Learning to cook—cooking class

This week was the start.

I’ve been working on what to include in the first cooking video. My mind was so full that the I had enough information for at least 10 different classes. The hard part was narrowing all those ideas down to one manageable video. I’m glad to say I did it.

Tuesday morning, I woke up early to prep all the ingredients before my friend Peter arrived to start filming.

The process was a lot harder than I imagined. I’m not sure why; maybe it's the fact that you have to get used to talking to a camera instead of a person. Practice, practice, practice. It took a few takes (4) to get a somewhat casual conversation.

I’m working with an expert and it is a pleasure to see his expertise at work. He even used slates to define the different takes.

By the end of the shoot, I began to understand how it works. Nothing has to be sequential; mistakes can be edited out and, through the magic of the editor, everything comes together beautifully.

Video cooking is not like real-life cooking where everything is sequential. It can’t be stopped, edited, and put back together at the end to create the perfect dish. I’m not saying there isn’t flexibility in cooking; there is but it isn’t the same. A movie is visual and tasted through your eyes and ears. While food is also experienced through your eyes, it is your tastebuds that have the final say as to the success of the meal.

At this moment my experience of shooting the video is still in the order it was shot. Once Peter has done the editing, what will occur is a replica of the actual experience of cooking—the two worlds no longer alienated by different procedures will now be unified by editing them into the proper sequence.

I find that amazing. Filmmaking is astounding, and I am in awe of the process and am so grateful to Peter Rosen at Long Roses Productions for his work in making this possible for me.

Merci

The finished dish, chicken breast en sauce with noodles - yum!

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This post was created prior to our site upgrade. Comments at the time of our upgrade included:

Arlene Vaquer April 08, 2022

As a very messy baker and cook, I took your advice to prepare and measure in advance. And it really worked for the meals I made this past week. Thank you! —Arlene

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Did you hear about my OUTRAGEOUS goal?!

Ending one year and starting a new one is an opportunity to think BIG!!!

FOLLOW ALONG

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Here Is What's Happening

• This week my focus was on figuring out the cooking class. At the time, I thought it wouldn't take long, but as I mentioned above, I was overwhelmed with ideas, and getting the job done took all week. I have to say this is an exciting process that I can't wait to share with you.

• Spring is definitely on its way, the skunk cabbage and the tulips have broken ground, daylight savings is March 13th, and spring officially starts March 20. So it's time to think about food that is lighter, brighter and lemony. Try these recipes from Le Kitchen Cookbook: a Workbook

  • 24 hour lamb recipe on page 204

  • Ragout d'agneau page 290

  • Lemon Mousse page 303

If you get the book and have questions with any of these recipes, feel free to email me.

Le Kitchen Cookbook

A Workbook

Everything you need to know to be a good cook.

by Adeline M. Olmer

Get Your Personalized Copy

Or, order on Amazon.com

I have a favor to ask!

Could you take a moment to write a review? Your comments really help others

make confident decisions. xox Merci

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Bon Appétit