Cooking in France Continued – Chickpea Salad; Upcoming A.C.E. Cooking Class – Italian Desserts; Cooking Basics 101 Continues.

Post Date: 18 October 2018

                                                     Evening in the village Square in Uzes

Continuing the discussion of my recent culinary adventures in France, in this post I will be discussing a delicious, easy to make Chickpea Salad from my friend Marie-Christine Blight.

Chickpea Salad

 

 

This salad is best if assembled before making dinner so the ingredients have a chance to sit before serving.  You start with salt, pepper, and red wine vinegar, then add Olive Oil, chopped Shallots, cut up Tomato, Kalamata Olives and drained and rinsed canned Chickpeas, then mix to combine.  In addition, you can include Anchovies (packed in oil, not in salt) and a broken up hard-boiled egg.

 Any leftovers can be stored I the fridge for lunch the next day.

 

Cacio e Pepe with Peas

 

I was looking for something quick last Friday night, so I decided on a Cacio e Pepe with frozen Peas, which I put in boiling water, then drained before adding to the Cacio e Pepe.  I used thin spaghetti, which did not take long to get to al dente, or just below it, since you want to finish the spaghetti in the pan with some of the reserved spaghetti water.  I used Parmesan Cheese, and the addition of the Peas made a nice complement to the pepper and saltiness of the Parmesan.

ACE Class Cooking Basics 101 Continues

 

 

Pictured above is Pan Fried Chicken Italiano with Blanched Broccoli, the main dish from Session 1.

 
The second session of this class meets this Sunday afternoon Sunday, October 22, at the Plum Center in Springfield.  This week we will make a traditional French Vinaigrette and a no bake dessert featuring strawberries.  The main course will be cooked in the oven, Baked Salmon, while the vegetable dish will be Sautéed Asparagus.

We will also be discussing the spice profiles from several popular cuisines, how long to store spices, and the most common types of salt.

Upcoming ACE Class: Italian Desserts

 

This 2 session class meets on Saturday mornings November 4 and 11 at 10:00 AM at Woodson High School.  In this class we will be making baked and no baked desserts.  Items to be made include Cannoli, Tiramisu, Brutti Ma Buoni (ugly but good) Cookies and Olive Oil Pound Cake.

 

 

Reminder – Instagam

 

Follow me on Instagram at #senseichef.  I look forward to your comments on my posts, culinary and otherwise.

 

 

Upcoming Classes

 

Here are my remaining class for the fall term.  Winter catalogue will be out soon.

November 4, 11 – Saturday Morning – Italian Desserts – Woodson High School

 

To register for these classes, or any ACE cooking classes, please go to:

 

http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/

While there, be sure to check out the other culinary courses offered by ACE’s excellent chef instructors.

 

 

Till next time, keep cooking.

 

Contact Chef Kevin at: KJBrady@fcps.edu

 

 

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