Well, I’m way overdue for a special toast to our amazing alumna Aarti Sequeira for winning The Next Food Network Star and getting her own show on The Food Network!  I’ve had the great pleasure of knowing Aarti since she enrolled in the New School of Cooking’s Pro 1 class in 2004. She completed Pro 2 in 2006. Since graduating from these professional cooking classes, Aarti has assisted our chef instructors with many classes and she has been working with me in the New School of Cooking office.  Now that her show “Aarti Party” is in full production, we won’t be seeing as much of Aarti around the school, but we will always enjoy a lasting friendship with this genuine, positive, brave, and truly exceptional woman and chef.

You can read Aarti’s full bio here, but I wanted to take just a moment to address how Aarti’s education at the New School of Cooking gave her the foundation she needed to take her cooking to the next level.  Our professional culinary arts programs emphasize proper technique and classic food science so that dedicated students are able to improvise and explore their own culinary styles upon completion.  Aarti’s “I Aint Chicken Chicken” is a perfect example of how Aarti used her understanding of a classic compound butter to create the warm, soulful cardamom and orange butter that flavors her chicken breasts.

I feel a great sense of pride that our goal of giving our students the core understanding they need to pursue their own culinary dreams has been so beautifully realized in Aarti’s own professional path.  Aarti has said, “Before I did the Pro 1 and Pro 2 series at the New School of Cooking, I cooked, but I didn’t understand the art and science of cooking.  The teachers and curriculum emancipated me from the ol’ recipe book, and allowed me to play in the kitchen with confidence, coming up with some of the fantastic dishes that launched my career.  Thank you so much New School!”  Thank you, Aarti, for your kind words.

Fans of Aarti can get to know her on The Food Network website, her awesome blog, on YouTube and on her Facebook fan page.  You can read more about our professional cooking and baking programs here and schedule a time to sit in on a class by calling us at 310 842 9702.