Be careful what you ask for…You might get it!

Six years ago I took over teaching Whole Foods Cuisine, a five-week (20 hour) cooking class focused on wholesome, nourishing foods, for Southwest Institute of Healing Arts in Tempe (SWIHA for short). I taught it several times a year and we almost always had a waiting list. Students wanted a Whole Foods Cuisine II, so we added that a few years ago. The response was overwhelmingly positive so we added more sections.

The problem was….it was a cooking course and SWIHA didn’t have a kitchen for me to teach it in. I made it work for a couple of years in a very small kitchen. My students’ mantra became: “SWIHA should build a big kitchen for you to teach in.” I thought it was a good idea, but left it at that.

When one door closes, another one opens
We progressed to larger spaces over a couple of years’ time, but they still lacked some crucial features we wanted and they eventually became unavailable. When the last rented location closed in late November, 2009, KC Miller, the owner and founder of SWIHA, and her team of elves decided to remodel the building next door, making one of the rooms my kitchen/classroom.

Logistics, logistics, logistics
The problem was…the previous tenants, SWINA (Southwest Institute of Natural Aesthetics) wouldn’t be out of the building (and into their new location) until the end of December. That left only five weeks for the build out, for pricing and buying large and small equipment, unpacking, and setting up for the first scheduled  course for 2010, which was last night!. Tim, Linda, Earle, John, their team of elves (the work study students), and I, managed to pull it off, but just under the wire!

My part
I generated lists of “must haves” and “would be nice ifs.” I’ve used Cuisinart products for more than 20 years. I’ve tested and written about them for magazine articles (and sent them tear sheets of the published pieces), mentioned them in my cookbooks (and sent them sample copies of the published books), and demoed them in cooking classes (so I wasn’t a stranger). I contacted Cuisinart in mid January to request sponsorship, including my belated Christmas wish list, and crossed my fingers that we could have my favorite appliances and pots within three weeks. 

Why Cuisinart?
As much as possible, I wanted my teaching kitchen to have the same kinds of pots and appliances I use at home, things that I know are efficient, effective, easy to operate, attractive, and durable. When students ask, “What kind of ______ do you use?”  I wanted to be able to show ( some of the tools I use at home) rather than just tell.

Elves at work
John installed four stoves, a dishwasher, several sinks, a hanging rack for pots, a white board, metro racks, and more. Earle found and helped assemble 8 work stations with burners, 8 long metal tables, and my prep table. Tim, our designated shopper was sent to buy a laundry list of kitchen equipment, from measuring utensils and mixing bowls to timers and trivets. How fun is that? Wouldn’t you love to  get paid to shop on company time? “Hi, What do you do for a living?” “I shop for kitchen equipment!” “Really? You're a professional shopper? Sweet! How’d you land that job??” Seriously, Tim does way more than shop. He’s the Education Specialist and Faculty Manager/Liason at SWIHA and he adds humor to situations that get too serious. He doesn’t get paid to shop everyday (at least I don't think he does!) and he’s not allowed to wear jeans to work.

Anyway, Tim did a great job shopping for me (and I thanked him repeatedly), especially when you consider that he had only a couple of days to do it (the kitchen wasn’t ready for us to go in and set up shop until Tuesday); he had to buy a gazillion things; and he didn’t have makes, models, or a catalog with color pictures in his hands to match the pictures in my head and he had to go to multiple stores.

Keepers
The day before the first class Tim was shopping. That night work study students and I were unpacking and washing tim’s finds of the day and my Cuisinart collection and figuring out where to store everything. Some of the items looked exactly like I expected. These were “keepers.” Others weren’t exactly what I was looking for; these went in the “go-back” pile.

Have you ever asked for something, been less than specific and had something show up that was…not what you expected? Hopefully you could laugh about it.

Make SMART requests
I know about SMART goals. I used them to manifest the Cuisinart appliances and pots for the new teaching kitchen and I've used them to achieve countless other goals. SMART are Specific, Measurable, Attainable or Action Oriented, Realistic, and Time bound. I temporarily forgot about SMART requests.

The first salad spinner Tim bought was on the small side. I knew Tim had to make a run for more equipment the next day so I asked him to get a larger salad spinner. That was not SMART (it was missing a specific and measurable component).

Super-size that salad
When I arrived early the next day to set up for class, I found I had gotten what I asked for: a bigger salad spinner, a super-size, 20 liter (80 cup capacity) industrial strength salad spinner! (Photo upper right corner of page.) I love salads  and planned to use a lot of salad greens in the class, but not that much! So, we made the small spinner work!

The problem was…I wasn’t specific enough about the size and he wasn’t shopping for it in a typical kitchen shop, he went to a restaurant supply store that day where bigger means something completely different than in a department store.  So the salad spinner went in the “go back” pile along with the rubber spatulas and whisks designed for similar-sized stock pots, which we didn’t have. I would have taken it out of the box for a spin, but we had too much else to do (like washing dishes, putting more tools away, and organizing ingredients for the eight recipes the 24 students would making in a couple of hours. Overall, we had the most important tools so it wasn't a big deal that we were missing a few items. The students were so happy be in part two of the class they had enjoyed so much the previous year.

Here's what my students made last night:

• Broiled Chicken Salad with Blue Cheese, Cherries, Pears & Pecans
• Your Basic Green Salad with Yogurt Herb Dressing & Dairy Free Ranch Dressing
• Spice-Rubbed Steak, Sun-Dried Tomato & Green Salad with Roasted Onions, Avocado & Lemonette Dressing
• Parisian Style Potato Salad (attached)   
• Wild Alaskan Salmon Salad with  Black Pepper, Mango & Basil Balsamic Dressing
• The Everlasting Salad (attached)
• Beef Kafta Kabobs
• Teeccino, a roasted chicory root coffee alternative, with coconut milk and stevia

No coffee needed
The good news is…the class was a huge success, as usual. The recipes came out great. They had plenty of food. Everyone loved the combinations of flavors and textures and the ideas and strategies I  presented. Everyone was engaged and active. Those who had been in our previous kitchens, voted this their favorite classroom yet! We worked well as a team, no one got hurt, and the energy and enthusiasm in the room was high---enough to energize me until 12:30 am.

Join us
If you cook (or aspire to do it well), if want healthy food, if you want it taste great, but you don’t know where to start or how to create and sustain a cooking routine that fits your busy lifestyle, and you live in the Phoenix metro, consider enrolling in Whole Foods Cuisine I and Whole Foods Cuisine II at SWIHA. Click here for the schedule of classes and scroll down to the bottom of the page. You don’t have to be enrolled in any of SWIHAs other programs to participate. If you don’t live in Phoenix, AZ, you can still take my classes….on line. We’ll launch the on-line version of WFCI later this month. Stay tuned for more details and visit SWIHA’s web site.

What are your dreams for 2010?
Are they written down? As SMART goals? If not, now's the time to get started. You could check out the book, Write It Down, Make it Happen: Knowing What You Want and Getting It by Henriette Ann Klauser, or Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be By jack Canfield. Consider hiring a life coach or a cooking coach (like me), to help you focus, brainstorm, fine tune your strategies, to cheer you on! 

Photo credits: Earle Duskey and Rachel Albert-Matesz, 2010

Comments

[Ricki]

Congrats! Sounds like an amazing space (even if the equipment details needed to be ironed out a bit!). Wish I lived closer and could take a class!

[Chef Rachel]

Hi Ricki

Thanks for your support. I do wish you lived closer too! The minor kitchen details that need to be ironed out were just that. The most important things we did have. When the brand ovens didn't get up to temperature, I didn't sweat it. One of my students, who also works at the school, took over manning the ovens and cranking up the temperature. I considered the evening a success!

[Dave]

Rachel what a fantastic story. Congratuations!

[Chef Rachel]

Thanks, Dave! I'm having so much fun teaching in my new kitchen and my students are having a blast learning in the new space! So much fun!

Thanks for all of your support with my blog.