Greetings from your long, lost friend and pal...

I have been terribly lax in my publication duties over the last...oh my goodness, has it really been that long??? Well, to make a long story short, I was offered a job too good to pass up. So here I am working full-time this summer instead of the planned 12 to 20 hour work week.

I am happily employed at the Milestone Culinary Arts Center. I am working as assistant to the Director of MCAC, Sharon Van Meter (here is a stub of an article about Sharon in today's Dallas Business Journal). I am managing some of the day to day business that runs across her desk as well as focusing a lot of attention on really getting the Texas Chefs Association-Dallas Chapter geared up as both Sharon and I step in together as Director (Sharon) and Junior/Student Director (lil ole' me) for the next however long it is.

Because of all these goings-on, I rarely have time to cook at home, much less bake anything, but I thought perhaps I could share some of the cool happenings in the world of food. Most of this information will be from the local Dallas scene, but who knows, I work with some pretty cool movers and shakers

First up on the news front is this Sunday's dual-action events happening right here at Milestone!

For the second month this summer we are hosting the Milestone Farmer's Market, which will be held indoors in our beautiful facilities at 4531 McKinney Avenue in Dallas just south of Knox. Held every third Sunday of the month from 11:00am to 3:00pm (or sell-out) through October. More information about the event including what the vendors will be offering can be found at EatGreenDFW.com. I will be there picking up some farm fresh eggs, produce, and fruit! In addition to the wonderful food products, MCAC will be hosting a "garage sale" selling off stuff that has seemed to pile up around this place over the last few years. Lots of neat stuff. Everything from oriental tea sets to plate chargers to pastry tip sets. Something for everyone, as they say!

Going on concurrently on Sunday at MCAC, Chef Andre Bedouret, W.M.C.S., will be teaching his third class in a series of Continuing Education classes sponsored by El Centro College. This weeks class is on Kitchen Desserts. From the website: "No Pastry Chef? No problem! Whether your budget or the size of your operation is holding you back, you still can produce terrific desserts in your kitchen. From chocolate mousse to souffles, French tarts and Genoise, to old time favorites you will be able to re-write your dessert menu after this course and boost your sales. The full list of classes can be found on El Centro College's website. I attended the Butchering Series - All About Meats class on June 7th and it was awesome! Hands on experience mixed with classroom based lectures. Classes are $275 each and are held every Sunday from 11am to 7pm throughout the summer. Also, participation in each class earns you 0.07 continuing education units through El Centro. These classes are geared toward professional and student chefs, but the home cook is welcome and would fit in well in the comfortable atmosphere that Chef Bedouret provides.

Well, that is the rundown for this weekend's events. Come out and visit us this Sunday and pick up some delicious kitchen staples for this week's meals and consider registering for a class or two.