From opening and staring into a hot oven until the inside temperature plummets to reasons not to overcrowd a frying pan, Chef Weiner discusses how to successfully teach some hard-to-learn rules in the culinary classroom. For one common practice among students, however, he still seeks a solution.

By Adam Weiner, CFSE

In June I had the privilege of attending CAFÉ’s Leadership Conference in Miami. There are two reasons I love the conference: 1) the seminars and 2) the out-of-seminar discussions.

Let me share with you one of the out-of-seminar discussions that a group of us had at the breakfast table. The topic is particularly appropriate since many of you will be reading this at the start of your school year. What Is the Hardest Thing to Teach New Culinary Students? Here is our top 10 list:

1. Tasting
This is really two categories. Tasting as you cook, which is somewhat easy to drill into new students’ cooking routines. The other is far more difficult: getting people to taste the foods in the first place. I have many students who think I am trying to kill them by giving them a piece of beef that is cooked less than well done. Don’t even ask what they say about ceviche! I have had a little success with tough love: “This is what we are serving. If you don’t want to eat it, that’s fine.” However, if you do this better, guard your pantry and walk-in because they will try to make their own food, thinking you won’t notice.

A collegiate culinary-arts program in central Oregon and a high school in Phoenix earn top honors for exemplary practices in—and innovative teaching of—ecological sustainability.

Kendall College in Chicago and the Annapolis, Md.-based Center for the Advancement of Foodservice Education (CAFÉ) presented 2013 CAFÉ/Kendall College Green Awards to two culinary-arts training programs during a June 20 reception at CAFÉ’s 9^th-annual Leadership Conference for foodservice educators in Miami, Fla.

Cascade Culinary Institute (CCI) at Central Oregon Community College in Bend received this year’s award. CCI’s Jungers Culinary Center, which opened in late-2011, was built to Earth Advantage gold-certification standards. Successful management of day-to-day operations includes composting, recycling and use of green chemicals for ware washing. Additionally, CCI’s public restaurant and student training lab, Elevation, focuses on locally sourced produce, proteins, cheeses and grains.

“Even more impressive is the institute’s creation of one of the nation’s first culinary-arts certificates in sustainable food systems,” says Christopher Koetke, CEC, CCE, HAAC, vice president of the Kendall College School of Culinary Arts and the Laureate International Universities Center of Excellence in Culinary Arts, who oversaw evaluation of award entries. “Students earning the certificate learn current industry standards of sustainable restaurant practices via a pioneering curriculum that includes applied growing and raising of farm plants and animals, applied harvesting and food-preservation principles, farm-to-table and sustainable-cuisine practices, and even a 200-hour internship in farming and regional agriculture.”

Courtesy of the Idaho Potato Commission

This lesson plan for the culinary classroom focuses on an educational session presented at the 2013 CAFÉ Leadership Conference in Miami by Don Odiorne, vice-president foodservice for the Idaho Potato Commission, and Newman Miller, corporate executive chef for Bunge, at Johnson & Wales University’s N. Miami campus, June 22.

The downloadable PowerPoint reveals tips for perfectly frying Idaho Potatoes—for instance, blanching potatoes partially cooks the product, deactivates enzymes that discolor the fries, sets the texture, reduces oil absorption in frying, controls the color, decreases fry time and reduces bacterial count—as well as other applications. Additionally, the PowerPoint contains info on proper storage of Idaho potatoes, typical yields and food costs, and a comparison of oil types for frying, among other instruction. Several menu and foodservice trends are also revealed.

To augment the PowerPoint presentation, “Potato 101” at www.potato101.com is an easy-to-follow educational program and reference guide. It provides a base understanding of potatoes, starting with their history in Idaho and why the soil, water and climate combine perfectly to make their quality outstanding. Visitors to the site will also learn about the health and nutrition aspects of potatoes as well as their economical cost and versatility on menus.

DOWNLOAD, Frying Idaho Potatoes and Other Foodservice Trends

At its 13th-annual Educator of the Year Awards, Career Education Corporation (CEC) (NASDAQ: CECO) honored some of the finest instructors among its more than 6,000 faculty members nationwide for their dedication to student success.

Faculty, staff, students and administration submitted more than 600 nominations for Educator of the Year.  A group of 30 internal reviewers then assessed more than 200 nominee applications. Winners were selected in each of four categories: Academic Leadership, Community Service, Instruction and Student Success.

“We take great pride in our ability to enhance our students’ lives through education, and the quality of our faculty plays a significant role in that effort,” says Scott Steffey, president and chief executive officer of Career Education. “The instructors we’ve honored with the Educator of the Year award are an inspiration—true examples of the power an excellent teacher with passion, knowledge and real-world experience can have on a student.”

Austin Yancey, CEC, of Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Chicago, earned Educator of the Year in the Academic Leadership category. Yancey has taken his love of cooking from his grandmother’s kitchen to the heights of Alinea, one of the finest restaurants in the world, located in Chicago. There he experienced the pressures of working under a world-renowned chef with exacting standards.  He later returned to Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago—where he received his formal culinary training—to help educate future culinary professionals.  But his work has gone far beyond his classroom duties.

Yancey organized the creation of the Le Cordon Bleu Chicago Competition Club in March 2010. Over the past three years, hundreds of students have participated in the club under Yancey’s instruction, and the competition team has earned many medals in culinary events while providing invaluable training to students.  Students wanting to work in fine dining receive practical experience under the type of pressure they would face in a top-tier restaurant, but in an environment where a mistake is just a learning experience.  His commitment to students in the club includes working with them for six hours or more every Saturday, in addition to his regular weekday class schedule.

Yancey holds an associate degree in applied science in culinary arts as well as a bachelor’s degree in culinary management, both from Le Cordon Bleu. He also holds the designation of Certified Executive Chef from the American Culinary Federation.

On May 11, more than 40 students and professional chefs converged on the New Rochelle Campus to compete in the Greater New York Culinary Challenge (GNYCC) at the Culinary Arts Center. Besides medals awarded at this competition, there was another award at stake: The Dean’s Cup. This award, given by Dean Frank C. Costantino to the outstanding student culinarian, was on the line for 10 of Monroe's most accomplished young culinary competitors.

The competition was an "iron chef" format that had the students preparing an entrée from a basket of ingredients. First-year student Rossella Cangialosi, Barry Tech BOCES, won the inaugural Dean’s Cup with a silver medal for her sautéed chicken breast with mushroom sauce. Runner-up to the cup, also a silver-medal winner, Sade Aguila, 2011 America's Best HS Chef from Food and Finance, recorded a milestone medal, earning the 400th competition medal won by Monroe Culinary since April 2009.

Silver medals were also won by Enmely Soriano (Passaic County Tech), Kencito Vernon (Food and Finance), Yocary Luna, 2012 America’s Best High School Chef from Food and Finance, and Kimani Hines, Gateway School. Bronze medals in the Dean’s cup were won by Katherine Taveras, C-CAP Philly and captain of the 2013 Junior Culinary Team, along with her teammates, Carmen Albino, Port Richmond C-CAP, and Laura Sanchez, Passaic County Tech. Lealy Irizarry, Truman High School, also earned a bronze medal.

Other Monroe Culinary students were vying for medals, as well. Alberto Obando, LIC High School, earned his first individual student medal, a silver, for his trio of Cornish game hen. It was student gold medals for Jovita Palafox, Port Richmond C-CAP student, whose chocolate/banana cake was a favorite of the judges, and Nashali Rivera, Food and Finance C-CAP student, who impressed the judges with her Cornish hen dish. Rivera earned the highest score posted on the day. Brenda Lara, Port Richmond C-CAP student, earned her first professional gold medal in pastry for her tropical entremets with mango-caramel glaze. Lara registered higher scores in her category than the professional chefs who competed.

The Chicago Chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier International (LDEI) recently awarded scholarships totaling $22,500 to female students enrolled in professional culinary- and baking/pastry-arts programs throughout greater Chicago.

For more than 30 years, Les Dames d’Escoffier–Chicago has awarded scholarships to women pursuing careers in food, nutrition, wine and hospitality while enrolled full time in certificate- and degree-granting programs in Chicago-area postsecondary institutions. This year, scholarships in amounts of $5,000, $2,500 and $1,250 were granted based on academic performance, dedication to community service and financial need. Additionally, each recipient will be assigned a mentor from the local LDEI chapter to share expertise and guidance.

“Women are a significant force in Chicago’s vibrant culinary and hospitality scenes,” says Judith Dunbar Hines, chair of the 2013 Scholarship Committee of LDEI–Chicago and owner of Judith Dunbar Hines Culinary Services. “Since 1982, our members have lived our philanthropic mission in part by annually distributing scholarships and grants to assist women pursuing their passion. We’re proud, in our 31th year, to continue this grand tradition by recognizing and assisting seven talented students with the potential to become rising stars in the realm of food.”

Emmi Roth USA announces winners of the Grand Cru® Recipe Contest for culinary students, held in conjunction with CAFÉ.

Emmi Roth USA, a leading provider of specialty cheeses based in Monroe, Wis., recently announced the winner of its Grand Cru® Recipe Contest for Postsecondary Culinary Students. The contest, presented in conjunction with CAFÉ, challenged culinary students to create a unique and flavorful recipe highlighting Roth Grand Cru, a classic Alpine-style cheese.

Alex Hartfelder, 21, of Brentwood, Tenn., submitted the winning recipe—Grand Cru Pistachio Crisps with Spicy Red Pepper Jelly (pictured). As a second-year student at Nashville State Community College, he has been cooking since age 10. Hartfelder will soon realize one of his longtime culinary dreams and use the $1,000 prize money for travel to an internship in Italy. 

The winning recipe was inspired by his father’s favorite holiday cheese straws, which Hartfelder traditionally prepares using cheddar and walnuts. After sampling Grand Cru, the smoothness and earthiness of the cheese inspired him to re-conceptualize his cheese-straw recipe as a savory cracker with Grand Cru and pistachios, rounded out with homemade pepper jelly. Emmi Roth USA judges were impressed with the sophisticated combination of sweet, savory and spicy flavors, praising the buttery texture and the Grand Cru flavor that comes through in the cracker.

In 2013, bright flavors, “free from,” healthier horizons and the “new” convenience took center stage at the biggest foodservice tradeshow in the nation, held in Chicago in May. And are advances in ordering technology taking the “personal” out of service?

Courtesy of Olson Communications

The recent National Restaurant Association (NRA) Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show in May, like every year, provided a lot to be excited about. The show brings together operators across all segments of the industry. While talk among attendees focused on a number of the events away from McCormick Place, the NRA Show exhibit hall still delivered the latest products, flavors, equipment and technological advances.

The show featured several themes that are evident of the industry’s issues, challenges and trends. These themes could be found throughout the show floor and included healthy eating, beverages and flavor bursts.

Healthful and Uncomplicated Flavor
Complex, yet uncomplicated, was the flavor theme common to many new products. Preparations seen at the show in culinary demonstrations and around trendy Chicago restaurants that were a hit during the show featured simple ingredients, nothing fussy or overdone.

The iconic chef led top staff, purveyors and protégés in Sense of Urgency.

Expecting a cooking demonstration from one of the world’s greatest chefs, students at The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) instead were treated to something completely different from Thomas Kelleron May 13.

The college hosted Thomas Keller Day at its Hyde Park, N.Y., campus with a keynote address from Keller and breakout sessions covering various restaurant business topics.

The day was scheduled to conclude with a “culinary presentation.” Instead of a traditional demo, however, Keller made his stage debut, leading his celebrated restaurants’ top staff members, including Eli Kaimeh ’00 of Per Se, purveyors and celebrated protégés such as Grant Achatz ’94 and Jonathan Benno ’93 in a one-act play.

“You often hear it said that restaurants are like theater, with a front of the house, a behind-the-scenes crew, a colorful cast of characters, a creative script,” Keller said. “Today we thought we’d take it literally.”

Sense of Urgency was the result—a performance developed by Keller’s team that portrays an evening of service at The French Laundry in Yountville, Calif., and named for the wording on a plaque that hangs under the kitchen clocks in all of Keller’s restaurants. The French Laundry is a Michelin Guide three-star restaurant that was honored as the World’s Best Restaurant by U.K.-based Restaurant magazine in 2003. “We observe the process of execution and the importance of relationships between the purveyors, farmers, and craftsmen of the products these chefs will use to serve their guests,” explains the playbill.

Nearly 1,000 CIA students attended the performance and hundreds more participated in the earlier presentation and breakout sessions, which were simulcast to the college’s campuses in Texas and California. Twenty lucky students were selected to have lunch with Keller.

Photo:Playbill for Sense of Urgency, a one-act play by Thomas Keller—featuring Grant Achatz, Jonathan Benno and others—that debuted at The Culinary Institute of America during Thomas Keller Day at the college’s Hyde Park, N.Y., campus on May 13, 2013.Courtesy ofCIA/Phil Mansfield.

Pittsburgh’s Jeff Sinciline helps Bayer Corporation develop a menu for employees worldwide to enjoy a celebratory lunch marking the company’s 150^th anniversary.

As Bayer Corporation marks the 150th anniversary of its founding this year, the company will hold an Employee Celebration Day luncheon for all 110,000-plus employees around the world on June 18, serving one international upscale menu to every employee on the same day. The anniversary menu was created using the expertise of five global Bayer “Celebration Chefs,” including the executive chef at Bayer’s Pittsburgh campus dining facility, Jeff Sinciline.

In preparation for the Celebration Day anniversary meal, Sinciline and a team of chefs from  Germany, China, France and Mexico worked for months to develop recipes with high-quality, fresh ingredients that are available worldwide, taking employees on a culinary trip around the globe while preparing the meals onsite at Bayer locations.