The Mediterranean Culinary Academy (MCA) is soon launching its latest round of courses, which will see chefs who have worked in some of the finest establishments in the world, sharing with home cooks the essence of Mediterranean and Arabic food, and how it can be prepared.
In the ‘Cuisines of Greece and Turkey’ course, students will discover authentic home cooking techniques, styles and rituals from Greece and Turkey, whilst mastering the art of making mezze and crispy phyllo pastry from scratch, while gaining insights into the wide array of grains, olive oils, herbs and spices that are used in the cuisine of both unique eastern-Mediterranean regions.
“We are excited to relaunch our courses and show people what authentic Mediterranean food is and how they can prepare it,” says MCA Chief Culinary Officer Stephen La Rosa. “For us, this gives us the opportunity to refine the content which we teach, perfect our selection of wines to pair with what we cook, and adapt our recipes for a completely different season of incredible, local produce.”
The Academy has a line-up of highly experienced and award-winning chefs. Mr Stephen La Rosa graduated from the Culinary Institute of America, has worked in top Michelin-starred dining establishments Per Se in New York, Quince in San Francisco and Hélène Darroze at The Connaught in London.
Meanwhile, culinary scientist Michael Camilleri has an equally impressive CV, cooking at L’Atelier Crenn in San Francisco and assisting in the research for a culinary book series ‘Modernist Bread’, before being hired by Heston Blumenthal as a Development Chef at the Fat Duck Experimental Kitchen.
Also in the MCA team is Alison Azzopardi, who has worked at the Sofitel West Sussex, the acclaimed Hotel du Vin in Cambridge, and now runs Trabuxu Bistro in Valletta. Alison reached the semi-finals of Masterchef: The Professionals, and was selected by chef Michael Roux Jr to work at the two-Michelin star Le Gavroche.
Completing MCA’s expert line-up is Keith Abela, who brings a unique knowledge of seasonal ingredients from his extensive farming background, has worked under Albert and Michael Roux at The Grand Jersey Hotel.
The ‘Cuisines of Greece and Turkey’ course will be held between 9th - 30th June, whilst the ‘Cuisines of the Maghreb and Arab Levant’ course will take place between 6th – 27th June 2018. Each course is priced at €299, which includes the use of all equipment, wine and food to be used, and will take place at the Mediterranean Culinary Academy at No. 4 Sappers Street in Valletta, in the purposely-designed professional kitchen classroom.
New courses and one-off workshops are frequently added to constantly-updated Mediterranean Culinary Academy website at www.mcamalta.com
