Cooking Classes [General]

2008 Apr 1
As a food lover (and not in the industry) I enjoy Cooking Classes. "The Man" and I enjoy doing this activity together. This past weekend as part of the Prince Edward County Maple Festival, we took part in a cooking class at The Waring House Inn. We have taken other classes there previously, and enjoy the chance to cook in a commercial kitchen with a professional chef. The theme was "Cooking with Maple". The session was led by Chef Lili Sullivan (Head Chef at the Claramount Inn - the sister property to the Waring House). Chef Lili has settled in the county after living most of her life in Toronto, and besides having lots of cooking info to share, she was a wealth of great stories to tell about becoming a "country girl".

The 3 course meal we prepared was as follows:

Baby Spinach Salad with cheddar, apple, almonds
with Maple Wind & Sail Dark Ale Vinaigrette

Maple Glazed Salmon Sate
with Thai Peanut Dipping Sauce
served with
Maple Balsamic Braised Red Cabbage
and
Maple Glazed Parsnips

Upside Down Apple Gingerbread Cake
with Barley Days Brewery Sugar Shack Ale Caramel Sauce

The class ran from 9 AM to Noon, and then included another hour to eat our masterpieces. The class cost $ 75 per person, but considering all the food, ingredients, one-on-one instruction / attention, it was well worth it. Everything turned out fantastic, and delicious. I would consider making all the dishes at home (they were easy enough). Overall there was a tad too much sweetness (but that was because ALL 3 courses and every dish featured maple syrup... afterall that was the theme). I was surprised at how good the cabbage and parsnip sides were. The dessert was yummy, I will add this one to my repetoire.

--- --- ---

So has anyone else ever taken individual cooking classes? Did you enjoy the experience, would you recommend it? Can anyone suggest other cooking schools (and yes the Chinese Cooking School that Chocoholic keeps us abreast of is on MY TO DO LIST). Has anyone ever done a class with a professional chef in their own home?

2008 Apr 4
I have just registered myself and BF for a cooking class through the Ottawa-Carleton school board. I found out about them from a lady who teaches the Caribbean cooking class as she works at the place where I volunteer.

Anyway, they are probably more informal than those taught in a restaurant-type kitchen but there is a wide range of classes. I registered for the vegetarian East Indian cooking class which all told is $40 for 3 hours of instruction/food/etc.

Here is the website: e-connect.ocdsb.ca


2008 Apr 5
Jules - Sounds great, and lots of choices (I never knew). Please post here again and share your experience.

2008 Apr 13
Unfortunately my class was cancelled! Sniffle. We are just going to choose a different one though so I will be sure to post a follow-up.

2008 Apr 15
Jules - Sorry to hear about the cancellation... do let us know what your second choice is, and how the class goes.

2011 May 10
Hi everyone,

I just came across this thread through a Google search. I teach private cooking classes in the Ottawa area, my website is below for more information.

www.chopchop.ca

2011 May 11
LCBO's DISCOVER COOKING CLASSES

@ LCBO Nepean Crossroads | 543 West Hunt Club Road, Nepean | (613) 224-4333 www.lcbo.com

@ LCBO Rideau Street | 275 Rideau Street, Ottawa | (613) 789-5226 www.lcbo.com
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Loblaw's President's Choice Cooking school www.pccookingschool.ca

2011 May 13
Re: I just came across this thread through a Google search. I teach private cooking classes in the Ottawa area, my website is below for more information.

www.chopchop.ca

Why so many thumbs down? I get that this person is promoting themselves and their business but they are being upfrint about it?...

2011 May 13
Karen eats alot I can't speak for everyone on OF but when someone surfs into the forum to promote their business it's a bit of a turn off. Many people who do this don't usually contribute to the discussion in that thread, or any others, nor do they write reviews. Extra virgin has been a member for awhile but the only other contribution they made (albeit a useful one) is to a comment that was made about Mrs McGarrigle's. If they were to surf in and add a tag so others could attend their classes and write reviews, or put the information on their profile page, I personally wouldn't have a problem with that. But when they surf in and promote their business so blatantly it looks like they are taking advantage of free advertising IMO. We have quite a few vendors on OF who have the name of their business on their profile page if anyone wants to know yet they contribute to the forum and write reviews. Just my two cents...

2011 May 14
Its been stated a number of times that there is no rules about vendors posting links to their business, as long as they are not obnoxious. extra virgin isn't going into unknown territory here imho.

2011 May 15
I personally like to hear about new vendor business-I like a quick description, especially linked to a another tag or food or food idea/link/resto/store.

2011 Sep 15
From their FB page:

Attention foodies!

La Bottega is offering cooking classes on the last two Thursdays of each month (except for July, August, December). Our two Chefs are Mario Novati and Michael
Cummings who each host a class.

Chef Mario is a traditional Italian chef and Chef Michael is more contemporary. Each class consists of several courses prepared in an intimate setting in our restaurant. (We offer two glasses of wine with the meal.)

Each class has a cost of $60 including taxes. To book please call us at 613 789 7575 Monday to Friday and ask for Steve.

Buon Appetito!

Information from their website:
www.labottega.ca

2011 Sep 15
i've taken 4 cooking classes at la bottega and they have all be lots of fun. for the classes i have done there, it is a small group who watches the chef prepare the meal, you then eat the meal - with wine, and then prepare dessert. they are very personable and it is lots of fun if bring a few friends. you get all the recipes after. you do not do the actual cooking though, the chef does that (unless this has changed).

when i did them they were $50 a class, well worth the money.

2011 Sep 16
This looks like it could be a lot of fun!
Sounds like they are well organized too!

will look into this!

2011 Sep 21
I have been looking into doing some classes this fall/winter. Still haven't figured out where and what to take yet, but definately want to do a few nights, maybe just at the Loblaws on Blair or Vanier parkway..

2013 Oct 25
I went to le Bottega's cooking class last night based on someone else reschedulling since it was sold out before. It was with Michael Cummings and there were 19 people and I think they may have overbooked by 1 since I was told 14 people at a communal table and 4 people at the bar.

Last night was a seafood night with
* Clam and Chorizo stew
* lobster Risotto
* Saltimbocca with fish - snapper with prosciutto and wine/butter sauce
* Zabaglione with strawberries (and blackberries)
and 2 glasses of wine of your choice between a pinot grigio and a negro. You sample the food after each course is cooked and the 4 course meal plus wine was $65+HST.

It was pretty laid back vs the classes at le Cordon Bleu or even Cuisine and Passion. You would not see the cooking unless you are seated or standing at the bar. I think they changed slightly in that Michael Cummings was asking for volunteers to help cook / be sous chef so if you are fast you can get some hands on but definitely not hands on for all the class. Some were treating it as a 4 course meal with wine with friends and some wanted to pick up some cooking tips.

I did not know what was on the menu until I arrived and was only told seafood night. That was an issue since one in the group had a seafood allergy but it was accomodated but doing a separate chicken and chorizo stew (vs clam) and a porcini risotto vs lobster.

I think I learned more about techniques for macaroons and knife skills at LCB and picked up some tips at Cusine and passion on cream brulee but the format of dinner and wine plus some cooking or watching cooking makes a good evening.


2013 Nov 23
Went to another cooking class at Le Bottega a couple of weeks ago by Sean Edwards who was Executive Chef at Eighteen before becoming instructor at Algonquin.

Slightly different format since the chef brought one of his students to act as Sous chef and where some stuff were precooked i.e. chicken but there was a slight miscalculation since they had a fresh chicken for the demo and 3 cooked and started serving 1/4 chicken for the first 2 chickens so the last few (up to half the class) got an eighth of a chicken.

A little more instruction on this one since deboning a chicken was discussed and demoed and gnocchi was made from scratch althought the pototo was precooked.


2013 Dec 2
Okay, I just booked the Spanish cooking class at le Bottega for Jan 16, 2014 with Rene Rodriguez of Navarre for $65+HST.

I know when I had dinner at Navarre before, it was more than $65 for a 3 course meal with a couple of wines. Last time I saw his name at Urban Element for a class I think the class was $110 and there were no space available when I called.

Steve told me they have 5 spots left of the 16 available. I remember several people were interested in Navarre for a possible food crawl in the Byward market. If interested in this, call 613 789 7575 and ask for Steve. If you sign up, please post here to say you are going.

2013 Dec 2
I really wanted to sign up for the "turducken* class at Sobey's on March Road in Kanata but it sold out before I signed up. Anyone know of any other class for this?

2016 Feb 20
There is a cooking class at LCBO Rideau Street by Stephen La Salle of Albion Room for
Tuesday Feb 23, 6-8pm.

THE ALBION ROOMS SAMPLER – $60 (HST included?)
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23 6:00 – 8:00 PM

Chef Stephen La Salle of The Albion Rooms has garnered a lot of notice for his attention to detail and amazing flavour combinations. Enjoy and exquisite sampling of some of Chef La Salle’s best dishes.

On the menu:
Chorizo Scotch Egg with Oregano Chimichurri;
Crispy Arctic Char with Farro, Beets and Beet-Chèvre; and
Apple Galette with Aged Cheddar Cream Cheese and Cider-poached Apples.
Plus, one lucky registrant will receive a $50 gift certificate for The Albion Rooms.
Featured chef

2016 Feb 24
Okay I did go to the Albion Room cooking class and it was not Stephan La Salle but one of the sous chef Jesse Belle doing the demo. Youngish Chef that have been there at Albion Room since it opened and often does the charcuteries there. I was slightly disappointed when I realize it is not Stephan La Salle but Jesse did a competent cooking class with some cooking tips.

The space at LCBO is quite nice with some slight noise coming in when the store was busy just about the time the class started. It must have started a few minutes early since by the time I waited to pay for my 2 quick tasting and come up at 6:01, the class was already well underway. There is a large mirror above the long demo kitchen so gives a decent view for most seats and there are 2 TVs, one on each side of the room. There was 1 small technical difficulty when the TV on our side being quite dark halfway through but I was able to see the demo kitchen reasonable well so not a major issue.

It was a fairly decent class. While the chirozo scotch egg was good, I probably would not do it myself since I am trying to keep the fried foods to a minimal these days and egg encased in seed to sausage chorizo then breaded and deep fried is not the best choice when watching your fat and cholesterol lol. But the smoked paprika aioli... oh my. It can be just Hellmann's mayonnaise mixed with crushed garlic, lime juice and smoked paprika but it was so tasty that I was wiping the plate with the baguette. I think I might try it with the Hellmann's light mayo to start with to see if it has a similar enough taste or if we need to go with the regular full fat version.

The Arctic char was nice and they did a barley and beet risotto with the arctic char rather than farro and it was interesting. Not sure I would do the beet risotto myself since I dropped a little risotto on the napkin and it stained but it did get my mind going on some less traditional risotto and some instant pot recipes I saw on risotto. Jesse also mentioned that they used the pulp from the beet juice to cure salmon in the gravalax style which is intriguing. I only like goat cheese occasionally so I was a bit lukewarm with the beet chevre cream sauce.

The galette with aged cheddar cream cheese was the star of the evening.. The savory note with the sweet was excellent. They used 3 year Balderson Cheddar and he said you can even use 5 year Balderson but it is more expansive. I think I would even just heat up some bought apple pie with a slice of good cheddar on top for a few minutes in the oven next time instead of doing a la mode... I have seen some galette recipes but have been too busy / lazy to bake recently but thinking again with purchased pastry / crust they can be quite quick to do.. Next time I do quiche I might do a round of galettes but maybe mixed berries so I can use up some stevia leaf powder. With the little bits of leaf fibre, it need a strong fruit and deeper color to make it less noticeable.

Most courses they were serving a half serving I think of the dish with half a chorizo scotch egg, half an arctic char filet with a small side of risotto, etc. but each had a full galette. They did wine pairings with the food tastings. 2 bottles for class of 19 so about 2.5 oz for the 1st 2 wines and about an oz for the dessert apple wine. All bottles were in the $14-20 range.

Scotch Egg - Segura Viudas Brut Reserva Cava (used to get this from Hyatt as welcome gift when I used to be top tier with them and it is a decent cava)
Arctic Char - 2013 Pinot that was 15 on the sugar scale and too sweet for me. don't have the sheet handy and it was not memorable for me to note the vineyard.
Galette - Georgian Hills Ida Red Frozen to the Core - while tasty I would probably not buy it..

The product consultant Daniel Scott who did the wine pairing was better in a 1 on 1 chat than the minimal presentation with each wine. He did his sommelier back in 2002 - 2003? so he had been one for a while. I guess it is hard to pair something with food you have not tasted before. I told him I am typically 90% reds these days and what white I do drink are on the dry side tend to be 2 or 3g/L on the sugar scale, max 5 or 6g/L. He said he could have paired the scotch egg with a red perhaps but it would have been hard to go back to a white after for the arctic char.

I asked Daniel about the premium tasting Icons and Legends I saw in the catalog with Dom and we started talking champagnes.. He thought Dom is overpriced and I suspect so too but a bit bummed that I bought one for my brother for his 30 birthday and did not get to taste it lol.. I bought 2 bottles of Krug from LHR duty free when I was working in London for 40GBP (C$100 at the time) and I knew very little about wine at the time so I did not realize what a bargin it was for a great champagne. If I knew what I know now, I would have bought at least 4 bottles. He mentioned that Krug and some other champagnes such as piper heidsieck, Pommery, etc. used to be much more available in LCBO and sold pretty well but now it is primarily large French houses such as Moet, Veuve Cliquot (my favourite celebration champagne), etc. He works at a smaller LCBO on Bank rather than Rideau so that may impact his experience. I also asked about the perrier jouet belle époque presentation box with the 2 hand painted champagne glasses that I used to get for friends for their weddings. It started when I was living in France for 1 friend and then I had to get it for other friends after lol.. I have not seen it for a while even at the holidays. Daniel mentioned that when the box get damaged it gets very hard to sell them which is likely true since most would buy it for gifts. Interesting feedback that damage on a $7 box could make a $100 gift pack undesirable...


2016 Feb 26
Okay signing up for Savoury Seafood demo class at Le Cordon Bleu for March 5, 2016 12 noon - 2pm.

The menu is going to be
* coquille st jacques with remoulade
* red snapper and ...
* L'homard (lobster) a la americaine

There were some issues and the class which I have been keeping an eye on disappeared yesterday a couple of days in advance of the 1 week before for registration so had to book it manually with LCB.

2016 Feb 28
I have to put in a plug for the workshop put on by the fine ladies at Breadbyus. Santa bought me a session on breadmaking with them. Prior to this workshop pretty much all of my loaves made were destined for professional sports. Some came out as soccer balls, some as footballs, rugby balls, etc. You get the idea.

But alas after a Sunday afternoon session my breads now dont last longer than 48 hours in the house. Even made a sourdough the weekend that turned out. Having normal heat in the winter is a plus!

Anyways here is a rustic loaf from last weekend at the homestead. They are consistent in how they are turning out so I am pleased.


2016 Feb 28
nice krusty..

Looked at the information and it sounds very interesting. Next workshop is March 6 and $120+HST is a fair price for a 4 hr hands on class.
breadbyus.com

Unfortunately I am already booked for the tempura thing at T&T.. Actually I did not book for tempura, my sister asked to book some hands on class which I did for all of us for different classes including mom and I for the wagashi and my sister and I for sushi then my sister told me she could not go for Mar 6 and Mar 22 since she already had something on on those dates so I agree to take over her spot for tempura... sigh, couldn't she check her schedule before saying she wants everything?

I had been eyeing the Viennoiserie class at Le cordon bleu but at 4 days of 6 hrs for $819 (725+HST) is to much of a time commitment and not sure I want to spend that much money on a hobby lol..

2016 Feb 29
I took the Viennoiserie course at LCB a few years ago. It is a very good course and I really enjoyed it. They keep you hopping, that's for sure. Once you go into the kitchens after the demo part, it is non-stop action.

2016 Feb 29
Really FF? I have been eyeing it a couple of years already.. So have you actually made some of the viennoiserie yourself?

I would have preferred the 1 day pastry format of LCB London on a Sat rather than 4 day weekday.. 4 days are a much bigger time commitment than I preferred since I am not sure if I would actually use the knowledge and do it myself so just for knowledge or interest.

2016 Feb 29
There is a hands on sushi workshop at Westboro Superstore on March 9th 10 am-12 noon. Ryoichi Takao is a Japanese Sushi chef. Cost $40+HST.

www.pccookingschool.ca

Morning time is not the best for me but I am taking some time off that day to take a parent to an important medical appointment and might just have some time before that appointment to do this.


2016 Feb 29
I have made the croissants but not for a while now. All that butter, you know.......

I also wanted to make chocolatInes but could not find a place that sold the little chocolate sticks. I mainly took the course for personal interest, rather than to make them at home. It was fun to learn how to make everything. The chef we had was from Normandy so I asked about Kouign Amann which is just about my favourite pastry and he worked the making of it into the class. I have since made that as well.

2016 Feb 29
nice... I would think you can just cut pieces of a say 75% lindt bar... or valrhona or do you really have to buy the chocolate sticks?

I know croissants and chocolatines have a lot of butter and sugar and they are a lot of work so likely would just go to macarons and madalines 1x per month lol..

2016 Mar 5
Okay went to the LCB Savory seafood demo this afternoon.

It was a good class and got more detailed tips to filet a red snapper and how to kill a lobster lol.. I have only boiled them alive or bought them already steamed...

The scallop (or st. Jacques) tartar with remoulade and passion fruit vinegrette was very tasty and so was the main red snapper. I like Polenta but the nori was a different twist but probably have other styles I would prefer. It was interesting learning how to make the burre blanc sauce but at 1 cup of butter, probably would not do it since trying to eat lower fat.

The lobster a la a la americaine was very nice with asparagus and it uses a roux rather than the cream for the Julia Child recipe I used last time I made it. I liked this recipe better but pretty sure the lobsters are pretty drunk since there was a lot of cognac lol.


2016 Mar 9
Did the Spring entertaining with President's Choice Sunday night at the Loblaws @ Gloucester Center. A $10 demo class that was 2 hours. Lot of new Black label products in the recipes.

Menu
Smoked Cheddar and Bacon Biscuit Rollups
Mixed Mushroom Quiche
Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas
Mascarpone Stuffed Crepes with Ontario Sour Cherries.

The biscuit was tasty and bacony (from both regular bacon and PC Black Label Bacon marmalade but I can taste the high salt and fat, probably would not make it myself.

The mixed mushroom quiche was very good and they put 4 types of mushroom in the quiche. A bit higher fat with some whipping cream versus the quiches I normally make with evaporated milk but the PC Black Label Fior Delle Alpi Hard Ripened cheese Aged 10 month from Switzerland was excellent. Checked it out after the class and it was $9.99 for 200 g for $50 / kg. I might consider picking it up on sale but probably not for at regular prices since I can get some other cheeses I love like Brie the Meaux for similar price. This is the one I would most likely make with some modification i.e. evaporated milk and maybe a different cheese, perhaps regular swiss cheese.

The Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas were very tasty although they could not find chopped canned Chipotle in Adobe Sauce and substituted Piri-Piri rub instead and the cocoa powder adds an interesting taste. I do have Chipotle in Adobe sauce at home in a bottle so might make this sometime although I might cheat and melt a little bit of chocolate, mixed with the chili powder plus chipotle and use rotisserie chicken chunks rather than marinade the chicken thigh for 1 hour then cook it for 15+ mins and maybe add some sauteed onion and/or sweet peppers. The mango and Lime salsa was interesting but I would probably make it fresh and go lower sodium. This recipe per serving is 930mg of sodium. I could see myself making this with some short cuts and changes to bring the salt down lol.

The best dish was Mascarpone stuffed crepes with Ontario Sour cherries. A fair bit of Ricotta and Mascaprone with egg, sugar and a few other ingredients for filling then baked in the crepe and topped with the PC Black Label Ontario Montmorency Sour Cherry Fruit spread.
Definitely tasty but very fussy to make and at 740 calories and 51g of fat per a 2 crepe serving, it would not really be on my go-to list.

A great range of recipes were covered and a couple of recipes to add to my recipe box so pretty happy with this class.


2016 Mar 9
FT, are you able to share the recipe for the Chipotle chicken quesadillas?

2016 Mar 9
Shhhh will send you an email tonight...

2016 Mar 10
FT, won't tell a soul!