BAKING & PASTRY ARTS PROGRAMS

Three out of five restaurants fail within five years of opening, often due to money mismanagement; this course gives students the skills to not only keep their restaurant in business but also turn a profit.

In this course, students study the hierarchy of management in food service, and the skills needed to succeed as a manager: training employees, motivating them, disciplining them, and creating a safe and positive work environment. This course explores different types of menus (including both food menus and beverage menus) and their applications. Aspects of menu planning and design, ranging from visual design to price analysis to making use of available resources are covered.

The menu is both a financial tool and a communication tool, and students learn about its uses as both. Students are introduced to accounting and managing budgets, especially as it relates to the hospitality industry. Students learn how to minimize costs and maintain a full range of customer services.

This course covers such topics as business planning, pricing, credit management, government regulation, and legal concerns. Business ethics and the crucial role and importance of management and leadership are also covered. For the final project for this course, the student will complete and present a business plan for a foodservice operation.

The Professional Communications course emphasizes the principles and practical application of effective professional communication behaviors within professional, business, and organizational contexts. In addition to identifying the importance of effective communication skills to the hospitality industry, communication styles and effective listening methods are addressed.

Students will create and present oral presentations including cooking demonstrations, and special occasion speaking. Listening skills, verbal and nonverbal communication, conflict resolution, cultural differences in communication, and debate techniques are also covered.

Technical Writing prepares students to write in the hospitality and foodservice professions. In a professional setting, writing provides readers information they need in a format they can understand.

Unlike most academic writing, in which students demonstrate their learning to a professor who already knows the subject, in technical communication the writer is the expert, and the readers are the learners. In the hospitality and foodservice industries, students and professionals write a variety of documents for supervisors, colleagues, and customers such as explaining a problem or product, preparing a proposal, or illustrating a project. This course teaches students to adapt their writing to different audiences and purposes.

This course outlines strategies for making subjects clear to readers who need to understand them. To communicate effectively with an audience, writing must meet rigorous editing standards, in addition to writing in a clear, concise style and presenting information logically.

Throughout history, food has done more than just provide nourishment. From prehistoric times to the present day, food and the pursuit of it has had a transformative role in human history. Food has impacted societal organization, industrial development, military conflict, and economic expansion. As epicure and gastronome, Jean-Anthelme Brillat Savarin stated, “Gastronomy governs the whole of human man.” In addition, food also serves a role in the cultural development of religion, economics, and politics. This course examines the role of food and its contribution and influence over history, culture, religion, economics, and politics. Food customs and attitudes are also explored, as well as, the social awareness selected food patterns and customs.

In the Science of Nutrition course, the basic principles of nutrition are investigated. Emphasis is placed on the nutrients, food sources, and their utilization in the body for growth and health throughout life. Contemporary and global nutritional issues are also discussed.

College Algebra is an intermediate-level course in algebra. This course includes topics in equations and inequalities, graphing lines and circles, functions and their graphs, polynomial and rational functions, and exponential and logarithmic functions.

The Fundamentals of Baking and Pastry 6-week class begins with course work concentrating on food safety and sanitation in the professional kitchen. The importance of proper hygiene, food handling and storage, cleaning, pest control and HACCP in a food service operation is explored.

Additionally, this course reviews mathematical fundamentals such as multiplication, division, fractions, ratios, baker’s percentage, temperatures, and other mathematical factors related to the baking industry. Students will learn costs and projections as illustrated through yield tests and recipe pre-costs. The course includes baking and pastry mixing methods and ingredient identification. The framework to understand the principles of the following cooking and baking techniques are taught: classic pastry doughs, pate a choux, fried doughs, pies and tarts, baked custards and stove top custards, quick breads, scones, muffins, cookies, brownies and bars, as well as dessert sauces. Basic knife skills are also covered.

The Patisserie 6-week class begins with learning the classic meringue techniques that lead into the creation of European buttercreams. Students will learn classic mixing methods and piping skills. Specialty dessert cakes and decorated special occasion cakes are a major focus of this course work concentrating on factors related to the baking industry. Frozen desserts and plating are focused in this course.

The course includes hand modeling techniques using rolled fondant, gum paste, marzipan, and modeling chocolate. The framework to understand the principles and techniques in the construction of putting together a wedding cake are also covered. Pastry and baking production timelines are examined in this course.

Finally, students are introduced to sugar cookery and fresh fruit dessert items. This course provides instruction, examples, and guidance in the following areas: decorating classic European cakes, rolled fondant designed cakes, hand iced specialty cakes, ice cream and sorbet, candied fruit, gum paste flowers, marzipan and modeling chocolate.

The Artisan Bread 6-week course provides the framework to understand the principles of the following methods and techniques: the methods of pre-fermentation, biga, and sponge, starting and maintaining a variety of sourdough starters, extended fermentation, the 10 steps of bread production, proper shaping, proofing and scoring, whole grain breads, Italian artisan breads, enriched breads, and special occasion/holiday breads, puff pastry and laminated dough.

Students will study the proper techniques in buying, storing and melting chocolate, chocolate tempering, chocolate candies, truffles and pralines, nut based candies, cooked sugar based candies and sugar art showpiece design and execution, chocolate molding, chocolate finishing techniques, chocolate decorations, amenity design & execution, chocolate showpiece design and execution.

This course explores the cultural differences of desserts, as well as the history and importance of international desserts from regions such as Latin America, Spain, Portugal and Morocco, Italy, Africa, Asia, Caribbean and Germanic Countries. This course also includes instruction of molecular gastronomy and contemporary plated desserts.

In addition, students will practice the successful production of high quality products and baked goods in a production environment. The following subjects will be covered: planning and organizing events, writing timelines, and developing seasonal menus. The course will also cover analyzing the most efficient ways to complete assigned tasks and problem solving.

Students gain relevant experience by working in an approved foodservice establishment. Students are required to satisfy 180 working hours and complete other required assignments to fulfill their externship commitment as part of their graduation requirements.

Students gain relevant experience by working in an approved foodservice establishment. Students are required to satisfy 180 working hours and complete other required assignments to fulfill their externship commitment as part of their graduation requirements.