ProStart students spotlighted on Food Network

The Food Network ran a special Dec. 5 on the National Restaurant Association's 2009 ProStart Invitational, an action-packed culinary and management competition for the top high school students enrolled in the ProStart program. Thirty-nine teams of high schoolers competed for $1.1 million in cash, prizes and scholarships. Food Network personality Guy Fieri followed the students as they raced to complete a three-course meal in one hour and then announced the winners: the team from Herndon Career Center in Missouri (previously posted about here).

French Culinary Institute founder releases culinary career book

According to Dorothy Cann Hamilton, founder of the world-renowned French Culinary Institute, your career shouldn't feel like punishment--it should reflect your passions in life. With the release of her new book Love What You Do: Building a Career in the Culinary Industry (2009, iUniverse Inc.), Hamilton provides a go-to guide for those in pursuit of a career in the culinary industry. More importantly though, her advice is universal, applicable for anyone who seeks a job they enjoy or a midlife career change.

"Making career changes and evaluating your career options is especially useful in today's economy," Hamilton said in a press release. "With all the complexities that the tough economic climate has created, perhaps one positive change is a second chance for many, an opportunity to leave a thankless, unsatisfying career behind and re-align oneself with the job of your dreams."

For those who desire a career in the culinary world, Love What You Do helps readers from the beginning stages of determining if it is right for them and seeking the right education and resources to ultimately landing their dream job. For the general career seekers and switchers, the book offers sound advice for those on the hunt.

With a foreword written by Tom Colicchio, chef-owner of Craft Restaurants, and endorsements from Master Chef Jacques Pepin and restaurateur Danny Meyer, Love What You Do gives an inside look on breaking into the culinary industry. In addition to profiles of real people who aspire to be in the culinary arts, as well as top chefs, the book will provide readers with:

• a self-inventory that uncovers your goals, passions, strengths and weaknesses;
• tips on handling the obstacles and doubts that coincide with job searching;
• practical steps necessary to begin a successful culinary career, including culinary school; selection, on-the-job training options, paid/non-paid positions, and salaries/budgets;
• decision-making advice for how to determine what positions/jobs are a good fit;
• how to conduct an effective job hunt; and
• what to expect within the first year and ways to excel.

Dorothy Cann Hamilton is the founder of the world-renowned 25-year old French Culinary Institute, as well as The Italian Culinary Academy. Both are housed by The International Culinary Center in New York City. Hamilton has educated more than 14,000 students in the culinary arts. Her awards include a 2006 International Association of Culinary Professionals Award of Excellence for Vocational Cooking School, the prestigious Ordre National du Mérite (National Order of Merit Award) from the French government. Recently, Hamilton was inducted into the Who's Who of Food and Beverage in America by the James Beard Foundation. Hamilton was the creator and host of "Chef's Story," a television series that debuted on PBS in April 2007, and authored the companion book. For more information, visit www.lovewhatyoudo.com or www.frenchculinary.com.

FIU Hospitality hosts Common Threads

Florida International University's (FIU) School of Hospitality and Tourism Management is now one of the four national sites hosting Common Threads, an organization that teaches low-income children how to cook wholesome and affordable meals.

During the 2009-2010 school year, 32 students from North Miami's William Jennings Bryan Elementary School and North Miami Elementary School are participating in the program "Cooking Skills and World Cuisine," taught by restaurant owner/chef Michelle Bernstein and FIU chef-instructor Mimi Chacin. The hands-on cooking classes emphasize learning about new fruits and vegetables and the techniques to cook fresh, quality ingredients. Each lesson focuses on a different culture, and each class is designed to gradually build upon the student's skills. By the end of the 12-week session, the students will have learned how to prepare complete, healthy meals.

Children cook, eat and learn in the FIU kitchen

"We are so proud to host Common Threads at FIU School of Hospitality, said Dr. Diann Newman, who brought Common Threads to FIU. "As a university, we are dedicated to our mission of investing in our community. Change comes with vision, time, courage, experience and tenacity. We are gratified to work with chef Michelle Bernstein, students and administrators of William Jennings Bryan Elementary School and North Miami Elementary School and our School of Hospitality students to be part of the solution."

Common Threads was founded by chef, author and television personality Art Smith. For more information, visit www.commonthreads.org.

Online Extras for November CET

• Sautéing mushrooms tutorial
• Teaching students the farm-to-table-to-craft beer connection
• Extended Q&A with Matthew Kenney of 105Degrees Academy

Michael Ruhlman shares stories, lessons in new CIA podcast

In the latest "Insight from the Inside" podcast from The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), honorary graduate Michael Ruhlman talks about the unexpected path his career took after he came to the CIA in the 1990s to research his book, The Making of a Chef: Mastering Heat the The Culinary Institute of America. Ruhlman has since written a dozen more books about food, chefs and cooking, and worked temporarily in a restaurant kitchen. He received an honorary degree from the CIA in 2006.

"Insight from the Inside" is a series of chats with graduates who have exciting jobs in the food world. Previous podcasts have featured CIA graduates Grant Achatz, John Besh, Anne Burrell, Scott Conant, Cat Cora, Dan Coudreaut, Steve Ells, Duff Goldman, Johnny Iuzzini, Sara Moulton, Charlie Palmer, Michael Symon. To hear the 17-minute interview with Michael Ruhlman or receive future podcasts, visit www.ciachef.edu/podcasts.

Wolfgang Puck Worldwide donates cookware to ECU

Wolfgang Puck Worldwide (WPW) Inc. recently donated nearly 300 pieces of its professional-grade cookware to the Department of Hospitality Management at East Carolina University (ECU). The cookware will be used in the department's new state-of-the-art kitchen laboratory by students preparing for careers in lodging, food and beverage and convention and event planning.

James Chandler, associate professor of hospitality management, worked closely with WPW to facilitate the gift. "We are more than grateful to Wolfgang Puck Worldwide for the generous donation," Chandler said in a statement. "WPW has been an advocate of higher education for hospitality industry professional business managers, and this gift is further evidence of that commitment."

ECU's Department of Hospitality Management is in the college's School of Human Ecology. For more information, visit www.ecu.edu/che.

RMU cooks for a cause

Robert Morris University (RMU) Institute of Culinary Arts students belonging to the school's service group Cooks for a Cause will bake 10,000 Christmas cookies on Dec. 4 and 5 to donate to The DuPage County People's Resource Center (PRC)'s Share the Spirit program. The PRC is gathering donations of new toys and gift certificates for more than 750 low-income families in DuPage County, which it will distribute in December. A pack of Christmas cookies from Cooks for a Cause will be included with all the gifts.

Culinary students from the Chicago, Orland Park and DuPage campuses will be baking from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the RMU main campus in downtown Chicago. For more information, visit www.robertmorris.edu.