Markets plus Cooking Class
Something else to do in Paris
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Cook’n With Class is not only a French cooking school, it is also a place to have fun, explore the best in French cuisine, taste new foods and interact with people from all over the world. Generally everyone will be cooking everything together, with each student having his or her own dish to prepare, so you can eat what you have prepared and cooked. The class is a hands-on experience where you will learn a variety of recipes and soak up the knowledge of professional chefs. The maximum number of students per class is 6 and all classes are taught in English.
At the end of the cooking session, everyone sits down around the convivial dining table and enjoys the meal together with a nice bottle of wine. A most enjoyable moment when people can discuss the recipes, savour the exquisite food and who knows find out much more about wining and dining and life in Paris.
There are a wide variety of class options. There are morning and evening market classes, cheese and wine, French desserts, breadmaking, baking, organic vegetarian etc. etc. Take a look at their calendar of classes on www.cooknwithclass.com for the full list.
Here is the proposal for the Morning Market Class
Our market classes consist of a visit to a local market to discover the seasonal ingredients and fresh produce. Learning how to select fresh products is the first step to good cooking and good eating. Meet local merchants to whom you are welcome to ask questions and overcome any apprehension you may have about shopping in French markets. Back at the school we will have a brief discussion about the day’s menu and the ingredients, you will be provided with an apron and have a quick reminder on how to handle a knife safely. Following the hands-on cooking class we sit down together to eat what we have prepared: a 3 course meal with dessert & cheese and a nice bottle of wine, cake decorating, art & food, macaroons,
Class duration – 5 hours. Price per person 185€
And here is a Thumbs Up Review from March 2011
My wife and I did the "Morning Market" class, which involved a trip to small local stores (cheese shop, butcher, fruit/vegetable market, bakery, fishmonger) then cooking the stuff we bought and eating the finished product. Our instructor Alex was great and though I had been sceptical of the "trip to the market" part this was a highlight: we learned a ton about French culture as well as food. Our group (5 "students" plus Alex) got to select the core parts of the menu (what meat, what fish, what desserts) and then he suggested recipes going along with what we had chosen. The cooking part was fun and the food came out excellent - will be trying these recipes again at home (Alex emailed them to us a couple days afterward).
This is a pricey activity overall, but when you figure that it's an educational tour plus a cooking class, plus all the food (we ate better than we did at a high-end restaurant later that week) it's a good value. Most refreshingly given the nickel-and-diming of many service-oriented businesses these days is that though this course is pricey, they don't cut corners or tack on extra fees. Want to open another bottle of wine at dinner? No problem. Want to make two different desserts (our group of 5 was split between a couple choices)? That's fine too, let's do both - and no worries about additional charges, it's definitely a "keep the customer happy" sort of place. Small class size gave it an intimate feel and we all got to be hands-on with the cooking.
Would definitely do this again (though probably trying a different course for variety) next time I'm in France.