October 3rd - Fall & Holiday Cooking Classes @ PCI October 3, 2009

Basic Culinary Skills II (2nd of 3-Part Series) with Chef Peter Maguire
10:00am-2:30pm - $450 per person
Saturday, September 26th, October 3rd & October 17th
Offered only as an entire series! This series will help you to be more confident in the kitchen, develop your palate and help create a new sense of cooking enjoyment. We will cover knife skills, soups, stocks, sauces and methods of cookery including: sauté, braising, roasting, grilling, frying, en paillote and en croute. You’ll learn the fundamentals of herbs and spices, complex sauces, garnishing, plate presentation, side dishes and of course food and wine pairing. Each class will cover necessary knife skills, each building on the last, and of course a touch on dessert each day. Your tuition includes the hands-on production of the dishes to enjoy in a family style buffet at the end of each class, the recipes to take home a replicate with loved ones, and a new friend to call on to ask for cooking advice.
Chef Peter, a full time instructor at PCI, has worked and taught in the culinary industry for over 25 years; he has won many awards and accolades in hot food competitions as well as ice carving.
Due to the popularity, the entire series is non-refundable after 12pm on Wednesday September 23rd, no discounts apply towards the Basic Skills Series.
These classes are not a prerequisite for any of our other hands-on Hobby Classes; we hope to see you in the kitchen soon!

Sausage and Such – Celebrating Oktoberfest with Chef Jeremy MacVeigh
10:00am-3:00pm - $150 per person
If you enjoy BBQ’s in the Fall, Bratwurst with Sunday Football, or Spicy Sausage in your Winter Stew, this class will be perfect for you; as you will learn the art of making fresh sausage at home. We will cover the entire process from trimming meat to the finished sausage. You will learn about different casings, ingredients, and styles from around the world, as well as receive recipes for sausages, and dishes created. The class will wrap up with an Oktoberfest style meal including home-made Saur Kraut and German Beer! Chef Jeremy is a fulltime instructor at PCI and has recently published a cooking text called “International Cuisine”.

Secrets of Fresh Italian Pasta with Chef Tomm
10:00am-2:30pm - $150 per person
Chef Tomm from the cooking show “Culinary Secrets” (www.cheftomm.com), will teach you how to make perfect pasta every time. You will begin by making the basic pasta dough with the same recipes used in Italy. Then use this classic dough to create pastas of different shapes and sizes. You will learn to create your own sauces to pair with the pastas, as well as how to make different stuffed pastas including Chef Tomm’s all-time favorite Ravioli of Wild Mushroom Duxelles Stuffed Pansoti in a Truffle Cream Sauce with Roasted Cauliflower. Chef Tomm spent several years working in Europe and over a year in Tuscany where he mastered the art of making fresh pasta from scratch. He has trained all over the world including Italy, Mexico and Thailand. As an accomplished culinarian, he is now a full time instructor at PCI and believes in the hands on approach with an emphasis on fresh and new products. This belief, as well as his many talents has made him sought after as one of the best Chef Educators in the country.

Pastry Basics – Petit Fours (Bite-Sized Desserts)with Chef Alex Trouan
10:00am-2:30pm - $125 per person
Traditionally Petit Fours were a way for the Pastry Chef to bake off scraps and left-overs while the oven was cooling down at the end of a days baking. While petit four can refer to any bite-sized sweet presented at the end of a meal, they're usually tiny, beautifully iced cakes. With a seemingly infinite variety of shapes, flavors and decoration, you can dress these little cakes up for a tea party, a bridal shower, an elegant luncheon, or an after dinner party treat. In this class you will learn to make Mini-Tartlets, French Macaroons, Opera Cake, Layered Cakes, Pastry Dough, Almond Cream, Sponge Cake, Butter Cream and more. You will make up to a dozen different styles to create up to 50 of your own little masterpieces to take home and enjoy. Chef Alex is a full-time instructor at PCI. He was born and raised in France where he began his career in the Pastry Arts over 20 years ago. He has worked in top pastry shops both in France and in the USA where he has been living and teaching for more than 5 years. Bring a snack or bag lunch to balance out all of the good sweets you will be enjoying in class.

For class availability and to enroll call (408) 370-9190

Official Website: http://www.pcichef.com/hobbyschedule.html