If you are planning a trip to Paris, consider adding a culinary workshop to your travel itinerary. You can skip the line at the Eiffel Tower and head up the Seine a few blocks to the Cordon Bleu. The workshops are taught by a Cordon Bleu chef and translated on the spot so that you can immerse yourself in the culture and cooking without missing a single step in the process.
Last December my daughter and I took a pastry course and in 2.5 hours we were munching on choux pastry with yuzu cream. Choux is essentially the pastry part of a cream puff and yuzu is a fruit that looks like a small lemon and it offers a tart citrus flavor to the pastry cream.
When we arrived at the Cordon Bleu we saw the teaching kitchen with multiple stoves and prep spaces set out with all the ingredients and tools we were going to use. We had a Cordon Blue apron and hand towel that we immediately put on correctly with the guidance of our course leader, Chef. Chef carefully explained everything we were going to do and answered all of our questions such as how to add just the right amount of egg to create the perfect consistency for a choux pastry to achieve the perfect puff. We learned the possible limitations of our ovens at home and how to work around them. Chef spoke in French while his assistant translated into English. There were about 16 attendees and we each produced about a dozen choux pastry to taste and take home. My daughter tried to pack hers in her suitcase and you can imagine what they looked like after a flight from Paris to Seattle!
Paris is not the only location that Cordon Bleu offers short courses. You may also find them in other locations such as Florence and London. Paris has the most abundant offerings. If you are planning to visit Paris it’s worth taking a look to see if there is something that pleases your palate!
