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experiencelifemag.com
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A Trip in Good Taste
Take a culinary vacation to learn about healthier, more creative ways to cook - and discover the culture, history and geography behind what you eat.
By Debra Bokur |
January-February 2008 |
The Cultural Kitchen
Getting Hands-On
Beyond the Stove
What's Right For You?
Get Cooking
For as far as I can see, lemon trees stretch toward the
Santa Barbara horizon, their branches heavy with sweetly scented fruit. Beneath
the California sun, Andrew Gibson, the chef de cuisine at Bacara Resort and Spa,
is leading a small group of us along paths between the lush rows of organic
vegetables, fruits and herbs grown here on the resort’s 1,000-acre ranch. Later,
he’ll supervise a cooking class using the fresh ingredients we’ve gathered
and reveal his secrets for preparing healthy, delicious meals with seasonal,
sustainably produced ingredients. Though I’m only here overnight, I’ve been
promised that my experience will help me jump-start a healthier way of cooking
and eating.
In a culture overwhelmed by fast-food restaurants and prepackaged
foods, it is this promise that’s driving vacationers like me to explore hands-on
culinary experiences. While some are simply interested in expanding their
already-rich kitchen knowledge, many others are just beginning to realize the
value of cooking — for health and pleasure. They’re seeking expert resources to
help them cultivate the skills necessary to make nourishing recipes and
nutritious food preparation a regular part of their at-home repertoire — and
they’re traveling far and wide to do it.
The Cultural Kitchen
If you think traveling to Florida to explore the
secrets of preparing protein-rich seafood or jetting off to Napa to discover the
amazing flavors of organic fruits and vegetables seems a little extreme,
think again. Culinary tourism is one of the travel industry’s hottest trends.
A February 2007 survey conducted by Gourmet magazine and the Travel Industry
Association (TIA) revealed that in the past three years, 27 million travelers
specifically sought out food- and wine-related activities during their journeys.
These included kitchen demonstrations with accomplished chefs, interactive
cooking classes, visits to artisan cheese makers and other small-scale food
producers, and tours of farms, vineyards, gourmet food shops and farmers’
markets.
“It is through food that people learn about different
cultures,” says David Loy, president and founder of Epitourean, a Denver-based
company specializing in culinary tourism. “When people take cooking classes
while traveling, they not only learn about new techniques and how to prepare new
dishes, they also gain an understanding of what’s involved from a cultural
perspective. There’s a personal involvement.”
Immersing yourself in the local
food scene — even for just a day or two — provides a unique portal to the
history and culture of a place, whether that’s on the other side of the state or
the other side of the world. “Food transcends language,” explains Leah Caplan,
chef and proprietor of The Washington Hotel, Restaurant and Culinary School in
Washington Island, Wis. “It’s one of the most significant parts of a culture. I
began traveling around the world when I was only 5 years old, and food was a way
of
communicating with others.”
Getting Hands-On
While cooking getaways can vary in focus, length and
location, they generally accommodate all levels of experience. Some emphasize
hands-on cooking or specific regional dishes, others involve more-active trips
that include food-related side tours. Still others require only that you enjoy
the chef-led demonstrations and then indulge in the finished dishes. Regardless
of the getaway, there’s always a trick for you to take home and test in your own
kitchen.
Susan Rogol of Boston came away from her first culinary vacation at
The Inn at Essex in Essex Junction, Vt., with a newfound knowledge of how the
textures and strengths of different salts can enhance simple recipes. She had
traveled to The Inn — home of the New England Culinary Institute — with her
husband, Michael, to take part in the Chef “Inn” Training program offered by
Chef Courtney Contos.
Part of the class involved exploring the Institute’s
gardens to pick edible flowers, herbs and vegetables for use in the day’s recipes. In the kitchen, Chef Contos assigned tasks, such as chopping herbs and
preparing croutons, to different members of the small group. When one guest
asked her to recommend her favorite brand of vanilla extract, she taught the
group how to make their own using vanilla beans and cognac. Once the meal was
prepared, the group sat down together to enjoy the fruits of their labor.
Rogol went home with a valuable new set of kitchen skills and techniques, as
well as a deeper sense of food inspiration. “We
learned a lot about what it
means to eat locally,” says Rogol, “and how much better foods taste when
they’re picked fresh that day rather than shipped or transported from another
part of the country.”
Beyond the Stove
While being handy in the kitchen isn’t a requirement for
a culinary vacation, taking a local cooking class beforehand can help increase
your enjoyment. You’ll acquire a few basic skills before leaving home, and
you’ll get a better sense of the type of cooking trip you’d most enjoy.
“Take some classes at a local cooking school before your vacation to decide
if you want demonstration classes, or if you want hands-on participation classes
where you actually cook and work closely with a chef,” advises Claire Walter,
author of Culinary Colorado: The Ultimate Food Lover’s Guide (Fulcrum
Publishing, 2003). “In a participation class, you really learn, because you
experience what the process feels like. You get used to the rhythm of working in
a kitchen with several other people, and you become familiar with the use of
various kitchen gadgets. If nothing else, I suggest at least taking a class that
teaches some basic knife skills, which can be invaluable in both a class
situation and when you’re back at home in your own kitchen.”
If you’re
concerned that you’ll find yourself shackled to a stove the whole time you’re
away, there’s no need to worry. Besides cooking classes, there’s usually ample
time built in to itineraries for sightseeing, shopping, hiking or other
activities. Be sure to choose a tour that allows you as much freedom as you need
for solo excursions or the occasional spa treatment. Rogol and her husband, for
instance, specifically chose The Inn at Essex because they wanted to spend time
cycling and hiking in the countryside.
My goal at Bacara was to learn how to
prepare healthier meals for myself and my family, without sacrificing flavor or
satisfaction. As a bonus, I got firsthand tips from the chefs on growing my own
herbs at home. Now I have a thriving windowsill garden of lemon balm, rosemary,
mint, oregano and several types of basil.
My next trip? Learning how to
cultivate tomatoes at the 8,500-foot elevation where I live. I already have my
eye on a half-dozen seed packets of heirloom tomatoes and a fabulous recipe for
gazpacho I can’t wait to try.
Debra Bokur is the wellness editor at Healing Lifestyles & Spas magazine
and has participated in a number of culinary tours around the world.
What's Right For You?
With so many kinds of food trips available, it’s important to decide what you
want to take away from your experience. Epitourean (www.epitourean.com), a Denver-based online
travel company, can help you create a trip that suits your needs. Here’s
what you can expect from different types of culinary
vacations:
- Hands-on cooking adventures — These trips offer time in the
kitchen working under the direction of a supervising chef. They sometimes
include outside visits to markets, farms and food producers to pick fresh
ingredients to use in recipes.
- Culinary tours — Expect to tour
farms, meet artisan food producers, and learn about sustainable and organic
farming methods. These tours tend to focus on the regional and cultural
backgrounds of the foods and dishes you’re exploring. Guests usually do no
cooking.
- Specialty cooking classes — Learn specific cooking skills,
such as how to prepare regional Italian specialties, diabetic dishes, vegan
fare, gluten-free meals, and so on.
- Chef demos — Sit back and enjoy as
a chef prepares dishes while sharing helpful tips and techniques. It’s similar
to watching a cooking program, but you’ll be a participant rather than a distant
observer.
Get Cooking
Explore unique food experiences around the country at these resorts, farms and
B&Bs. Prices vary depending on the number of people in your group and the
activities included, and they can range anywhere from $50 for an afternoon class
to thousands of dollars for multiweek immersion experiences. Contact the
individual organizations for details.
Bacara Resort and Spa — This resort in
Santa Barbara, Calif., offers cooking classes as well as extended-stay
Destination Transformation guest programs. 805-968-0100; www.bacararesort.com
Blackberry Farm —
Partake in a wide variety of chef-led cooking classes at this small hotel in the
Great Smoky Mountains of east Tennessee. 800-648-4252; www.blackberryfarm.com
Gourmet
Retreats at Casa Lana — Experience cooking adventures in the heart of Napa
Valley for a day, weekend or week, and learn lifelong culinary skills.
877-968-2665; www.gourmetretreats.com
Hartstone
Inn — This B&B in Camden, Maine, offers cooking-class weekends, private
group cooking classes and a “Chef for a Day” program. 800-788-4823; www.hartstoneinn.com
Juniper Hills
Farm — Home of the Onion Creek Kitchen Classes, this farm in Texas’s Blanco
River Valley offers cooking classes for all levels of expertise. 830-833-0910; www.juniperhillsfarm.com The
Inn at Essex — Enroll in the Chef “Inn” Training program at this culinary resort
in Vermont and get hands-on experience as you prepare a three-course meal; other
cooking classes and culinary events available. 802-878-1100; www.vtculinaryresort.com
The
Washington Hotel, Restaurant and Culinary School — This century-old hotel in
Washington Island, Wis., offers private classes for up to 10 people, as well as
cooking courses and a seminar on local and sustainable food purchasing.
920-847-2169;
www.thewashingtonhotel.com
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A Trip in Good Taste
Take a culinary vacation to learn about healthier, more creative ways to cook - and discover the culture, history and geography behind what you eat.
By Debra Bokur | Head Out Department,
January-February 2008 |
The Cultural Kitchen
Getting Hands-On
Beyond the Stove
What's Right For You?
Get Cooking
For as far as I can see, lemon trees stretch toward the
Santa Barbara horizon, their branches heavy with sweetly scented fruit. Beneath
the California sun, Andrew Gibson, the chef de cuisine at Bacara Resort and Spa,
is leading a small group of us along paths between the lush rows of organic
vegetables, fruits and herbs grown here on the resort’s 1,000-acre ranch. Later,
he’ll supervise a cooking class using the fresh ingredients we’ve gathered
and reveal his secrets for preparing healthy, delicious meals with seasonal,
sustainably produced ingredients. Though I’m only here overnight, I’ve been
promised that my experience will help me jump-start a healthier way of cooking
and eating.
In a culture overwhelmed by fast-food restaurants and prepackaged
foods, it is this promise that’s driving vacationers like me to explore hands-on
culinary experiences. While some are simply interested in expanding their
already-rich kitchen knowledge, many others are just beginning to realize the
value of cooking — for health and pleasure. They’re seeking expert resources to
help them cultivate the skills necessary to make nourishing recipes and
nutritious food preparation a regular part of their at-home repertoire — and
they’re traveling far and wide to do it.
The Cultural Kitchen (Back to Top)
If you think traveling to Florida to explore the
secrets of preparing protein-rich seafood or jetting off to Napa to discover the
amazing flavors of organic fruits and vegetables seems a little extreme,
think again. Culinary tourism is one of the travel industry’s hottest trends.
A February 2007 survey conducted by Gourmet magazine and the Travel Industry
Association (TIA) revealed that in the past three years, 27 million travelers
specifically sought out food- and wine-related activities during their journeys.
These included kitchen demonstrations with accomplished chefs, interactive
cooking classes, visits to artisan cheese makers and other small-scale food
producers, and tours of farms, vineyards, gourmet food shops and farmers’
markets.
“It is through food that people learn about different
cultures,” says David Loy, president and founder of Epitourean, a Denver-based
company specializing in culinary tourism. “When people take cooking classes
while traveling, they not only learn about new techniques and how to prepare new
dishes, they also gain an understanding of what’s involved from a cultural
perspective. There’s a personal involvement.”
Immersing yourself in the local
food scene — even for just a day or two — provides a unique portal to the
history and culture of a place, whether that’s on the other side of the state or
the other side of the world. “Food transcends language,” explains Leah Caplan,
chef and proprietor of The Washington Hotel, Restaurant and Culinary School in
Washington Island, Wis. “It’s one of the most significant parts of a culture. I
began traveling around the world when I was only 5 years old, and food was a way
of
communicating with others.”
Getting Hands-On (Back to Top)
While cooking getaways can vary in focus, length and
location, they generally accommodate all levels of experience. Some emphasize
hands-on cooking or specific regional dishes, others involve more-active trips
that include food-related side tours. Still others require only that you enjoy
the chef-led demonstrations and then indulge in the finished dishes. Regardless
of the getaway, there’s always a trick for you to take home and test in your own
kitchen.
Susan Rogol of Boston came away from her first culinary vacation at
The Inn at Essex in Essex Junction, Vt., with a newfound knowledge of how the
textures and strengths of different salts can enhance simple recipes. She had
traveled to The Inn — home of the New England Culinary Institute — with her
husband, Michael, to take part in the Chef “Inn” Training program offered by
Chef Courtney Contos.
Part of the class involved exploring the Institute’s
gardens to pick edible flowers, herbs and vegetables for use in the day’s recipes. In the kitchen, Chef Contos assigned tasks, such as chopping herbs and
preparing croutons, to different members of the small group. When one guest
asked her to recommend her favorite brand of vanilla extract, she taught the
group how to make their own using vanilla beans and cognac. Once the meal was
prepared, the group sat down together to enjoy the fruits of their labor.
Rogol went home with a valuable new set of kitchen skills and techniques, as
well as a deeper sense of food inspiration. “We
learned a lot about what it
means to eat locally,” says Rogol, “and how much better foods taste when
they’re picked fresh that day rather than shipped or transported from another
part of the country.”
Beyond the Stove (Back to Top)
While being handy in the kitchen isn’t a requirement for
a culinary vacation, taking a local cooking class beforehand can help increase
your enjoyment. You’ll acquire a few basic skills before leaving home, and
you’ll get a better sense of the type of cooking trip you’d most enjoy.
“Take some classes at a local cooking school before your vacation to decide
if you want demonstration classes, or if you want hands-on participation classes
where you actually cook and work closely with a chef,” advises Claire Walter,
author of Culinary Colorado: The Ultimate Food Lover’s Guide (Fulcrum
Publishing, 2003). “In a participation class, you really learn, because you
experience what the process feels like. You get used to the rhythm of working in
a kitchen with several other people, and you become familiar with the use of
various kitchen gadgets. If nothing else, I suggest at least taking a class that
teaches some basic knife skills, which can be invaluable in both a class
situation and when you’re back at home in your own kitchen.”
If you’re
concerned that you’ll find yourself shackled to a stove the whole time you’re
away, there’s no need to worry. Besides cooking classes, there’s usually ample
time built in to itineraries for sightseeing, shopping, hiking or other
activities. Be sure to choose a tour that allows you as much freedom as you need
for solo excursions or the occasional spa treatment. Rogol and her husband, for
instance, specifically chose The Inn at Essex because they wanted to spend time
cycling and hiking in the countryside.
My goal at Bacara was to learn how to
prepare healthier meals for myself and my family, without sacrificing flavor or
satisfaction. As a bonus, I got firsthand tips from the chefs on growing my own
herbs at home. Now I have a thriving windowsill garden of lemon balm, rosemary,
mint, oregano and several types of basil.
My next trip? Learning how to
cultivate tomatoes at the 8,500-foot elevation where I live. I already have my
eye on a half-dozen seed packets of heirloom tomatoes and a fabulous recipe for
gazpacho I can’t wait to try.
Debra Bokur is the wellness editor at Healing Lifestyles & Spas magazine
and has participated in a number of culinary tours around the world.
What's Right For You? (Back to Top)
With so many kinds of food trips available, it’s important to decide what you
want to take away from your experience. Epitourean (www.epitourean.com), a Denver-based online
travel company, can help you create a trip that suits your needs. Here’s
what you can expect from different types of culinary
vacations:
- Hands-on cooking adventures — These trips offer time in the
kitchen working under the direction of a supervising chef. They sometimes
include outside visits to markets, farms and food producers to pick fresh
ingredients to use in recipes.
- Culinary tours — Expect to tour
farms, meet artisan food producers, and learn about sustainable and organic
farming methods. These tours tend to focus on the regional and cultural
backgrounds of the foods and dishes you’re exploring. Guests usually do no
cooking.
- Specialty cooking classes — Learn specific cooking skills,
such as how to prepare regional Italian specialties, diabetic dishes, vegan
fare, gluten-free meals, and so on.
- Chef demos — Sit back and enjoy as
a chef prepares dishes while sharing helpful tips and techniques. It’s similar
to watching a cooking program, but you’ll be a participant rather than a distant
observer.
Get Cooking (Back to Top)
Explore unique food experiences around the country at these resorts, farms and
B&Bs. Prices vary depending on the number of people in your group and the
activities included, and they can range anywhere from $50 for an afternoon class
to thousands of dollars for multiweek immersion experiences. Contact the
individual organizations for details.
Bacara Resort and Spa — This resort in
Santa Barbara, Calif., offers cooking classes as well as extended-stay
Destination Transformation guest programs. 805-968-0100; www.bacararesort.com
Blackberry Farm —
Partake in a wide variety of chef-led cooking classes at this small hotel in the
Great Smoky Mountains of east Tennessee. 800-648-4252; www.blackberryfarm.com
Gourmet
Retreats at Casa Lana — Experience cooking adventures in the heart of Napa
Valley for a day, weekend or week, and learn lifelong culinary skills.
877-968-2665; www.gourmetretreats.com
Hartstone
Inn — This B&B in Camden, Maine, offers cooking-class weekends, private
group cooking classes and a “Chef for a Day” program. 800-788-4823; www.hartstoneinn.com
Juniper Hills
Farm — Home of the Onion Creek Kitchen Classes, this farm in Texas’s Blanco
River Valley offers cooking classes for all levels of expertise. 830-833-0910; www.juniperhillsfarm.com The
Inn at Essex — Enroll in the Chef “Inn” Training program at this culinary resort
in Vermont and get hands-on experience as you prepare a three-course meal; other
cooking classes and culinary events available. 802-878-1100; www.vtculinaryresort.com
The
Washington Hotel, Restaurant and Culinary School — This century-old hotel in
Washington Island, Wis., offers private classes for up to 10 people, as well as
cooking courses and a seminar on local and sustainable food purchasing.
920-847-2169;
www.thewashingtonhotel.com
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