If you're dreading cooking for Thanksgiving, your salvation might come from a local food blogger and chef who is offering a free Thanksgiving 4-1-1 online class on Thursday, November 19, at 7 p.m.
Chris Perrin -- the pen and spatula behind the three-year-old Blog Well Done (where you can register for the class), will be on the other end of the conference call with up to 20 harried home cooks looking for some guidance on the biggest meal they'll cook all year.
"I found that there was a need last year, when I had to talk people down from making a terrible turkey," says Perrin. "And since my wife was sitting there glaring to me as I was talking to some strange woman about her turkey during what's supposed to be our family time, I thought if I can just keep the panic down, we'd all be in a better situation."
Perrin says he'll cover the basics of cooking the turkey and sides -- such as how to make creamy mashed potatoes and green bean casserole.
"I'll spend the majority of time trying to answer specific questions. The odds of cooking a factory-farmed turkey straight out of the package using only that little insert thing are astronomically slim," says Perrin.
Although he has a certificate from the professional culinary arts program at the Culinary Center of Kansas City, Perrin acknowledges that he is mostly self-taught, following the tradition of his father in the kitchen. And it's his belief that since food is so accessible, anybody can replicate his success in preparing the Thanksgiving meal.
"I don't have a commercial oven or a prep cook. If I have any advantage over a professional chef, it's that all I have to work with the stovetop at my house," says Perrin of his kitchen in Shawnee.
He also promises to discuss turkey alternatives, knowing that there are options beyond a Tofurky -- Perrin was a vegan for two years. And in the end, Perrin is fine with staying on the line as long as home chefs have questions.
"This about me wanting people to have as happy a Thanksgiving as they can have. I'll be there as long as it takes," says Perrin.
[Image via Flickr: lauragasms]
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