Two chefs with roots in Austria, Nancy Martz and Anna-Katharina Preidl, will be bringing Sommerfest to Santa Barbara at Apples to Zucchini Cooking School (AtoZ), where they hope to share the flavors and techniques that celebrate the imperial and the rustic history of Austria.

“I spent my summers in Austria, where my Opa would make me Wienerschnitzel in his traditional tiny kitchen,” said Martz, executive director, whose mother is Austrian. “He was a professional chef, but at home, he fixed me all of my favorites.

“His wife made these wonderful crescent-shaped almond cookies — vanillekipferl. We’d be covered in powdered sugar after eating them.”

Martz remembers her favorite dishes, including apricot dumplings (marillenknoedl). “In the summertime, all the farmstands are overflowing with apricots, and they are featured on every menu, in dumplings, sorbets, cakes, salads. It’s apricot heaven.”

Preidl, the cooking school’s summer intern, spent her teen years in Austria. She is studying materials science and engineering at Stanford.

Martz and Preidl met when the Martz family lived in Austria for two years; Martz’s children and Preidl attended the same school. Preidl has been baking professionally since high school, and attended Le Cordon Bleu in Paris during her gap year.

”Being in the kitchen allows my truest expression of self,” Preidl said. “It is where creativity meets analysis, and I can experiment with flavor, texture and design in a way that engages both my curiosity and senses. I am incredibly excited to have the opportunity to share my enthusiasm with students at AtoZ.”

Apples to Zucchini Cooking School will offer classes for adults and teens featuring Wienerschnitzel (traditional breaded cutlet), Rinderroulade (pickle-stuffed beef rolls), apple strudel, and sweet dumplings. Class descriptions and registration can be found at https://events.humanitix.com/tours/classes-for-adults.

A non-profit organization, Apples to Zucchini Cooking School was founded in 2016 with the vision of teaching all children and teens in Santa Barbara County how to cook. It has since added classes for adults, including Food as Medicine classes. Students cook together, eat together and clean up together.

To learn more and make a gift toward the Matching Grant, visit www.atozcookingschool.org.