion of its fifth year.

The Mamaqtuq Nanook Cooking Club celebrated the successful completion of its 5th year with each young cook taking home a cookbook to help keep their skills nimble over the summer break.
photo courtesy Mathew Knickelbein

The cooking club, located at Nanook School in Apex, meets most Fridays to cook up a storm, while learning all the skills needed to make good, nutritious food.

But after school starts next September, and Mamaqtuq has had a few weeks to settle into the kitchen, the cooks will have something extra special to celebrate: a cookbook that's all about them.

Niam! Cooking with Kids, inspired by the Mamaqtuq Nanook Cooking Club and written by Kerry McCluskey, is scheduled to be published by Inhabit Media in November.

"From simple smoothies to jerk chicken to pizza from scratch, there is something in this book for all taste buds and skill sets. All the ingredients are readily available in Nunavut communities, and all the recipes can be made with country food, so kids both north and south can learn how to create the perfect palaugo (a delightful hybrid of pogos and palaugaaq, traditional Inuit bannock) or make a mean meatball," reads the blurb in Inhabit's fall catalogue.

McCluskey leads Mamaqtuq, with the help of Kootoo Alainga, Jenn Royal, and Nanook School and Apex District Education Authority staff.

McCluskey did confirm Mamaqtuq will be back for another year.

A page from Inhabit Media's 2019 fall catalogue shows how instructive and fun the Niam! Cooking with Kids cookbook written by Kerry McCluskey will be. The cookbook was inspired by the Mamaqtuq Nanook Cooking Club, which McCluskey led for a fifth year at Nanook School in Apex.
photo courtesy Inhabit Media