“Mom, can we have butternut squash ravioli for Thanksgiving?” After participating in a pasta-making tutorial, a ten-year-old boy did just ask that question. And why not eat ravioli for Thanksgiving; it is so delicious! This ravioli recipe has two of the essential Thanksgiving ingredients: squash and sage. Making pasta created quite a sensation last Saturday. Kelly […]

Kirsten writes, “Just wanted you to know that I’m in preparation of the perfect pie crust. This morning, I pulled out a bowl, pastry cutter, measuring devices, gravy separator, spatula, and ingredients. With the voice of a great mentor chanting in my mind (“cold dough, hot oven!”), I’m excited about creating a traditional Thanksgiving feast […]

At big family meals, we always have carrots, because they look colorful and everybody likes carrots, and (most importantly for the cook) they can be made days ahead of time and easily reheated. Nobody ever says, “let’s have carrots tonight!” but if you serve carrots, be sure to peel and cut twice as many as you think […]

“A Passion for Cooking“ features the recipes from over a hundred different chefs who have cooked at Kitchen Conservatory. One of our favorite recipes from that cookbook – which several staff members make every Thanksgiving — is a pudding from chef Jim Voss of Duff’s (who also chefed for The Grateful Dead). Don’t miss his cooking class on […]

Sandy writes, “What’s your favorite non-dairy stuffing? I can’t mix meat and dairy.” Fair enough; tis the season for chestnuts! Fresh chestnuts can be hard to find, but frozen or canned whole, peeled chestnuts are readily available at specialty grocery stores. Chestnut Dressing 1 loaf of bread, preferably French baguette, cubed 1/2 cup duck fat 4 cups chopped […]

To stuff or not to stuff? I am firmly on the stuffer side of the debate. When the dressing is inside of the bird, it is basted with flavorful meat juices. The extra dressing baked on the side is never as tasty. The key to a good dressing is lots of seasonings: cook the aromatics first […]

Our favorite holiday, Thanksgiving, which is all about eating delicious food, is coming up. Besides ordering your turkey, you can also make ahead the cranberry relish. Here is a favorite recipe. We still have a few openings in our upcoming Thanksgiving cooking classes. To find all of our favorite tools for making a perfect Thanksgiving dinner. Cranberry-Apricot Relish […]

Roosters are sometimes identified as “useless roosters.” They consume, but they do not produce and multiple roosters in a coop can create an unsettled environment (see the picture of the rooster chasing the hen!). When we buy chickens, hens cost $5, but the roosters are free. (If you buy chicks, the sex cannot yet be determined, […]

Last night, we took a Kitchen Conservatory staff field trip to eat desserts at Sidney Street Cafe. Why? Because one of our own, Christie Saali (who started working at Kitchen Conservatory in 2000) is now the pastry chef at Sidney Street. We had to eat each and every one of her delectable desserts. Pictured here […]

Dear Chef,  I had the pleasure of taking your seafood and fish class last Saturday (October 17), and I wanted to thank Kitchen Conservatory for a great learning experience. I was amazed how much information was packed into one day of cooking. I learned skills and information that I will carry with me from now on, […]