A course at NEW College was a revelation for reporter Emily Bridgewater who decided to put her 'girl power' years behind

her and rekindle a secret passion for good old-fashioned cookery.

AS an awkward teenager of the nineties, I chanted the Spice Girls' 'Girl Power' mantra with ferocity.

With their flamboyant dress sense and feisty attitude, Baby, Posh, Ginger et al, had us girlies believe we could conquer the world purely by donning a decent pair of heels.

Because of them, I swapped school cookery lessons for woodwork - after all, who needs to know how to make cheese potato pie when you have more "zigazig ah" than you can shake a wooden spoon at?

But a few years down the line, with my Union Jack dress gathering more dust than my toolbox, my chances for world domination were fading fast.

And then my maternal instinct kicked in and the only Spice Girl 'wannabe' that I actually wanted to be was "Stepford Wife Spice".

Instead I wanted to fill my man's tummy with culinary delights - but with the inability to even boil an egg, I decided it was time for drastic action so signed up for a cookery course.

Cookery for Fun, at Redditch NEW College, is a ten-week recreational course running every Thursday in term time from 7-9pm.

My other half cheekily asked if 'Cookery for Fun' meant rice crispy cakes, but I think he was rather surprised when I announced I'd be whipping up far more than a jam tart.

Steve Brogan, 50, teaches the course outside his full time job as the award-winning head chef at Selly Oak Hospital.

With his kitchen feeding up to 600 people daily with delicious home cooked meals, it's incredible he still has the energy to teach an evening class.

"I have a real passion for teaching," he said. "I love what I do and I just live for food."

The first hour of each week's course is spent cooking in a fully equipped kitchen.

The second hour sees Steve demonstrating a recipe in preparation for the following week, and while the course fee does not include ingredients, he always tries to keep costs down to less than £2.50 per head.

Over the ten-week course, I discovered how to cook a wide variety of delicious dishes to impress even the most refined palette, including Italian chicken stuffed with mozzarella and chilli and Valencia paella.

Chefs brandishing a sweeter tooth are also catered for with recipes for sumptuous chocolate roulade and strawberry shortcakes - and not a rice crispy cake or jam tart in sight!

Steve trained at Halesowen College followed by stints in Zurich and Switzerland. In 1974 he won the National Chef of the Year award.

He is passionate about fresh ingredients and said one of his most memorable dining experiences was at a restaurant in Gothenburg, Sweden when he was served a platter of fish caught straight from the sea.

He is a patient teacher and works hard to boost the kitchen confidence of even the most timid wannabe chef.

My culinary self-esteem certainly grew and since completing the course I now feel more able to confidently tackle recipes in my own kitchen.

And with the expectation of 10 new recipes to get my teeth into this coming term, I will certainly be signing up for a repeat course.

A decade on from my Spice Girl expectations, the only spices I am interested in nowadays are those occupying the little wooden rack I made at high school!

l Cookery for Fun starts at NEW College on Thursday, September 15 and costs £55.

Enrol by telephone with a credit or debit card on 572674 or pop into the Peakman Street campus.