The room is abuzz with energy as the students gather around cooking teacher Marilyn Stopek while she carefully goes over the recipe for a delicious omelet. When she finishes, the girls tie up their hair, and everybody quickly goes to their stations, putting on their aprons and beginning to gather the necessary materials.

They get the ingredients, which for this recipe are eggs, bacon and vegetables such as bell peppers, mushrooms, and onions, and then cut them up into little pieces. The students delicately place the bacon on the steaming hot pan. As the bacon touches the pan, it sizzles, causing the students to move a tiny step back.

As the aroma fills the air, the eggs are placed on the pan, followed by the vegetables. After a couple of minutes, the ingredients are cooked, and the students flip the contents of the pan to create an omelet. The delicious omelet disappears quickly, devoured by the hungry students.

“We go through all the units. We start out with baked goods that help the students learn how to measure. Then we learn about fruits and vegetables so we can make fruit and vegetable dishes. It’s really important to understand how to cook all of those. We do eggs and dairy, which is a little bit of what we are doing right now. Finally, we learn about different types of meats. Every time we learn about something new, I make sure we can cook these foods so the students have a fun hands-on experiments and can apply the skills they learn in my class in their lives,” Stopek said.

The cooking classes at Niles West High School are run by Stopek. She teaches Chefs’ Course and Commercial Foods, one of the cooking courses that will be featured at the Elective Fair on Thursday, Jan. 24. This particular class is a beginners class in which the students learn all the basics, such as the proper use of the equipment, how to avoid food poisoning, and how to prepare easy-to-make meals and desserts.

The class includes students of all grade levels that come together to improve their cooking skills that will last a lifetime.

Even though Kevin Lochner, a sophomore, doesn’t plan on becoming a professional chef or cook, he knows he will use the skills he has learned this semester in the near future to prepare food and meals for himself and his family.

“I took this class because I just wanted to learn how to cook. Cooking is part of your everyday life, so it is very important. This class is for everyone who just wants to learn and have a good time. It’s really not too hard of a class,” Lochner said.

Freshman Kate Jinakunwiphat said she also enjoys cooking and learning new recipes in her class.

“Cooking is really important because if you are stuck at home by yourself, you need be independent and able to make food for yourself. I’m really glad I took this class because I learned a lot of useful skills that are important in life. It’s really fun for anyone who loves cooking and food,” she said.