I experienced my first vegan cooking class! Actually, my first cooking class ever. Okay, my husband and I did sign up for a cooking class several years ago, with another couple, for a Valentine’s Day dinner at a local culinary school but the school accepted way too many people for the class and essentially had 6 -8 people assigned to one cooking station. The result? I sat back and drank lots of wine (as in major headache the next morning) and watched everyone else hover around doing nothing. I learned zero and therefore did not consider it a cooking class. Oh, the staff offered me a can, yes a CAN, of black beans to make my own “vegetarian” dish but my smart husband, seeing me start to seethe, grabbed the can and whipped something up for me.
This time I did it right. I signed up for a cooking class at the Natural Gourmet Institute. I’ve been stalking watching their public class calendar for quite some time, hoping to find an open vegan cooking class that fit into my rather wacky schedule. In December I found a perfect January class, Vibrant Vegan Vegetable Dishes, but it was closed. I noticed the offer of a waitlist so I signed up. Less than two weeks later I received a call that a space had opened up. Woot!
There were 15 people in the class taught by Myra Kornfeld. She’s dynamic, assertive and great at instruction. I learned so much in the first half-hour when she talked us through each of the recipes. It’s hard to quantify what I learned. You need to understand that though I have recently fallen in love with cooking, it doesn’t come naturally to me. There are very simple things that many of you probably know that I don’t. Such as how to make thin onion slices for cooking by cutting along the grow line. Or using your hand as a “claw” to avoid slicing finger tips (you should see the little scars on my fingers!)
Back to the class. We were given eight recipes and the group paired off, each pair was to make two recipes. The end result is that each student gets to experience cooking two dishes but we all sit down for dinner and enjoy each of the eight dishes prepared. Odd woman out, I teamed up with another pair so our trio got to make three dishes!
Braised Sunchokes with Fennel, Olives and Thyme
Sure, I’m biased, but this dish was truly my favorite of all eight dishes. I think it will become a staple in my house!
Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Pecans
I love brussels sprouts and these were delicious!
Braised Celery Root and Red Bliss Smash with Caramelized Shallots
The final action shot, adding the shallot oil and caramelized shallots to the mash:
To. Die. For.
The additional five dishes were: Golden Squash and Chickpea Soup with Roasted Chickpea nuts; Garlicky Braised Kale with Balsamic Vinegar and Capers; Braised Cabbage with Cranberries; Roasted Turnips with Mustard, Maple and Cardamom; and, Sweet Potato Pie.
It was a fantastic meal. Next time, though, I’m bringing a split of wine to round out my dining experience. (I might try to convince my husband to come, too!)
After class I purchased a copy of Chef Kornfeld’s The Voluptuous Vegan
which she signed for me. I told her that I chose it because of the title, based of my recent decision to embrace my curves, and she wrote a fabulously voluptuous note in the book. Thank you, Chef Kornfeld!
You can bet that I will be signing up for more classes at the Natural Gourmet Institute. From the instruction, to the hands on experience, to feasting on the fabulous meal, the class was worth every penny!
Have you taken a cooking class before? Let me know!
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