Island Cooking Classes debuts St. Simons Island, GA

St. Simons Island, GA  Foodie Bobi Saal of Island Cooking Classes launches her art and cooking classes at historic King & Prince Beach and Golf Resort September 19-24.

"Experience Southern cuisine by stepping into the kitchens of amazing chefs and cook right along side of them," says Saal. "Capture the beauty of the island and create a piece of watercolor art."

The debut event features five nights of hands-on cooking, art and island fun. Attendance is limited to 6-12 people for this and all upcoming scheduled dates. Island Cooking Classes pricing begins at $2,440.

The itinerary is extensive – from daily Southern breakfast buffet at the King and Prince to classes, meals, shrimp boat excursion, receptions, photography island tour and wine tastings.

Full details are on Saal’s website including international and domestic suggestions for transportation. Classes include:

* Chef Dave Snyder holds ‘court’ every day at Halyards, one of St. Simons Island ’s most popular restaurants. Don your apron and prepare for his hands-on cooking classes that end with a gourmet luncheon and superb house wine. Using seasonally fresh and local foods, he’ll charm you with anecdotes from his years at the New England Culinary Institute and halcyon days in many of New York ’s finest establishments including The Essex House.

* Have fun with restaurateur/chef John Howton, savoring his famed ‘Low Country Boil’ served daily at Blackwater Grill. Their signature Cajun, low-country Southern coastal cuisine is usually standing-room-only

* From the culinary team at Canyon Ranch Resort & Spa to St. Simons Island , wellness Chef Laurie Erickson instructs on back-to-basics chef techniques, secrets and tricks that you’ll use forever. She’ll empower you with her philosophy that “Good cooking is 90% confidence”.

* Let yourself get swept away with the beauty of creating your own inspired watercolor coastal landscape with artist and instructor Louise Eaton. Relax, splash color on paper and enjoy a carefree afternoon as images of the island unfold.

Grana Padano D.O.P. sponsors the Virtual Chef Series

Attention Italian food lovers!

Italy’s favorite cheese, Grana Padano D.O.P., will be sponsoring the Virtual Chef Series being held at the Culinary Institute in New York City (462 Broadway at Grand Street) on January 13 and January 14.

The Grana Padano Virtual Chef Series will be offering a free tasting of the foods and wines from a number of Italian companies at the Italian Culinary Academy, January 13, from 3-5 pm. This event is open to the public, but reservations are a must. For this event, please contact: [email protected].

The International Day of Italian Cuisines (IDIC), promoted by ITCHEFS-GVCI (www.itchefs-gvci.com) is dedicated to educating the world about authentic Italian cuisine. To demonstrate this theme, celebrated chefs from around the globe will be performing a rare act on Sunday, January 17: Cooking the same dish— Tagliatelle al Ragu Bolognese —on the same day via teleconference, using Grana Padano exclusively for the “recreation” of this age-old dish.

To find out which chefs and/or restaurants will be featuring this specialty on January 17, please go to this website and click on the various cities around the world: http://www.itchefs-gvci.com/IDIC2010/mapa.htm

Grana Padano has been part of Italy's gastronomic tradition and culture since 1135 when it was created by the monks in the Padana Valley in northern Italy. Based in Desenzano del Garda in the province of Brescia, Consorzio per la Tutela del Formaggio Grana Padano was founded in 1954 by a group of businessmen who shared one common goal—to produce a top-quality cheese based on the traditional recipe.

Low in fat compared to other cheeses and lactose-free, Grana Padano is a versatile cheese with a sweet, nutty flavored taste that can be grated over pasta, served as an ‘antipasto’ or eaten as part of an easy, healthy delicious meal. Aged from nine months to 24 and up, Grana Padano pairs well with a variety of cuisines and makes an ideal part of a healthy diet.

“Grana” refers to the grainy and crumby texture of the cheese and “Padano” refers to its origin in the Po River Valley in northern Italy. Grana Padano is a registered trademark around the world, and since 1996 is a D.O.P Denominazione di Origine Protetta cheese awarded by the European Community in Brussels.

Five Points Community Farm Market offers home cooking class

Learn the basics of home cooking with a hands-on cooking class for singles or the whole family this Saturday at Five Points Community Farm Market in Norfolk, VA.

Chef Damon Armstrong begins the class with a review on kitchen safety, basic knife skills and use of simple kitchen utensils. Children and adults have the opportunity to participate, even learning how to properly set a table.

The Chef will demonstrate how to correctly cut up a whole chicken and explain the benefits for purchasing a whole bird.

The menu will be: Pan Seared Olive-Garlic Marinated Chicken Breast with a seasonal vegetable chutney and seasonal starch. User friendly recipes such as a simple chicken soup recipe will be provided for what to do with the leftovers as well. 

Coffee, hot tea and cocoa will be provided with the meal.

Sign up now! Limited Space! Register by e mail or by phone with the number of adults and children.

INFORMATION

Saturday, January 16 @ 4 p.m. (Same class is repeated Saturday, January 30 at 4 p.m.)
Five Points Community Farm Market
2500 Church St. Norfolk
Instructor: Chef Damon Armstrong with Norfolk Technical Center - Culinary Director
Adults $20, $8 Children 12 and under

'Red Cook' teaches Chinese kitchen secrets at ICE

I am a huge fan of the Red Cook. You should be too.

He cooks beautifully and does an equally amazing job of chronicling his time in the kitchen.

If you've ever wanted to learn the art of Chinese cooking (and I'm sure there isn't any one who doesn't love Chinese food), then take one of Chef KianLam Kho's cooking classes at the Institute of Culinary Education this month.

Learn all about the Chinese kitchen, the culture, and artistry of Chinese meals and snacks.  Each of the two four-hour courses covers a different delicacy from a full and festive dinner to the ubiquitous dumpling.

Best of all, unlike math class, you get to eat your homework.

Holiday menu: Rack of Lamb with Artichokes

 

If you aren't ready for your holiday meal, here's a lovely last minute and super simple yet elegant suggestion from Academia Barilla. 

The wesbite is a veritable encyclopedia of Italian gastronomic tidbits as well as a market place and cooking school. 

Is there any thing the Italians don't do with understated elegance?

Florida Gulf Coast resort offers foodie-friendly vacation

If hors d'ouevres grazing isn't enough to satisfy festive foodie cravings, consider a pre-holiday culinary vacation in historic Port St. Joe.

The Culinary Adventure package, offered December 12-14 in the northwest Florida Gulf Coast's WindMark Beach resort, features cooking demonstrations by renowned New Orleans restaurateurs Clark and Blake Brennan.  The Brennan brothers noted for their creole cuisine recently partnered with the resort and residential community to open the School of Fish Restaurant.

The two-night package features fully-furnished accommodations for up to six in chic loft homes complete with stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, a Bose® stereo system, high-speed Internet access, and a washer and dryer.  Guests will unravel the secrets of Creole cookery during hands-on demonstrations at the Brennan brothers' School of Fish and then dine on their savory seafood creations while enjoying gorgeous Gulf Coast views.

The weekend package costs $175 for a one-bedroom loft (accommodating up to four people), and $275 for a three-bedroom loft (accommodating up to six people).  In addition to the cooking demonstration, which is open to all loft guests for the one flat price*, guests enjoy complimentary use of WindMark’s Beach Club, which includes a pool, kayaks and bicycles, and participate in a VIP community tour.

* Cooking demonstration is available to the first 25 guests and requires at least 10 participants. If the demonstration is not possible, it will be substituted with a $50 gift card to School of Fish Restaurant.

For more information or to book the Culinary Adventure vacation package, call (850) 227.2400 or visit http://www.windmarkbeach.com/.