New 23,000-sq.-ft. facility—part of a $24 million area project—focuses on European-style cooking, with veteran chef and educator Tom Recinella at the helm.

Baker College of Port Huron officially opened its Culinary Institute of Michigan (CIM) recently with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and celebration along with two other businesses that are revitalizing Port Huron’s waterfront area. CIM-Port Huron classes for fall quarter began Sept. 30.

The new 23,000-sq.-ft. CIM-Port Huron teaching facility was built specifically for the study of culinary arts. It supports the learning process through advanced technologies and its interior design, which includes state-of-the-art classrooms and labs, as well as unobstructed views between classrooms that facilitate the open-kitchen concept of European-style training and cooking.

The CIM-Port Huron is part of the $24 million project that includes the DoubleTree by Hilton Port Huron, Freighters Eatery and Taproom and the future 40,000-sq.-ft. Blue Water Area Convention Center, which is scheduled to be complete by 2015. The project is expected to generate a $25 million annual boost to the local economy during its first 10 years of operation.

“The Culinary Institute of Michigan is a world-class facility that is designed to provide optimal hands-on learning experiences for our students,” says Connie Harrison, PhD, president of Baker College of Port Huron. “Our location next to an upscale hotel, a premier restaurant and a new convention center will facilitate valuable interaction with students. This is precisely what Baker College is about: providing real-world experiences to our students that deliver a huge advantage as they move into the workforce.”

The latest menu trends, as delivered at the 2013 Flavor Experience Conference.

Courtesy of Olson Communications

Chefs and foodservice professionals from many segments of the industry and their food & beverage suppliers gathered in Newport Beach, Calif., in August for this annual conference on the business of flavor and innovation to learn about new ways to delight their customers. Conference sessions included the latest consumer research, menu ideas and interactive experiences where attendees explored ideas and trends together. This conference is a true experience with non-stop flavor tasting and networking opportunities.

Unstoppable Trends
The conference opened with a discussion on three Pandora’s Boxes—unstoppable trends so big in the foodservice industry that the only way to fail is not to participate in them.

• Health. Wellness is inescapable in today’s culture and food is a vital component of healthy lifestyles, where mindful choices of real food, simply prepared, are driving desire. Breakfast was noted as a particularly important part of this trend because the positive impact of breakfast on health has been studied extensively to validate its benefits.
• Sustainability. Although quick service and immediate gratification are important value components of many foodservice meal occasions, the broader impact on the planet is never far from top of mind. Research from leading firms noted that although there may not be a full understanding of sustainability among consumers, the majority believe they regularly buy sustainable products.
• Kids. Understanding and captivating the consumers of tomorrow was the topic of a general-session and panel discussion because of their current and future impact on the industry.

Braised lamb is economical and efficient. A successful lamb braise intermingles the flavors of foods being cooked, the aromatics employed and the cooking liquid—performing a magical transformation of lamb while adding body to the braising-liquid-turned-sexy-sauce.

By Robert N. Corey, BA, AOS, CEC, EWS

Braising is for meat lovers. I have a passion for braised lamb shanks, an infatuation for sous-vide lamb necks, a serious affair going on with braised stuffed lamb breast and, from my very first taste of lamb, I have leg-of-lamb ecstasy.

While lamb is often considered an expensive meat for classroom use, braising allows me to focus on economical cuts of lamb. Thanks to the braise, I can find plenty of economical cuts for the long-simmered, wait-until-you-taste-this, top-of-a-heap goodness. My students will learn that dinner can be less expensive, and in all cases much more flavorful, when American Lamb meets a cook who can braise. This article will discuss the critical points of braising as related to utilizing, and enjoying economical cuts of American Lamb.

A new foodservice study shows that among all pork categories, bacon consumption grew the most per pound between 2011 and 2013, while carnitas meat grew fastest by percentage.

With a growth rate outpacing all other proteins in the foodservice industry, pork is hot. According to Technomic, Inc.’s 2013 Volumetric Assessment of Pork in Foodservice, pork is sustaining its popularity, having become the foodservice industry’s fastest-growing protein in each of the past two years.

This most recent study noted that total pork sold through foodservice outlets reached a record-breaking 9.25 billion pounds, reflecting a volume increase of 462 million pounds over 2011 when the survey was last undertaken. The 2.6% increase outpaced the total protein growth average of 0.8% and the 1.5% total growth of the foodservice industry itself.

“We are pleased to see such positive growth in foodservice, especially carnitas meat, shoulder/butt and pulled pork,” says Stephen Gerike, director of foodservice marketing for the Pork Checkoff. “The volumetric study shows that operators are leveraging pork’s versatility.”

Since 2011, fresh pork has driven growth of the total pork category, increasing by 3.5% on an annual basis. Sales of processed pork also grew 2.3%, largely driven by sales of ham, breakfast sausage and bacon. Sales of these traditional breakfast meats represent 56% of the carcass-weigh equivalent. Other study highlights include:

“Gold Medal Classroom” readers who answer a survey (see link below) will receive a special code for a $200 discount on Worlds of Flavor® 2013 registration. Also, all names will be placed into a drawing for one free Worlds of Flavor registration, and three respondents will receive a choice of one of three CIA books.

By Jan Stuebing Smyth

To be a chef today means to be plugged into local communities, national networks and global conversations. Information technologies are changing foodservice in profound ways in the kitchen, dining room and classroom, particularly since the current  generation of Millennial diners grew up with an unprecedented access to 24/7 connectivity.

Any curriculum for aspiring culinarians that does not include a nod to technology in the kitchen—from immersion circulators for new cooking techniques to tablets for access to their curriculum—is incomplete. A single YouTube video, real-time webcast or even an Instagram photo can transport a chef or student to a restaurant or village kitchen thousands of miles away and alter his or her culinary aspirations in an instant, turning the world into a classroom.

Culinary philosophies are being incubated in highly personal, globally conscious ways that could only happen in this hyper-connected age of information and social-networking technologies. Chefs in Spain look to the kitchens of Japan as part of re-imagining their regional traditions. Chefs from New York to California exchange ideas over the web as they re-invent Moroccan and Southeast Asian flavors. Chefs from Lima and Lisbon, Sydney and Shanghai gather at international conferences—like MAD in Copenhagen, Mesamérica in Mexico City and Worlds of Flavor in Napa Valley—to forge new professional bonds that expand the creative space in which they work.

Whereas previously, influential food critics at city and national publications controlled the destiny of ambitious chefs and restaurants, chefs today can build their own communities of support. A four-star review from The New York Times or a top Michelin rating still yields considerable weight in a restaurant’s ability to attract and retain customers, but they are no longer the only game in town. Crowd-sourced reviews from Yelp, Zagat and others, along with social media juggernauts like Twitter and Facebook and the commenting sections of blogs, have undercut the established critics who used to have the power to make or break a restaurant. Not having to court the favor of high-profile critics means not having to skew one’s cooking or dining concepts to the expectations of a small handful of gatekeepers.