Ready, set, check that cellphone! @kingthanos starts his cooking “process.”@douglasawesome, blown away by the French frying process and the fumes!New cookn00b @chimp smiles calmly, knowing he has agility on his side.Do these guys look afraid? Heck no! They are veteran cookn00bs, @starwars and @ryanshollenberger.@chimp preps potatoes for French frying in the wok!@starwars shows off a new art form: fingerpainting with cornmeal. Below, an onion soaks in water to help it “bloom.”
@xxxxpgainzxxx takes a break from cooking and does his famous impression of David Bowie, a great talent who passed away this week.
NOTE: We regret not being able to display pictures of our gorgeous French fries and onion rings. They disappeared without a trace! :))
Chef @aidenstarwars smiles with confidence, knowing that he and @hannah will teach @abebrunka and @drew (the newest n00bs!) how to make fondue!The line-up: French bread, knives, fondue pot, chopping boards, more knives, broccoli, apples and two kinds of cheese–Gruyere and Emmenthal–and grater.One hour later, the ALC Fondue Foursome is ready to melt the cheese and dunk the dippers!Our “studentN00bs,” @drew and @abebrunka, pose for another selfie! Say CHEESE, guys! Great job! You passed the audition!
Can you guess what they’re thinking?Payton a/k/a “@agilepanda- just one of our delightful new cookn00bs!@agilepanda rocks it with the cheese grater!Special guest, Chef @aidenstarwars snips some chives with the world’s dullest scissors.@hannah cooking bacon with one hand! Well, with one spatula!@aidenstarwars tries to get a word in edge-wise! Everyone laughs.No, that’s not a mouse under the sink!! Seriously!@kingthanos poses for a “mug shot” before class begins!Ta-DAH! We did it!!!! Thanks to @ryanshollenberger, @agilepanda, @aidenstarwars, @hannah, @thewitchqueen908 and the rest of the ALC gang!
On Friday, October 2nd, @thewitchqueen908 and @serenagermany slaved away at the stove, while @kingthanos and @panda joked around and played word games that involved human body parts and other stuff we don’t usually say in polite company. (Yes! Those words!) Even so, by the end of class, the group had turned out a spectacular bowl of spaghetti and meatballs. How did they do it?
Our kitchen alumna, @thewitchqueen908, plunged her hands into grass-fed ground beef. With enthusiastic help from n00bie @serenagermany, the gals added bread crumbs and egg, and shaped the mixture into perfect little globes of meatballness, ready for frying.
Meanwhile, our resident wordsmith, @kingthanos, sliced garlic and proved, once again, that GOBS of it are the key to any recipe’s success. Chatty @panda, a cook n00bie, volunteered for onion-chopping. The job had him in tears and the rest of us in hysterics. He even tried wearing @nhoopee’s horn-rimmed specs for protection, but the fumes were stronger than plastic. The waterworks–and the laughs–continued.
As a cauldon of water boiled on the stove, the kids took turns browning meatballs and stirring the bubbling organic tomato sauce. After 20 minutes, @kingthanos pronounced the pasta “al dente enough”! Lunch was served and proclaimed “totally awesome” by all.
But @nhoopee, acting all bossy and teacher-ish, had the last word(s). “Here’s a challenge: From now on, in the kitchen,” she decreed, “any and all X-rated words must be at least five syllables.”
Who will be first to pick up a dictionary or thesaurus? Stay tuned!
This Friday @nhoopee made her glorious return for cooking class! We decided to make an (easy, tried, and true) old favorite- pizza. @kingthanos, @heartabby, and @failspy joined @nhoopee and @ryanschollenberger to throw the dough and (hu)man the ovens for traditional and gluten-free (you missed out, @tomis =) versions of the classic Italian-American treat.
Great start to the year! The ALC whiz kids are tough AND talented. Nobody fainted–despite two preheated ovens blasting at 500 degrees–and @kingthanos and @failspy, our pizza veterans, serenaded us with “When the moon in the sky is a big pizza pie, it’s amore”! Newbie @heartabby ate his handmade pizza in a couple of bites and shouted, “Not bad, not good, I LOVE it!”
No official taste test this time, but @nhoopee gave a thumbs up to traditional, and a choking sound to the gluten-free. Tough luck, @tomis, we challenge you to show us why soy flour and no yeast = pizza.
P.S. @Panda didn’t get a chance to punch dough this time, but we look forward to seeing him in October. Btw, we caught a glimpse of @timotree today, and hope to see @thewitchqueen908, @douglasawesome and @alfiealfie at their earliest convenience! Oh, and a big shout out to @ryanshollenberger for keeping us mostly well-behaved..and for his world-class clean-up!
