Culinary Arts Education

A Quick Glance at Culinary Schools

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:37:55 +0000

Let’s take a quick glance at culinary schools and find out all we can about them. If you are ready to embark on an exciting career as a chef, then enrolling in the right school is extremely important. In order to prepare for your career, you want only the best training you can get. Proper training makes it much more likely that your first job will get you started on the road to a lucrative and rewarding career.

As a chef, you will become part of the growing culinary field. Because chefs are now in high demand, it is important to find a school that prepares you to be the best chef you can be. In 2006 alone, more than 3.1 million jobs were held by chefs, food preparation workers and regular cooks. Because the job outlook is so good, culinary arts is a field that many people are strongly considering. But, in order to prepare properly, these people, including yourself, must make sure to get adequate training before even applying for a job. You can attend a private culinary school or enroll in a 2 to 4 year program at a local university. Either way, you will get the tools you need to succeed in your career.

Enrolling in a culinary arts school is your best choice if you sincerely want to be a recognized chef. These schools include private culinary training schools, colleges, universities and trade schools. All of their programs prepare their students to be professional chefs in entry level and eventually management positions. The programs are generally from 9 months to four years long, depending on the school you select. Their training programs range from simple utensil identification to advanced courses in food preparation and presentation.

All culinary schools have one goal in mind. They want you to successfully complete their courses and to get a job that you will love for the rest of your life. They want you to be an admired professional chef who tells others where you went to school. That is why they offer programs that are affordable and passable for most people.

By: Matt Murren

Medical Transcription Schools – Avoiding Online Scams

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:42:39 +0000

Medical transcription is a lucrative profession which allows you the flexibility to work from home. Unfortunately, it’s this appeal that has opened the doors for less than honest online medical transcription schools.

If you don’t know a lot about MT, then I will assure you it is a real profession and a real possibility. It is not a get rich quick scheme or overnight money maker.

If you’re shopping around for an online medical transcription course, here are a few things to keep in mind.

How to choose the right course and avoid scams.

Make sure the company offering the course is reputable and has been around for a long time. You can do this by checking with the Better Business Bureau. Here are a few other things to look for.

Send the school an email asking a question about their course. If they respond promptly in a professional matter that’s a good sign. If they seem overly pushy be a bit weary.

Look at their website. Is it professional? Do they give you statistics about their success rates, student testimonials, Q and A section?

Do they have an online student log in area or online support if you have questions?

Are their company details listed on their website? Such as how long they’ve been in business, contact details (mailing address and phone number).

Do they make exaggerated promises about their course? If they are promising you will make a lot of money in a short time, then be careful. No one can really predict how much you will make or how long it will take you. They should give general statistics and figures in an unbiased way.

Do they provide financial aid or payment assistance?

Do they have a list of graduates or companies which have hired their graduates?

Do they give you updates of students who have graduated from their school?

Do they have a student message board, a newsletter or information which will make you feel part of a community?

Studying from home can be lonely at times, a reputable course will offer you assistance from the very beginning until you find a job.

By: Lisa Croydon

The Culinary Delights of Valais, Switzerland

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:36:59 +0000

Long before there was a luxury chain of Ritz-Carlton hotels, or a lavish Hotel Ritz in Paris, or even before people started to describe something sumptuous as “ritzy,” there was Cesar Ritz, the “king of hoteliers and the hotelier to kings.” Born in 1850 in the Swiss village of Niederwald, it’s easy to conclude that his penchant for good taste and elegant style, both in cuisine and accommodation, was acquired early in life while living in the canton of Valais.

When foodies’ discussion turns to the legendary gastronomic regions of Europe, Valais does not have the far-flung notoriety or culinary cachet of Lyon to the west or Tuscany to the south. And though Valais is not widely celebrated as a gastronomic hotspot, it has a well-deserved and longstanding reputation for wonderfully distinctive and well prepared food.

Simply put, I’ve never had a bad meal in Valais. Oh, I’m certain they serve pedestrian meals there as they do anywhere else in Europe. It’s just that I haven’t found the place yet. And while happily relishing both home-cooked and restaurant faire, I’ve come to respect the rich culinary tradition, the agricultural abundance, and the vibrant talent which Valaisan cooks bring to the table.

If your idea of Swiss food is cheese, chocolate, and potatoes, you’ll be pleasantly surprised in Valais, where cultures collide to bring out the best in European cuisine. Switzerland’s most culturally diverse canton also dishes up the most memorable cuisine and produces some of the country’s most delectable foods.

For as long as people have lived in Valais they have made cheese and even today, melted cheese is the essence of a traditional meal in Valais. They served it with potatoes, pearl onions and gherkins. Today there are many soft cheeses and imitations of raclette cheese, yet the original is still unmatched. The reason is this: Valais is the only place where raclette cheese has been made from unpasteurized raw milk for centuries without alteration. The cheesemakers of Valais produce a total of 2,000 tons of raclette cheese – and more every year.

The people of Valais realized that the mountain farmers and cheesemakers could only survive if their raclette cheese remained distinctive and unmistaken from the industrially and more cheaply produced version. For this reason, efforts were made in Valais to protect raclette cheese against imitation. Once the responsible federal office had accepted the application, protests from the other cantons immediately followed. The supply of raclette cheese to the Swiss people was at stake, it was argued, because the cheesemakers of Valais were no longer in a position to satisfy the nation’s appetite for raclette.

The Valaisians’ struggle to protect “their” cheese ultimately lasted for years. In their application for AOC protection, the people drew upon historical documents proving that raclette cheese was melted even in the early Middle Ages. One year ago, the Swiss Federal Supreme Court (Bundesgericht), confirmed the protected origin of “Valais Raclette AOC”. In autumn 2009, the first raclette cheeses with the unmistakable description “Raclette du Valais AOC” will be launched. So as you swirl your potatoes in a soft puddle of swarm cheese, you’ll take comfort in knowing that honest to goodness traditional foods still have a place in Valais Switzerland.

By: Greg Witt

A Culinary Tour of Asia

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:00:03 +0000

The very heart of your Asian vacation isn’t the exotic locale, the invigorating massages, the majestic ancient temples, or even the warm, friendly people. It’s the food. When you’re at home, food is a centerpiece of activity and fun-the backyard cookout, the Friday evenings with friends, or the romantic dinner. When you’re on vacation, it will be even more memorable if you keep food enjoyment high on your list of priorities.

Food is more than mere sustenance. It is a social experience, and a sensory treat that will be remembered long after you return home. Asia is well-known for its exotic cuisine, and no Asian vacation would be complete without thoroughly enjoying the food. In every major Asian city, you’ll find your usual array of the familiar favorites from back home: KFC, McDonalds, Sizzler, and so on-but why not enhance your foray into the unknown with something new on the menu?

The cuisine is as varied as the continent, ranging from the aromatic curries of India, to the fiery-hot tom yum goong of Thailand, to the European-influenced Macanese cuisine found in the Chinese autonomous region of Macau. Wherever you travel, you’ll find unique and fresh ingredients, presented delightfully in authentic surroundings and delivered by friendly, smiling staff.

You’ll find your environment as memorable as the food itself. You may find yourself sitting under a straw roof, sitting cross-legged and eating off of a banana leaf, or enjoying the most elegant, five-star posh surroundings you’ve ever witnessed. And don’t neglect the local specialties. A meal of dim sum (”yum cha” in Cantonese) in a Hong Kong tea house is an event unto itself that will never be forgotten. Take a boat cross the bay to Macau for a trip back to old Europe, where you can enjoy High Tea in the afternoon, and one of the country’s characteristic egg tart specialties. And when you tour Japan, you’ll discover that there are dozens of different varieties of sukiyaki, which is customarily cooked right at the table.

You’ll also find very informal street cafes throughout most of Asia, which are little more than a handful of plastic tables and chairs on the sidewalk, overlooking a kitchen that consists of a propane tank and a wok. If you’re adventurous enough to try one of these places, you’re likely to find very local cuisine that you can’t find in the “normal” restaurants, including wild game, insects, and parts of animals that you never knew you could eat.

Desserts are not to be missed. Unlike the rich, gooey, chocolatey sweets of America, Asians tend towards the lighter, more delicate tastes in sweets. A Chinese sweet red bean bun is very tempting (and does not have the usual disagreeable side effect that beans often do). Japanese sweets (wa-gashi) also frequently use sweet bean paste and are quite delicate. In Thailand, you may enjoy bua loy naam qing (literally, “floating lotuses in ginger water”), which delivers an enjoyable contrast between the strong ginger tea and the delicate rice flour sesame balls floating within.

Often overlooked are the unusual tropical fruits found throughout Asia. If you think of fruit as apples and watermelons, think again-the taste of the lichi, mangosteen, and rambutan are incomparable and a sheer delight to the senses. Beware of the infamous durian though, the heavy, spiky “king of fruits” that has a decidedly foul, almost fishy smell and is definitely an acquired taste.

You’ll find that in most Asian countries, meals are very social, and are often served to your table communally, as opposed to the Western style of each person ordering individual dishes. Don’t be surprised if your host serves you and continues to refresh your drink throughout the meal. Bone up on how to use chopsticks. Here’s a chopstick etiquette tip: You’ll sometimes see diners at inexpensive restaurants rubbing together the chopsticks before eating. This is done when using the inexpensive, wooden disposable chopsticks, to make sure there are no splinters. Avoid rubbing your chopsticks together at somebody’s home or at an upscale restaurant, as it would be considered an insult-you’re saying that the chopsticks are inferior when you do that. But, not every Asian country uses them. Thais eat European-style with a fork and spoon. In China, you’ll use chopsticks, but will never see a knife at your place setting, because it is considered aggressive. In some very rural parts of Asia, such as in the Laotian countryside, you’ll eat with your fingers. But regardless of how you convey the food from plate to mouth, you’re in for a real treat.

By: Dan Blacharski

Create a Strong Cover Letter to Make Your Employment Strategy Sizzle

admin — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 23:21:38 +0000

When the job market is this tough and getting tougher by the day, you need to step up to the plate in order to compete. Think about it: for every job that is available out there, there are hundreds of applicants vying for it. Imagine just 10% of that figure as the ones who are truly qualified, that should leave you with a couple of hundred rivals for the same job. Scary, isn’t it?

Why you need a strategy

In order for you to get hired, you need to get noticed, something you might have trouble with if you do not have a good employment strategy that will blow the competition out of the way. It’s a tough way of putting it, but if you truly want something, you’ll have to be strong enough to go after it. Unfortunately, that’s the same sentiment that goes on in the minds of the couple of hundred of your competitors.

However, if you have a strategy, you could turn your employment chances to your favor and believe it or not, much of that will ride on a single piece of paper: your employment cover letter.

- How a good employment cover letter strategy can add sizzle to your professional life

A cover letter is more than your introduction to a potential employer. It also contains the information your employer needs to decide whether or not they should give you the time of day. Your cover letter is more than just a summary of your resume – it is your ticket to gain your potential employer’s confidence that yes, you might just be the right person for the job.

- Strategies you can use for an employment cover letter

There are certain things that you should keep in mind when you start writing your cover letter. More than anything, this one document will show your potential employer what your best points are and why of all the applicants who vie for the same job, you are the one person they should talk to. Here are some strategies you should include in your employment arsenal:

Targeted

Employers appreciate it very much if you’ve done a good job researching about their company. They don’t want to feel that they are just one of the many in your long list of potential bosses. It makes them feel insignificant and makes you look like a desperate job hunter.

Write a targeted employment cover letter as your strategy. Design a cover letter that will show your potential employer you fit perfectly in their organization. Show the matches and emphasize your selling points, qualifications you have that are badly needed by their company. If they see your relevance, they will realize that their organization truly has a need for someone like you.

Professional

A professionally written cover letter is not something you can achieve overnight. Sometimes you’ll even need someone’s help in order to do it. Nevertheless, as an employment strategy, your cover letter should be direct, polite and complete.

It should follow the standards required of a good cover letter and have the right elements to help you come across as someone to be taken seriously. It should be well written, free from any grammatical and spelling errors of any kind and should flow logically.

Confident

As part of your employment strategy, a cover letter should convey the message that you are a person who knows exactly who he is and what he has to offer. State your achievements and qualifications matter-of-factly to let your potential employer know that you have what it takes to fill that job vacancy. Tell them what you have done and what you can do without bragging.

Employment strategies should not only look good on paper, they should also deliver. When you write your cover letter, include elements that make you special, anything in your past work experience and training that will tell your potential employer that you’re the best person for the job. If you can let your employer see you in that light, you’d have captured your dream job.

By: Mario J. Churchill