The week of August 8th, 2011 was US Regional Foods Camp for the Teen/Preteens who attend the Culinary Classes at Let’s Get Cookin’ in Westlake Village, CA.  The camp lasted five days which included Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.  The time was from 11 – 2 making each camp day 3 hours long.  Just long enough for the participants to learn and practice new skills without becoming too tired.

The Regions that we visited were New England, the Midwest, Pacific Northwest, the South and the Pacific Rim States.

Monday was New England and different breakfast dishes were prepared;  blueberry pancakes, Johnny Cakes (or Journey Cakes), Skillet Apples, Molasses Doughnuts, Cranberry Muffins, Deviled Eggs Florentine and a Broccoli Cheese Fritatata.  Since it was breakfast, the beverage that was served was milk.  The Blueberry Pancakes were served with Butter and Blueberry Syrup.  The Johnny Cakes were served with the Skillet Apples.  The Deviled Eggs Florentine were an Appetizer and the Fritata was served with the Cramberru Muffins.  The Molasses Doughnuts were dessert.

Day Two was the Midwest and luncheon items were prepared.  Since the midwest is known for Beef and Corn, these items were the main focus,  but not the only ones.  Early in the morning before class I went out to Underwood Farms in Moorpark and purchased a box of corn.  Needless to say, corn has been a mainstay of the United States, not just in the midwest but almost in every region.  The box contained about 46 ears of corn and by the end of the week, most of it had been used.  One of the unique things about Corn from Underwoods is that it retains its sweetness far longer than corn purchased in the supermarket.

The Appetizer was Asiago Cheese Puffs and these were passed around during prepartion time so the students wouldn’t get too hungry.  The taste buds can be quickly activated when the aroma of good cooking is around.  We made a Corn Chowder and Cheese Stuffed Burgers along with a Midwestern Potato Salad.  The Midwestern Potato Salad is very similar to a German Potato Salad and for good reason.  Back in the early days of immigration to the US from Europe many German immigrants and Scandinavians settled in the Midwest.

We also made Taffy Apple Salad, Apple Pie and Peanut Popcorn Bars.  The beverage that was prepared and served was Blueberry Lemonade, which of course was very popular.

Please check out our next post for the remainder of  the week.