julia child would be proud

a few weeks ago, ej and i took a cooking class. it was called "cook for your life" and it's offered free of charge to those affected by cancer. we had so much fun and for a few hours i was so focused on the task at hand that i didn't have time to think about anything else. fantastic. it was also the first time i went public (not counting online) with my baldness. Ann, our fearless leader, suggested i go commando, so i nervously removed the scarf from my head and donned my chef hat. i don't know what i was so nervous about. i was surrounded by people who'd already been down the very same road.

at the end of the evening when i took off that hat, i was feeling brave and didn't put my scarf back on. by the time i left, three people in the class had complimented me on my head. never in a million years did i think i'd ever be in a position where someone would tell me what a finely shaped head i have. you'd better believe that after class, i walked through the streets of new york with my naked head held high. it also helped that i was fed and happy.

chef ej


i look as if i'm at a nudie cooking school.


the blonde woman is ann, who founded the program. she's a chef and two-time cancer survivor.


here are a couple of goofballs massaging chicken with a smoked paprika rub.


ej has big hands. this was his oj impression. i call it, "ej does oj".


this was the first time in my life that a hat was too big for me. if i hadn't been wearing glasses to hold it up, i would've had to cut two holes in the hat to be able to see.


the class was held at the institute of culinary education in manhattan. this is looking up at the mirror over the cooking area.


there were three teams making complete meals. this dish was one of ours. it's on its way to becoming poached chicken with white beans and tomatoes. it was sooo good.


ej starts assembling one of the desserts.


it looks like someone cut my floating head from another photo and pasted it onto this one. weird.


they took such good care of us during class. a team of bartenders made sure we always had a refreshing beverage and generally kept us entertained. here's one who's also an actor. can you tell?


each team had it's own chef/instructor. ours was the woman on the left.


there was a great mix of students there, young and more mature, all colors. the fella on the right was another chef/instructor.


the woman on the left was the third chef.


this is only a portion of the masses of food that was made and it was all tasty. we even got to take some home.


of course, the paparazzi had to take photos.


my dinner: a delicious smorgasbord.


this class was so wonderfully organized, quality ingredients, good teachers, access to professional tools, friendly bartenders, plenty of recipes to take home...it was brilliant and i can't wait for the next class.