CATERING

Creative/Design

Career Outlook

Your New Career
Opportunities abound for those with the talent and the training to plan and prepare delicious meals. Whether you work for a hotel, restaurant, resort, or start your own business, you'll enjoy the excitement, variety, and money this industry has to offer. Train at home and get the skills you need to be part of this creative and profitable field.

  • Earn your Career Diploma at home in as little as six months by studying just an hour a day for your new career.
  • Start your own business. Your program will teach you important skills you can use to open your own Catering business.

Your New Skills
You'll learn all you need to know about a career as a Caterer...kitchen layout and design; stocks, sauces, and soups; fish and shellfish; baking and pastry; wines and beverages; garnish techniques; and much more.

Program Overview

Learn the skills you need to succeed as a Caterer — at home, at your own pace, with the Continuing Education Center .

Develop your natural talent with the Continuing Education Center Caterer program. Your family, friends – and customers -- will admire your skills and the exquisite meals you prepare and serve.

Train effectively and conveniently with our online program. Your courses include:

  • Food Styles
  • The Gourmet Kitchen
  • The Culinary Professional
  • Poultry and Game
  • Fish and Shellfish
  • Baking and Pastry
  • Breakfast, Garde Manger, and World Cuisines
  • ... and so much more.

And you'll learn it all at home — no classroom needed! You'll get valuable information about basic and advanced presentations.

Start a rewarding career as a Caterer.
With the right credentials, you can work for a restaurant, hotel, or resort, or start your own catering business. There will always be a demand for professional, creative caterers. Plan and prepare parties, banquets, family events, and business meetings… and get paid doing what you love.

Contact the Continuing Education Center Today.
Find out more about the the Continuing Education Center Caterer Program that includes:

  • All the books, lessons, and learning aids you need.
  • Recipe supplements and videos that demonstrate popular techniques
  • Toll-free instructional support
  • Access to student services by website, phone, and mail.

Program Outline

Instruction Sets
Your at-home learning program consists of ten Instruction Sets designed to take you step-by-step through the techniques and skills you'll use in your new career.

Here's how it works
Your first Instruction Set will be sent to you as soon as your enrollment has been accepted. Other Instruction Sets will follow as you complete your exams, so that you will always have training materials to work with.

You will need access to a Microsoft® Windows®-based computer (running Windows Vista or later) and the Internet in order to complete your program with the Continuing Education Center.

Here is an overview of what you'll learn and the order in which you'll receive your lessons:

Instruction Set 1

Learning Strategies
Advantages of learning at home; study materials; types of examinations; accessing and using our website; determining what kind of learner you are; establishing a study schedule; study tips; preparing for and taking examinations.

Introduction to Catering
Catered events; levels of catering; assessing clients' needs; written agreements.

Instruction Set 2

Dynamics of Catering
Wine and beverages; table service; beverage service; importance of etiquette; fast cleanup.

Food Styles of Catering
Garnishing techniques; food presentation styles and design techniques.

Alcoholic Beverages
Marketing strategies to maximize profitability; efficient bar layout and operation; intoxication warning signs; legal concerns.

Instruction Set 3

The Gourmet Kitchen
Kitchen layout and design; buffet presentation; buffet design and setup; goals of presentation; simple garnishes; basic and advanced presentation.

The Culinary Professional
French kitchen brigade; food-borne illnesses; balanced diets; developing a foundation of flavor; nutrition and food science; food and kitchen safety; measuring ingredients; converting recipe yields; calculating edible portion quantity and cost; identifying kitchen equipment and its uses.

Textbook: The Professional Chef

Video: Chef Skills

Supplements:
• Cooking Lab: Seared Beef
• Cooking Lab: Caramelized Onion Frittata

Instruction Set 4

Stocks, Sauces, and Soups
Identification and uses of bouquet garni, sachet d'épices, mirepoix, and clarified butter; preparation of stocks and sauces; soup ingredients and preparation.

Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs
Identifying fruits, vegetables, and herbs; basic vegetable preparation; decorative techniques; cooking methods for vegetables; effects of herbs in recipes.

Supplement: Cooking Lab: Stir-Fried Beans

Video: Stir-Fried Beans

Instruction Set 5

Meat
Mise en place for beef; elements of beef fabrication; basic beef cuts and cooking methods; basic veal cuts and cooking methods; cuts of lamb and pork; cooking methods for lamb and pork; elements of lamb fabrication; braising; principles of curing pork.

Supplements:
• Cooking Lab: Chateaubriand
• Cooking Lab: Rack of Lamb

Video: Filet with Red Wine Mushrooms

Instruction Set 6

Poultry and Game
Poultry cuts; poultry fabrication and trussing; roasting, deep poaching, and sautéing poultry; identifying types of game.

Supplement: Cooking Lab: Stuffed Chicken Breast

Video: Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Instruction Set 7

Fish and Shellfish
Identifying fresh and saltwater fish and shellfish; cleaning and preparing fish and shellfish; cooking methods.

Supplement: Cooking Lab: Striped Sea Bass

Video: Seared Tuna

Instruction Set 8

Grains, Legumes, and Pasta
Identifying grains and legumes; cooking, simmering, and sorting grains; using dried and fresh legumes; cooking pasta; making fresh pasta.

Supplement: Cooking Lab: Sesame Shiitake Noodles

Instruction Set 9

Baking and Pastry
Functions of baking ingredients; cooking sugar; whipping egg whites; yeast breads and quick breads; dessert sauces and creams; preparing pastry doughs and cookies.

Supplement: Cooking Lab: Phyllo Pear Tart

Instruction Set 10

Breakfast, Garde Manger, and World Cuisines
Dairy products and eggs; cooking methods for eggs; omelets, souffles, and quiche; primary elements of garde-manger; creating charcuterie; culinary traditions of the Americas, Asia, and Europe.

Supplement: Cooking Lab: Preparation of an Entire Meal

 

Online Library and Librarian
Students in the Continuing Education Center have access to an online library for use during their studies. Students can use this library to do the required research in the courses they complete or can use it for general reference and links to valuable resources. The library contains helpful research assistance, articles, databases, books, and Web links. A librarian is available to answer questions on general research-related topics via email and to assist students in research activities during their studies with the Continuing Education Center.

We reserve the right to change program content and materials when it becomes necessary.

Tuition

$698.00

Your tuition includes all books, learning aids, unlimited instructional and student support services.

Click Here Now to enroll in this program or call 620.276.9647