Azka: So my name is Azka. I'm from Pakistan and I'm a senior in Lowell High School. So I choose… I'm very excited for my recipe. It's gonna be chicken biryani. It's it is very delicious in my culture, in my tradition. So my mom's favorite too. My mom always like cook in my when we gather with my families with my friends, so we mostly make food. So it's it's a very important in my religion, because basically when we gather with my like cousins families so we make. It shows like how families get together and it present the beautiful taste, and then it shows some like different things too. So this is most basically favorite dish in my home.

Kelby: My name is Kelby Jr., and I'm a senior Lowell High School. I cooked Caldo de Mariscos, I think, yeah, Caldo de Mariscos. So this was very delicious. And I choose the recipe because that's the my dad, my mom and I, we cook all of this together for us and my family too. We cook the recipe every month. The end of the month, I think end of the month. That one has a lot of ingredients like fish, shrimp, octopus. And my dad, my dad knows how to make that dish more better than me, but he teach me how.

Jamily: Hi, my name is Jamili. I'm from Brazil. My recipe is lemon mousse. And I chose this recipe because it was my great grandmother's favorite, and whenever my family got together, my great grandmother would make it. And every time I make this recipe, I remember the amazing moments I spent with them during his school holiday. 

Rebeca: Hi, my name is Rebeca and the recipe that I chose was Bombom de Travessa. In my home language that is like chocolate and condensed milk. Like it's a candy and with grapes is really good. And I choose this because this recipe has been my family for a long time and we always do this in holidays. 

Moise: Hi, my name is Moise and I'm from Uganda. I've I think Ben is like in my life, like in my home language they call Maharagwe. It's nice dish. Like almost like everyone be cooking my like my own language. My own language. And like I remember when like I was in my country, I take like I eat it like I was like 3 years old. And then my mom cooks this. I was like yeah, that's the that's the food tastes nice. And then like then I continue eating it, eating it like and then I feel like that's the food, that's the best food ever. Like..

What did you learn from your classmates during this project?

Rebeca: I think we learned that there is different cultures out there like. Really different. There is a lot of things that we don't know yet. And with this recipe, this project actually, we learn about how different the world is and how everyone can be together in the country.

Do you think that tasting history project helps other people in your community, your teachers, your classmates, like the principal at your school, have a greater understanding of the many cultures in your school?

Rebeca: I think because they are different from the things that we already know about our country. So this project bring us like a different, a different eye, a different look from what it word is.

What was something you really loved eating at the feast? Did you try another person's food that was really new for you?

Kelby: Yeah, I tried that. Bread from Ms. Lander. That's so delicious. And another, this dish from Brazil, yeah, dish from Brazil. And another, is like a it's like a little cup and with the lemon and something like that.

Moise: I tried Brazilian sweet and and I tried even I'm chicken. It was like spicy. Yeah it will be spicy. And you mix with that rice and and like it was delicious, it wasn't delicious food. That was my first time to try that. I like it. 

If another teacher at your school who, if another teacher in another school who wasn't Ms. Lander. Wanted to do this project, what advice would you give that teacher?

Rebeca: Have fun because it's a really good project, we're really having fun doing, and just that having fun. Enjoy the moment.

What made it so fun for you? What were some things? You could each answer that. What was the most fun part of the project?

Rebeca and Moise: Bring the food to the classmates. Everybody have fun. Party. Yes. Yeah. Enjoy that day. Something like that. 

Kelby: I cook my recipe, write my recipe in that book, and everybody can do the recipe, try it and know how to make it. I like to read about another recipe for another countries, read how to make it and do it by myself. Try to do it. 

Azka: Enjoy the moment because it's good. It's really good when you have everyone like together, eating different foods from their own country. So I think that's the same advice. 

What advice would you give students? Other students who who get assigned to this project like next year? What advice would you give them?

Kelby: Ohh I was them, so don't be as scary. Do whatever they like and try different different dishes and everything. And when you cook the recipe, when you when they eat the recipe, try to share to different people so they they know how other recipes from other countries.

How do you feel knowing that your story and your recipe is being read by people in your community and around the country? 

Azka: Basically I think they communicate us and like to meet different people, to know them how they are like, what they what they like, if they represent their religion, their culture and also when we talk, we can know like their different opinions.

Rebeca: I think that everyone has a history to share, and this history can be shared about a food, so this is what I want.

Moise and Jamily: It's important because, like, they help other cultures to learn from us. So yeah.

Jamily: They are learning about us, yeah. 

Moise: And like the cookbooks going around the world is something because going around the world, and that's amazing, that's an amazing thing.

Rebeca: Because we are not from here. So they are learning about a little bit of us, a little bit of what we have to give to them, you know.

Azka: Because maybe a lot of people has how do they say prejudice. With different cultures, lot of people don't know them, and then they judge us for where we are from. So knowing this, knowing who we from our foods can change this, this, thinking about us.

What do your families think of the book?

Azka: My mom's proud. She's just showing to everyone who came up in the house. She's look what my daughter's done, like really. You can ask for her, and she will say that she's showing to everyone. She keeps in the kitchen in a place that there is in the kitchen where we keep some stuff and she keeps that. And when someone comes, she say, look at what my daughter's done. She literally do this. 

Well, she has good reason to be proud. How do you all feel about the dishes from this cookbook being served in your school cafeteria? 

Azka: It's amazing because everyone is knowing about our recipes or recipes of her families. So everyone is trying and this is really fun. 

And would you recommend that other teachers do this project with their classes?

Azka: Absolutely! I think it was the the most, was my favorite project in this school since I get here in US.

Interviewer Dinah Mack: That's high praise, Ms. Lander. That's high praise for you.

Ms. Lander: I am very excited.

Dinah: Well, I appreciate that. You stayed after to help to talk to me, Ms. Lander. You have anything else?

Ms. Lander: I think I'm good. I'm just very grateful for my students and taking this time and very proud of them for speaking with you.

Dinah: Yeah. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. And I love this cookbook and this project. And congratulations because it's really a beautiful book. I can tell why your mother is so proud. And shows it because it's really a big deal. It's a really important book and it's beautiful and the work you put in really comes through. So thanks. Thanks for sharing it. Thank you for the opportunity.