October 2007

The kitchen has been so busy, I've had no time to write the newsletter until now. We've hosted numerous team building groups and parties, a big (and fun!) rehearsal dinner cooking event with 50 guests, and have been catering weddings, a banquet and birthdays galore. There is still room on the holiday schedule for your party, but now is the time to book either in-house cooking events, or catering for the holidays. Whether it's an all-hors d'oeuvres party, a lavish meal for intimate guests, or a Top Chef style cook-off, think of us for your upcoming events.

Classes

Paulding & Company has some great classes coming up. Basic, necessary hands-on development classes that will make your home (or professional) cooking life easier and more fun. It's our quarts time for our quarterly Knife Sharpening class with master sharpener Eric E. Weiss, on Monday the 15th of this month -- coming up rather fast. This is a class that will make your kitchen chores easier, by training you to sharpen your knives properly. You get a sharpening stone and oil too. Sign up soon to insure a spot in this popular class.

Our great Knife Skills class teacher, Charlie Vollmar, has agreed to come back and teach a class again. Charlie is an expert teacher in this subject, and this is a pure class -- no cooking, just knife work that will train your mind and hands to properly cut a variety of products. This is an essential skills class, if you want to become inspired to cook for yourself -- without proper knife skills, cooking is tedious. The class is scheduled for Saturday, November 17th, from 10AM to 1 PM. We've had lots of requests for this class, so even though it's just gone onto the calendar, you should sign up soon.

If you have always dreaded taking charge of making Thanksgiving dinner, join my Thanksgiving Dress Rehearsal class, on Saturday, October 27th from 1-5 PM. This is a Piedmont Adult School sponsored class (at the kitchen, not Piedmont schools), one I teach every year. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, because it is simply a gathering of family and friends over good food, without the pressure of presents, and with the focus on giving thanks for the wonderful bounty in our lives. The dinner we make in class is purely classical, no modern twists -- turkey with bread stuffing, pies that focus on the harvest, and all the great side-dishes that make the meal complete. Our Thanksgiving dinner will be a fun social afternoon too, so bring a bottle of wine to share if you like. Follow the link on the calendar to register at the Piedmont Adult School website.

Our wonderful Italian cooking teacher, Rosetta Costantino, has a couple of wonderful classes coming up too. They are sold out, but she is taking a waiting list, from the link on the calendar. Her Ricotta cheese class is always very popular. Rosetta taught me to make ricotta, which is easy and fun -- and so much better than store-bought. Here, not only will you learn how, but how to use this cheese in every course of a meal. She also has a seasonal wild mushroom class, November 9, that concludes with mushroom shaped truffles -- and mimics a festival from her home area. Again, sign up for the waitlist and perhaps there will be enough people to add a section.

Event

Next Thursday, the 18th, is the Emeryville Chamber of Commerce mixer at the kitchen and at Periscope Cellars next door. Register through emeryvillechamber.com. We'll be serving some nice hors d'oeuvres, and Brendan and Nichole from the winery will be pouring their wine and giving tours of the winery during crush. From 5:30-7:30 PM, this is a fun event -- and a great way to network, too.

Recipe of the Month

Quick cooked Brussels sprouts may change your mind about these humble and beautiful vegetables. They seem to be the vegetable everyone loves to hate, indeed there is nothing quite so unappetizing as a gray, gassy over-boiled sprout. But there are tricks to making them good, and of course I have to share all of them with you. Once you've mastered the art of the sprout, you will find you have a new favorite vegetable, and set about educating all the rest of the family and your friends, too.

Now, for the secrets: first, only buy Brussels sprouts on the stalk. Once they've been snapped off, they start to get old fast. Many stores (Berkeley Bowl for sure) have the stalks this time of year, right through Thanksgiving. Store them on the stalk in the refrigerator, and don't let them get too old. They get bitter the older they are. When you're ready to cook them, simply snap the sprouts from the stalk, and then trim the bottoms at the obvious point where the part that was attached meets the round sprout. Then cut a big X in the bottom where you trimmed, about 1/3 inch deep, so that the steam from cooking them penetrates right to the middle of the sprout. That way, you will have them cooked through before the outsides turn an unappetizing gray.

Finally, cook them properly. I love my general vegetable cooking method, of steaming right in the bottom of the pan, with just enough water (and a pat of butter) to cook the vegetables and evaporate completely by the time they're done. It works for many vegetables, but is particularly good with these little sprouts. You end up with crisp-tender vegetables, gently buttered and well seasoned, and totally luscious. You can toss them with some toasted hazelnuts, for a festive dish (we may even serve it at the Thanksgiving class!). If you want, a squeeze of lemon after they're cooked will perk them up too. Just don't forget the salt and pepper, and don't forget them in the pan. Although they taste good when browned, a blackened pan is not going to make the dishwasher happy at all.

See the recipe >