A The Winthrop Rockefeller Institute has released its 2014 culinary calendar, which includes dates for its new Basic Training program, Made from Scratch events and popular Table for Two overnight events.
The Basic Training classes are demonstration-only and comprise a 12-week cooking workshop followed by a 10-week pastry workshop. Participants can sign up for an entire block of classes and receive a discount (i.e. sign up for all 12 cooking classes for the price of 10) or register for individual classes at $15 per class.
Cooking classes will expose participants to a variety of presentations from basic knife skills and cooking methods (Jan. 22) to cooking poultry (Feb. 12) and sizzling up curry, stir fry and Asian noodles (March 12). Pastry classes also seek to expose participants to a variety of baking and desert-making methods. These classes start at the basics of pastry baking (April 30) and end with crafting pastry custards, semifreddos and ice cream (July 2).
Basic Training classes will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on Wednesdays in 2014.
Made from Scratch workshops are offered on a variety of culinary topics and allow participants to develop their culinary skills in hands-on cooking classes at the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute. The classes are taught either by Chef Hall or by a guest chef, picked from among Arkansas’ top culinary talents. Guest chefs who will teach classes in 2014 include Brandon Douglas, Jason Knapp and Alan Dierks. Classes are held on specified Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at a cost of $80 per individual.
For couples searching for an overnight mountain getaway in addition to a culinary date night, the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute offers its Table for Two events. Table for Two evenings involve a cooking demonstration from Executive Chef Robert Hall, who not only presents how to cook the night’s entrée but also allows couples a chance to sharpen their culinary skills under his guidance. Couples end their night by feasting on their newly created entrées at a candlelit table for two.
Here is the schedule for 2014 Table for Two classes:
- Jan. 17 — Surf and Turf
- Jan. 31 — Coconut-Macadamia Chicken
- Feb. 14 — Filet Au Poivre
- March 21 — Blackened Catfish
- April 4 — Honey Mustard Pork Tenderloin
- May 16 — Chicken Supreme with Beurre Blanc; June 6 — “Dinner by the Lake” Campfire Cuisine
- June 20 — Tortellini with Shrimp in Lobster Sauce
- July 18 — Traditional Beef Wellington
- Aug. 1 — Fish in Puff Pastry
- Sept. 5 — Steakhouse Beef Ribeye
- Oct. 3 — Chicken Saltimboca
- Oct. 17 — Rosemary-Pomegranate Pork Tenderloin
- Nov. 7 — Polynesian Prime Rib
- Dec. 5 — Braised Chicken Involtini
All Table for Two classes start at 5 p.m. on Friday nights and include overnight lodging and a continental breakfast for a price tag of only $200 per couple.
To register for these events or for more information, visit WRI’s culinary web page at www.livethelegacy.org/educational-programs/culinary.
And don’t forget about upcoming culinary events, including its Made from Scratch-Dickens of a Holiday on Saturday (Nov. 9) and Table for Two events Nov. 15 and Dec. 13. Register here for the classes.