By Adam Weiner

Says Chef Weiner, using firm-cooked sausage to teach the technique of braising can be accomplished within a short class time and brings the concept home to students.

When you think of braising you think of comfort food. From the wafting of the aroma as it cooks and as the plates are carried to the table to its savory down-home “stick to your ribs” flavor, braising has long been popular with families and customers. Pot roast is perhaps the most famous of all braised dishes. For years, osso buco and coq au vin were the most famous restaurant version of braising. Nowadays short ribs seem to have taken their place.

By Christopher Koetke, CEC, CCE

Defining “sustainable food” is not a black-and-white issue like water and energy conservation or waste-stream reduction. The decisions are value judgments that are unique to each individual.

What is sustainably farmed food? Is it organic? Is it biodynamic? Is it local? Dr. Fred Kirschenmann, sustainable-agriculture pioneer and distinguished fellow with The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, says the answer to those questions is, “Sometimes, but not necessarily.” Recently, I had the opportunity to chat with him about this subject and came away with a new understanding of the complexities.

Organic
Kirschenmann served on the USDA National Organics Standards Board, which developed the rules for implementing the National Organic Program. According to those standards, organic means that producers can use any natural inputs as long as they aren’t on the “prohibited list” (e.g., elemental sulfur or copper as a plant or soil micronutrient). The only synthetic inputs allowed are those on the “allowed list” (e.g., certain chlorine materials related to food-safety concerns).

Presented by the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board

Since 2001, cheese was the No. 1 ingredient added to the menus of the top 200 restaurant chains in the appetizers, entrees, salads and sandwiches categories. Attached as a PowerPoint presentation is a complete lesson plan on teaching the menu power of cheese, particularly those cheeses made in Wisconsin, from the standpoints of flavor, identification, grading, menu trends and marketing. The lesson plan is easily customizable with the removal or addition of slides to fit your needs.

PowerPoint File (5MB)

By Patrick Martin and Brian Mattingly, CEC, CCE
Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America

This lesson plan was delivered to a standing-room-only audience of culinarians and students at the American Culinary Federation’s 2006 National Convention in Philadelphia in July by Patrick Martin, vice president of culinary-education development for Le Cordon Bleu International based in Paris, and Brian Mattingly, CEC, CCE, executive chef of California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. Martin also serves as international ambassador for Le Cordon Bleu.

Presented by United Egg Producers

Download the Lesson Plan

Synopsis of PowerPoint presentation: Animal agriculture is under fire. Do animal-rights activists speak for everyone? This Lesson Plan addresses the points of view and actions of egg producers and opponents of cage eggs concerning the production of eggs in cage, cage-free, organic and free-range systems.

“At Dole, we pride ourselves on being the authority on tropical fruit.  By showcasing our most popular, delicious and innovative recipes, the DOLE Chef’s Collection CD-ROM, we make it simple for foodservice operators and chefs to offer their customers unique, exciting and flavorful dishes.”

Chris Lock, Vice President-Marketing and Sales, Dole Foodservice

Presented by Ed Rosheim,
Workplace Languages

Objective: You and your group are to research a particular region in relation to foods. You will create a visual (poster, pamphlet, power point, or video) presentation to present to the class including:

• Map of the region

• Climate and topography of region

• Indigenous foods and reason they are prevalent

• Menu incorporating selected food item(s) including appetizer, entrée, vegetable, starch and dessert; including a brief description of each dish.

• Interesting facts you uncover during research.