I thought I would share some neat numbers and share a personal milestone or two.   For the average male, 730,000 calories are needed over the year.  That keeps you alive and well, leaving out any forms of fitness.   I am a cycling enthusiast, so I thought I would share another number: 219,227, that is the number of calories my cycling burned this year.  The other number is 3258, the number of miles I cycled over the year.  While that number may seem impressive, many cyclists amass many more miles then I did this year.  How do I know?   Well, like any good enthusiast, I read, learn and share.  So what does this have to do with our culinary program you may ask?

I share these numbers to show that we also live by numbers in the culinary world.  We have 3 exemplary cooking programs here on our California campuses.    We have hundreds of years experience for staff to educate our future culinarians.  We continue to strive for excellence, and our placement rates are very important numbers as well.  Ours are very good for culinary programs, and if you are looking for a good school you should be asking:  “Will I be able to get a job with this education?”

Ahhh numbers, they give us order, but they don’t make you successful.  They are only a representation of success.  Those cycling numbers represent one more thing about chefs and our business.  Passion, in every thing we do, from riding a bike to training the best; passion is what drives a good chef.   Do you have a similar passion?  If so, call up your local IOT and see how you can turn it into a career.

In addition, we are in the process of adding a needed larger walk in refrigerator, this should be happening in the next few weeks to meet our needs into the future.  We are committed to staying on the front line of culinary programs in the central valley.

Enjoy the holidays….the prime cooking and eating season has begun, and then if it’s what you desire, turn your passion into your career with us.

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CC  designates the status of Certified Culinarian - An entry level culinarian within a commercial foodservice operation responsible for preparing and cooking sauces, cold food, fish, soups and stocks, meats, vegetables, eggs and other food items.

CEC designates the status of Certified Executive Chef - A chef who is the department head usually responsible for all culinary units in a restaurant, hotel, club, hospital or foodservice establishment, or the owner of a foodservice operation. In addition to culinary responsibilities, other duties include budget preparation, payroll, maintenance, controlling food costs and maintaining financial and inventory records.

ACF California Capitol Chefs Association (CA043)

The other event was a third time event that received yet more rave reviews. We have supported a local charity called the alley cat guardians. They do a fundraiser called the “Furball Soiree.” We handle the whole event and do a table of food. We were the hit again doing a live pumpkin crepe station as part of our offerings.

We also have started our night session to make our culinary program more accessible for people who could not have attended in the past. So we hire, change, diversify and in addition, have some construction going on to support our growth. We are adding a large walk in refrigerator to accommodate our growing student body. Every day brings excitement and opportunity, just like our students. While doing the Furball Soiree we had 4 students either get a job offer or extern opportunity. Awesome.

Our field is exciting and now is great time to get started on a new career path…

Come back to this blog to hear more about IOT’s Culinary school and the California Culinary Scene in general.

This year’s ten (10) cook-off finalists were:

GROUP A: (age 6-10):

David Stryhanyn Age 8 (Dinuba) Roosevelt Elementary
Katelyn Franz Age 8 (Reedley) Clovis Elementary
Lindsey Swall Age 10 (Tulare) Sundale Elementary
Reyna Prine Age 6 (Pixley) Pixley Elementary
Sara Sul Age 8 (Visalia) Tsedaqah Tehilla School

GROUP B: (ages 11-14):

Aman Narwal Age 13 (Visalia) Green Acres Middle School
Eden Brock Age 13 (Hanford) Kings River Hardwick
Kurtis MacGillivray Age 13 (Visalia) La Joya School
Madison Spiegel-Bisio Age 12 (Visalia) Valley Oak Middle School
Tristan Lambert Age 13 (Exeter) Wilson Middle School

Each child was paired with a culinary student from IOT - Clovis. The students’ role was to oversee safety, help watch the clock, and ensure the child has a successful experience. The cook-off was hosted by Kathy Powers, host of  “Hey Kids Let’s Cook,” now in its 4th season on Valley Public Television (Wed at 7:30pm and Saturday at 3pm).

This year, the Young Chefs® Academy, located in Fresno, joined the cook-off and provided hats, aprons, and utensils to the kids.
The children presented their finished recipes to four judges. The 1st place winners in both age groups won four admission tickets to the Disneyland Resort, including a tour of their restaurant facilities. Other finalists received i-Pod Shuffles from Comcast and prizes from stores in the Visalia Mall. All contestants were videotaped during the competition for later broadcast on “Hey Kids Let’s Cook”.

In conclusion, the day was a success and all of the contestants learned a great deal from IOT’s student mentors.

As outlined by the CAPC, the Antoine Carême Medal is awarded to men and women who have made outstanding contributions to the culinary profession, education, and advancement of the culinary arts.

“Being awarded the Carême medal is a great honor. To be included in the company of former recipients including Martin Yan and Julia Childs is an accomplishment of a lifetime. I have spent my career attempting to elevate my profession, and to be acknowledged by my peers for just that is very meaningful,” said Dickinson.

Dickinson has been working in the culinary industry for over 30 years. His previous awards include CCCA Chef of the Year in 1997 and 2002, and the ACF National Presidential Medallion in 2008. Dickinson has occupied his current position as Director of Culinary at the Institute of Technology for over five years, helping the school quadruple its population, and most recently, overseeing an ACF re-accreditation visit that resulted in an Exemplary Status award for the school’s Culinary Arts Professional program.

The CAPC will award the medals in a special ceremony on November 6th in Los Altos, California.

If visions of PB&Js, pudding cups and mushy tuna salad are the first things to come to mind, don’t worry, brown bagging has come a long way. Here are some tips to keep your brown bag lunch healthy, economical and, most importantly, tasty!

1) Sandwiches don’t have to be the staple.
If you don’t want your lunch to be two slices of white or wheat, you’re in luck. Brown bag lunches have become much more creative lately. Healthy, inexpensive options that go beyond the sandwich include packing a container with lettuce, veggies and a filet of salmon or chicken for a salad, or stuffing leftovers in a pita or tortilla for a great wrap.

2) Make large batches.
To ensure delicious, healthy meals all week long, make large batches of casseroles, soups or other dishes. Leftover enchiladas, soup, rice casseroles and pasta salads will last through your work week. You can enjoy the time saved from fixing your lunch and the money saved by not having to buy a lot of ingredients.

3) Keep it exciting.
The best way to keep your lunch healthy and not get bored is by avoiding the same old, same old – sandwich, cookies, chips and soda. Include a variety of flavors, colors and textures. Cold yogurt every day isn’t going to be very appealing after a while. Try a bag of cut veggies or a container of fresh fruit; use multigrain bread or bagels for sandwiches; throw in a low-fat string cheese; use hummus instead of ranch dip for veggies; or pack a bag of granola to add to your yogurt. By keeping it different each day, you’re more likely to stick with your brown bag routine.

4) Get creative with leftovers.
Leftovers can save money, but sometimes they just seem like, well, leftovers. To make the most of leftovers and to keep your lunch exciting, transform last night’s dinner into a new dish! Leftover pasta is the perfect addition to a salad. Frittata, an egg-based casserole, is great hot or cold and can be used as a sandwich or tortilla filler.

Take the brown bag challenge yourself. See how much money you can save by not eating out. You may be pleasantly surprised by the extra cash and extra room in your jeans!

School is challenge, for learning more should be harder than what we know today. When we achieve success and complete our challenge we are proud, better, wiser and many other attributes.

We all have challenges, what are yours? And if becoming the next food challenge winner is on your calendar why not give our program a try?