We Are All Students by Angie Lombardi

It’s officially graduation season and a huge congratulations to all those students out there! As a mother of a recent college graduate, it was bittersweet to be on her campus for the last time. We took in our favorite places and sights. We have a regular hotel we stay at and for the past 4 years I have always loved this wall that brightly announces We Are All Students.

I have been working at Marcel’s for about 10 months and I have a confession. When I started I was not a great cook like my coworkers, actually not a cook at all. Entertaining and the beautiful dishes etc. Marcel’s has to offer -YES! The front of the store where the cookware is wonderfully displayed – NO. My boundary was the candle display. I didn’t feel qualified or educated to be in that scary zone. Slowly, as the weeks went by and I learned from my coworkers and listening in on the fabulous classes taught by our chefs, I gathered information and it all became very interesting.

So a long story short, I am 53 and learning to cook at last. I am a cooking 101 student and it feels great to be learning a new life skill. I am currently visiting my parents and have been doing a lot of cooking. The other day my mom requested a recipe from the Half Baked Harvest cookbook. It had 15 ingredients. Yes, I counted, and no I won’t tell you how long it took me at the grocery to find these items.

My mom is a great cook and I have been using pieces from her Le Creuset collection. I understand the love of Le Creuset; customers come in every day browsing and shopping for new pieces. They really are wonderful to cook with, and it feels good to be using the “good stuff” to cook and create a meal. The right tools, even for a student, make all the difference. I think it’s time to invest in some for myself.

I served my dinner, which for some reason looked nothing like the picture and I asked for a grade. My average was a solid B-. Not bad – after all We Are All Students.

It’s officially graduation season and a huge congratulations to all those students out there! As a mother of a recent college graduate, it was bittersweet to be on her campus for the last time. We took in our favorite places and sights. We have a regular hotel we stay at and for the past 4 years I have always loved this wall that brightly announces We Are All Students.

I have been working at Marcel’s for about 10 months and I have a confession. When I started I was not a great cook like my coworkers, actually not a cook at all. Entertaining and the beautiful dishes etc. Marcel’s has to offer -YES! The front of the store where the cookware is wonderfully displayed – NO. My boundary was the candle display. I didn’t feel qualified or educated to be in that scary zone. Slowly, as the weeks went by and I learned from my coworkers and listening in on the fabulous classes taught by our chefs, I gathered information and it all became very interesting.

So a long story short, I am 53 and learning to cook at last. I am a cooking 101 student and it feels great to be learning a new life skill. I am currently visiting my parents and have been doing a lot of cooking. The other day my mom requested a recipe from the Half Baked Harvest cookbook. It had 15 ingredients. Yes, I counted, and no I won’t tell you how long it took me at the grocery to find these items.

My mom is a great cook and I have been using pieces from her Le Creuset collection. I understand the love of Le Creuset; customers come in every day browsing and shopping for new pieces. They really are wonderful to cook with, and it feels good to be using the “good stuff” to cook and create a meal. The right tools, even for a student, make all the difference. I think it’s time to invest in some for myself.

I served my dinner, which for some reason looked nothing like the picture and I asked for a grade. My average was a solid B-. Not bad – after all We Are All Students.