Cooking Classes

Virtual Classes currently offered:

Contact Cynthia directly to create your own customized cooking class:  412.423.8058 or email [email protected]

In-Person Classes Currently Offered:

Classic Potato Gnocchi Cooking Class

Description

NEW! Learn the fundamentals of making fluffy potato gnocchi with a quick and easy tomato sauce that you will be able to keep in your repertoire. Instructor Cynthia Ferich learned these classic Italian recipes from her Italian Noni (grandmother). Now, she is passionate about sharing those tried-and-true techniques with both novice students and more experienced home cooks.

Through demonstration and hands-on instruction, Cynthia will show the techniques for preparing this tender dish along with a simple tomato sauce that elevates any pasta night beyond a store-bought jar. Receive personalized guidance as you work in small groups to prepare these classic recipes. Cynthia will also share tips to avoid common mistakes that result in disappointing homemade gnocchi:

  • Choosing the best potatoes
  • Using the right tools
  • Mixing the dough correctly
  • Knowing when to stop cooking

Once the cooking is complete, enjoy the fruits of your labor by savoring this dish with your classmates. The class fee includes the cost of all food ingredients.

Enroll: Fox Chapel Area High School Adult Education

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Comforting Italian Soups

Description

NEW! Winter is the perfect time to curl up with a bowl of fresh, homemade soup. Join cookbook author and veteran culinary instructor Cynthia Ferich for this hands-on class focused on creating warm and comforting Italian classics. Cynthia will demonstrate preparing and cooking three delicious soups, each designed to be budget-friendly and ready in 30 minutes or less.

You will receive personalized guidance as you work in small groups to prepare these classic recipes. Once the cooking is complete, enjoy the fruits of your labor by savoring the dishes with your classmates! Each soup pairs perfectly with a crisp salad and piece of crusty Italian bread

  • Scarola e Fagioli: Italian greens and beans in a rich garlic broth.
  • Pasta e Fagioli/Pasta Fazool: A pasta and bean soup full of vegetables, tomato, and herbs.
  • Pasta e Ceci: A hearty pasta and chickpea peasant soup.

The class fee includes the cost of all food ingredients.

Enroll: Fox Chapel Area High School Adult Education

 

 

Testimonials:

Chef Cynthia Ferich arrived in Charlotte in 2015 from Pittsburgh, PA where she appeared on KDKA television and NBC 10 with featured cooking segments and promotions for her cookbook, MaMa Mia Cucina- A Flavor of Good Food and Good Family. Cynthia began cooking in her grandmother’s Italian kitchen. She realized that generations of women were not just preparing food, but how they nurture and nourish the souls they dearly love and in the giving they receive. Cynthia is a delightful addition to ‘Charlotte Cooks’. ~Central Piedmont Community College, Charlotte, NC

Chef Cynthia Ferich  ~ “Cynthia is gifted with being both an incredibly talented chef and teacher.  I enjoyed every minute of her class, “Italian Family Dinner,” where we prepared and feasted on delicious spinach balls, roasted pepper bruschetta, fettuccini alfredo, chicken cutlets, and pumpkin roll.  Cynthia cooks from her heart, and the family stories that surround her recipes add extra flavor to all of the dishes.  Can’t wait to take another class!” -Ilene K.