All Over Albany

A sampling of cooking classes, spring 2012

A few months ago we pulled together a list of some upcoming cooking classes that looked interesting or fun. And people seemed into it.

So, here's a new batch of classes about all sorts of stuff -- from local dairy, to cupcakes, to comfort food, to sushi, to grilling sausage, to Indian, to canning, to crackers, to... bacon.

This is not a comprehensive listing. If there's something not on here that you think is worth a mention, please share!

April 17: Udderly Fresh Dairy Dishes at Different Drummers
The Chefs Consortium will be teaching a class about how to turn local organic milk into Greek yogurt cheesecake, homemade ricotta, yogurt, custard, and pana cotta. $65

April 18: Cupcakes and Buttercream at Gio Culinary Studio
"Students will learn professional techniques to produce 2 classic styles of real buttercream frosting, turn them into different flavors and use them to decorate their own gourmet cupcakes." Gio Morina specializes in cakes -- and he's competed on the Food Network. $45

April 30: An Epicurean Dinner with Dominique at Different Drummer's
Dominique Brialy, chef at The Epicurean in Latham, on making an elegant French meal: salmon tartare, chicken roulade stuffed with spinach and brie with mustard sauce, sauteed potatoes and cabbage, chocolate pot de creme. $69

May 2: Comfort Foods... Flavor Forward at Spoon & Whisk
Rory Moran from the upcoming Comfort Eats Kitchen in Saratoga on how to "to buy, grind, and grill outstanding burgers, make Mac & Cheese to order,and whip up some spectacularly simple desserts." $45

May 2: Fresh Ravioli at Gio Culinary Studio
How to make three types of ravioli -- Mushroom Ravioli, Three Cheese Ravioli, Lobster Ravioli -- from scratch. $45

May 5: Sushi Hands-on at Different Drummer's
With ace sushi chef Yasuo Saso and his wife Kathy Saso (formerly of Saso's). California roll, cucumber roll, smoked salmon and asparagus roll, make-your-own sushi roll. $65

May 17: Travel to Thailand at Different Drummer's
New World chef Ric Orlando on making Thai cuisine: pad thai, jungle curry, rare beef salad, green mango salad, pineapple brulee. $69

May 18: Chef AJ Presents Creative Indian Fare at Different Drummer's
Chef Anand Jayapal -- Mallozi's, Miss Sydney's chutneys -- on giving a "makeover" to traditional Indian dishes: chutney pizza, kabob sliders, pappadam chips and raita, sweetened Cream of Wheat cake, chai consommé, rum raisin ice cream. $65

May 23: Croissants at Gio Culinary Studio
How to make croissants, along with sweet and savory fillings. $45

June 2: Bagels, Pretzels and Bialys - Hands-on at Different Drummer's
Baker Melissa Langeback on chewy bagels, soft pretzels, and bialys. (Here's a clip from a recent class she taught about paczki.)

June 3: Art of Tarts at Arts Center
DreamPuff Marshmallow's Ginny O'Neill on making sweet and savory tarts. A From Scratch Club class. $53

June 10: Waterbath Canning 101 at the Arts Center
From Scratch Club founder Christina Davis on "an intensive up-close opportunity to learn to make pickled vegetables & the basic safety and techniques to return home to 'put up' the summer's bounty." $53

June 13: Crackers, Flatbreads & Grissini at Spoon & Whisk
Sue Hatalsky on how to make "herbed flat bread, multi-grained olive crackers, and breadsticks." $45

June 18: Art and Construction of Homemade Sausages for Grilling at The Arts Center
Nighthawk's Kitchen's Christian Noe (interesting person) on how to make sausage, and some recipes ideal for grilling. Albany Jane took one of Christian's sausage making classes earlier this year and it sounded good. (Class repeats on July 23, August 20.) $43

June 24: Makin' Bacon at The Arts Center
Erika and Chris Tebbens on the step-by-step process to cure your own bacon at home. A From Scratch Club class. $40

July 25: Summer Artisan Cheeses at Spoon & Whisk
Honest Weight fan favorite Gustav Ericson on types of summer cheeses and pairing them. $45

The Arts Center advertises on AOA.

photo: Gio Culinary Studio