Advanced Culinary Lab Techniques

Bordered by both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, with snow-capped peaks and lush green valleys, the diverse geography of France offers the best ingredients from the land and sea. You'll get a taste of the best of all those regions in this class. For your Francophile meal, you will prepare and enjoy frisée salad with shallot-bacon vinaigrette; steak frites (sautéed steak with hand-cut french fries); bouillabaisse (seafood soup from Marseille); and honey lavender blanc mange.

Once you master essential cooking techniques, you possess the culinary grounding to cook both classical cuisines and the latest cooking styles. These full-participation classes teach fundamental skills, not just recipes. Most important, you'll gain the experience you need to cook with confidence and pleasure---without relying strictly on recipes. Each class culminates with a student-prepared meal. The course consists of four 6-hour classes. Fine Cooking 1 is a prerequisite to Fine Cooking 2. The course completes in four days.

As a natural extension of its expansive pastures, renowned ranches and roaming cattle, Texas has a longstanding steakhouse tradition. There, juicy steaks are often served with a hot and rich chile sauce, which mashed potatoes or cornbread greedily sop up. Enjoy these dishes and more as you celebrate the Lone Star State by making and dining on: homemade chips and guacamole; skirt steak with tomatillo-serrano chile sauce; jalapeño creamed corn; and buttermilk mashed potatoes

Good wines and simple but elegant fare are hallmarks of the French brasserie tradition, and steak is a favorite order. You’ll learn to prepare: oysters mignonette; frisée aux lardons; steak au poivre; pommes Anna and haricots verts aux champignons et noisettes.