A bakery entrepreneur leaves nursing behind to enroll in an online pastry-certificate program, and the result is sweet.

Kim Washington is the perfect example of someone who has never given up on her dreams. She recently retired early from a decades-long career in nursing to pursue her passion of starting a bakery. Now with Escoffier Online International Culinary Academy’s pastry certificate under her belt, she feels more ready than ever to tackle whatever obstacles may lie ahead.

Exploding Desserts LLC opened in May 2015 in South Holland, Ill. So Escoffier Online sat down with Washington to talk about what it takes to open a business, her favorite pastries to make and the No. 1 ingredient she makes sure to put in all of her creations.

Escoffier Online: You have quite a bit of culinary/pastry schooling. Why did you want to attend Escoffier Online?
Kim Washington: I was intrigued by the history of Escoffier. His name and works are mentioned in many of my cookbooks and he’s quoted and fashioned after numerous times in the culinary world. Then I sought out to learn more about the online culinary school and was excited about what it offered and the fact that I could study on my own time.

In the award program’s inaugural year, two secondary and two postsecondary educators earned recognition for distinction in training professional cooks of tomorrow at the 11^th-annual CAFÉ Leadership Conference in June.

Sysco, the world’s leading foodservice distributor, recognized four foodservice educators in the 2015 CAFÉ/Sysco Corporation Educator of the Year Awards at the 11^th-annual Leadership Conference of the Center for the Advancement of Foodservice Education (CAFÉ), June 18 in Niagara Falls, N.Y.

“In our first year of supporting this new annual award that acknowledges the tremendous industry contributions of foodservice instructors throughout the United States, we were introduced to many genuinely gifted teachers,” says Neil Doherty, CEC, Sysco’s senior director of culinary development.

“All of them submitted amazing endorsements from their administrators, program and industry colleagues and former and current students—making the selection of only two award recipients and two runners-up from both high-school and college-level training programs extremely difficult. In the end, thanks to their extraordinary career accomplishments, four individuals stood out.” They are:

Real information power comes when operators begin to consolidate and review all their data, to reveal the complete picture they need to make better business decisions.

By Dave Bennett

Culinary educators know their students seek out the foodservice industry for many reasons: They simply love to cook, they excel in the high-energy foodservice environment and they see long-term career potential and an opportunity to make a name for themselves.

Few, if any, culinary students will profess they are in it for the statistics.

Minding the numbers goes beyond containing food or labor costs. Effectively leveraging restaurant information can be the key to profit and financial success. It can be the difference between driving defensively, stuck forever in the right lane, versus pulling away from gridlock to lead the competition.

There are three main reasons that operators should mind (and mine) their business data. This article will address two of those reasons; the third reason will be covered in the second article in this series.

#1: Information is power
Harnessing a restaurant business’ information can, and should, ultimately increase earnings. Information is power, power that can be converted into dollar signs. The trick is to learn how to put that information to its best use. 

Versatile Idaho^® Potatoes provide the canvas as culinarians get creative.

For a dish of humble Canadian origin, poutine—a savory amalgam of crispy French fries gilded with cheese curds, beef gravy and an optional egg—has quickly established a substantial presence on American menus.

A distinctive variation on loaded fries and an American quick-service favorite, poutines of all stripes are popping up in fast-food and casual-dining operations across the country, much to the delight and enjoyment of customers who enjoy their fries with a side of creativity.

Whether served as an appetizer or entrée, poutine is a popular dish that starts with a menu basic—crisp Idaho^® potato French fries—and can absorb other standard menu ingredients with aplomb and style. For example, surplus short-rib orders make a rich, meaty gravy. Cheeses salvaged from salad and appetizer orders melt atop sizzling fries to offer an intriguing new flavor profile.

Finally, we’ve talked fries, but why stop there? Idaho hash browns, tots and country potatoes also provide an excellent foundation for a signature poutine.

For 17 years, Worlds of Flavor in Napa Valley has been considered by the industry to be America’s most influential professional forum on world cuisines, food cultures and flavor trends. This year’s event didn’t disappoint.

The trend to Asian tastes and techniques has been growing exponentially in the United States for years. It never came together with such enthusiasm and promise as it did at the 17^th Worlds of Flavor® International Conference and Festival, held in April on the Greystone campus of The Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley in front of an audience of more than 700 culinary, foodservice and hospitality professionals.

“The vastly varied cuisines of Asia are deeply rooted in traditions that have evolved over millennia,” said Greg Drescher, vice president of strategic initiatives and industry leadership at the CIA. “Today, American chefs are embracing and experimenting with what once was considered exotic. These foods and flavors are poised to continue their ascendance and become ever-bigger players in our national dining scene, whether it is in small independent restaurants, high-volume operations, food trucks or university cafés.”