Women in Food of WNY presents:
Cooking Class with Chef Jessica Arends
Chive Popovers with Fresh Ricotta, Spring Greens & Poached Eggs
Join me (Missy) as your hostess for the FIRST Virtual gathering of the Women in Food of WNY. In this Free Class with Jessica Arends, Executive Chef at Six Friends Cabernet in Lancaster, NY, she’ll teach us how to make a beautiful, seasonal spring brunch— from scratch!
It’s amazingly easy to make your very own Ricotta Cheese at home and she’ll show us how. No more grocery store ricotta for us! Then we’ll add that fresh cheese to some homemade Chive Popovers and top the whole meal off with a Perfectly Poached Egg- YUM! (Just learning to poach an egg from an experienced chef is worth it!)
Besides LOTS of eggs, this time of year features the first greens: wild field garlic, baby kale and arugula leaves, and the first shoots of chive. Chef Jessica will be putting it all together in this beautiful meal to show us what’s possible with the Spring’s abundance.
Along the way, I’ll be asking her questions and chatting about her culinary journey, being a woman chef in WNY and whatever spontaneously comes in our shared storytelling. I’ll also share some bits about Crown HIll Farm and my own passion for food and YOU will have a chance to ask questions as you cook and enjoy along with us!
Whether you cook along with us or just sit at the “table” and enjoy the conversation, I’m sure you’ll learn a few new things to add to your own culinary creations! In addition to learning with us during this live, play-along, how-to adventure in the kitchen with Chef Jessica, you will get a copy of the recipe to use over & over again and revisit this delicious Spring delight!
About Chef Jessica Arends: Jessica graduated from Paul Smith's College with a bachelor's degree in culinary arts and service management in 2008. During her time at Paul Smith's she attended the Marco Polo Institute in Italy for 3 months on a culinary internship. After graduation she went to work as a pastry chef at the Michelin Star rated restaurant The Cliff House Hotel in Ireland. She then went on to Mexico to work as a personal chef in Quintana Roo. When she returned back to the states, she went on to Nashville to work at several locations including the 5 diamond property The Hermitage Hotel and the prestigious Richland Country Club. She is now the executive chef at Six Friends Cabernet, a new wine bar in Lancaster, NY that focuses on NYS wines and ingredients.
About the Women in Food of WNY series: Being a solo Woman Farmer and Woman Entrepreneur I have always kept my eye out for fellow women in business with whom to connect (and commiserate). As i’ve established myself in the WNY area, I have loved meeting new chefs and farmers alike. However, one thing that I noticed was a serious lack in attention towards women Chefs and Farmers of the region, despite the fact that there are many of us. Here at Crown Hill Farm, we love to host Farm-to-Table dinners featuring local chefs preparing seasonal foods. From there, I saw a vision: A series of dinners highlighting the women chefs of WNY. Now, in 2020 with COVID keeping us all away from social gatherings in person, I had to get creative while hanging on to this vision of featuring women in food in WNY. And so, after many conversations with incredible women, this series was born! This is the first step to what I hope will be a Conference of WNY Women in Food. For now, let’s gather around our respective kitchens to chat, cook and learn together.