for immediate release

Learn to Bake Mouth-Watering Treats

School of the Chicago Botanic Garden offers baking classes, Winter 2009

Media Only:
Julie McCaffrey
(847) 835-8213
jmccaffrey@chicagobotanic.org

GLENCOE, Ill. (Nov. 6, 2008)—For people who want to emulate their favorite pastry chef or take up a new hobby, the Joseph Regenstein, Jr. School of the Chicago Botanic Garden offers baking courses this winter. Learn to cook delicious puff pastries, romantic desserts, perfect pies and savory breakfast dishes that will make mouths water. Impress your friends and relatives with your baking skills at your next holiday meal.

Classes are from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursdays from January 8 through March 12. The schedule is as follows:

· Breakfast Bonanza—January 8

Learn to make a number of sweet and savory breakfast dishes, including some that lend themselves to advance preparation. As a group, students will make tender lemon-poppy seed muffins, savory roasted-vegetable egg strada, yeast raised cinnamon rolls and irresistible sticky buns.

· Cream Puff Pastry—January 29

Learn a multitude of applications for this divine, feather-light pastry used for everything from profiteroles to churros. As a group, students will make cream puffs filled with vanilla-laced whipped cream, crisp and creamy éclairs filled with pastry cream and dipped in ganache, and addictive cheese gougere—an excellent vehicle for savory fillings.

· Romantic Desserts Made Easy — February 12

Learn how to create a luscious liquid-center cake with spicy crème anglaise and dainty tuile cookies. A perfect sweet for your Sweet!

· Flatbread Fun—February 26

Imagine boundless culinary options from just four ingredients: flour, water, yeast and salt. Flatbreads, among the oldest types of bread around, are an ideal foray into the world of yeast doughs. As a group, students will learn leavening basics from master baker Melina Kelson-Podolsky as we make herbed focaccia, pizzas that lend themselves to a multitude of toppings, and elegant flatbreads that make show-stopping centerpieces.

· Perfect Pies—March 12

Learn how to make tender, flaky all-butter pie dough in a few simple steps. We’ll finish these with a variety of homemade fillings including silken, decadent banana cream and luscious caramel apple fillings. We will also make a tomato-dijon-mozzerella tart that will leave your family clamoring for more.

Individual sessions cost $74. Chicago Botanic Garden members pay $59 per session. For more information, or to register, call the Joseph Regenstein, Jr. School of the Chicago Botanic Garden at (847) 835-8261, or visit www.chicagobotanic.org/school. For a full listing of courses, visit the website or call (847) 835-8261 to request a course catalog.

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Editors, please note: The Chicago Botanic Garden's newsroom is online at www.chicagobotanic.org/pr. For digital images, contact Julie McCaffrey at (847) 835-8213 or at jmccaffrey@chicagobotanic.org.

The Chicago Botanic Garden, one of the green treasures of the Forest Preserve District of Cook County, is a 385-acre living plant museum featuring 23 distinct display gardens surrounded by lakes, as well as a prairie and woodlands. With events, programs and activities for all ages, the Garden is open every day of the year. Admission is free; select event fees apply. Parking is $15; free for members. On Tuesdays, senior citizens age 62 and older pay just $7 for parking. The Garden is located at 1000 Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, Ill. Visit www.chicagobotanic.org, or call (847) 835-5440 for seasonal hours, images of the Garden and commuter transportation information.

The Chicago Botanic Garden is managed by the Chicago Horticultural Society. It opened to the public in 1972 and is home to the Joseph Regenstein, Jr. School of the Chicago Botanic Garden, offering a broad array of adult classes in plant science, landscape design and gardening arts. Through the Division of Plant Science and Conservation, Garden scientists work on plant conservation, research and environmental initiatives that have global impact. The Center for Teaching and Learning brings the wonder of nature and plants to children, teens and teachers. The Garden's Horticultural Therapy and Community Gardening programs provide nationally recognized community outreach and service programs. The Garden is also breaking new ground in urban horticulture and jobs training through a 15-acre project in the North Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago called Windy City Harvest. The Chicago Botanic Garden is accredited by the American Association of Museums and is a member of the American Public Gardens Association (APGA). In 2006, the Chicago Botanic Garden received the Award for Garden Excellence, given yearly by the APGA and Horticulture magazine to a public garden that exemplifies the highest standards of horticultural practices and has shown a commitment to supporting and demonstrating best gardening practices.