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Culinary class crafts tempting treats
By LOGAN D. MABE, Times Staff Writer
CITRUS PARK -- Brittany Beaudoin and Heather Schroeder were tickled pink over their watermelon peacock. The Sickles High School juniors fashioned the fruit salad server out of a fresh watermelon, then filled it with succulent melons, pineapple and strawberries. "It's our masterpiece," Beaudoin said. It's also part of the grand hors d'oeuvres menu put together by Judy Latz's culinary arts students, all 140 of them chefs in training. Now in its second year, the program is picking up steam with the addition of a restaurant-quality kitchen and the conversion of a classroom into the "Gryphon Guild Cafe." The kitchen is just a week old, and the cafe is a few months from a grand opening, but the students are on schedule to cater at least a dozen events this year. Their first task was preparing nibbles for a party of 60 at the School Advisory Committee joint leadership council Wednesday night. The menu included vegetarian pizza, Swedish meatballs, a chocolate-dipped strawberry tree, hot artichoke and spinach dip, Southwestern grilled chicken wraps and the grand peacock fruit salad. "Our overall goal is to prepare them for immediate employment in the restaurant industry or preparation for postsecondary culinary education," Latz said. "The students wanted a culinary program. They like food." Because of intense academic and hands-on training, culinary students are able to start in the industry at a higher rate of pay, Latz said. "It gives them a chance to go into the work force and start earning a living. It's the fastest-growing employability career in the state of Florida," she said. It's also fun. "We love it because we love food," Beaudoin said. "I've always wanted to learn how to cook. I take recipes home to cook with my mom." Senior Sarah Johnson carefully cooked dipping chocolate in a double boiler while explaining her appreciation for the class. "Ever since I was little, I was always baking," Johnson said, dipping strawberries. "At home I bake all the time. This class is as good as gold, so I took it." Latz said she uses the "Pro-Start" culinary curriculum, designed by the National Restaurant Association. The organization honored her as its first culinary teacher of the year. "We have people here who have never done this before," Latz said. "But we're doing what professional caterers do." -- Logan D. Mabe can be reached at 269-5304 or at mabe@sptimes.com.
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From the Times |
