CIC Conducts Boeing Farm-To-School Initiative Training for Tri-County Food Service Staff

Left top: Chef Huff and Dorchester county food service workers. Top right: Chef Huff with Charleston county food service workers. Bottom left and right: Dorchester county food service workers. 

Last week, Chefs Kevin Mitchell and Miles Huff conducted the first of two week-long training programs for Tri-County Food Service Staff. These training weeks were sponsored by Boeing as a part of the Boeing Farm-To-School Initiative.

The purpose of the collaboration between CIC, Boeing, and the school districts is to train food service staff in the tri-county school districts to produce appetizing and tasty healthy meals that use fresh, frozen, and local food items. The menus will employ healthy cooking techniques using food service equipment designed for quantity cooking methods.

CIC Grad Andrea Lever Upchurch Gets a Shout Out

CIC grad Andrea Lever Upchurch, Executive Pastry Chef for Hospitality Management Group, Inc., which includes Charleston restaurants Magnolias, Cypress, and Blossom, is truly talented. Her latest kudos are in Rachel Ray's magazine! 

EVERY DAY WITH RACHAEL RAY, at RachelRaymag.com, is loving s'mores, including Andrea's s'mores-inspired frozen dessert with sorghum marshmallow and fudge. Get down to Cypress and check it out!

Chef Lionel Vatinet Does Shaping Demo for Artisan Breads Class

Master Baker Lionel Vatinet of La Farm Bakery and Cafe in Cary, NC, came
to Chef Vagasky's Artisan Breads class Monday to demonstrate shaping and scoring! 

The Tennessean's Update on the Dinner Prepared by CIC Grad BJ Dennis and Chef Sean Brock

As we shared earlier, at the end of May,CIC grad BJ Dennis went to Nashville to prepare a dinner with HUSK Chef Sean Brock. Here's a fantastic description of the event - and every dish - from The Tennessean:

"Our dining spotlight, an intimate gathering in The Stables at Husk, is a story of connections. Foremost, it's the journey of one chef, BJ Dennis, as he, accessing his grandfather's memories and stories, connects with his Gullah heritage, inspiring him to bring forward the vanishing cuisine of his people.

"It also highlights the friendship of two chefs, Dennis and Sean Brock, who bonded over a common dedication to preserving the foodways, following its connection to another continent.

"And finally, it's the sharing of that knowledge of the culture, its history and food, with a group of curious eaters — connections made all around the table.

"This event, the second in Brock's ongoing Workshop Sessions — small dinners with a purpose — was held May 30-31. Meshing lecture, video and six courses with beverage pairings, the quests of both chefs became illuminated: Dennis' preparing the food of the Gullah and Geechee people of the Sea Islands (along the coast of South Carolina and Georgia) and Brock's tracing of those culinary roots to West Africa."
Read the rest of the story here: BJ Dennis and Sean Brock Dinner

CIC Alum BJ Dennis Invited to Husk Nashville for Workshop Series

CIC alum BJ (Ben) Dennis was thrilled to be invited by Chef Sean Brock to come to Nashville and share the cuisine of the Gullah culture. For the first of the Workshop Series in the Stables, Husk Nashville's private dining facility, Chef Brock  featured two nights of a shared menu. BJ's dishes, seen above, were Crispy Shrimp, Sweet Pea and Rice Croquettes with Geechee Peanut Sauce, Snapper with Shrimp and Crab Purloo, Eggplant Gumbo, and a Charleston Chewy with Vanilla Soft Serve and Bourbon Sauce. The Workshop Series includes an hour of lecture preceding the dinner.

Chef Brock also included BJ in the Charleston Cook It Raw event. Catch a look at him in the film. Thanks, Chef Brock, for your inclusiveness.