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The Culinary Connection- November 2005
Chef Sarah
Chef Sarah
bid a bittersweet farewell to the CAI program in July, 2005. Chef Scott McKenzie was named Interim Director.
The following two articles appeared on August 11 in the The Commercial Dispatch, Columbus, MS. These
pay our tribute as well to a former colleague, teacher and friend. Indeed, her leadership will be missed.
Labensky Leaves 'W' Culinary Arts Institute for Editor's Post, by Earl Descant, Dispatch
Writer
Labensky, the award winning chef who took the Culinary Arts Institute at Mississippi University
for Women to national stature, has taken a senior editor’s position with Family Recipe Press in Nashville,
Tennessee. Scott McKenzie, an instructor in the culinary arts program will serve as interim director
until a search committee selects a new director. “Chef Labensky created an amazing program.” McKenzie
told some 75 people attending the quarterly Town and Tower meeting at MUW’s Hogarth Dining Center.
Town and Tower, the town-and-gown group that links the university with the community through a variety
of activities, presented Labensky the Service Award for Special Recognition. Labensky was not on hand
to accept the award, so McKenzie accepted for her. “She worked closely with the community, and this
is something we want to continue. We will continue moving forward,” McKenzie added.
Labensky,
who is in the process of moving to Nashville, could not be reached for comment. During the past eight
years, Labensky built the MUW’s four-year culinary arts program to one of only four in the country, while
also writing award-winning culinary textbooks.
Her book, “On Baking: A Textbook of Baking and
Pastry Fundamentals,” published this year, has been described as the “best book in the world for food
professionals,” by the international Gourmand program. Labensky, a graduate of Vanderbilt Law School,
received this honor several months ago at a reception in Sweden.
Through the events like “Lunch
and Learn,”, a program to get members of the community on campus for lectures and other events, along
with cooking demonstrations around town, Labensky made the culinary arts program more than just a collection
of college courses, turning it into a familiar flavor around town.
“We are not able to adequately
express our gratitude for what Chef Sarah has done for our community and campus,” said Lyn Curtis, President
of Town and Tower.
McKenzie, who began his 25-year career in the food industry working as a teenage
dishwasher, has been at MUW for two years. He graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and later
earned a master’s degree in hotel, restaurant and tourism administration from the University of South
Carolina. McKenzie is classically trained in the French tradition, though he admits his own appreciation
for American regional and Mediterranean cooking. In terms of his specialty of study or ideal dish, McKenzie
jokingly quotes food writer Craig Clairborn, “hopefully whatever I’m cooking at the moment.”
Labensky’s
Influence Will Be Missed, Our Opinion, and A Commercial Dispatch Editorial
Mississippi University
for Women has lost one of its stars. Sarah Labensky, founding director of the university’s Culinary
Arts Institute, has resigned to take a senior editing position with a food-related publishing house in
Nashville.
Labensky’s reputation as a chef and culinary educator is renowned. A “Google” search
for “Sarah & Labensky” Wednesday netted an astounding 6,000-plus citations. Over the past eight years,
she has nurtured the fledgling culinary arts curriculum she has helped found at The W into a respected
baccalaureate level program, one of only four in the United States.
Labensky has brought much
prestige and acclaim to MUW and Columbus. She is author of a textbook-“On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary
Fundamentals”- which is used in culinary education programs around the world.
First released in
1994, the 1200-page text entered its third edition with Prentice Hall publishing in 2002. It is one
of only two college-level cooking textbooks on the market. Recently, she reformatted her industry-standard
text into another version geared for the everyday cook, titled” On Cooking: Techniques from expert Chefs.”
Chef Labensky’s most recent book, “On Baking: A Textbook of Baking and Pastry Fundamentals,” was
published this year and was recognized in Sweden as the “Best Book in the World for Food Professionals.”
Labensky also served as co-author of another Prentice Hall publication, “Webster’s New World Dictionary
of Culinary Arts,” and is the author of another text, “Applied Math for Food Service.”
Highly
respected by her peers, Labensky has served as president of the International Association of Culinary
Professional. Her stature in the industry has given tremendous credibility to MUW’s young culinary arts
program.
Labensky will be sorely missed in the community. Her “Lunch and Learn” programs gave
residents an understanding of the Culinary Arts Institute. She also was a staunch supporter of Town
& Tower Club, a local community support group for MUW.
Last year she helped the alumni produce
a well-received cook-book, “Southern Grace,” offering her food industry publishing expertise and help
with recipe testing. She also helped the Lowndes County Alumni Chapter turn its annual Valentine Gala
into a not-to-be missed annual fund-raising event.
It is Columbus’ and MUW’s loss that “Chef
Sarah”-as she is affectionately known by her students-has accepted a position as a senior editor with
Family recipe Press in Nashville. On Wednesday, Town & Tower Club quite appropriately recognized her
contributions to MUW and the community with a special service award.
A Note: Though Chef Sarah
is no longer a member of the MUW faculty, Chef Scott has invited her to serve on our Advisory Board.
The 'W' and our CAI program can only benefit from professionals like Chef Sarah who are willing to share
their experience as our program continues to grow.
Success Builds Success
It is fitting
to follow the dedication for Chef Sarah with news and notes from the successful ventures of our faculty
and staff. Here are just a few.
Dr. Kelly Attends Annual Meeting of the American Dietetic Association
Dr. Rebecca Kelly, Assistant Professor in Culinary Arts, traveled to St. Louis, MO for the American Dietetic
Association Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo (FNCE) on October 22-25, 2005.
Dr. Kelly attended
educational sessions in which she learned new techniques for evaluating student assignments and the latest
nutrition information to update class discussions. Topics of some of the sessions she attended included
health literacy, health disparity, and the hidden costs of super-sizing orders at restaurants.
During
the super-sizing session, policy promoters discussed their desire for restaurants to provide nutrition
information at the point of purchase in order for consumers to make more informed decisions. The restaurants
targeted for this push are national franchises with standardized menus, not mom & pop type restaurants.
Dr. Kelly also attended sessions that discussed the science behind Dietary Guidelines 2005 and the
new food guide pyramid, which were released in spring 2006. Links to these documents are provided below;
please have a look at these new tools.
Dietary Guidelines 2005 are found at http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines/.
Scroll down on this page and open the consumer brochure titled Finding Your Way to a Healthier You: Based
on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
The link to MyPyramid, the new pyramid, is http://www.mypyramid.gov/.
An interesting feature of the new pyramid is that it is interactive. Each individual can enter their
age, gender, and activity level; the website will generate a personalized pyramid based on this data.
This feature of the new pyramid is very informative and fun; give it a try.
At the Expo, Dr. Kelly
gathered product information, nutrition education materials, and sampled a variety of foods and nutrition
supplements. Exhibitors she visited were representatives from USDA, American Heart Association, American
Cancer Society, American Institute of Cancer Research, Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS), and Overeaters
Anonymous (OA). Notable things she sampled were a raw food bar from Larabar (yum!), an omega-3 fatty
acid supplement from Coromega (yuck!) and an instant hot quinoa cereal from AltiPlano Gold.
Dr.
Kelly is the Honors College representative for Culinary Arts. She teaches our nutrition series of courses
to culinary majors as well as the very large contingent of nursing majors at the 'W'. This semester
she also served as faculty advisor to three undergraduates in culinary arts working on independent research
projects in nutrition.
Home Instructor will be right at home……reprinted from the Desoto County
Tribune, Olive Branch, MS September 8, 2005
Michelle Roberts will be right at home when she conducts
the Taste of Home Cooking School on September 29 at the Desoto County Civic Center. She’s a Mississippi
native.
Michelle works as a home economist for Taste of Home, which is located in Greendale, Wisconsin.
She conducts cooking demonstrations throughout Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee,
Florida and the Carolinas.
Roberts graduated from Mississippi University for Women in Columbus
with a bachelor of science degree in culinary arts. She conducts 40 shows a year for Taste of Home,
driving over 40,000 miles annually. Her previous experience was in the restaurant industry and served
as a food intern for a national magazine. Roberts is originally from southwestern Mississippi and currently
resides in Birmingham, Alabama.
W Students Cook Up Relief….by Anna Wilson, Staff Writer, reprinted
from The Spectator, Columbus, MS September 8, 2005
“Love thy neighbor as thyself” has been a theme
lately as people across the world open their hearts and homes to those affected by Hurricane Katrina.
The MUW Culinary Arts Institute opened its kitchen to help the Salvation Army feed those affected
by the hurricane. With help from many volunteers across the county, they were able to supply the demand
of up to 600 meals a day.
Chef Scott McKenzie led this effort to help not only the local community,
but also the Hurricane Katrina evacuees. It did not take long for volunteers to start lining up. McKenzie
said, “there were people from ages seven to 70 that came to help. We had whole families that came out
to participate. There were even a few people that came to help out every day.” Over the five-day span
of the project, 70 volunteers came to the MUW campus to cook for the Salvation Army. All of the cooking
was done on campus and transported to the Salvation Army building on Main Street to be served to those
in need. This project helped feed evacuees of Hurricane Katrina, as well as those in Lowndes County
still without power.
The Salvation Army had a location big enough to handle this kind of operation,
but part of it was destroyed in the tornado that hit Columbus in 2002. They were in the process of building
a larger facility and did not have a kitchen that allowed them to cook enough meals to feed everyone.
This is where Culinary Arts stepped in.
The project, led by McKenzie with aid from Dr. James
Fitzgerald and many volunteers, helped with the relief effort until the Red Cross was able to take over
and stabilize itself in Columbus. During the project, McKenzie said he met a young boy named Joe Bullins
from the New Orleans area, who was celebrating his eighth birthday. Joe was staying with his grandmother
where the floors were filled with Katrina refugees.
Culinary Arts student Pat Hunter led a
group of volunteers to make a birthday cake for Joe. The cake was presented along with some other goodies
to Joe and fiends who were residing on campus in a dormitory.
Our Own Rachel Rae
Not only
does Food Network have their Rachel Rae, we have ours. Rachel Rae Kent that is. Rachel Rae is a senior
culinary arts major from Southhaven, MS. She recently paired with Professor Joyce Sorrels from the College
of Business to present the annual etiquette dinner to 'W' students. This event was held for its third
consecutive year. Students enjoyed a meal while learning aspects of appropriate business dining etiquette.
Rachel Rae represented CAI as a professional who understands not only the importance of good food, but
of front-of-the house service and fine white tablecloth dining. Rachel Rae said that she enjoyed the
experience of education from the other side of the table this time. Who knows, maybe her own gig on
Food TV is just around the corner?
CAI Students Cater at Welty Book Author 2005
The home
of Gail and Chance Laws was the venue for a pre-dinner celebration. Distinguished authors with a tradition
for Southern literature gathered this year on campus for their annual Welty Week at The W. Prior to
a gala dinner held in their honor, the authors were hosted for hors d'oeuvres on the evening of Friday,
October 14 by the Laws. Students from CAI prepared and served the light menu. Along with Bacon &
Artichoke Dip with Homemade Pita Chips, Zesty Pecans and Potato Chip Cookies, a Southern Grace cookbook
classic, a variety of canapes also graced the menu. Guests enjoyed such canape creations as Grape Tomatoes
Dipped in White Chocolate, Curry Shrimp Salad & Avocado, Ginger Pear Salad & Chopped Pistachios, Brie
& Grape Tartlets, Blue Cheese Mousse & Caviar, Palmiers with Prosciutto and a Cajun favorite of Crawfish
Etouffee Patty Shells.
MUW Chili Cook-Off: 2005 Version
Michelle DuFour, senior culinary
arts major led members of the Student Programming Board in the Second Annual Chili Cook-Off. The event
was held Saturday, November 12 on the Shattuck Lawn. The contest rules state that beef is main ingredient
and that the chili is cooked from scratch, no premixes. This year six teams vied for the title of Best
Chili. An award for Best Booth (People’s Choice Award) also added to the festivities. The event was
free to MUW students. Michelle and her crew, including sister Rachel, worked diligently to put together
a very professional event. Supported by the Mississippi Beef Council and the Lowndes County Cattlemen
Association, contestants also included others from culinary arts. The Culinary Society placed second
with their Three-Bean Texas Chili. Team members were Reggie Thomas, Michael McKnight and Jason Duffy.
Culinary arts newcomer Martha Pounders took top honors with a chunky chili that included sirloin and
a pleasing spicy balance. Music, entertainment, games and community fun added to the free chili tasting
on a sun-drenched fall day. The cook-off is great opportunity for the Columbus community and The W
to interact, and we congratulate Michelle and The Student Programming Board for their hard work to bring
it together.
Annual Atlanta Pilgimmage
Students in Prep III made their sojourn east to
shop at the International Market and commune together at one of Atlanta's best restaurants. The group
also added a visit this year to Super H, a fabulous Korean market. The purpose of the field trip is
to experience market basket shopping and bring back ingredients for utilization in a market basket class
menu. Students also get many ideas for preparation of their final dinner practical examination in the
Prep III course by shopping and brainstorming ideas in the food-friendly environment. This year, as
in the past two, the class was joined for dinner by Atlanta Food Magazine critic Christianne Lauterbach.
Christianne chooses a restaurant that features an up-and-coming venue in Atlanta, and while dining with
the students, she shares her professional expertise. This year the choice was Restaurant 1280. Chef
Shawn Doty entertained and impressed the students and instructor ("Doc Fitzgerald) with outstanding courses
that were beautifully presented. Everyone had a grand, memorable evening. Now, full of enthusiasm,
it is on to a successful final exam dinner for all!
CAI Student & Families in the Forefront
of Military Efforts & Sacrifice
Culinary graduate Chartoya Newton (2004) has shared a letter from
her brother who is serving in Iraq. From Chuck Newton, August 2005, an Update from Iraq.
Hello to
all of you. I wanted to take this opportunity to touch base with you. I trust that you and your family
are well. As for me I am in good spirits; anticipating the day when we can talk in person. Currently
I am located in Camp Striker on Baghdad International Airport (BIAP). I am the support platoon leader,
splitting the logistic convoys with a fellow lieutenant. I also have direct responsibility for fuel,
water and ammunition fort the 48th Brigade. There are 33 soldiers in my platoon; 30 GA National Guard
and 3 Puerto Rico Guardsmen. The soldiers are performing with enthusiasm; I am truly amazed by the
number of soldiers that volunteer to go “outside the wire.” My platoon has been blessed thus far, we
have had only one combat injury. SGT Morris, from the fuel section was injured in a mortar attack or
first day in Iraq. He is still in Iraq and recuperating. Other units have not fared as well as there
have been over 15 deaths in the last three weeks. I ask that you pray for the family and friends they
are leaving behind. If you want to follow the 48th Brigade, the Atlanta Journal Constitution has embedded
reporters that report on all the operations and missions we are conducting in the Middle East. They
do a good job and give some insights from the soldiers out there doing the missions. Although the soldiers
are performing their jobs well, they can get down with the daily pressures of being in a combat zone.
I am requesting my platoon be submitted to any church, club or organization that will sponsor units
serving overseas. This sponsorship can be in the form of care packages, uplifting letter or comfort
items. I will be the point of contact and will give updates periodically. I appreciate all the support
you will give or may have already given to soldiers in the Middle east. Every show of support and reminder
of home is a release from a tense environment as well as a morale booster. Until then know that you
are in my prayers. Stay in touch and Godspeed…….Chuck
A number of students from our culinary
program are serving in Iraq or Afghanistan. Those include Jeffrey Robinson, Christopher Johnson and
Andrew Lepicier. We reprint this article from Chartoya’s brother in support of those brave efforts,
and look forward to all of our students rejoining us to complete their degrees.
Chartoya is pursuing
her Masters of Public Administration in Mount Pleasant, Michigan.
Where Are They Now: Other
Events of Former CAI Grads!
Beth & Colley Burns (2000) are proud parents of John Robert Burns.
John Robert was born September 5th and weighed 5 pounds and 12 ounces. Mom and baby are happy and healthy!
Jeffrey Byrd (2003) is the new Food Service Director at Belhaven College, Jackson, MS.
Christopher Crowley (2000) is Sous Chef at Reed’s Jazz & Supper Club in Austin, Texas. Chris has been
there for a year and a half. The restaurant is considered one of the top ten most romantic restaurants
by USA CitySearch and a top-ten favorite in Austin. Visit the website at http://www.sgrg.com
Amanda
Fant (2001) was promoted to Tap Room Restaurant Manager at the Jared Coffin House in Nantucket, Massachusetts.
Barry Karrh (1999) is the Executive Chef at the Glemora Restaurant at the Broadacres Ranch Resort
in Creed, Colorado.
Vicki Leach (1999) celebrated the opening of the Viking Cooking School at
the Alluvian in Greenwood, MS. Ms Vicki is an instructor for the school and retail center.
Gabe
McCann (2003) is working in the bakery food service division at MSU in Starkville as one of the pastry
cooks.
Opal Peacock (2003) is the Executive Chef at Market Street restaurant, Columbus, MS.
Opal began working at Market Street following graduation, moving to her new position when Chef Pat migrated
to Starkville.
Misty Prather (2003) Congratulations to Misty who celebrated her wedding to Ian
Siadak on November 12th in Baldwin, MS. Misty works for Sharp in the Food test Kitchen, Memphis, TN.
David Stutts (2003) is the new Food Service Director for the Palmer Home for Children, Columbus,
MS.
Millie Welborn (2003) Congratulations to Millie Welborn who celebrated her wedding to Trace
Heidenreich on October 29 in Columbus, MS. Millie is pastry chef at Kenmure Country Club, Ashville,
NC.
Sarah Wood (2001) survived Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. Working with Chef Paul Prudhomme,
she helped in feeding military, fire and police as well as other rescue units. Overall Sarah reports
that they fed over 30,000 people cooking out of a make-shift tent. By the way, the restaurant, K-Paul’s
Louisiana Kitchen, has reopened. Other than working 14-16 hours per day on a short-staff, Sarah is happy
though pooped.
Stevie Wortham (1999) has been promoted to Operations Manager for SODEXHO at Northeast
Mississippi Community College in Booneville, MS.
****HAPPY THANKSGIVING****
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