The Times

Wednesday, August 25, 1976, page 18 (of 38)

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Former classmates start cooking school

Bobbie Garber (l) and Carole Kotkin, who once shared the experience of high school together, are now sharing something else . . . their knowledge of gourmet cooking, through a school the pair has formed in South Dade. By LINDA HAMLIN Correspondent Two successful housewives who knew each other in high school met again "after all those years" and found they had something in common: they both liked to cook and share with others the secrets of preparing gourmet food. The two housewives teamed up and began teaching gourmet cooking for Miami Dade Continuing Education six years ago, and today teach six different courses in gourmet cooking in their own kitchens. Soon they will open a gourmet cookware shop and kitchen in a shopping center. The two friends, Bobbi Garber, 11020 SW 73rd Ct., and Carole Kotkin, 9500 SW 97th St., feel they are a "real success story." Their husbands, an attorney and architect respectively, are "proud of what we've done." Bobbi and Carole have about 15 students per class and have a waiting list of those wanting to take anything from Gourmet I to yeast baking to Italian cooking. Bobbi said that in the classes they have an "informal atmosphere and a lot of fun. Those who take the courses are interested in the same things we're interested in, and we trade cooking secrets and have a lot of interaction." Carole's house is a spacious and homey place to enroll in South Dade's only cooking school. Both Carole and Bobbie are qualified gourmet teachers, last summer attending the Culinary Institute of America in New York, "the only school like it in the U.S. to train people specifically for restaurants," Carole said. This summer the two traveled to Paris for two weeks, attending La Vareene, another cooking school. Before they left, one of their classes gave them a going-away party, serving all French food. Bobbi said, "We ate our way through the three-star restaurants in Lyon, France, the gastronomic capital." Mrs. Elsa Greenberg, 4770 David Road, has taken several classes with Bobbi and Carole and comments that they are "a good combination; they're all-around teachers. I've met nice people there and now I've gained a confidence in baking." In a course such as Gourmet I, students learn how to make a good stock, basic cooking techniques, how to select vegetables, and how to make such recipes as rice pilaf, quiche lorraine, homemade bread and souffles. Carole said with a smile, "We show them how easy gourmet cooking is. A lot of them had been afraid to try some of these recipes before. The thought of a souffle was frightening to them, but once they know how, it's exciting." The confidence found through taking one or more of the cooking classes is echoed by Mrs. Anna Rentz, 13551 Carone Court Ch., who said that she was a fairly decent cook before, but "wouldn't have had the nerve to try some of the gourmet recipes." Now she can make pate brise, a butter pastry, and Chicken Kiev, "my most favorite recipe for company." Carole has a large kitchen with a wooden table in the middle where she can demonstrate to students and they can try things themselves, like boning chicken breasts. The two teachers only use natural, fresh ingredients for their recipes and demonstrations, and the students eat and discuss the results of the evening lesson. Carole and Bobbi offer cooking insights at the table, such as using copper bowls for beating egg white. Copper bowls will make egg whites rise seven times higher than an ordinary bowl, they say. Another enthusiastic student, Mrs. Susan Wiley, 12220 SW 71st Ct., was inspired to begin teaching cooking herself after taking a gourmet course. "I've always liked to cook, and I got the idea to go into young mother's homes and teach them — the ones who can't get out of the house." About the Chinese cooking course she took with Bobbi and Carole, she said, "Since I took it, my husband wants Chinese food almost every night." The courses cost from $75 to $80 each, and Bobbi and Carole use "expensive things, like tenderloin, because the students deserve it," Bobbi said. Another student, Mrs. Dolores Singleton, 11875 SW 73rd Ave., enjoyed learning "cooking techniques that apply to more than just one recipe. It was good to see the techniques demonstrated, like seeing an onion chopped the quick way." Here's one of the Gourmet I recipes: Shrimp Scampi 2 lbs. large shrimp | 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped | 2 tb. shallots, finely chopped | 2 tb. fresh parsley, chopped or 1/2 tsp. dried parsley | 1 tb. fresh basil, chopped or 1/4 tsp. dried basil | 1/2 tsp. dried oregano | 1/2 tsp. salt | 1/8 tsp. freshly grated pepper | 1/2 cup olive oil | 12 lb. lemon juice | 1/4 cup white wine (vermouth) | bay leaf Remove shells of raw shrimp, leaving only the tails. Run knife along the vein to remove and open the bottom part of the shrimp like a butterfly. Put shrimp and all the ingredients in a bowl and marinate for about an hour. Stand the shrimp in a serving dish that will go into the oven with all the ingredients and bake at 400 degrees approximately 8-12 minutes, according to the size of the shrimp. When finished, shrimp should be opaque and pink. Do not overcook. Serves 4-6.

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