Return to Newsletter Index The Culinary Connection- February & March 2004 Valentine Extravaganza 2004 The sixth annual Valentine Extravaganza sponsored by the Lowndes County Alumni Association of Mississippi University for Women was held on Saturday February 14 from seven o’clock until nine o’clock in the evening.  This year the event was graciously hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Russell Kyle of Evansdale Road in Columbus.  The event has become a yearly tradition.  Cuisine was provided by our own MUW Culinary Arts Institute, a group of dedicated students who volunteer their time outside of class to make this event the success it has become.  Proceeds benefit the Lowndes County Scholarship Fund.  If you missed it, shame on you.  You can take a peek at the event by clicking here.  Bon appetit! New Faculty Member Joins CAI Dr. Rebecca Kelly is the newest member of the culinary arts faculty.  Dr. Kelly, Assistant Professor, will teach FN 301 Nutrition, and FN 484 Nutrition in Disease this spring semester.  She will also serve as advisor to those students who must complete an independent study for the nutrition wellness minor.  Dr. Kelly is a graduate of the University of Alabama with a major in industrial management.  She completed a MA in statistics from Mississippi State and a second BS from Alabama in Food and Nutrition.  She has earned a PhD from Mississippi State in Nutrition while completing her thesis research on factors associated with risk the risk of overweight among children 3 to 5 years of age.   Dr. Kelly is an RD and LD with the state of Mississippi, and Certified Instructor for ServSafe with the National Restaurant Association.   Dr. Kelly her husband and family reside in Starkville.   Student Culinary Club Elects New Officers New officers were elected by their peers to serve for 2004 through spring of 2005.  The officers are Natalie Byrd President,   Gabe McCarter  Vice- President,  Mel Howard Secretary,  Alison Smith Treasurer, Michelle Dufour PR and Andrew Lepicer, Sergeant-at-Arms.    The club plans a number of community and fund raising events including participation at the annual Market Street Festival held each May in downtown Columbus.   MUW Students Cook, Clean Up, at SFA Symposium   by Thomas Head   This article reprinted from the Southern Floodways Alliance Newsletter, No. 13 Winter 2003   “I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried,” says SA member Sarah Labensky, director of the Culinary Arts Institute at Mississippi University for Women.  She’s referring to the ingenuity of a group of twelve juniors and seniors in culinary arts MUW who traveled from Columbus to Oxford to cook Friday lunch and much mo Saturday dinner for the 225 participants in this year’s symposium The students arrived in Thursday afternoon to commander the kitchen of a local Baptist church and set up for their cooking marathon.  Sarah Labensky and Ronni Lundy had worked on the menu in advance.  Preparation was intense.  “the first thing we had to do,” Labensky says, “was to make a lot of bacon fat.”  The kids rendered an entire case of bacon just to get the drippings,” indispensable to real Southern cooking. The centerpiece of the meal was to be a biog batch of Bill Best’s shuck beans.  But anyone who arrived at lunch expecting a pot of beans and cornbread was in for a surprise.  A glorious buffet of the best of the Appalachian South surrounded it:  cucumbers and onions in vinegar, Kentucky heirloom tomatoes, deviled eggs, potato salad, butter beans and sausage, green tomato casserole, mustard greens and crowder peas, skillet corn, pumpkin grits pudding, corn bread muffins, yeast rolls, apple stack cake, blackberry cobbler and peanut butter fudge.  Of course there was plenty of sweet tea and cold buttermilk too. While those of us who ate the lunch dozed through the afternoon’s presentations, the students were faced with cleaning up.  Problems were many.  The sinks at the church clogged.  The students literally had to bale water with buckets to prevent flooding the kitchen floor.  But the potential crisis was averted when one of the students had the bright idea loading the big pots and sheet pans into a pickup truck and scrubbing them down at the car wash with a power sprayer.  Since the bed of the truck had served as a de facto bus tub, they even had to scour the truck bed before putting the clean stuff back. Enterprising students like these are a hallmark of the MUW Culinary Arts Institute, a four-year program that began in 1997 and now enrolls about 72 students.  The Bachelor of Science degree offers the students a chance to become culinary specialists with minors in entrepreneurship/small business development, food journalism, food art (food styling and photography) and nutrition wellness.  “students know they want to cook when they sign up for our program, “ Labensky says. “They have a high level of commitment, and that makes them a real pleasure to work with.” The students look forward to the experience of working the symposium.  And their hard work does not go unappreciated.  “The kids were great fun,” says SFA president Damon Fowler.  “they are very sharp and grounded.  I was impressed by their clam professionalism and good humor.”  The SFA tries to give back.  In recognition of their efforts we donated $500 to a recent student research trip to Atlanta, Georgia.  What’s more, several student internships have grown out of relationships forged at the symposium at Oxford. MUW students participating in the 2003 symposium were Mel Howard, Millie Welborn, Alison Smith, David Stutts, Shannon Henderson, Opal Peacock, Rashanda Pruitt, Tameka Dallas, Cynthia Hembree, Gabe McCarter, Marie Eckl, Catlin Conner and Pat Berry.  Pictures of the students and their car-wash cleanup can be found on this link. Enthusiastic MUW alumni roll out new cookbook, ‘Southern Grace’  By Emily Jones This article reprinted from Starkville Daily News Wednesday November 5, 2003 President William Howard Taft affirmed the role of the Industrial Institute and College (now MUW) when he declared, “A girl has the right to demand training that she can win her own way to independence, thereby making marriage not a necessity but a choice.” Taft revealed his enlightened side when he made that speech in Columbus in 1910.  The account and many other historical treasures are featured in the new cookbook “Southern Grace:  Recipes and Remembrance of the W.” The new Mississippi cookbook is hot off the presses and promises to be a winner among area cooks regardless of their university affiliation. “Southern Grace: Recipes and Remembrances from the W” is now available at area bookstores.  As valuable for the tidbits included in the margins as the recipes it includes, the cookbook is “a good read” according to area alumni who are actively promoting its sales. “This project has really rallied our MUW alums and heightened awareness of MUW in a positive way,” declared Gail Laws of Columbus, president of the MUW Alumni Association.  “Even someone who doesn’t like to cook will want this book for their coffee table,” she predicated. Following the tradition of MSU’s popular “Bully’s Best Bites,”, the recipes were submitted by MUW alumni and friends.  The proceeds for sales go to the alumni scholarship fund and other projects the association underwrites. The book officially dedicated on October 17 during Women’s Welty Weekend with a release party at the president’s home honoring well-known MUW alumnae Eudora Welty. “Southern Grace” is a hardback book that consists of approximately 200 recipes tested by Chef Sarah Labensky and the culinary students of MUW’s Culinary Arts Institute.  It also includes poignant sidebars and campus photography.  Hors d’oeuvre recipes from the cookbook were prepared by the Culinary Arts Institute for the release party. “Southern Grace far exceeds my expectations of what I thought it would be or look like”, said Jenny Katool, class of 1978 and chairman of the Cookbook Committee.  “It is sure to be the latest tradition at the W." “I have already prepared several recipes and they were met with rave reviews.  My favorite part of the cookbook is the alums’ food memories  at The W.  They are very entertaining,” she continued.   Copies of Southern Grace can be ordered by contacting Patsy McDaniel in the MUW Alumni Office at 662-241-7295.   Lunch and Learn Still Going and Going and Going  Strong Who said there is never a free lunch, or dinner for that matter?  Well, the food may not be free, but the price for the typical 5 to 7 course meals is well worth the investment.  The first Friday of the month event is part of the training for students at MUW and was the flagship endeavor by the CAI 5 years ago.  Now other events have been added to the growing culinary calendar.  You might find a number of the CA 300, CA 301 and CA 400 classes cooking up a storm for Columbus community and campus faithful.  From the Columbus Lowndes Development Link (former Chamber of Commerce of Columbus) to a host of garden clubs from the Golden Triangle Area,  students hone their skills in cooking technique and recipe development.  New faculty member Chef Scott McKenzie has instructed students on a number of such events since arriving on the MUW campus in the fall of 2003.  His most recent menus are featured on the following link.  If your group is interested in booking an event, contact the office and speak with Ms. Cheryl Brown at 662-241-7472.   A hint;  long-term planning is a must because the calendar fills up fast. Miss W Scholarship Pageant Features CAI Contestant Michelle DuFour, a sophomore in culinary arts, participated in the 2004 Miss W Scholarship Pageant.  Michelle was the fourth alternate.  She was the recipient of the Martha Jo Mims Critical Issue Award of $200 for her platform of feeding the hungry.  Michelle also performed a song as part of her talent competition.  A special congratulations to our own Michelle, and to all the contestants who represented The W. “Young-uns” Dine on French Cuisine Students in CA 301 catered a formal French dinner menu for third to fifth grade students from Starkville, MS on January 29 at the CAI.  Lydia Allison’s Classy Kids Academy participated in the etiquette dinner experience.  Sous Chef Andrew Mathews and his fellow student chefs designed and executed the 7 course menu as part of their class assignment in Doc's CA 301 class.  One student exclaimed on the side that  “the food was AWESOME,” and that “personally, my mom doesn’t cook this well.”  You can visit the evening event and the menu by clicking here.   SYSCO Food Show Chef Scott McKenzie will be taking a group of students on a field trip to Memphis, Tennessee.  The annual SYSCO Food Show will be held On March 17, 2004 at the Memphis Convention Center.  So far over a dozen students have signed up to attend.  If you would like to join the group, contact Chef Scott. Wedding Bells Congratulations to Mr. Lance Russell a senior culinary arts major who wed Kelly Tschirhart in November.  Lance is completing his internship at the Key Largo Anglers Club in Florida this spring semester. Grad News Leslee Colson (2003) is Food and Beverage Director at the Sunset Whitney Country Club in the Sacramento Valley of California.  She and Michael are enjoying the California cuisine and sunshine. Chris Crowley (2001) is working for Aramark in Houston.  Chris had the opportunity to work the Super Bowl this past January at Reliant Stadium.   He still has the dream of doing an original movie about MS cuisine a la the Sundance Film Festival. John Day (2002) is working for Sodexho as a reserve manager.  He will be located in Savannah, Georgia.  Tara is completing her BS in social work. Keene Dixon (2002) is the Sous Chef at the Summit Club Restaurant, a members-only establishment in Birmingham, Alabama.  She also is pursuing a second BS degree in nursing at UAB.   Kaye Gabel (2000) is teaching a baking and pastry class at Galveston College. Emily Waters Norris (2002) is working for Aramark in Hartford, Connecticut and just finished a massive food service catering event for the governor’s inauguration. Katie Seaman (2002) is now Chef for the catering operations at the Faculty Club, Texas A&M University.  Katie was promoted to oversee the operations of the banquet events.   Jenny Dusenberry Rucker (2001) will be doing substitute teaching in home economics for the Wichita Public Schools in addition to her part-time job with William Sonoma.