Cooking and Baking Series Courses and Workshops
Series Courses at The Gourmandise School offer you a great way to develop your cooking or baking skills to simply improve your ability or begin a career in food. Students will work independently at their own station to maximize the learning experience. The chef will provide a comprehensive lecture and demonstration, followed by hands-on cooking or baking of the respective menus items for that week. You are offered 1 complimentary “make up” class if you miss a class, which we offer as a credit for a class on our schedule for a similar lesson.
Baking & Pastry Courses
Our Pastry Series Classes will teach you the basic chemistry of baking while you learn how to make everything from muffins and breads in Pro Pastry 1, to soufflés, macarons and petit fours... and more, in Pro Pastry 2.
Cooking Courses
You can start simple with the 4-week Cooking 101 Series learning cooking fundamentals, or just jump right into the 10-week Learn to Cook Series with Chef Carol Cotner Thompson and get a solid foundation for cooking vegetables, sauces, grains, poultry, fish, beef and more.
Upcoming Series Courses
CHOCOLATE WORKSHOP: Craft Chocolates from the Bean to the Bar
September 29 - Sat/Sun at 9:00am Chef Ruth Kennison
VEGETARIAN COOKING SERIES: 4 Weeks of World Cuisine
October 3 - Wednesday at 10:00am Chef Taji Marie
PRO PASTRY 3: Master Workshops in Pastry and Chocolate
October 7 - Sunday at 1:00pm Chef Clémence Gossett
COOKING 101 SERIES: 4 Weeks of Techniques & Recipes
October 8 - Monday at 9:00am Chef May Hennemann
CHOCOLATE WORKSHOP: Craft Chocolates from the Bean to the Bar
November 3 - Sat/Sun at 2:30pm Chef Ruth Kennison
VEGETARIAN COOKING SERIES: 4 Weeks of World Cuisine
November 27 - Tuesday at 6:30pm Chef Taji Marie
CROISSANT CAMP: 3 days of Laminated Doughs & Pastries
December 17 - Mon-Wed, 8:30am Chef Clémence Gossett
PRO PASTRY SERIES 2: Up Your Baking Game
January 6 - Sunday at 9:00am Chef Clémence Gossett
PRO PASTRY SERIES 1: The Basics of Baking
January 6 - Sunday at 9:30am Chef Carol Cotner Thompson
PRO PASTRY SERIES 1: The Basics of Baking
January 7 - Monday at 9:00am Chef Clémence Gossett
LEARN TO COOK: A 10-Week Series
January 8 - Tuesday at 10:00am Chef Carol Cotner Thompson
VEGETARIAN COOKING SERIES: 4 Weeks of World Cuisine
January 21 - Monday at 10:00am Chef Taji Marie
CHOCOLATE WORKSHOP: Craft Chocolates from the Bean to the Bar
January 24 - Thurs-Fri at 5:30pm Chef Ruth Kennison
Reviews
I learned so much in ten weeks- the two series I took helped launch a business that went from my home kitchen to a brick and mortar. Thank you!
The classes I took at the Gourmandise School were invaluable and pivotal in my decision to launch my own baking business. Clemence is incredibly knowledgable and her passion for baking & cooking shows in the way she teaches and takes care of her students.
Gourmandise is the best choice for any amateur cook or chef looking to start or continue their culinary education.
Carol taught me how to be confident in the kitchen. I went from not learning how to boil an egg to cooking every day- eating better, saving money and learning the language of cooking.
The Learn to Cook Series changed my life! I can riff off recipes, recreate my favorite restaurant dishes and cook confidently. Thank you Carol!
Instructors
Carol Cotner Thompson
Chef Carol Cotner Thompson has been teaching people how to cook for over 25 years and brings her classic culinary education, love of local, seasonal produce and study of world cuisines to her culinary classroom. Carol will guide you as you gain confidence in the kitchen and learn to develop into an intuitive cook while making healthy and delicious daily meals. Series students work independently at their own stations to maximize their learning experience. Each class begins with a comprehensive lecture and demonstration followed by hands-on cooking to master each technique and dish.
Clémence Gossett
Clémence, is a Co-Owner, Co-Founder and Pastry Chef at The Gourmandise School. A Parisian-born lover of sweets, and frequent patron of pastry shops, she quickly developed a palate for all things flaky, buttery, sweet and chocolatey. Gourmandise was born out of a kitchen in Venice, and The Gourmandise School grew out of a passion for teaching the company’s favorite recipes. 6 years and many satellite kitchen classrooms later, Clémence opened the school in 2011. Clémence is also a food writer, Master Food Preserver, recipe developer and food consultant…and chocolate lover.
May Hennemann
May Hennemann was born in Brooklyn, raised in St. Louis and is of Thai/Burmese/Chinese decent. Spending summers with family in Asia, she developed her love of Asian street food. Combined with a love for Julia Childs and curiosity about the culture of food, family and country, she decided to attend the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY six months after graduating from the University of Chicago. This eventually brought her to Los Angeles and a 16 year career in culinary education specializing in everything from classical French technique to Asian dumplings.
At The Gourmandise School, we focus on the best techniques and use local sustainable ingredients whenever possible. Our produce is sourced twice weekly from the Santa Monica Farmers Market. Our fresh seafood comes from Santa Monica Seafood. We use sustainable poultry such as Mary’s Free Range Chicken, and get our beef from Whole Foods or other sustainable providers.