Carmel Cooking Coach

Valerie spent time in advance so that our group of six could enjoy almost 4 hours of  involved and interesting preparation of a variety of dishes - BBQ artichoke with marinade; parchment Asian influenced salmon and profiteroles. By request, she walked us thru a failsafe white wine reduction sauce. BUT-the key to the successful evening was her enthusiasm, skill and ability to impart practical lessons to our group of varied levels of culinary skill. All this done with a great sense of fun  and laughter. While we enjoyed copious amounts of good wine during our assigned prep responsibilities , she was still able to delightfully keep us on  task to insure that we were ultimately seated to  enjoy the fruits of our labor - and her creativity ( all with printed recipes so that we can attempt to recreate this evening in the future. Respectfully;Luncheoneers and luncheonette; an entire ly unserious group of drinkers and diners, commuted to good times and great friendship.  Whether looking for a one on one experience or group of up to eight, we highly commend Valerie -" Carmel Cooking Coach" for an entertaining , educational and culinary experience. More...

Reviewed on Yelp

Valerie was a delight to work with for a seafood cooking lesson. My husband and I wanted to learn more about cooking seafood and making sauces, and this was a great way to get professional insight and advice. We asked for some modifications for food allergies and healthy cooking and Valerie gave us lots of delicious options that work wonderfully.  This was the perfect and memorable birthday present for my husband and we will be using the recipes a lot in our future! We feel much more confident about cooking with seafood and whipping together some beautiful sauces. Great experience! More...

Reviewed on Yelp

What a treat!  Valerie is accommodating, creative, patient, fun and an excellent cook and teacher.  Her class was the perfect end to our Carmel experience.

Reviewed on Yelp

My girlfriend and I came to Monterey for a getaway, and decided to try out a cooking class. Since we were from out of town, Valerie opened up her home and kitchen to us. We made a lunch appointment. Prior to the cooking class, we had very timely communication about the type of dish we wanted to learn, what ingredients to bring, and all of our preferences. Valerie was a great coach and explained things very clearly and patiently, especially for people like us who don't know how to cook well. The entire class was about 3 hours long, from intro to cooking to eating. The stirfry came out great, and Valerie even gave us the recipe to take home.All in all, she was very accommodating, and a very helpful teacher. More...

Reviewed on Yelp

This was the PERFECT mother/daughter activity for our special getaway weekend to Carmel/Monterey. Valerie is the ideal cooking coach, with her background in teaching AND culinary expertise. I went with another mom and her daughter and everyone LOVED it. Valerie customized the class and the menu to fit our preferences. She is patient and kind and a great hostess. We can't wait to remake her recipes and this was definitely a highlight of our weekend. More...

Reviewed on Yelp