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The UT Culinary Institute is offering a variety of noncredit culinary courses this spring.

These courses, taught by culinary professionals, range from hands-on cooking lessons to food and wine tastings. Students will broaden their palate, hone their culinary skills, and increase their knowledge about different cuisines.

The courses include:

  • Knife Skills and Sushi Making, 6–8:30 p.m. Thursday, February 16: Impress your friends and family with artful knife skills in sushi making. Learn how to assemble rolls from start to finish while learning the knife skills that go with this craft.
  • Master the Art of Pizza Making, 6–8:30 p.m. Thursday, March 2: Learn every step in making the perfect pizza dough and sauce. Take these skills and get in a group to compete for the prize-winning pizza to be featured as the pizza of the day at Dazzo’s Pizzeria in Knoxville.
  • Pasta Making 101, 6–8:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 7. Learn how to make fettuccine, pappardelle, tortellini pasta and two delicious sauces.
  • Cast Iron Cooking, 6–8:30 p.m. Thursday, March 30: Learn how to make a three-course meal using different cooking techniques with cast iron cookware in this hands-on course.
  • Food and Wine Dinner, 6–8:30 p.m. Thursday, April 6: Eat, drink and be merry. Try a variety of dishes, each paired with a delicious Italian wine. Dishes include Italian sausage and sweet pepper Bolognese, Dungennes, crab arancini, wild mushroom tarts with truffled cheese, seasonal fruit with zabaglione, and sweet cake.
  • Healthy Indulgence, 6–8:30 p.m. Thursday, April 20: If you are looking for a way to wow your heart and body, this class is for you. Learn how to prepare an appetizer, entree and dessert that will keep the calories low and taste delicious. The menu will include chipotle portobello and roasted red pepper sandwiches, homemade baked tortilla chips with hummus, herb-crusted salmon with cucumber dill cream, warm spinach salad, and a dark chocolate dessert bar.

About the instructors:

  • Adam Myers graduated from UT’s Culinary Institute, where he earned the Most Outstanding Student Award. He is currently manager of Dazzo’s Pizzeria in Knoxville.
  • Joseph Blauvelt has been in the food industry for 31 years. After graduating with a dual degree in culinary and pastry arts from Sullivan University, he pursued further baking instruction from Gerard’s Bakery in Oxford, London. He is currently an instructor at UT’s Culinary Institute.
  • Donna Parang is a graduate of UT’s Culinary Institute and the former owner of Bella Luna Restaurant on Market Square. Her specialties include Italian, Persian and healthful farm-to-table cuisines.
  • Jeff Ross is Blackberry Farm’s Field School manager. He showcases his talents in cooking and the foodways of Appalachia at Blackberry Farm.
  • Kelly Campbell has more than 20 years of experience in the wine industry, including teaching and selling wine.
  • Terri Geiser is a culinary enthusiast, caterer, and cooking instructor who appears regularly on WBIR. She is currently the assistant director of the Culinary Institute non-credit cooking courses at UT.
  • Heather Kyle-Harmon is a UT graduate with an undergradate degree in child development and a master’s degree in agriculture and extension education. She has been with UT Extension since 1997 and enjoys serving the residents of Knox County.
  • Andrew Stock is a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu with more than 10 years in the restaurant industry. His current areas of focus are Japanese knives and knife techniques, the broad realm of sushi, and the Japanese art of fish fabrication. He is currently a chef and manager at Nama sushi bar in Bearden.

All classes are $50 and are held at the UT Visitor Center. Checks and credit cards are accepted. To register, contact Terri Geiser at tdgeiser@comcast.net or 865-963-9277. All registrations must be made one week prior to the start of class.

Students must wear closed-toe shoes and long pants to classes.

CONTACT:

Terri Geiser (865-524-4936, tegesier@comcast.net)