Chef Eric always says a meal isn’t a meal without a delicious dessert! Dessert completes the meal and allows your guests to linger after dinner. In this episode, Chef Eric shows you two quick and easy desserts that will wow your guests.

Demonstrations/Recipes

MENU ONE

Chocolate Rum Mousse with Homemade Whipped Cream

Melting Chocolate and Butter / Whipping Egg Whites

Folding Egg Whites into Chocolate

MENU TWO

Crêpes with Chocolate Sauce and Crème Chantilly

Making Batter / Cooking / Filling Crepes

The post Episode 12 – Easy Elegant Desserts – satisfying our sweet tooth appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

This video offers 3 Gourmet Menus for your dinner parties. In this Video students demonstrate their newfound culinary skills. Butchery, sauce making, advanced meal preparation, garnishing and plating techniques are emphasized. Students apply all of their knowledge and skill in this penultimate cooking class.

Menu One

• Sautéed Chicken Breasts with Lemon Caper Sauce
• Roasted Garlic Shallot Smashed Potatoes
• Roasting Shallots / Garlic
• Making Pan Sauce

Menu Two

• Pesto Nut-Crusted Roasted Salmon
• Rice Pilaf with Onions and Leeks
• Homemade Pesto
• Roasting Fish

Menu Three

• Pasta with Carbonara Sauce
• Cooking Garlic / Bacon

The post Episode 11 – Easy Elegant Meals – 3 Gourmet Menus for your Dinner Parties appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

Moist heat techniques, poaching and braising using a court bouillon, are the primary focus for this episode. Moist heat cooking is used to produce flavorful dishes by gently cooking the item in a various amounts of liquid. Students then use the same liquid to create a sauce for the finished dish. This technique does not normally start by searing the outside of the item. Therefore, a noticeable amount of flavor is transferred from the item to the liquid.

Demonstrations

Making Court Bouillon

Frying Chiles and Bread

Spiralizing Zucchini and Yellow Squash

Zesting Lemons

Recipes

Poached Halibut/Cod with Romesco Sauce

Zucchini and Yellow Squash ‘Noodles’

Beer-Braised Pork Loin Chops with Shallot/Garlic Gravy

Sweet Potato Purée and Salsa Verde

The post Episode 10 – Moist Heat Cooking Methods – quick braising and poaching appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

It’s time to start putting all the culinary knowledge you’ve gained in the previous episodes together. This episode covers dry heat cooking methods such as sautéing, roasting, and stir-frying. We prepare, cook, and serve a complete meal consisting of a protein, starch, and vegetable, utilizing the knowledge and skills you have acquired in the previous cooking episodes. Meal plating and presentation are key components as you eat with the eyes first.

Demonstrations/Recipes

Scoring Zucchini with Channel Knife

Deglazing the Pan for Sauce

Salmon Amandine

Garlic/Shallot Rice Pilaf

Stir-fried Zucchini and Peppers

Fines Herbs Pan-Roasted Chicken Breasts

Puréed Potatoes

Haricot Vert Amandine

The post Episode 9 – Dry Heat Cooking Methods – sautéing and roasting appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

A classic that is continually reinvented, appetizers and hors d-oeuvres are an essential part of any chef’s culinary education. This episode focuses on dishes that can function as first courses in a multi-course meal, as well as small items that can be served at a cocktail party or a small catered affair. Marinades, sauces, and vinaigrettes are all given their due.

Demonstrations

Sauce and Vinaigrette Making

Peeling, Scoring and Grilling Shrimp

Assembling Skewers

Recipes

Grilled Prosciutto-Wrapped Shrimp with Garlic Dipping Sauce

Caprese Skewers/Caprese Martinis with Mint Vinaigrette

The post EPISODE 8 – Appetizers – start your meal with appetizers appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

Pasta is generally made with ingredients that are inexpensive and easily stored in the kitchen. During this episode, students get to dig in with Chef Eric to learn the basics of dough mixing and create dishes such as Fettucine Alfredo, Tagliatelle with Tomato Sauce and Vegan Spinach Pasta.

Pasta is classically made from flour and water only. Eggs are added for color and nutritional value. Seasonings and herbs are added to change the color, taste, and texture of the final product.

Demonstrations

Making Pasta Dough

Rolling Out Dough Using Pasta Machine

Recipes

Fettucine Alfredo

Tagliatelle with Tomato Sauce

Bonus Recipe

Vegan Spinach Pasta

The post EPISODE 7 – Pastas – fresh pasta for memorable meals appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

Versatile and important, potatoes take their place in the spotlight in this episode. Several different cooking techniques will be discussed and practiced, including potato purée and sautéed potatoes. Most restaurants utilize a variety of potato side dishes for every menu they offer; you will learn those cooking techniques today.

Demonstrations

Types of Potatoes

Cooking Potatoes

Ricing Potatoes

Adding Cream and Butter

Recipes

 Sautéed Potatoes with Garlic

Potatoes Purée

The post EPISODE 6 – Potatoes – how to cook them appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

In a world that is increasingly aware of nutrition and healthful choices, knowing your vegetables is a must in any chef’s education. They are increasingly used as main dishes as well as side dishes. Vegetables and the unique cooking techniques that serve them best will be discussed in this episode, as well as product quality, freshness, shelf life, and storage. Vegetarian main dishes and Vegetable side dishes are prepared in this important class.

Demonstrations

Blanching Green Beans/Eggplant

Rendering Bacon

Cooking Mushrooms

Chiffonade Basil

Recipes

Haricot Vert Amandine

Vegetable Ratatouille

The post EPISODE 5 – Vegetables – cooking vegetables appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

Traditionally hailed as the most important meal of the day, breakfast is also a vital part of the foodservice industry as well as in our everyday lives. This session covers a couple of different ways to prepare eggs: Fines herbs omelets and Eggs Benedict-poached Eggs with hollandaise sauce and Canadian bacon on an English muffin. Who says breakfast can’t be for dinner? I get excited about eggs, and my students say it shows. Eggs are extremely versatile and equally important in both sweet and savory recipes.

Demonstrations/Recipes

Poaching Eggs – Shocking

Hollandaise Sauce – Bain-Marie

Eggs Benedict

Fines Herbs Omelet

The post EPISODE 4 – Breakfast and Eggs – an essential ingredient appeared first on Culinary Classroom.

This episode opens your eyes to the elegant power of clarified butter and roux and how they are used to elevate hollandaise, béchamel, and velouté sauces to luscious new levels. Sauces are the primary foundation of many dishes, and this building-block episode is an essential part of a Chef’s education. Roux will be introduced and prepared. This will be used as a thickening agent in the preparation of Sauce Bechamél and Sauce Velouté. Sauces are prepared until nappe – thick enough to coat the back of a teaspoon.

Demonstrations

Making Roux

Sauce Béchamel

Sauce Velouté

Recipes 

Individual Macaroni and Cheese

Individual Shephard Pies

The post EPISODE 3 – Grand Sauces – versatile sauce making appeared first on Culinary Classroom.