The gift that keeps on giving.

What: Cooking Class Review “Feeling Saucey”
Who: Taught by Jacqui Renager
Where: Kitchen Barn,
Hilltop North Shopping Center, 1628 Laskin Road, VA Beach, VA 23451 * (757) 422-0888

When: 2/20/16, 3:30-5:30 More classes

My husband Mike gave me a gift certificate for a cooking class as a Christmas present and I just used it. This is the second “cooking gift certificate” he has given me so I’m starting to wonder if this is a hint! I will admit that I have cooked him some pretty “unusual” meals in the past. He will never let me forget about the time I gave him

chicken wrapped in pancakes and tried to pass them off as crapes. He called them craps >:(. I do think my cooking skills have improved with my quest for getting and staying healthy and because now that I’m retired I have more time to research and cook.

I had the opportunity to pick one of several classes being offered at Kitchen Barn. I reviewed the courses on their website and thought the sauces class looked the most interesting to me. They also offered fish, vegetarian, pizza and brunch recipe classes.

Kitchen Barn is a wonderful store that is chocked full of everything that’s kitchen related. If you have never been there you should definitely go and check out all they have to offer.

When I walked into Kitchen Barn I was immediately greeted and directed to the back of the store where their kitchen and cooking demonstrating area is located. There is bar seating overlooking a big cooking island and demo area. Jacqui, the cooking class teacher was friendly, very knowledgeable and included everyone in preparing the recipes we learned that evening. When I booked my class they let me know that I could bring wine, beer or soda if I wanted. They provide bottled water and water infused with berries and cucumber (delicious). I decided to bring a hard cider because I thought that would go with all the sauces.

We all got turns stirring, smelling and best of all tasting all the three delicious meals containing our three sauces.

The three sauces we learned to make and were given recipes for were:

1. White Wine Sauce

Great on chicken, fish, shellfish and pasta. This sauce was used on a chicken, pasta, tomato and asparagus dish.

Takeaway – An easy sauce consisting of chopped onion, chicken broth, white wine, white wine vinegar, butter and chives. I’ve made this sauce before but never with white wine vinegar. I love trying something new and this was delicious. This was a thin sauce, when I’ve made this in the past I’ve added more olive oil, and garlic. I tend to use garlic in most recipes (keeps away vampires and sickness :).
Wine I would serve: Pinot Grigio

 

2. Bechamel Sauce

This is a French sauce which was used to make Macaroni and cheese.

Takeaway – This recipe was a little more complex and consisted of milk, onion, nutmeg, bay leaf, butter, flour, salt & pepper. You have to strain the sauce to get the solid onion pieces out.
Wine I would serve: Chardonnay

The Macaroni and cheese tasted good but the nutmeg taste did throw me off a bit. I’ve never had mac & cheese with nutmeg before and I enjoyed trying it but I think I like it a little better without. You should definitely give it a try.

3. Blue Cheese Horseradish Cream Sauce

This sauce was used over thinly sliced, cooked beef.

Takeaway – This recipe surprised me and was my favorite of the class. The reason it surprised me is that I hate Blue Cheese. It’s crazy that I loved this sauce which consisted of butter, garlic, white wine, whole milk, cream, fresh grated horseradish, crumbled blue cheese, and salt & pepper. The Blue Cheese wasn’t overwhelming, it was balanced with the other ingredients and tasted delicious.
Wine I would serve: Pinot Noir

This was an awesome class and I learned a lot even though I’ve been cooking for a long time. It’s always interesting to see how other people cook and prepare food. It’s so easy to get into a rut with food and keep fixing the same things over and over.

A useful tip I learned – if you are making Eggs Benedict and your Hollandaise Sauce breaks there is an easy fix. Beat another egg yoke then whip it into the broken sauce and it’s fixed! I can’t wait to try this.

This class inspired me to make a meal with Pork Chops, brown rice and green beans, with a Dijon cream sauce. I paired it with a nice Pinot Noir (Sea Glass – you can find it at Wal-Mart for about $10)

Here is the recipe for my sauce:

Creamy Dijon, Horseradish, & Cheese Sauce

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoon of olive oil
½ onion
2 teaspoons of minced garlic
½ cup white wine (I used Riesling)
½ cup whole milk
½ cup cream
2 teaspoons of fresh grated horseradish
1 cup Mozzarella cheese
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
salt & pepper to taste
1 teaspoon cornstarch
¼ cup cold water

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a pan then add the butter (heating the oil first helps keep the butter from burning). Cook the onion till tender then add the garlic and stir for about a minute.
2. Add the wine to deglaze the pan and cook until the wine reduces to a few tablespoons.
3. Add milk, cream, horseradish, cheese and whisk until cheese is melted.
4. Put cold water in a cup and mix in cornstarch until it is a smooth consistency.
5. Stir in 1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixture to the sauce to thicken, adding more if necessary.

If you love good food, cooking and learning something new take a cooking class from Jacqui Renager, you will be glad you did. I had a wonderful evening where I met new friends, learned a lot about cooking and ate delicious food.

Thank you Mike for the wonderful present. I must have learned something because he ate every bit of the Pork Chops with my Dijon sauce inspired by my class. I think learning presents are great, they make me think of the old saying – give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime. Contact Jacqui Renager at Kitchen Barn and give the gift of learning to cook, it’s a gift that everyone will enjoy for a lifetime.

Cheers – Carrie