Ready to reduce your food shopping bill by 50%?

Reduce meal prep time by 75% and increase family and personal time?

Feed your family delicious, wholesome homemade meals with less stress?

Chefs Susanna and Chelsea are offering a focused, hands-on bootcamp for home cooks designed to teach you how to use the simple techniques of a personal chef to plan and prepare a week’s worth of meals in one afternoon.

Get your own custom family dinner cartoon by clicking above.

Leave kitchen overwhelm and stress behind by learning accessible, efficient and fun techniques to transform the daunting task of meal-making into a manageable, enjoyable activity that will save you thousands of dollars a year while empowering you in your kitchen, and in your life.

Start each work week knowing you’ve already got a healthy,  home-cooked answer to “what’s for dinner?” ready for every day!

We’ll teach you how to:

- Make weekly menu plans with simple, healthy, satisfying recipes that can be made in advance

- Make grocery lists and shop with efficiency to save time and money

- Choose the most useful kitchen tools (and ditch the rest!), solidify your knife skills, and tackle the preparation of multiple recipes at once with ease

- Use one afternoon to cook lunch and dinner for your family for the whole week with the confidence and skills of a personal chef

When: Sundays, May 16^th and May 23^rd,  9am-5pm with lunch and snack breaks

Where: Lyons Farmette

What’s Included:

- Organic, freshly-made lunch each day

- a course manual including one month’s worth of whole foods-based, seasonal recipes and menu plans

- hands-on cooking instruction and planning activities

- one family-sized meal you prepare during the course to take home

- a chance to harvest and enjoy fresh food growing at the Farmette

- an optional grocery store tour outside of the class dates

Your Investment
Early bird rates, sign up by 4/30-

$349 per person if you come as a couple or bring a friend

$399 per individual

Prices after 4/30:

$399 per person if you come as a couple or bring a friend

$449 per individual

$100 deposit per person is needed to register, refundable until 4/30 with cancellation notice. Remaining balance is payable at the first meeting and is non-refundable at that time. Other payment plans are available, please contact us for options.

Contact us at aprovechacooks@gmail.com  if you would like to sign up or ask questions.  We’re looking forward to cooking with you!

Purchase tickets by 2/10- information below.

We’ll share the art of simple preparations featuring organic, local and seasonal ingredients in three ways:

• enjoy delicious food and wine and the ways they compliment each other
• take home copies of the recipes for each course so you can recreate your experience
• participate in a brief demonstration on how to use some of our favorite spices to easily and quickly add new flair to your food and warm your heart!

Menu:

Earthy Hazel Dell Mushroom and Cream Soup, Pinot Noir

Roasted Winter Vegetable Stack with Garlic Oil, Pinot Grigio

Organic, Grass-fed Lamb Shoulder Roast with a Sultry Pomegranate Fig Sauce, Cabernet Sauvignon

Moroccan Spiced Couscous with Citrus, Dried Fruit, and Almonds, Viognier

Decadent Chocolate Pots de Creme with Spiced Whipped Cream, Cabernet Franc

Price: $50 per person or $95 per couple
Time: Thursday, Feb. 11th, 6:30-8:30pm

*Please RSVP to Ciatano at 303 823-5011 to purchase tickets and reserve your spots by 2/10*

1 small butternut squash (around 2.5 lbs) for 2 1/4 cups puree

2 cups whole white wheat flour*
or 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt (we used Real Salt)
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
3 large organic eggs
1 1/3 cup unrefined cane sugar (Sucanat or Rapadura)
1 cup good quality, decidedly green-colored extra virgin olive oil (we like Napa Valley Naturals)
2 tsp vanilla extract
zest of one organic orange, optional

*White whole wheat flour is from a variety of wheat whose seed is white colored (as opposed to reddish- the typical whole wheat flour we buy). King Arthur’s brand is available at Whole Foods, as well as from the Ft. Collins area local farm Windsor Dairy. It bakes lighter in texture and color and has a more neutral taste than regular whole wheat flour, which makes it great for delicious, hardly detectable whole grain desserts.  If you can’t find it, pastry flour is fine.

Prepare the squash:

Cut the butternut in half, scrape out the seeds with a spoon, and place face down on a cookie sheet in a 400 degree oven.  Roast until squash is tender, about 45 minutes.  Let cool and scoop the flesh from the skin.  Puree in a blender for a smoother cake, or mash with a wooden spoon. Measure out 2 1/4 cups puree. This can be done ahead of time and refrigerated; the rest of the cake goes fast!

Make the cake:
Oil a 10-cup Bundt pan and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  (This recipe can also be baked in two 9-inch cake pans).

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices into a medium bowl and set aside.  In an electric mixer on medium speed or with a wooden spoon, beat the eggs, sugar, and olive oil together until lighter.  Let rest a few minutes- unrefined cane sugar takes a while to dissolve. It’s ready when only a few individual sugar granules can be seen. Add the vanilla and zest and beat again for another 2 minutes.  Add the dry ingredients all at once.  Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix on low speed until just incorporated.    Stir in the pumpkin until it is evenly distributed.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake for about 45 minutes (30 minutes if using the 9-inch cake pan).   It is ready when the cake has begun to pull away from the sides of the pan, and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.   Let cool, dust with sugar if you like, and enjoy!

Optional (pretty!) Glaze-

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup white granulated sugar
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

Whisk together the lemon juice and granulated sugar, then whisk in the confectioners’ sugar until the glaze is smooth.  Spread on warm cake, and allow cake and glaze to cool completely before serving.

From the Edible Front Range article

Wild or Heritage Turkeys have a tendency to be tougher and dryer than domestic commercially raised turkeys due to the fact that they move around getting lots of exercise.  Wild turkeys also have darker flesh and the flavor is stronger and richer than turkeys most are familiar with, but it’s every bit as delicious.  To keep your wild turkey moist and juicy one only needs to give a little extra attention in preparation.  Consider the following techniques for perfect roast wild turkey.

Brining:  Brine the bird for 24 hours before roasting (which means start defrosting your bird 1-2 days prior to brining).  Brining adds moisture and flavor to the turkey and helps to keep it from drying out.  Basics of brining include water, salt, sugar, spices, etc.  Remember you’ll need a large stainless steel container or bucket, an oven bag or extra large ziplock, and room in the refrigerator.

Another suggestion is not exactly a brine but a marinade using yogurt–soak you bird in yogurt for the 24 hours.  This technique softens the flavor and makes for very tender turkey.

Moist Stuffing:  A stuffing made from moist and flavorful ingredients like onion, apple, dried fruits, celery, herbs, sausage, or bacon will help to keep the moisture in the turkey while it roasts.  Use your favorite classic stuffing or experiment with something new.

Roasting: There are a couple of things to remember when roasting your wild turkey.  Use your favorite recipe, but you may consider adapting your recipe to accommodate these suggestions:

One of my favorite techniques comes from Joy of Cooking and Martha Stewart:

Melt a about a pound of butter with a bottle of dry white wine.  Soak a 17-inch square 4 layer cheese cloth with the wine/butter mixture and drape over the turkey.  As you roast, baste the bird evenly with the remaining wine/butter mixture every 30 minutes.  The wine and butter make for excellent pan drippings and GRAVY!

Use an instant read thermometer to help take the guess work out of wondering when it’s done.  Look for when the temperature just reaches 180 degrees in the thickest parts like the leg and breast.   Take care not to poke to the bone.  The stuffing should read between 140-160 degrees.   I usually start taking temperature readings in the last 45 minutes of the recommended cooking time.

Rest that bird: Be sure to allow your turkey to rest at least 30 minutes.  Cutting into a hot out of the oven turkey, or any meat or poultry for that matter, will allow the juices to flow right out.  Resting allows the protein molecules to relax and reabsorb the juices evenly.  While the turkey is resting make your gravy from the drippings.

Words of cooking wisdom: Make a plan, don’t worry, be brave, take your time and enjoy the process.   It will be delicious!!

For more detailed recipes using the above techniques, check out:

Edible Front Range
Great article and tasty recipe link at the end of the article that uses the brining method for wild turkey.

Martha Stewart’s Perfect Roast Turkey
It’s really a good recipe, and although it is designed for a domestic turkey the method is good for keeping a wild turkey moist.  Especially if you brine your bird first.  Click here for Steward’s perfect roast turkey recipe.

Brining Basics: This is a nice primer on brining your turkey.

This recipe is an iteration of a delicious roasted salsa verde recipe on one of Susanna’s favorite online recipe resources, the blog Simply Recipes.

Make this raw version in just a few minutes.  Even easier, check out Far Out’s Boulder Farmers’ Market stand for pre-assembled salsa verde kits with recipe and all.

Remove papery husks from tomatillos and rinse well.

Place tomatillos, lime juice, onions, cilantro, chili peppers, sugar in a food processor (or blender, or practice your knife skills and cut by hand!) and pulse until all ingredients are finely chopped and distributed.  Taste, add salt or lime or more peppers as you like. Enjoy immediately or refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Demos, Recipes, a full Mexican feast, and Live Music included.

We hope to see you there for some classic grilling with the best of the season’s harvest!

Recipe adapted from Uprisings: The Whole Grain Bakers’ Book

Makes about 20 rolls

4 tbsp honey
1.5 cups buttermilk*
1/2 cup organic butter

3/8 cup warm water
1 tbsp yeast

3-4 cups hard whole wheat flour- I use Farmer John’s
1-2 cups white flour
1/2 tsp unrefined sea salt
1 tsp baking soda

*I make my own buttermilk from Windsor Dairy’s raw milk-  it’s easy, check it out!- but Organic Valley’s cultured buttermilk is nice too, though not as satisfying as it’s low-fat.

Combine the butter milk, butter and honey in a  large saucepan. Heat gently until the butter melts.  Meanwhile, stir the yeast into the warm water in a small glass and let sit until foamy (this ensures you your yeast are still alive and active).

When the butter has melted, remove the mixture from the heat and let cool until lukewarm.  Stir in the yeast water and the flours, salt and baking soda.  Beat until it’s too thick, then turn onto a floured counter and knead for 5 minutes, or until smooth. Lightly oil your pan, drop your dough ball in, turn it over so both sides are coated with oil, and cover the pan with a wet dish towel.  Let the dough rise for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, use your knuckle to ‘punch down’ or deflate the dough, which should look balloon-like and greatly increased in volume. After releasing the gas in the dough, tear a small section of dough off (a couple tablespoons’ worth).

From here, you can either shape your rolls, or not. If you prefer a faster and simple ball shape, just roll your dough between your palms to get a nice disc, then press gently into a greased muffin tin.  Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Repeat the process then bake your rolls for about 20 minutes, until golden.

If you’d like to shape the rolls with twists, then place your small dough disc on the counter and use your palms, rolling and pressing outward from the center, to create a long dough ’snake.’

Next, fold your snake in half.

Twist the two ends around each other, and then fold the tail end of the twist under the bend end.

Pinch the seams together if needed to keep the roll intact, then place in a greased muffin tin. Repeat.

Bake the muffins at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, until golden. Enjoy!

“Other characteristics defining Colorado’s food culture include the popularity of al fresco dining and simple rustic techniques like grilling, smoking, and roasting…”
-Top Chef winner and Boulderite Hosea Rosenberg. From the Edible Front Range magazine, Summer 2009.

Want to learn those rustic techniques so characteristic of Colorado cooking?
Join us for our upcoming Campfire Cooking Series- begins July 18th.

More information here.