Review on Dish it Up Cooking Class - Seattle

Last night was the first experience my husband and I had at the "Dish It Up" cooking store in Seattle. It was a really cute venue and the employees did a great job at keeping things organized and making us feel welcome. I had "won" the class for two at the Crave Party in Seattle where the store had been an exhibitor and had a drawing.

We had the privilege to be entertained and educated by Kathy Gehrt, a Chef in Seattle known for her love of lavender. All of the dishes prepared used lavender in some way and I was amazed at how delicious this herb was.

Kathy is an amazing Chef and truly captivated our attention that evening with her passion and overall knowledge about Lavender. Her website www.discoveringlavender.com is fun to peruse. Our menu consisted of tapenade with lavender & capers, roasted Halibut a la Provence, rice pilaf with basil & pine nuts, and blueberry & cream crostada.

The appetizer was remarkable. My husband and I ate to our hearts content. The spices and lavender in the tapenade was a perfect mixture and really different than anything we'd had before. It was fresh and vibrant in color and absolutely melted in your mouth.

My favorite absolutely hands down was the dessert. It was SO simple to make and tasted like you'd been baking for hours. The blueberries were actually frozen and thawed while cooking in the oven. The mixture of polenta that she poured over the top included cream and lavender sugar. I'd never even heard of lavender sugar before.

The class was completely sold out and I have to say I was truly inspired to make some lavender creations myself. She taught us to toast the lavender and also how to infuse the sugar ourselves to save time and money.

The Dish it Up employees also served 4 different kinds of wine, three white and one red, to all of those interested in doing the wine tasting and had a wine connoisseur choose the wines to go with our menu. They kept the class moving and were quite entertaining sharing kitchen gadgets that went along perfectly with what Kathy was cooking for us. It never felt staged or pushy and we left realizing that we would not only be returning ourselves but also buying a gift certificate for my in-laws 35^th anniversary.

It was such a delightful and relaxing environment. I honestly am not the cook in our household. My husband does most all of the cooking but I felt inspired to actually try to cook the dessert because I know everyone would be shocked at what a gourmet I was and it would take little to no effort on my part. Dish it Up prides themselves on bringing in wonderful chefs but having them focus on a menu that the everyday person would make and enjoy at home. I know I'll be adding lavender to our repertoire at home and those that never thought they would enjoy this herb will be jumping at the chance to come to dinner at our home.

Five starts to Dish it Up, their staff, and their chefs. An incredible evening and one I hope to repeat.