CIA faculty member and 21 alumni earn James Beard Award nominations

 

Chef Francisco Migoya, associate professor in baking and pastry arts at The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), has been nominated for a 2011 James Beard Foundation Award in the "Cooking from a Professional Point of View" category for his book The Modern Café (John Wiley & Sons, 2010). Chef Migoya teaches Café Operations as the instructor and executive chef in the Apple Pie Bakery Café, one of five public restaurants on the CIA's Hyde Park campus.

CIA graduates are nominees throughout the broadcast media, restaurant, and chef award categories. Twenty-one alumni earned nominations, with two—Duff Goldman '98 and Rajat Parr '96—each receiving a pair of nominations.

Other graduates among the high-profile award nominees are Gary Danko '77 for Outstanding Chef; Mario Carbone '00 and Rich Torrisi '00 for Best New Restaurant; and Aaron London '00, Thomas McNaughton '04, and Sue Zemanick '01 for Rising Star Chef of the Year. Eight more CIA alumni are nominees for Best Chef awards in various regions of the United States.

The college's Board of Trustees is also well-represented among this year's Beard Foundation honorees. Board member Thomas Keller is a nominee for the Outstanding Service Award at Per Se in New York City. Chairman Emeritus Nick Valenti, CEO of Patina Restaurant Group, is being inducted into Who's Who of Food & Beverage in America. And, Trustee Emeritus Kevin Zraly is the 2011 recipient of the foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award.

The James Beard Foundation announced the nominees for this year's awards on March 21. Award winners will be announced in New York City on May 6 for books and media and May 9 for restaurants and chefs.

Menu idea gallery launched for chef-developed potato dishes

Every year, chefs from leading foodservice and retail chains meet at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley to engage in some friendly competition and creativity with potatoes. This year, the U.S. Potato Board has collected those ideas in a photo-gallery to help chefs in all foodservice channels spark their own creativity. 

The ideas photographed for the Idea Gallery were generated by 14 of the top minds in the industry who represent over 8,800 units and $3 billion in annual sales. The ideas demonstrate some of today’s hottest trends and are available to help any chef capitalize on the versatility and profitability of potatoes.

For more information and to see the idea gallery, visit http://www.potatogoodness.com/foodService/ideaGallery.php.  

Ferran Adrià announces post-elBulli plans: the elBulli Foundation

"Freedom to Create" is the motto and goal of Ferran Adrià's new elBulli Foundation. The organization will take the place of the legendary chef's famous restaurant elBulli, near Barcelona, Spain after it closes its doors on July 31, 2011. Chef Adrià spoke of his innovative plans for the first time in the United States during a visit to The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park, NY on March 21.  

 

The Barcelona native says he will turn the restaurant's property into a park and "reserve" for culinary brainstorming, opening in 2014. Each year, 20 collaborators from around the world will be selected to work with the base team. Through the Internet, chefs across the globe will then be able to access the thousands of ideas the team creates, and use the ones that fit their restaurants.

Ferran Adrià speaking at The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, where he announced future plans for the elBulli Foundation

Chef Adrià was at the CIA for a panel discussion with Lisa Abend, author of The Sorcerer's Apprentices, a new book about Adrià and elBulli; and two former apprentices at the restaurant, including CIA graduate George Mendes '92. About 1,200 CIA students attended the event.

Visit  www.ciachef.edu for more information.

Three chefs from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts inducted into Chaîne des Rôtisseurs

At a dinner hosted at the school on Friday, February 25, three top chefs from the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts [Orlando] were recently inducted as Professional Chef Rôtisseurs in the renowned French International Gastronomy Association, the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs.

The newly inducted Professional Chef Rôtisseurs include Chef Edward Leonard, CMC, executive chef, an accomplished author of seven culinary books and one of only 72 Certified Master Chefs (CMC) in the U.S; Chef Jean Rene Thiery, a chef instructor who has served as executive chef of three different restaurants in France and in the U.S. and began his culinary career at the age of 18. He received a diploma of French Master Pastry Chef in 1981; and Chef Richard Barth, lead culinary instructor.

Left to right: Chef Barth, Chef Leonard and Chef Thiery

 This is a significant occasion for Le Cordon Bleu as the Chaîne actively encourages the raising of catering standards and the training of future chefs. In addition, the national chapter of Chaîne des Rôtisseurs provided a $1,000 scholarship to the college.

For more information, visit www.Chefs.edu.

Honey Culinary Instruction Kit now available as a free download

The National Honey Board’s popular Honey Culinary Instruction Kit (introduced in 2009 as a CD-ROM) is now available as a free download at www.honey.com.  Culinary educators and other interested foodservice professionals can access the comprehensive information tool on the Foodservice page at www.honey.com, under “Free Culinary CDs.”  After providing basic contact information, visitors simply indicate if they wish to download the kit or receive it as a CD via mail.

The National Honey Board developed the culinary curriculum to share the benefits of honey – as a food, an ingredient and a marketing tool – with student and professional culinarians.  An advanced classroom teaching guide is divided into four learning blocks:  Life of the Hive; Ingredient Functionality; Varietal Honeys; and Tasting Workshop with Culinary Applications.  A PowerPoint presentation emphasizes key learning points, and an appendix offers additional honey information, references and resources.

Culinarians who pass the comprehensive exam (also included in the kit) qualify for 3.5 American Culinary Federation continuing education credits.  Culinary educators, students and foodservice professionals can download their free copy of the Honey Culinary Instruction Kit today at www.honey.com. 

Marco Bahena of Kendall College named winner of 9th annual S.Pellegrino Almost Famous Chef Competition

On March 13th, Marco Bahena, of Kendall College, was named the winner of the 9^TH annual S.Pellegrino Almost Famous Chef Competition at the finals event held at The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in Napa Valley, Calif. A celebrity panel of judges awarded the top prize to Marco for his signature dish.

Marco Bahena with his winning dish

The event was hosted by Gail Simmons, Food & Wine special projects director and Bravo's “Top Chef” judge and host, and Ralph Pagano, the executive chef at STK Miami, finalist from “Hell’s Kitchen,” season one, and host of the internationally broadcast travel show, “Pressure Cook.”

Judging the three days of competition were a panel of celebrity chefs and media: chefs Michel Richard of Citronelle, Rick Moonen of rm Seafood, Tony Mantuano of Spiaggia, Jean Joho of Everest, Gary Danko of Gary Danko Restaurant, Brooke McDougall of ByMark Restaurant and Napa’s own, Bob Hurley. The chefs were joined by an elite group of media: Dana Cowin of Food & Wine magazine, Sophie Gayot of Gayot.com, Mitchell Davis of The James Beard Foundation and Bonnie Stern of The National Post. 

Marco with judge Ralph Pagano

Marco’s prizes included a $10,000 cash prize for winning as well as $3,000 for his winning signature dish of Mediterranean Lamb Loin, a year-long paid apprenticeship with a participating chef judge of his choice and the title of 2011 S. Pellegrino Almost Famous Chef.

In addition to vying for the top prize, the 10 competitors also competed in a Mystery Basket Competition and were voted on by fans and attendees for the People’s Choice and Acqua Panna Fan Favorite Awards. Marco won the $3,000 Signature Dish prize for his recipe, Mediterranean Lamb Loin. Jean-François Daigle of The George Brown Chef's School won the Mystery Basket competition, earning him  $3,000, for a dish he created with the surprise ingredients featuring pork loin. Elizabeth Freer from the Culinary Institute of Charleston won the People’s Choice Award, taking away $3,000 for her signature dish, Rabbit Two Ways: Pecan and Spice Encrusted Rabbit Tenderloin with Sweet Braised Rabbit Ravioli and a Baby Spinach, Radicchio Sauté. And Emma Louth from Drexel University scored $3,000 for wowing the online audience with her dish.

“I am thrilled to be named the winner, especially by this amazing panel of judges,” said Marco Bahena. “Not only was it an incredible experience competing against nine really talented competitors, but to be able to cook in one of the most prestigious kitchens in the world and be mentored by such a talented group of chef and media judges for the weekend – I couldn’t have asked for a better jump-start to my career.”

Marco in action

For more information on the competition and to view Marco’s biography and winning recipe, visit www.almostfamouschef.com, www.thesparklinglife.com, become a fan on Facebook (www.facebook.com/almostfamouschef) or follow the competition on Twitter at AFChefComp.

The Foundation of the National Association of Catering Executives to award $20,000 in undergraduate scholarships this year

the Foundation of the National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) has expanded its Vince DeFinis Scholarship program for undergraduate students and will award $20,000 in undergraduate scholarships to five students in summer 2011.

 

A total of five presentations will be made at the NACE annual convention, Experience! 2011, in Reno-Tahoe. The Foundation will award the $10,000 Vince DeFinis Scholarship grant, as well as four, $2,500 Foundation Scholarship Awards. Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA and be enrolled as a full-time student to be eligible for the scholarship. The recipient will also receive complimentary student membership in the National Association of Catering Executives.

 

Applicants must be currently enrolled as a full-time student (12 credits or more) in an accredited hospitality, culinary or related program. Students must have completed 60 credits to be eligible. Judging will be based on an essay and two letters of reference, which must be included in the application. All applications must be submitted by May 1, 2011. The winners will be announced at the NACE Experience! conference, July 24-27, in Reno-Tahoe.

 

Students who are interested in applying for the scholarship may find more information at http://www.nace.net/galleries/education-documents/2011%20Application.pdf. DeFinis, who died in December 2007, was one of the co-founders of NACE and a visionary in the field of catering and special events. On June 3, 1958 in New York City, DeFinis helped found the Banquet Managers Guild, which would grow to become the National Association of Catering Executives. He spent his entire career dedicated to the profession and to seeing that NACE properly reflected and served its members. The scholarship honoring DeFinis was launched in 2008.

 

For more information, call 410-290-5410 or visit www.nace.net.