PARIS: Cook’n with Class

A cooking class is a really neat way to experience Paris.  After all, what could be more French than cooking an amazing meal with fresh ingredients?

If you enjoy cooking and eating delicious food then you have to participate in Cook’n with Class.  I took this class when I was living in Paris and absolutely loved it.  So this time around, I really wanted my husband to participate.

We signed up for the French Morning Market Class and met up with our chef (Chef Brian) at 9am in the Montmartre district.  The Metro dropped us off at Jules Joffrin and we met across the street at a newspaper stand.

There was a group of 6 of us from around the world (America, Canada, Australia & Israel).  The class is in English so don’t fret if you don’t speak French. 🙂

Chef Brian began by asking for any dietary restrictions as we were going to plan the menu as we went from market to market.  I was the only one in the group who doesn’t eat meat (I cook vegan at home).  But when traveling, and especially in a cooking class like this (where you cook the meal together), it’s hard to get around that, so we decided on a seafood based meal.

Our first stop was the boulangerie to pick up some bread.  We chose a few different loaves and Chef Brian explained how to make sure you are purchasing a real baguette.  If you spend just a couple euro more you can get a fresh, delicious baguette, crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.

The next stop was the butcher where we learned about different cuts of meat.  The meat eaters of the group decided on quail thighs and duck as a side.  

Just down the road was the fish market.  We decided that our main dish was going to be a Mediterranean inspired seafood stew so we chose mussels, shrimp and monk fish.

We went to the fruit and vegetable market next.  All the produce was so fresh.  We chose tomatoes and fennel for our main and white asparagus, artichokes, white beans and some other vegetables for our side.  We also chose berries to be used in our dessert.

It’s so fun going from place to place, learning about different kinds of food and creating the menu as you go.  It’s pretty amazing what these chefs come up with!

Our last stop was the fromagerie.  It was a quick stop where we chose a few different varieties of cheese.  

Once we had everything we walked over to the kitchen which was just a few minutes away.

Then we got to work chopping and dicing and getting the ingredients ready for our meal.

Here are some cooking shots…

And then it was time to eat and enjoy some wine! 😉

The bread was bomb.  We had a variety to choose from: chocolate, sourdough, fruit and olive bread.  Yuuuuuum.

Main Dish: Mussels, shrimp and monk fish steamed with fennel and tomato.

Side Dish: Fricassée of white asparagus and paimpol beans with monkfish medallions encrusted with fine herbs.

In France you eat cheese before dessert.  Here in America, cheese is served as an appetizer.  But if you’ve noticed it fills you up and then you don’t even want dinner.  The French want you to enjoy your meal.  We also ate the cheese in a specific order.  I wish I got a picture!  My husband and I decided that that’s what we’re going to start doing.  No more of this, cheese and crackers appetizer business.  Gotta be like the French. 🙂

Dessert: Berries Cointreau sabayon au gratin.

Morning led into the afternoon and before we knew it it was time to cleanup and leave.  We left with our bellies were full and smiles on our faces from the awesome lunch we just ate.

The class is 195 euro/adult.  That might seem expensive but for the amount of time you spend with a professional chef and going from market to market and eating the most delicious meal it’s totally worth it.  You could easily spend more than this at a high-end restaurant in Paris.  And if you come back for another class you get a discount!

The awesome thing too is that the recipes are emailed to you after the class so you can enjoy the food once you’re home!

I hope this post encourages you to check out Cook’n with Class next time you’re in Paris.  You will not be disappointed.  Bon appétit!

xo, Jenneke Rose