Team building at The Dirty Apron Cooking School

We are often hosting private group events at The Dirty Apron. Our most popular buyout option is our team building, in which your group of up to 32 people splits into 3 teams and each team takes a course. The teams then are guided through their course, learning to cook and communicate with their team, creating, then serving their final product to the whole group. While there can be a bit of competitive heat in the kitchen, in the end everyone gets to eat 3 professional dishes, while learning everything from new cooking techniques to their colleague's cooking habits. 

Questions about our private events? Send us an email: info@dirtyapron.com

Here are a few photos from a team-building class earlier this year: 

(all photos courtesy joey armstrong)

Kids & Teens Cooking Camps - Summer 2013

What are your kids doing this summer? We know that (almost) every kid likes to be a taste-tester in the kitchen, but some of them crave a little more involvement. We have just the thing for them: week long cooking camps at The Dirty Apron, of course! This summer we have a brand new menu and schedule for our kids and teens. Check it out below. All weeks are now available online for registration. 

Tuition for each week-long camp includes: instruction, daily recipe book, hands-on cooking with close supervision, snacks and fine dining. All necessary materials and equipment will be provided. The participants need only bring themselves and their eagerness to learn & cook! At the end of each week, the young chefs get to take home, you guessed it, their dirty apron.

Teen Summer Camp Schedule:

Monday through Friday, 9am to 1pm
July 8 - July 12

July 22 - July 26

August 12 - August 16

August 19 - August 23

August 26 - August 30

Under the instruction of Dirty Apron owner and head instructor David Robertson, teens will get hands-on experience cooking with fresh, local ingredients, creating dishes from around the world. With a focus on team building and making new friends, each day will see different dishes and different kitchen challenges. Teens will work in pairs to create the menu of the day, while learning important life lessons like leadership, team work, and of course – cooking!

 
Day 1 - Soup & Knife Skills Day: Warm Lemon-Chive Goat Cheese and Ratatouille Salad, Sesame Chicken Stir-fry, and Strawberry O range Cocktails with Pineapple Sabayon.

Day 2 - Italian Day: Made-from-scratch Butternut squash tortellini, Pancetta and Lemon Risotto, Poached Pear Tarte with Vanilla gelato.

Day 3 - Get Your Grill on: Grilled Ribeye Steak sliders, Grilled Prawn and Tomato Flatbread, and Grilled Pineapple with grated Chocolate and toasted Hazelnuts.

Day 4 - Japanese Day: Miso-roasted Sablefish with Sunomono Salad, assorted Sushi, and Green Tea Crème Brûlée.

Day 5 - Black Box Competition Day: The highlight of every summer cooking camp allows students to put their newly learned skills to the test in a fun filled black box competition where a panel of judges will sample the culinary master pieces, and declare the winning team.

Kids Summer Camp Schedule:

Monday through Friday, 9am to 1pm
July 15 - July 19 

Here's the week's menu for our kids' camp this summer:

Day 1: Knife Skills - Grilled Corn and Bacon Chowder; Grilled Flatbread Pizza; and Strawberry Orange Cocktails with Pineapple Sabayon 

Day 2: Get your Grill on - Grilled Black Angus Hamburger Sliders; Mac 'n'Cheese with grilled Prawns; Grilled Pineapple with grated Chocolate and toasted Hazelnuts.

Day 3: Dirty Apron Favourites -Chicken Schnitzel with Apple Coleslaw; Ricotta Lemon Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce; and Dirty Apron Vanilla Ice cream

Day 4: Comfort Foods - Potato and Gruyere Perogies; Grilled Korean Short-ribs; Mini Chocolate Soufflé

Day 5: Japanese Day - Prawn and Pork Gyoza, Chicken Yakitori, Sushi Cones, and Ice cream filled Caramel poached Pears.

image via hellomagazine.com

*please note that returning students from previous years are welcome, since we have all new menus, and new experiences await. 

An Okanagan Cookbook & an Okanagan Cooking Class

Whether you're a foodie, a kitchen novice, an aspiring chef, or a Chef-de-Cuisine, you probably have a few cookbooks in your possession. Some of us here at the Dirty Apron just LOVE cookbooks. Gazing at beautiful food photos, and finding recipes that inspire are just a couple of the reasons we like cookbooks. So when we see local, beautiful cookbooks, we can't resist. Like this recent addition to our bookshelf: "The Butcher, The Baker, The Wine and Cheese Maker." This Okanagan Cookbook takes cooking & eating locally to it's fullest potential. 

But this isn't any ordinary cookbook. It's a collaboration, of sorts, from food experts all over the Okanagan. Along with recipes, the book shares stories from top chefs, cheese makers, fishmongers, bakers, wine makers, and more. Some of the contributors include chefs Paul Cecconi, Bernard Casavant, Mark Filatow, Martin Laprise, Grant DeMonteuil, and Natasha Shooten, along with Gene and Shelley Covert of Covert Farms, Tony and Nancy Cetinski of Suncatcher Farms, Curtis Stone of Green City Acres and Gabe Cipes of Summerhill Organic Gardens - just to name a few.

The recipes inside look incredible, like the Quince & Chocolate tart recipe (which happens to be a free download on An Okanagan Cookbook's website.)

If you enjoy this book, or are interested in the concept, be sure to check out our current Cooking School schedule. Three of the chefs from the book will be guest-teaching on May 5th (daytime and evening) the class "The Butcher, The Baker, The Wine & Cheese Maker: A Night of Cooking and more based on the Okanagan Cookbook." The class not only includes learning how to slow cook Halibut with Basil, Crisp Potatoes, Tomatoes and Artichoke Chardonnay Emulsion, but the halibut, the goat cheese cakes, and the apple tart tatin (read the class list for full, delicious listing of menu!) will be paired with Okanagan wines. You don't even need to vacation in the Okanagan this summer! (But you should, you really should)

Educational Workshops: Return to Food with Sherry Strong

The Slow Foods Revolution: Free Educational Workshop with Sherry Strong

Don't miss our next free educational workshop! 

Join us on Sunday, April 14th from 11am - 12pm for an educational session with celebrated author and Slow Foods guru Sherry Strong in: 'Return to Food - How going back is the way forward'

Sherry has partnered with us before, as a guest chef in her class 'The Slow Foods Revolution: Wholesome Cooking for Everyone' and has been a guest chef with our monthly Soup Sisters evening as well. Check out this lovely review of one of Sherry's classes last year.

And do check out Sherry's Ted Talk, from 2009, on energy from food and the consumption concept:

If you have been wanting to make a positive change in the way you prepare food and eat, this is an opportunity you do not want to miss.

To book your spot, please call us at: 604-879-8588 

Easter Eggs from Beta 5

The Easter Bunny seems to have been hiding out at Beta 5 this year, because they have made some amazingly delicious looking treats, including marshmallow chicks in chocolate eggs.

Check out this cute video they made of the chocolate eggs getting ready for Easter!

Getting Ready for Easter at BETA5 Chocolates from BETA5 Chocolates on Vimeo.

And yes, we are selling the Beta 5 Chocolate filled eggs in our delicatessen - both individually and in a 1/2 dozen carton. And yes, they do tempt us. Every. Day.

Beta 5 also has a fun online Easter Egg hunt going on right now, be sure to follow them to check it out: @beta5chocolates

(If you didn't know, we also have an instagram account! Follow us at @dirty_apron)