In the Kitchen

What's New at Paulding & Company

February 2008

It's our 4th anniversary! On January 27th, 2004 Paulding & Company opened its doors for the first time, hosting a cooking class on that memorable first night. New stoves, new ovens, new everything -- and a half-finished kitchen, with myriad problems to solve. All of the problems have now been addressed, and business at the kitchen continues to grow apace.

To celebrate this anniversary, I've been busy arranging some extremely exciting classes, several of which I have just posted on the schedule. To use an Emerilism, I have been working diligently to "kick it up a notch" for you. I'm excited, and I hope you will be too! The classes below are only the beginning, as I am arranging for even more chef-run classes for the future, so stay tuned, check the calendar, and enjoy! Please remember to forward this newsletter to your friends -- we know they will thank you!

NEW Classes

Valentines Night Dinner, with Francisco Machado, February 14th. Many of you know my good friend Cisco, a man with a tremendous knowledge and life experience as a chef. Owner of 9 Catering, baker of gorgeous wedding cakes, co-teacher at many of my team building events, and a man who has many other claims to fame, including a James Beard regional award. We've cooked up this class just for those couples who would rather make a fabulous feast at the kitchen, than make reservations. A menu worthy of a special occasion, so come join in making the feast, and then enjoy it by candlelight.

Fish Class, with Polly Legendre, Monday February 18th. Polly, the first American to graduate from the Ecole Supérieure de Cuisine Française, has cooked at Michelin starred restaurants such as la Tour d'Argent, Henri Faugeron and the Hotel Crillon, and is now the director of education for CleanFish, a wholesale fish company dedicated to promoting sustainable fisheries. She will present a menu of fish and shrimp dishes. If you've been intimidated by cooking fish, or confused about what is "good" fish, you will get the chance to learn from a truly knowledgeable expert.

Springtime in Rome, with Chef Paul Canales of Oliveto, Wednesday March 19th. This class, taught by one of the best chefs in the bay area, will take you directly to Rome. Start with a variety of spring antipasti, learn to make a traditional Roman risotto with peas and prosciutto, and roast a whole baby spring lamb to be served with Roman-style fried spring artichokes -- and then to finish the evening, make a compote of blood oranges that will be served with some of his wife Mary's ice cream (Mary owns Ici, in Berkeley, where you can find lines out the door even in mid-winter, the ice cream is so good).

More Classes You Don't Want to Miss

Knife Skills, with Charlie Vollmar on February 9th. We present this class quarterly, in the hope that you will be inspired to come and learn how to make your cutting tasks easier and more fun. Charlie, owner of Epicurean Exchange, is a great teacher and his skills class is so good, we present it routinely to food service personnel. This is your chance to turn those daunting cutting tasks into a breeze, and make cooking dinner at home that much easier.

A Taste of Sicily, with Rosetta Costantino, February 29th. Rosetta, a native of Calabria, is also an expert Sicilian cook -- Calabria being the part of the boot that "kicks" Sicily, and her husband being from there too. In this class you'll learn some classic dishes, including a favorite of mine, pasta with cauliflower, raisins, pine nuts and saffron. Not to mention the homemade chocolate gelato you'll stuff into cream puffs, at the end.

Springtime in Southern Italy, with Rosetta Costantino, March 14th. A celebration of all the bounty just coming into the market, with spring asparagus, artichokes, lamb and fresh peas featured. Rosetta's classes are always fun and informative, and as well are a glimpse into her upcoming book.

Basic Cooking, with Terry Paulding, 6-week series beginning Wednesday, April 2nd. Springtime is fun in basic cooking class. You get to play with all the great food coming into the market, learn a full meal each week and enjoy it with friends and new acquaintances. Once again this class will be offered privately, so you can sign up early.

In the Market

It's a slow time at the farms, with muddy fields and the stock winter crops of citrus, deep greens, winter squash and root vegetables at the forefront. I've seen some good artichokes at the market, frost-tinged so not pretty, but those are often the sweetest of all. I've seen a few bunches of green garlic too -- a clear harbinger of springtime. Soon, the lengthening days will signal plants to grow, and we will have delicate asparagus, spring peas, luscious baby fava beans and more delicate lettuces will return. Blood oranges are just showing up now, too. Apples are still good, my favorite Pink Ladies among them. Asian pears are crisp and the walnut and almond crops are still available as well. Some interesting fruits have shown up at the Berkeley market, cherimoyas and guavas.

Recent Events

Recent Events at Paulding & Company have included some fantastic challenges. We have hosted a team building group of 70 people, cooking a Middle Eastern feast, and sitting down to a grand dinner. At the other end of the spectrum, we just hosted a birthday party for 12, with a whole piglet the centerpiece of the meal, stuffed with sticky rice and Chinese sausage, and roasted.

Recipe of the Month

I recently got to meet a favorite author, Alice Medrich of Cocolat fame. For those of you who weren't here back then, Alice's store, in North Berkeley, opened in 1976 -- and revolutionized the way we work with chocolate. Here, you found truffles, rich chocolate cakes and confections that are now ubiquitous, but back then, were virtually unknown. I've used her books for years, often making her recipes for my classes as they are classic and wonderful. Her newest book, Pure Dessert, was one of the things I asked my kids to give me for my birthday. With Valentines day just around the corner, I give you one of the easiest desserts I've ever made, courtesy of this book -- an almond cake that takes literally 2 minutes to put together, from start to finish in the food processor, and will become a family favorite. If you don't have a food processor, start with almond meal (available at Berkeley Bowl), and use a mixer. The sliced almonds in the recipe become a beautiful decoration for the cake top.

See the recipe >