Image is of FEEST Staff, Remin holding up gluten-free biscuits!
There’s something about being outside, surrounded by growing food, that makes cooking feel different.
This March, Student Organizers gathered at Rainier Beach Urban Farm and Wetlands with Nala for a hands-on cooking class at Seattle Tilth. Together, they made biscuits and fruit compotes, working with peach, strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, and pear to create something sweet, simple, and ready to enjoy.
The kitchen space filled up quickly. Dough sticking to hands, flour dusting the tables, students figuring out how much mixing is too much. Some batches came together smooth, others a little messier, but that was part of it.
On the stove, fruit simmered down into soft, syrupy compotes, each one slightly different depending on the flavor. Students checked texture, tasted along the way, and adjusted as they went.
Alongside cooking, students also learned about the jam-making process, how it works, why it takes more time, and what changes when fruit cooks down into different textures like compote, jam, or syrup.
🍓Did You Know?
Jam vs. Compote
Jam, compote, and fruit syrup all start with the same basic idea: using heat and sugar to transform fruit. The difference usually comes down to texture and cooking time. Jam is cooked until it thickens inside a properly sealed jar, compote stays softer and chunkier, and syrup becomes a sweet liquid.
Fruit preservation is also one way people have stretched seasonal produce for generations, helping fruit last longer and reducing waste in the kitchen. Tiny fruit science moment, but make it delicious.
Learning by Doing
Students moved between mixing dough, cutting butter, and checking on simmering fruit, building skills as they went. From understanding how fruit breaks down over heat to learning how to handle biscuit dough without overworking it, the class was all about trying things out in real time.
We made both regular and gluten-free biscuits, making sure everyone could be part of the process and leave with something they could enjoy.
There’s a different kind of confidence that comes from making something yourself. Especially when it actually turns out good.
Swipe through to look at sweet photos from our cooking class!
More Than Just a Recipe
By the end of class, we had trays of warm biscuits, a table full of fruit compotes, and a room full of students tasting, comparing, and sharing what they made.
It wasn’t about getting everything perfect. It was about experimenting, learning new skills, reducing food waste, and seeing what happens when young people get to create together.
Big thank you to Nala for leading the class and to Seattle Tilth for hosting us in such a beautiful space. Moments like this remind us that food is something we learn through, connect over, and build community around.
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