Cooking with Cacao

Saturday, July 21st, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Are you a chocolate lover?  Preston Sandbakken shows you how to cook with chocolate essense in its purest form, called cacao.  One of the healthiest foods on the planet, no longer is chocolate limited to expanded waistlines and childhood activities.  Discover these delicious ways you can incorporate this superfood into your daily life!  We will make an energizing morning beverage, snack balls the whole family will fight over, and a cacao-strawberry-cream dish that will redefine your concept of "dessert".  All experience levels welcome!

Minestrone Soup with Brodo di Pollo (chicken broth)

Saturday, July 28th, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Minestrone soup is a perennial favorite in the Italian home and will be in yours too. Learn to make your own using your own home-made chicken broth and take it to another level. Your risotto, soups, beans and sauces are going to be so much more flavorful when you learn to make your own chicken broth at home. No more chemicals and unneeded salt. Bertilla Rossetto Durand shares this family cooking fundamental that you can use fresh or freeze to have handy when you need it.

Biscotti alla Mandole (Almond Biscotti)

Saturday, August 4th, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

These delicately flavored Italian cookies are ideal for breakfast, snack and dessert.  Less sweet than an American cookie, but full of flavor.  The classic Italian dunking cookies are a wonderful companion to morning coffee, afternoon espresso or cappuccino, and evening gelato.  Great for gift giving too!  Each student makes their own biscotti to taste in class and some to take home.

Good Health in a Bottle: Homemade Kombucha

Sunday, August 5th, 10 am to 12:30 pm 

$35 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Join fermentation specialist Sacha Laurin to discover the healing power of kombucha.  You will learn about crafting this sparkling, detoxifying fermented green tea that is loaded with active enzymes, viable probiotics, amino acids, antioxidants and polyphenols.  Try a variety of kombuchas and tastings.  You will leave class with your own mother culture and a customized brew to start your first batch of many!

Thai Vegetable Carving

Sunday, August 19th, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Fine carving brings art to your table to amaze your friends, family and celebrate fresh vegetables!  Yuka Itakura is coming from Japan to teach this relaxing and artistic class!  Yuka guides you as you learn the basic skills on these beginners project as you master techniques!  Hands-on class!  Each student creates their own vegetable carving and leaves with a jar of pickles.  Don't miss this rare opportunity!

Pepperonata

Saturday, August 25th, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Meld together summer vegetables from your garden or farmers market to form this flavorful and piquant side dish.  Pepperonata makes an exquisite accompaniment to grilled meat or chicken, or base for a light summer risotto.  Students participate in the preparation and then take some home for their refrigerator.

Fundamental Cooking Class:  Pomorola (fresh tomato sauce)

Saturday, September 8th, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

With tomatoes at their peak season, Bertilla teaches you how to make this comforting honest sauce that will form the base of many recipes, including risotto, pasta sauces, soup enhancers and more.  Learn to blanch, peel, mill and cook this fundamental of Italian cooking.  This is why your grandmother's recipes always taste better!

Crafting the Finest Italian Panini

Saturday, September 15th, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Learn the art of constructing the original super sandwich with Preston Sandbakken.  Enrich your culinary skills beyond the PB&J and learn to make a panini that will not only satisfy your taste buds, but those of your friends and family as well!  Making your own custom Italian panini will teach you to expand your concept of what a sandwich can be and give you the confidence to experiment making new creations at home, making any sandwich a gourmet dining experience.  All experience levels are welcome!

Vegan Cashew Brie Cheese-Making Class

Sunday, September 16th, 10 am to Noon

$55 ($50 for Murer House members); plus $15 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

More and more people are turning to a vegan diet. While dairy cheese is often claimed one of the hardest foods to give up, there are ever increasing choices of non-dairy cheese. You can even make your own at home; by culturing cashews you can create a delicious and healthy rinded brie in just a week.  In this class, students mold and take home a small wheel to age and enjoy. Class includes vegan and non-vegan cheese tasting.

Breakfast Panini Workshop

Saturday, October 6th, 10 am to Noon

$40 + $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Breakfast is often the most neglected meal of the day.  Preston Sandbakken will introduce you to two breakfast paninis that will start your day off right!  Students make Preston's French Toasty Griddled Slam Dunker and also a more savory sandwich with fried egg, cheese and avocado (and other secret ingredients).  All experience levels are welcome!

Fontina Cheese-Making Class

Sunday, October 28th, 10 am to Noon

$55 ($50 for Murer House members); plus $15 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

An iconic cheese from the Aosta Valley in the Italian Alps is noted for its earthy, mushroomy, and woody taste, has a rich and creamy interior and a tan/orange colored rind. Learn how to make your own Fontina with Winters Cheese Company cheesemaker Sacha Laurin.  This hands-on class gives you experience in all phases of this wonderful cheese and you take home a little cheese of your own!  Class includes cheese and kombucha tasting.

Burrata Cheese-Making Class

Sunday, November 4th, 10 am to Noon

$55 ($50 for Murer House members); plus $15 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

A specialty of Puglia, Italy, burrata resembles a soft mozzarella with a surprise inside: a lava-like center that derives its name from Italian for butter.  This hands-on class will help you understand protein elongation and filata cheese.  Students create delicious burrata with our own stracciatella and cream. 

Biscotti-Biscottini-Holiday Biscotti

Saturday, December 1st, 10 am to Noon

$40 plus $5 for ingredients paid directly to the instructor

Twice baked Italian cookies enjoyed with a cappuccino, gelato or a glass of vino.  Join Franca for a wonderful morning of Biscotti baking....the art she learned from her father Dario in Italy.  Sinful chocolate biscotti with hazelnuts and dark and white chocolate chips,  tantalizing toasted almond biscotti, and peppermint biscotti to dunk and to share.  Each student will sample each, an inspiration to go home and BAKE!



To Enroll, email folsomite@aol.com or call us at 916-985-3250.

After you have made your reservation mail your checks payable to the Murer House Foundation no later than one week before class at 1125 Joe Murer Court, Folsom, CA 95630 or pay online.

Classes are designed for adults.  Please let us know if any students in your group are under 18.  Students 13 to 17 years old must be accompanied by an adult.

There is a 10 person minimum for most classes.  Cancellations for future credit or full refunds are accepted 72 hours before class  There are no refunds after 72 hours notice unless we are able to fill the vacancy.  

 Please be aware that our classes can contain products that may cause allergies, may be GMO, often contain gluten, and also present hazards found in normal kitchen situations, including sharp knives, hot pots and ovens and other situations.  By signing up for a class, you understand these risks and assume all liability.