Last summer, Year 10 Home Economics pupils participated in a mini-marketing assignment in the Summer term. Their task was to create a new food product using potatoes for the ready-made meals available at the Rosehip Bakery in Banbridge.  The pupils showed great skill and created innovative dishes which were reviewed by Mr Gordon Scott, proprietor of the Rosehip Bakery, and his marketing team. The dishes were judged based on creativity, palatability and suitability for the current ready meals market. The recipes selected were from Eve Elliott and Rebecca Elliott (then 10B) who made a vegan-friendly, dairy and gluten-free dish called Spicy Spuds; Leanne Black made Potato and Chickpea Masala which caught the eye of the judges as it was ‘visually appealing’.  Victoria Hamilton and Rose Gibson also made Curried Potato Pasties which were judged as ‘visually appetising’ and again suitable for the gluten-free range at the bakery.  Following this, the pupils were invited to prepare, cook and package their product in the Rosehip kitchen.

It was a great opportunity and rewarding experience to cook in the Rosehip bakery and sell our dishes to the public. It gave us a valuable insight into the everyday running of a popular local cafe that we often visit and where my family have been customers for many years. We hope our dishes are a successful addition to the range of ready-made meals at the Rosehip! On behalf of the other finalists, I would like to thank Mrs Francey and her department, as well as Gordon and his staff at the bakery for this unique experience.                Eve Elliott 11B