Do you get excited about a trip to the farmer's market, but dread chopping all those veggies and herbs? If the onions make you break into tears and you can't remember the last time you sharpened your knife, come to this hands-on class and learn to slice, dice, and mince in a casual and supportive environment. We'll go over which knives are used for which cuts, how to buy a good knife in any price range, as well as sharpening and caring for your knives. And what cooking class is complete without a sumptuous dinner? The meal we'll prepare out of all those veggies might include fennel orange salad, potato leek soup, tomato onion tart, and ratatouille. This class is vegetarian. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $80 per person
Instructor: Helen Rennie
Location: 3 Ingleside Rd, Natick, MA
Thu, Apr 22, 2010 6pm-9pm Waiting List
Sat, Apr 24, 2010 11am-2pm Register

Do you like to eat fish in restaurants, but are scared to cook it at home? Or, are you bored of baking salmon with a squirt of lemon, but not sure how to expand your repertoire? Come to this class and explore the bounty of the sea available to us in New England. You'll learn to find a good fish market in your area, buy the freshest fish, learn all about fish personalities and substitutions, and test fish for doneness. We'll make salmon teriyaki, trout in almonds, halibut in sorrel sauce, broiled bluefish, and swordfish Provençal. Note: the dishes vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $90 per person
Instructor: Helen Rennie
Location: 3 Ingleside Rd, Natick, MA
Sat, Mar 13, 2010 11am-2pm Waiting List
Thu, Apr 29, 2010 6pm-9pm Waiting List
Sat, May 1, 2010 11am-2pm Register

Few kitchen tasks are more satisfying than making your own pasta - the joy of kneading the dough, the art of shaping it to your liking, and the pleasure of that perfect bite. Home-made pasta does not require expensive equipment, hard to find ingredients, or years of practice. After this class you'll be a pro at making the dough for pasta and gnocchi, rolling it out, shaping it, and cooking it perfectly al dente. You'll learn how to prepare several sauces and how to match them to your pasta. Dishes might include potato gnocchi with wild mushrooms and sage butter, leek ravioli with parmesan broth, trofie (hand-shaped pasta) al pesto, and sweet potato tortellini. Note: the dishes vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. This class is vegetarian. Limited to 8 people.

One 4h session / $90 per person
Instructor: Mark DesLauriers
Location: 1 Fitchburg St, Somerville, MA
Allergy warning: this location has cats.
Sat, Mar 20, 2010 11am-3pm Waiting List
Sat, May 1, 2010 11am-3pm Register
Sat, May 15, 2010 11am-3pm Register

Have you ever made a perfect roast chicken? Have you ever eaten one? What about duck -- have you tried it in a restaurant, but are not sure how to tackle it at home? If you want to gain in-depth understanding of how to cook poultry, this class is for you. Which bird tastes best: local, free-range, organic, air-chilled, or kosher? Should you rinse your poultry? Is a stick of butter under the skin the only way to keep the breast from drying out? Is brining worth it? When is the bird done? How do you get the skin to brown before the meat overcooks? If you've been losing sleep over these questions, come and learn everything you ever wanted to know about poultry. You'll get hands on practice with cutting up birds, trussing, roasting, pan searing, braising, and making pan sauces. Dishes might include roast chicken with porcini sauce, seared duck breasts with port reduction, duck legs braised in red wine, and Moroccan chicken tagine. Dishes vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $90 per person
Instructor: Helen Rennie
Location: 3 Ingleside Rd, Natick, MA
Thu, Mar 25, 2010 6pm-9pm Waiting List
Thu, May 6, 2010 6pm-9pm Register

Sauce making is one of the most enjoyable kitchen tasks. It unleashes your creativity and gives you room for infinite variations. Once you understand the basic principles of contemporary sauces, you'll be a slave to recipes no more! We realize that you don't have homemade veal stock on hand, and don't find dousing your asparagus in artery clogging Hollandaise that appealing. But that doesn't mean that you can't dress up your dishes with vibrant sauces in less than 15 minutes. In this class, you'll learn how to choose the right ingredients and equipment, how to make pan sauces with the techniques of deglazing and reduction, how to thicken sauces without making them lumpy, and how to make various cold sauces and toppings. Dishes might include fennel grapefruit salad with shallot vinaigrette, scallops with asparagus sauce, roast chicken with porcini cream sauce, and steak with red wine reduction. Dishes vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $90 per person
Instructor: Helen Rennie
Location: 3 Ingleside Rd, Natick, MA
Sat, Mar 27, 2010 11am-2pm Waiting List
Sat, May 8, 2010 11am-2pm Register

How confident are you when you step up to the butcher counter? Do you know what cuts to get for braising vs. roasting vs. grilling vs. pan searing? While everyone can throw a piece of meat on the grill, taking it off can be a little tricky. How do you know when it's cooked to your liking? Do you season before or after cooking? Should you crank the heat up or turn it down? This class will answer all your meat buying and cooking questions. We'll discuss the cuts of beef, lamb, and pork; learn appropriate cooking methods for each cut; practice trimming and trussing steaks and roasts; and eliminate guesswork out of testing meat for doneness. Dishes will vary with the season and availability of ingredients, but are likely to include a beef steak with herb butter, a lamb top roast with garlic cream, beef stew with apricots, and baby-back pork ribs. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $90 per person
Instructor: Helen Rennie
Location: 3 Ingleside Rd, Natick, MA
Thu, Mar 18, 2010 6pm-9pm Waiting List
Sat, Mar 20, 2010 11am-2pm Waiting List
Thu, May 13, 2010 6pm-9pm Register

Do you remember the first time you entered a Pâtisserie? The intoxicating smell of chocolate, coffee, and caramelized fruit; the difficulty of deciding between five types of éclairs, tarts, macaroons, and cakes; and that perfect first bite... The only thing that might be more fun than eating French pastries is making them. This class will give you the confidence to tackle complex desserts by breaking them down into their building blocks: pâte à choux (puff dough), puff pastry, pastry cream, caramel, and ganache. Once you master these techniques you can combine them into an infinite number of elegant desserts. In class, we might make éclairs, profiteroles, Paris-Brest (cream puff ring stuffed with pastry and whipped cream) and a show-stopping Gâteau Saint-Honoré (puff pastry and cream puff cake). A light savory meal will be provided to leave plenty of room for dessert. Note: dishes may vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. This class is vegetarian. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $80 per person
Instructor: Leslie Wolf
Location: Pleasant Street near Belmont Center (exact address sent to registrants)
Sat, Mar 13, 2010 11am-2pm Waiting List
Sat, Apr 17, 2010 11am-2pm Waiting List
Fri, Apr 30, 2010 6pm-9pm Waiting List

What can be more satisfying than filling the air with buttery perfume and welcoming your guests to the table with freshly baked loaves of rich holiday breads? In this class, you'll master the brioche technique (egg and butter enriched, yeast-based dough) that is the foundation for panettone, stollen, challah, kulich, and many other European holiday breads. It lends itself to infinite sweet and savory variations giving you room for creativity and improvisation. This class will take the mystery out of working with yeast, ingredient measurements, proper kneading technique, shaping, filling, proofing, and knowing the right moment to get your bread out of the oven. In class, we'll make classic brioche loaf (buttery French holiday bread), petite brioche à tête (little rolls), rolled morning buns with cinnamon and chocolate, and a beautiful torta filled with vegetables and cheeses. So roll up your sleeves and come ready to knead and bake. Note: the dishes vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. This class is vegetarian. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $80 per person
Instructor: Leslie Wolf
Location: Pleasant Street near Belmont Center (exact address sent to registrants)
Fri, Mar 19, 2010 11am-2pm Waiting List

Yeah right! If it was that easy, there'd be more great pies and tarts in this world. Have you been struggling with Pâte Brisée (pie and tart dough)? Or were you too intimidated to even try it? Worry no more. This class will give you plenty of hands-on experience with making full-proof dough, rolling it out, shaping it, making savory and sweet fillings, and baking your creations. Dishes might include a tomato tart with caramelized onions and gruyere, spinach and mushroom quiche, apricot galette (free-form tart), and pear tart Tatin. Note: the dishes vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. This class is vegetarian. Limited to 8 people.

One 4h session / $90 per person
Instructor: Leslie Wolf
Location: Pleasant Street near Belmont Center (exact address sent to registrants)
Sat, Mar 27, 2010 10am-2pm Waiting List
Sat, Apr 10, 2010 10am-2pm Waiting List

For the best pizza in the world, you have to travel to Naples; for focaccia, to Genoa; for biscotti, to Tuscany. Or, you can learn the secrets of rustic Italian baking and make these specialties in your own kitchen! You'll learn to knead, shape, and proof yeast doughs for pizza and focaccia, and to make your own toppings and sauces. We will start with the basic Pizza Rossa (tomato and mozzarella); then we'll let the season and our imagination be our guide as we play with various sauces and toppings. We'll make a savory focaccia with rosemary, sweet focaccia with fruit, and leaf shaped fougasse with gorgonzola and walnuts. No Italian baking class would be complete without biscotti. Whether they are Tuscan-style with almond and orange, or Venetian-style with cornmeal and currants, they are the ultimate cookie for dunking. Note: dishes may vary based on the season and availability of ingredients. This class is vegetarian. Limited to 8 people.

One 3h session / $80 per person
Instructor: Leslie Wolf
Location: Pleasant Street near Belmont Center (exact address sent to registrants)
Wed, Mar 31, 2010 6pm-9pm Waiting List
Fri, Apr 16, 2010 11am-2pm Waiting List