FRENCH COOKING CLASSES IN ENGLISH IN FRANCE
BY CHEF ALEX MILES

Alex has lived in France for 25 years and enjoys sharing his culinary & cultural experiences with you. He worked with the world famous caterer and pâtissier, “Lenôtre,” on three continents and had 5 French pastry shops of his own in Manhattan and the New York area. He is a chef, pastry chef and also lectures on food, identity and culture at universities throughout France as well as consulting for the food industry. He works for the European Commission on “Animal Welfare” and is a member of several committees on health and food in public schools for the city of Dijon and the Burgundy region.

French Family Food

Alex has taught cooking and pastry making for many years and is now sharing these skills with English speaking tourists in several Burgundy Bed & Breakfast places; “La Terre d’Or” in Beaune, www.laterredor.com, “Les Roches” in Mont St. Jean, www.lesroches-burgundy.com , “Clos du Colombier” in Pommard, http://perso.wanadoo.fr/closducolombier/index.htm . The day begins at your Bed & Breakfast place where he will discuss the plans for the day over coffee. Then you go to the local French market where Alex knows many of the vendors. Alex will design the menu with you and choose the foods you’ll like to discover while at the market. He will explain what the different foods are, where they come from and what pleasure they give to the French in their daily lives. (Check out www.gonomad.com under the heading Dijon and/or Burgundy and Dorie Greenspan’s www.doriegreenspan.com article on my friend Fred Mougel, the best bread baker in Dijon http://www.epicurious.com/bonappetit/blogs/editor .)
The French Family Food experience shows you what people really cook at home. These are classic dishes easy to make without the fuss of having to be a chemist or physicist. These are understandable recipes explained in a clear and concise way which will help you please your friends and family when you get back home. The things you will learn are simple identifiable foods you can sink your teeth into! Alex will also talk about current trends in French cooking and where the culinary arts are going.
You will enjoy a day in comfortable surroundings, learn some little known aspects of French culture and pick up a few culinary tricks and recipes that you will be able to put to use in your kitchen at home. The idea is to have a good time while doing something you wouldn’t get the chance to do anywhere else. The English speakers visiting France feel quite free to ask Alex questions about the French they wouldn’t dare ask a Frenchman…the idea is to feel relaxed and enjoy!
Alex’s book, “Ces hommes qui cuisine,” (“Men in the Kitchen”), shows portraits of men throughout France who cook at home for their pleasure while at the same time sharing the household tasks with their wives. The book is beautifully photographed by Marielys Lorthios, www.marielys-lorthios.com and all the recipes are clearly explained and easy to follow. He is working on a new book with the well known Burgundy photographer, Michel Joly, http://micheljoly.photo.free.fr which will appear in the Fall of 2008.
Alex cooks exclusively on Lacanche Stoves which are installed in all the locations where he gives cooking classes. www.lacanche.com www.frenchranges.com
He has a radio show where he interviews chefs and writers on their books about food and appears on French television programs dealing with food and culture.
Alex acquired French nationality in 2004, (of course he kept his American citizenship), and lives happily with his French wife in Dijon.
Alex is in the process of developing his Blog,
http://french-cooking-culture.blogspot.com ,
which has restaurant reviews, recipes and other pertinent information concerning a wide variety of aspects in food and culture.