Sur La Table prepares a summer repast of classes
By Suzanne Cristallo
As part of its summer culinary program, Sur La Table in Los Gatos' Old Town is featuring some local restaurant chefs as teachers. Wannabe culinary artists are registering now--from 6-year-olds at the cooking "camp," taking a break from Mom to business groups interested in cooking their way toward better corporate relations. Classes run through September.
On June 16, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., representatives from Lunardi's supermarket in Los Gatos will present a barbecue bonanza. The best cuts of meat for grilling will be demonstrated, and the recipes and suggested equipment to enhance them will be offered. The class is free.
For vegetarians, a hands-on class on July 9, at 6:30 p.m. with Miles Neal, chef at California Cafe in Old Town, will help students to properly choose fresh produce, and then create the menu they'll eat at the end of class: creamy garden pea soup; arugula fettuccine with eggplant, red and yellow peppers and feta cheese; Napoleon of pinenut puff pastry; basil mashed potatoes with oven-dried tomatoes and corn sauce; and tri-colored polenta with baby summer squash and chevre (white goat cheese) sauce. Cost is $75. Bring an apron.
Neal will also lead a group through the Los Gatos Farmers' Market on July 22, at 10 a.m. and again on September 23, where participants will have the opportunity to select produce from what is seasonal and then create a lunch with it. The fee is $65. For fish lovers, Neal also will lead a class on August 6, at 6:30 p.m., featuring three ideas for using summer salmon. Cost is $40.
Pastry chef Pascal Janvier, owner of Fleur de Cocoa, the Los Gatos pastry and chocolate shop, will create French summer desserts for his students on July 16, at 6:30 p.m. His expertise will be demonstrated in the creation of four special dishes. They are, with some translations: cherry clafouti--a cake-like topping on fresh fruit, served hot with cream; gateau Basque--a cake from the mountainous region between France and Spain; grilled quatre quart (pound cake) with summer fruit compote; and timbale (a mold) of tapioca and mango. The class is $40.
David Brissenden, executive chef of catering at Cafe Primavera in Los Gatos, will map out a sophisticated picnic on July 25, at 6:30 p.m. Among the seven items he will create are two salads: grilled tiger prawns with melon and mint and a honeydew vinaigrette; and penne pasta with bell peppers, artichokes, red onions, sweetened shallot pesto and balsamic chevre vinaigrette. Brissenden will share tips on the art of packing and presenting the meal. Cost is $40.
From Saratoga's Restaurant Sent Sovi, co-owner and chef David Kinch will offer a surprise menu from the new restaurant he is planning to open in Los Gatos, at about the same time as the scheduled class: September 27. The new restaurant--which will remain nameless until near its opening--is being carved out of what was once the Village House on Village Lane, a luncheon eatery run by members of Ming Quong as a means of raising funds.
Sent Sovi in Saratoga will remain as a bistro, while the new Los Gatos location will be Kinch's showcase restaurant, according to Susie Dymoke, culinary program coordinator at Sur La Table. "I was just thrilled to bits to hear him say yes," she says, of his willingness to teach the course. "He's such a great teacher." Cost of the course billed as "Secrets from a Culinary Superstar" is $55.
Sur La Table, 23 University Ave., Los Gatos. Call 408.395.6946 to register for classes.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
