Food for the Eager & Curious, Chef’s Inc.
Friday, June 2, 2006 9:09
What better way to give than to give with your heart and feed your sweetheart with foods that are natural aphrodisiacs.
A couple weeks ago, MS and I met five other couples of varying skill levels at Chefs Inc. for a Date Night with Chef Diane Brown, author of The Seduction Cookbook. This colorful cooking school located on Pico Blvd in West LA was founded by Chef Leslie McKenna who has served as the executive pastry chef at Valentino in Santa Monica and has been published in Bon Appetit as well as Food and Wine Magazines.
As you drive past the West Side Pavilion Mall on the South side of the street, you may notice the round, green pear logo in its storefront window on the North side of the street. The space is deceivingly small from the outside but once inside, you’re transported into a whirlwind of cooking activity with their colorful kitchen workstations and demonstration area.
The night began with a brief lesson on “seductive” foods as we watched Chef Diane demonstrate a few tips on how to peel and cut kiwis, beets, oranges and ginger. We poured a couple of glasses of wine recommended and bought at the Wally Wines on Westwood as we thought of which station we wanted to work on. The Tim Allen Grill Master in MS came out with little to no hesitation, and we were quickly signed up to work on the Seared Ahi Tuna / Kiwi and Cucumber Gazpacho team.
As each team of two couples were paired off, we were given our white aprons, chef’s knives, and colorful cutting boards. All of us washed our hands under the industrial sink and were ready to cook in this fully stocked kitchen equipped with stovetops and ovens for all.
The following is a pictoral play-by-play of our fun and fabulous menu:
kitchen prep stations with cutting boards, towels, and knives
sea of dumplings with scallops, scallions, and ginger
summer kiwi and cucumber cold gazpacho soup with creme fraiche and mint
heart cut-out beet, blood orange, and asian pear salad with mache greens
seared pepper and kosher salt ahi tuna with sherry soy sauce
asian spiced apple crumble with raisins and mint
It was a fun night of good eats and drink, great company, and much laughter in the kitchen. Fun and easy cooking instructions for my eager and curious appetite… leaving me with wanting more!
Chefs Inc. - Date Night w/Chef Diane Brown
“cooking instruction for the eager and the curious”
street: 10955 pico blvd | los angeles, ca | 90064
tel: 1.310.470.2277
web: www.chefsinc.net
By Kristy (see more of her posts). A native of the city, kristy loves to discover new sites, new eateries, new things to do in her online journal of finding the best of la.