11 Places Worth Traveling to for the Cooking Classes Alone

If you spend the majority of your quality time in the kitchen, consider this the ultimate guide on deciding where to vacation next: From knife skills to bread-making courses and even lessons in Mediterranean grub and cheesemaking, you can figure out how to perfect the food you fancy by doing a little extra vacation planning before your next trip.

The Seasoned Farmhouse Classes

The Seasoned Farmhouse

The lovely city of Columbus, Ohio is full of exciting and diverse architecture and activities—including great artisanal and boutique shopping in the Short North—but the city’s true gem is found in Clintonville at The Seasoned Farmhouse, which bills itself as a recreational cooking school.

This Columbus favorite is dedicated to highlighting the produce of local farmers and artisans in a warm and inviting space. Multi-course classes taught here are designed for all ability levels to help you hone your skills in French cuisine or pastry making, while one-off classes get specific into the world of fresh pastas, Middle Eastern cuisine, or even mastering the modern pressure cooker.

Find more information on courses and pricing, visit theseasonedfarmhouse.com

Culinary Experience at Lake Austin Spa Resort

Lake Austin Spa Resort

You may think a place like Lake Austin Spa Resort is all about health and wellness and incredible services—and you’d be right—but what really sets this destination spa apart is its culinary program. Beginning on the second Monday of every month, you can join restaurateurs, cookbook authors, James Beard Award winners, and acclaimed television personalities for a week of great eating.

Merging health and gourmet, you should come hungry and get ready to experience fresh food, daily cooking demonstrations, and other enticing food-focused activities. To name a few: Adventures in Cocktail Gardening, The World of Wine, All About Olive Oil, Guided Organic Garden Tour, Hands on Lunch and Learn, Smoothie Express, and Seasonal Superfoods.

Tip: Arrange the water taxi service with the resort and a luxe speed boat will pick you up in downtown Austin for a scenic ride on Lake Austin where you might spot a blue heron along the way and will definitely receive champagne upon arrival.  

$595 per night, per person (all-inclusive of all meals, classes and activities), more information at lakeaustin.com

Cheesemaking Class at Stowe Mountain Lodge

It’s pretty impossible to visit Vermont and not indulge in a bit of fromage, but when you want to go beyond just sampling and actually partake in the cheesemaking process, you can do so at Stowe Mountain Lodge.

 Not only does their restaurant Solstice feature an all-cheese menu, but their chefs and local cheese makers will walk you through a demo and educate you on the best wine pairings for each kind.

 $25-75 per person depending on wines and cheeses, more information at stowemountainlodge.com

The Global Cuisine Series at The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay

The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay

The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay is a breathtaking Northern California property in the relaxing and full-of-charm town of Half Moon Bay, which is close to the wineries of Santa Cruz and a bounty of adorable farms—like Harley Farms, which specializes in goat cheeses—that are worth a visit all of their own.

 But the real highlight of visiting Half Moon Bay is by far the Ritz-Carlton’s epicurean retreat exclusive to Rewards members where you’ll get to cook alongside some pretty impressive culinary names from around the world. These intimate, 16-seat packages will feature weekends with notable chefs like Dominique Crenn—one of the nation’s hottest chefs of Atelier Crenn and Petit Crenn—and sushi master Jackson Yu of Michelin Star Omakase, as well as Gonzalo Guzman of famed Nopalito that specializes in regional Mexican cuisine.

Series packages include a one-night stay, cooking class, luncheon, a $100 resort credit, valet parking and resort fee and are exclusive to Ritz-Carlton Rewards, Marriott Rewards, and SPG Rewards members invited to bid points to win the packages on Marriott Rewards Moments and SPG Moments websites.

Los Tamarindos Farm Experience at One&Only Palmilla

Los Tamarindos

Cabo is known for its beaches, margaritas, and their organic farms (Flora Farm and Huerta Los Tamarindos), so if you’re into any—or all—of those things, you’re going to want to experience the One&Only Palmilla culinary partnership with the latter.

First, you’ll tour Los Tamarindos farm and gather your own ingredients for the day’s recipes, before cooking alongside the resort’s famed chefs and preparing (and enjoying) a four-course meal. You’ll also get the opportunity to learn about indigenous chilies—spicy habanero and serrano peppers to name a few—and the four elements of Chi (water, fire, earth, and wind) incorporated in the garden. Everything from pizzas to traditional Mexican dishes are made with the local herbs and all demos end with a tasting and pairing of Mexican wine, tequila, or mezcal, selected by the resort’s head sommelier and tequila master.

Tip: If you’re staying at One&Only Palmilla, you will not want to miss Suviche, the handsome sushi-meets-ceviche restaurant with an impressive list of teas.

Visit oneandonlyresorts.com for pricing

Little Chefs at Naples Grande Beach Resort

Naples Grande Beach Resort

If taking a trip means schlepping the little ones along, there’s no better way to entertain and educate your family than to cook as one (Bonus: Your kids can now cook for you.) Naples Grande Beach Resort is located on Florida’s relaxing Paradise Coast and has a celebrated “Little Chefs” program, offering a pizza-making class for young culinary talent in the making. And let’s face it, what kid (and adult) won’t get excited by pizza?

$29, more info at naplesgrande.com

 The Biltmore Culinary Academy at The Biltmore Hotel

The Biltmore Culinary Academy

 The Biltmore is an iconic landmark hotel that’s worth visiting just to see the lobby alone, but as the only hotel with a recreational cooking school operating in North America, it’s also where you go when you are serious about your chef aspirations (or Instagram food photos).

Their fully-equipped professional kitchen offers a variety of classes centered around culinary techniques and cuisines (Offerings at press time include the yummy-sounding Italian Cooking, Asian Street Food, and Latin Favorites). There are also team-building events for both adults and children—letting you get involved in every aspect of preparation—and each is concluded with a meal made by the students.

For more information, call 305-913-3131 or email culinaryacademy@biltmorehotel.com.

Classes start at $114, biltmorehotel.com

Stonewall Kitchen Cooking School

Stonewall Kitchen Cooking School

Stonewall Kitchen’s Cooking School is a 15-minute drive from the charming coastal town of Ogunquit, Maine, and Cliff House Maine, a stylish New England resort, making this a must-visit when you find yourself in the land of lobster.

At Stonewall’s cooking school, you can discover new recipes and practice them with the pros, with courses designed based on seasonality. Everything from brunch favorites to innovative appetizers and celeb chef lunches and dinners can be booked, so make sure to save some room in your weekend itinerary to taste the flavors of Maine.

$50+ per person depending on courses, more info stonewallkitchen.com/visit-us/cooking-school/ and destinationalhotels.com/cliff-house

Macaron Making Class at Condado Vanderbilt

If you and your friends have a sweet tooth (or an obsession with all things French macarons), then head to class with Pastry Chef Nasha Fondeur at the Condado Vanderbilt where you can learn to perfect the notoriously labor-intensive treat.

You’ll leave class with a Condado Vanderbilt Apron, along with a wine and canape hour with Nasha Fondeur, who is responsible for creating the exquisite desserts for 1919 Restaurant, Ola Oceanfront Bistro, and the hotel’s banquet events spaces. Classes are available upon request and reservations are suggested to be made at least one week in advance.

$135, https://www.condadovanderbilt.com/

Cook Alongside a Relais and Chateaux Chef at Twin Farms

Twin Farms

If you’ve ever stayed at a Relais and Chateaux property, you know that the hospitality and service—along with an extraordinary focus on giving guests a personalized culinary experience—is what makes these properties stand out and worthy of such a distinction. At Twin Farms, located in rural Vermont, the hotel recently opened a Cooking Suite, which includes four new spaces right inside the kitchen where guests can learn (and dine) alongside the property’s executive chef, Nathan Rich. The intimate space will give you and your guests a front row seat as chef teaches you how to work with seasonal ingredients to prepare the multi-course meal you’re enjoying—expertly paired with wine, of course.

Call for pricing and details, (802) 234-9999

Bread-Making Classes at Flowers & Bread

Flowers & Bread

Located down the street from The Seasoned Farmhouse—which also made this list—is Flowers & Bread, a bakery and cafe meets floral studio concept. It’s here that you’ll get to celebrate all things bread, from learning how to shape and stuff it to perfecting your French baguette and handmade flatbread doughs—best topped as pizzas and cooked right in Flowers & Bread’s on-site wood fire oven.

You should also probably stop by: Stump, a beautifully designed local plant shop with a bright and airy feel that hosts coffee and brunch pop ups from time to time. It’s a great two-for, because guests who visit are encouraged to ask questions and learn about all the different types of plants they sell—which include house plants, succulents, cacti and air plants.

Find more information on courses and pricing, visit flowersandbread.com and stumpplants.com.

Related video: French Chocolate Macarons with Chocolate Ganache

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Baked Summer Peaches with Baked Meringue

I have an adage when it comes to peaches: Travel to the peaches, don’t ask them to travel to you. And when they do arrive as close to home as you can find them, make this simple dessert of peaches topped with meringue.

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The History of Atlantic Sea Scallops

When it comes to shellfish, oysters get all the glory. It’s understandable, since they’ve played a significant role in the history of cuisine. But scallops? Those beautiful bivalves are a bit of a culinary mystery.

Despite their current popularity, you might be surprised to learn that scallops were often more prized for their aesthetically-pleasing shells than the rich, sweet flavor of their meat. But these days, it seems like almost every fine dining establishment with seafood on the menu has its own take on them, from ceviche to pan-seared to provencal. What’s more, East Coast scallop fisheries are positively booming.

But it hasn’t always been this way.

Underappreciated Treasures of the Deep

As you may know, the earliest settlers in what we now know as New England had access to a bounty of seafood. From fish to eel to a wide variety of shellfish, they had their pick of oceanic delights. By the time the Pilgrims arrived on the shores of Cape Cod in the 1600s, Europeans had been fishing for cod on nearby George’s Bank (a.k.a. St. George’s Bank) for well over a century.

Wild Atlantic scallops, which grew prodigiously in those cold northern waters, were also inevitably harvested for food. However, they weren’t considered highly desirable. Food historian Sandy Oliver, author of “Saltwater Foodways” and “Maine Home Cooking,” explains, “Scallops and mussels…ranked far below oysters, clams, and lobsters. Since scallops have a funny sweet taste, it didn’t line up with what people liked back then.”  

Related Video: How to Make Spicy Scallops with Watermelon Salsa

But tastes change, and an appreciation for scallops in the U.S. gradually increased throughout the 19th century. One of the earliest known written recipes for cooking scallops, which called for lightly sauteeing or stewing them, was published in 1846 in “Miss Beecher’s Domestic Receipt Book.” Over the following decades, recipes for fried, boiled, steamed, stuffed, and pickled scallops began to appear more often in cookbooks. By the 1920s-30s, they had become a regular part of the American diet, especially in coastal communities.

By the mid-20th century, dishes like Coquille St. Jacques, which features scallops served in the shell with butter, cream, cheese, shallots, and herbs, appeared on the menus of French restaurants in cities nationwide. Meanwhile, fried scallops could often be found (and still can) at seaside clam shacks and other casual dining spots.

Wild Scallops Are Back in Business

If your idea of a great New England vacation is eating your weight in seafood, the odds are in your favor. According to Michael Gagne, director of business development for the Ipswich Shellfish Group, overfishing caused shellfish prices to skyrocket about a decade ago. However, thanks to recent conservation and sustainability efforts, the wild sea scallop population has come back and continues to thrive. As a result, he says, “You’re going to start to see them at a more reasonable price.”

While scallop fisheries can be found all the way down the coast to Virginia, Gagne maintains that the cold northern waters of New England yield better quality. “You get that sweet taste and more flavor. A lot of that has to do with where the scallop comes from,” he explains. His favorites include those harvested off the coast of Gloucester, Mass., in an area called Jeffreys Ledge in the Gulf of Maine.

While it may seem like other types of shellfish in the region get all the attention, don’t be fooled. “We are clam and lobster people,” native New Englander Oliver admits. “But scallops are an added bonus.”

How New England’s Cult-Favorite Oyster Bar Came to Fenway

8 Healthy Scallop Recipes for Every Diet

How to Grill Shrimp, Lobster, Oysters, Crabs, and Other Shellfish

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