Le Cordon Bleu

Sugar Rush: Confessions of a Wild West Pastry Chef, and the Launch of a New Column

You might know her from her incredible s'mores at Caramelpalooza, or from her blog, Croissant in the City. In any case, you're about to learn a lot more about this pastry chef. Chow Bella is excited to welcome Rachel Miller to our fold. I am a pastry chef. When people hear what I do, they freak ... More >>

The Best of the Cheese and Wine Worlds Converge at Ahwatukee's Wedge & Bottle

Valley Sweets Expert Julia Baker Getting Her Own Show on the Cooking Channel

The Valley's Julia Baker, founder, executive chef, and CEO of Julia Baker Confections, is no stranger to television. The Le Cordon Bleu grad and Paris-trained chef has made appearances on ABC's The Chew, the Oprah Winfrey Network's The Gayle King Show, and recently the dessert edition of the Cooking ... More >>

Sweet Republic's Helen Yung on Phoenix's Best Chinese Restaurants, the Perfect Ice Cream and How 9/11 Changed Her Life

This is part two of my interview with Helen Yung, co-owner and ice cream designer/maker at Sweet Republic. If you missed part one, where Yung talks about growing up in Hong Kong, investment banking, and the dish she thinks is overrated, read it here. See also: -- Chou's Kitchen in Chandler Makes Tr ... More >>

Sweet Republic's Helen Yung on Growing Up in Hong Kong, Investment Banking, and Foie

Helen Yung Sweet Republic 9160 East Shea Boulevard, Scottsdale 480-248-6979, www.sweetrepublic.com See also: -- Sweet Republic Makes U.S. News and World Report's List of America's Best Ice Cream -- Tastemaker 88: Jan Wichayanuparp and Helen Yung This is part one of my interview with Helen Yung, c ... More >>

Jacques Qualin of J&G Steakhouse on Head Cheese, Being an Apprentice, and Daniel Boulud

Jacques Qualin J&G Steakhouse The Phoenician Resort 6000 East Camelback Road, Scottsdale 480-214-8000, jgsteakhousescottsdale.com See also: -- Matt Pool on Chris Bianco, Andreoli Italian Grocer, and Phoenix as a Food Town -- Chef Kevin Binkley a Finalist for James Beard Award This is part one of ... More >>

New Ramen Shop Opens in Tempe in Late April, Wins 6 Months Free Rent

Ramen may not be brain food, but it's been fueling starving college students on a budget for many years. And now a new noodle shop is coming to Tempe -- in walking distance of ASU and just a chopstick's throw from Mill Avenue. See also: -- Pallets, a Vietnamese, Chinese, and Japanese Restaurant, Op ... More >>

Cowboy Ciao's Lester Gonzalez Dishes on Food Truck Fantasies and His Love/Hate Relationship With the Bacon Obsession

Lester Gonzalez Cowboy Ciao 7133 E. Stetson Drive Scottsdale See Also: MJ Coe Dishes on the One Thing He Couldn't Eat and the Death of Cupcake Wars This is part one of our interview with Lester Gonzalez, executive chef at Cowboy Ciao. Check back on Tuesday to learn more about one of Scottsdale's ... More >>

Julia Baker Opening Flagship Chocolate Shop & Wine Bar at Biltmore Fashion Park

The Valley's own Julia Baker, founder, executive chef, and CEO of Julia Baker Confections, is no stranger to success. The Le Cordon Bleu grad and Paris-trained chef is currently making sweet Christmas gifts for Elton John, designing Robert Redford's birthday cake, and recently, got ink in the holida ... More >>

Monti Carlo and Le Cordon Bleu Hold MasterChef Contest This Saturday

Friends and family swear you're a champion cook, but do you have the chops to make it on MasterChef, Season 4? My 103.9 Morning DJ and former MasterChef contestant Monti Carlo has partnered with Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Scottsdale (Sky Bridge Campus) to hold a MasterChef contest th ... More >>

5: Stephen Jones

From now 'til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers -- Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you'll know; for others, it'll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you're here, check out our 100 Creat ... More >>

10 Things About Julia Child That Make Her Cooler Than You Ever Thought Possible

See also: Julia Child Restaurant Week Specials at Five Metro Phoenix Restaurants This Wednesday, August 15, would have been Julia Child's 100th birthday. And although the American chef may be most known as a television personality, author of the groundbreaking book Mastering the Art of French Cook ... More >>

Chow Bella's Top Phoenix Food Stories of the Week

Every week, there's a cornucopia of Phoenix food news, features, and reviews to report here at Chow Bella. If you're like most people, you probably just don't have the time to get to all of it. It's kind of like those burgers at Old Town Whiskey; it just won't all fit in your mouth ... or in this ca ... More >>

Stephen Jones Explains Why Fried Bologna Is on the Menu and Whistling Is Never Allowed in the Kitchen

See also: Well, Gastro My Lounge! See also: Winner of Arizona Cocktail Week is Lead Bartender at Blue Hound Stephen Jones Blue Hound Kitchen & Cocktails Hotel Palomar, CityScape 2 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix 602-253-6633 www.bluehoundkitchen.com This is part one of my interview with Stephen Jones ... More >>

The 2012 Arizona Culinary Hall of Fame Inductees Are . . .

Starting off the Scottsdale Culinary Festival for 2012 was last night's invite-only Arizona Culinary Hall of Fame cocktail party presented by the Scottsdale League of the Arts held at Technique Restaurant at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Old Town Scottsdale. It was a nice juxtaposition ... More >>

Author Kathleen Flinn of Kitchen Counter Cooking School Coming to Phoenix for First Chow Bella Book Club Event

Kathleen Flynn, author of Kitchen Counter Cooking School ​When we started the Chow Bella Book Club earlier this month with Changing Hands Bookstore, the hope was that eventually CHB would be able to persuade some kick-ass food writers to come to town. Well, that was quick. We'd barely annou ... More >>

Wanna Be a Judge at Pie Social? Join the Chow Bella Book Club!

​Hey Chow Bella readers -- and pie lovers everywhere! Want to be a judge at the second-annual Pie Social, coming up Saturday, November 12 on Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix? We've got a star-studded line-up of celeb bakers, and we're looking for one more judge to round out our panel. ... More >>

Presenting the Chow Bella Book Club; Now Reading: "The Kitchen Counter Cooking School: How A Few Simple Lessons Transformed Nine Culinary Novices into Fearless Home Cooks" By Kathleen Flinn

​ Chow Bella and Changing Hands Bookstore are proud to present the Chow Bella Book Club -- an online book club for people who love food, books and books about food.Every month, we'll choose a book -- memoir, history, novel, biography, cook book -- that you can buy at a discount from Changing Hands ... More >>

Top Chef Just Desserts Season 2 Contestant Grew Up in Glendale

Top Chef Just DessertsLina Biancamano (love those shoes!)​HOLLA! HOLLA! Glendale in the house! The second season of Top Chef Just Desserts, the competitive series on Bravo showcasing the best of the best in the world of pastry arts hosted by Gail Simmons (Call me!), announced the cast of its n ... More >>

Scottsdale's 60th Anniversary Cake: You Pick the Design, Chef Tracy DeWitt Makes It Happen

​When it comes to creating one-of-a-kind cakes for ginormous events, most of us would add our own sweat to the list of ingredients. Chef Tracy DeWitt, sugar artist.​Not chef Tracy DeWitt, an instructor at Scottsdale's Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, self-described sugar artist, ... More >>

Julia Baker: Julia Baker Confections

Carol BlonderJulia Baker ​ We recently visited Julia Baker at her headquarters in the Scottsdale Airpark. The "no talking" kitchen was in full swing preparing holiday confections for corporate customers and Julia Baker's Chocolate Boutique at The Montelucia. Julia graciuosly gave us a tour, and o ... More >>

Andrea Kretzmann of Saffron Kitchen

Photo courtesy of Lizzie Kimball via Andrea Kretzmann​ The business: Saffron Kitchen What they're packin': Meat and vegetable pies with a South African flair Where you can find them: More Valley farmers' markets will be added soon. Find your fix on Thursdays at the Market at Hayden Station P ... More >>

Spicing Up Simple Foods with Local Chef John Deflieze

As a chef de cuisine at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Scottsdale, Chef John Deflieze can whip up a few dishes some at-home cooks would have trouble pronouncing. For a recent interview, however, we asked Deflieze to tackle some foods most chefs aren't known for. Photo courtesy Jo ... More >>

Eric Ireland of Torched Goodness

Kelly Green Eric Ireland, torch in hand, is ready to burn something up -- and hopefully it's creme brulee​With the sweet smell of caramelized sugar floating from his white catering truck, Chef Eric Ireland plays with fire on a daily basis.   In fact, when he's not concocting next wee ... More >>

Valley Chefs Reveal What Was in Their School Lunches

What do you feed your little aspiring chef? Check out what these Valley chefs ate as kids that made them what they are today... or rather what they became in spite of what they ate.

SunUp Brewhouse Introduces New Chef, New Menu

​I've been a fan of SunUp Brewhouse since back in the days when it was still called Sonoran. The name change, a legal result of SunUp's burgeoning distribution, took place a year ago (wow -- time flies!), but the place is just as good of a hangout, with the same ownership and laid-back, friendly v ... More >>

Chef Talk: Tracy DeWitt of Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, Scottsdale (Part Two)

Competition is the name of the game for Chef Tracy DeWitt, who, along with three other regional champs, will strive for the title of American Culinary Federation's Pastry Chef of the Year today. DeWitt lets us in on her competition secrets, makes us want to go camping and volunteers to work at Charm ... More >>

August 4 In Blogs: Salvador Reza, SMoCA, Adam Carolla, Tracy DeWitt, and John McCain

​​​In the 24-hour news cycle, it can be difficult to keep up. We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times' blogs. Today's entries:

Chef Talk: Tracy DeWitt of Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, Scottsdale

Tracy DeWitt, the American Culinary Federation Western Region's Pastry Chef of the Year for 2010 who is vying for the national title this week, had no career aspirations of being a chef. But when she started working part-time in a New Jersey bakery at age 15, a fascination with the bakers and cake d ... More >>

Aurore de Beauduy of Vogue Bistro, Part Two

Photo courtesy of Chef Aurore de Beauduy. Chef Aurore de Beauduy ​Yesterday we ran Part One of our Chef Talk with Chef Aurore de Beauduy of Vogue Bistro. Trained at France's Le Cordon Bleu, Chef Aurore not only learned a lot about cooking, but also about the ins and outs of the industry --& ... More >>

George's in Scottsdale Gives Diners Gyro Euphoria

Chef Talk: Brian Feirstein, Eddie V's Prime Seafood

For Brian Feirstein, executive chef of  Eddie V's Prime Seafood in Scottsdale, making an impact on the customers goes beyond the kitchen. The Arizona native makes it a point to get to know his customers on a first-name basis and crafts unique dishes based on dietary needs--more than w ... More >>

Scottsdale Culinary Institute Changes Its Name

​Get ready to say a mouthful as the Scottsdale Culinary Institute changes its name to Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts. Maybe we should be excited--Julia Child, who was featured in the now-on-DVD movie Julie & Julia, attended the Le Cordon Bleu school in Paris. There are cur ... More >>

Phoenix Phoodies: Hana Japanese Eatery

Sloane Burwell Delicious poke on chips - the perfect "hello" from Hana Japanese Eatery.Hana Japanese Eatery (5524 N 7th Ave Phoenix, 602-973-1238) is a family place. From the five members of the Hashimoto clan who work there and the well-loved staff who tend to your every whim, you'll feel li ... More >>

Cooking School Secrets: Ever Ready

My ice cube trays recently came out of retirement. They were delegated to the back of the cabinet when my youngest daughter stopped eating homemade baby food, but they've been recycled and turns out they are used more frequently than ever before. What for? Stock. Making your own stock is one thing ... More >>

Scratch Pastries offers French bliss in the form of luscious desserts and savory sandwiches

Look, it's a new indie bistro on the West Side

Pink Slip

Um, forgettable

How to Bake a 14-Layer Cake

Assuming you can cook in the first place. . .

Xtreme Cuisine

Arizona's cunning culinary wizard Chef Kaz Yamamoto prepares taboo illegal moveable feasts for the elite and über-rich

You Say You Wanna Resolution . . .

Well, you know, we all want to change careers

This Week's Day-by-Day Picks

A Meal of Living Dangerously

The Valley of the Sun gets a heaping helping of "cuisine de sol"