Course Listings and Descriptions
* B.P.S. only
** B.P.S. and A.O.S.
Accounting and Budget Management*
Advanced Baking Principles**
Advanced Concepts in Nutrition*
Advanced Cooking*
Advanced Restaurant Cooking**
Advanced Pastry*
Advanced Table Service**
Baking and Pastry Skill Development**
Baking Ingredients and Equipment Technology**
Baking Techniques**
Banqueting and Catering**
Basic and Classical Cakes**
Beverages and Customer Service**
Breakfast Cookery**
Business Planning*
Café Operations**
Chocolates and Confections**
Composition and Communication*
Computers in the Food Business*
Confectionery Art and Special Occasion Cakes**
Contemporary Cakes and Desserts**
Controlling Costs and Purchasing Food**
Cookies, Tarts, and Mignardises**
Cuisines of Asia**
Cuisines of Europe and the Mediterranean**
Cuisines of the Americas**
Culinary Skills for Bakers**
Economics*
Ethics*
Externship**
Externship Prep Seminar I**
Externship Prep Seminar II**
Externsip Registration Seminar**
Field Experience and Action Plan*
Fifth-Semester Baking Practical Examination**
Fifth-Semester Culinary Practical Examination**
Fifth-Semester Costing Examination**
Financial Management*
Food and Culture*
Food in the News**
Food Safety**
French I, II, III, and IV*
Garde Manger**
Hearth Breads and Rolls**
History and Cultures of Asia*
History and Cultures of Europe*
History and Cultures of the Americas*
Human Resource Management*
Independent Study**
Introduction to Gastronomy**
Introduction to Interpersonal Communication**
Introduction to Management**
Introductory Table Service**
Italian I, II, III, and IV*
Italian Cuisine**
Lunch Cookery**
Marketing and Promoting Food*
Mathematics**
Mathematics Fundamentals**
Meat Identification and Fabrication**
Menu Development**
Nutrition**
Nutritional Cooking**
Nutritional Ecology*
Organizational Behavior**
Pastry Techniques**
Principles of Design**
Product Knowledge**
Professional Food Writing*
Psychology of Human Behavior*
Restaurant and Production Desserts**
Restaurant Law**
Restaurant Operations*
Seafood Identification and Fabrication**
Second-Semester Baking Practical Examination**
Second-Semester Culinary Practical Examination**
Second-Semester Costing Examination**
Second-Semester Writing Examination**
Selected Topics**
Senior Thesis: Baking and Pastry Arts*
Senior Thesis: Culinary Arts*
Skill Development I**
Skill Development II**
Skill Development III
Spanish I, II, III, and IV*
Specialty Breads**
Wine and Food Seminar*
Wines and Beverages**
Wines and Spirits Management
Women in Leadership*
Writing**
Writing Fundamentals**
Accounting and Budget Management*
3 credits
This course provides an introduction to financial and managerial accounting. Students learn how to construct, interpret, and evaluate financial statements and other managerial reports. Focus will be placed on a variety of analytical tools and procedures used to measure the financial performance in the foodservice industry.
Advanced Baking Principles**
3 credits
An examination of baking methods and principles from a nutritional and chemical/physical point of view. Students will conduct experiments (using controlled formulas) and nutritional analyses on various baking ingredients and products in order to develop a better understanding of baking principles. Topics to be covered include: preparation of common products with a variety of ingredients; diets such as vegan, diabetic, and gluten-free; nutritional labels; and preparation of desserts, breads, and cakes for persons with special dietary needs.
Advanced Concepts in Nutrition*
3 credits
Foods and eating patterns have been observed and noted since ancient times, but it was not until the early 1900s that nutrition became an accepted science. In this Selected Topics elective course, students learn the science behind nutrition and explore the physiology of nutrition in depth. Beginning with a brief explanation of basic chemistry, the course will then continue with a review of normal digestion and metabolism on a cellular level. Diseases that are impacted by nutrition will also be discussed. This is a Level One Nutrition Course designed for the motivated student who wants a deeper understanding of nutrition beyond the culinary perspective and the information necessary to be an integral part of a foodservice team. (Offered based on schedule and availability.)
This course is designed to integrate students’ culinary training, academic studies, and field experience using fundamental cooking techniques, topics of contemporary significance, food science, aesthetics, and sensory perception as frameworks. Advanced Cooking is an examination of taste, cooking techniques, ingredients, and flavoring techniques. Building on previous cooking courses, students will research and prepare representative regional menu items as well as complete an intensive analysis of the principles of cuisine. Short papers, a detailed project, menu development, and service reflective of a specific cuisine will be part of this course.
Advanced Restaurant Cooking**
3 credits
Learn to prepare modern and seasonal dishes in a restaurant setting and put previously earned skills into practice in the college’s American Bounty Restaurant or Escoffier Restaurant. This course will emphasize cooking techniques and ingredients used in contemporary and classical cuisines and cover planning and ordering for production, station organization, preparation and plating, timing, palate development, and other production realities of a restaurant.
This course is designed to integrate students’ training in baking and pastry arts , academic studies, and field experience using fundamental baking techniques, topics of contemporary significance, food science, aesthetics, and sensory perception as frameworks. Advanced Pastry is an examination of taste, baking and pastry techniques, ingredients, and spices. Building on previous baking and pastry classes, students will research recipes, produce them for consumption, evaluate them, and cost them. Short papers, a detailed project, menu development, and service will be a part of this course.
Advanced Table Service**
3 credits
A review of the principles of fine service and hospitality in an à la carte restaurant serving the public. The course—held in the American Bounty Restaurant or the Escoffier Restaurant—will emphasize customer service, wine and spirits, restaurant trends and sales, merchandising, and sales. Students study the fundamentals of reservation and point-of-sale systems, controlling inventory, merchandising products and services, managing costs, assuring high-quality service to all customers, and managing service.
Baking and Pastry Skill Development**
3 credits
An introduction to the principles and techniques used in the preparation of high-quality baked goods and pastries, with an emphasis on fundamental production techniques and evaluation of quality characteristics. Topics include bread fermentation and production, ingredient functions, and custard ratios and preparations.
Baking Ingredients and Equipment Technology**
1.5 credits
This course will focus on the range of baking ingredients in original, modified, and prepared forms as well as the theory and operation of large and small equipment used in bakeries and pastry shops. Through tasting and testing, students learn to identify and select quality grains, dairy products, baking spices, flours, chocolates, fats, and oils used in the baking field. The costs, advantages, disadvantages, and operational requirements of various equipment will also be covered.
An introduction to the basic methods used in baking and pastry. Topics include the creaming method, thickening method for custards, pre-cooked method, foaming method, cut-in/rubbing method, sraight dough method, blending method, and lamination. Students taste and test products that they create as well as complete a research assignment.
Banqueting and Catering**
3 credits
An overview of traditional and contemporary banquet menus with an emphasis on quality, quantity, setup, timing, service, event planning, and execution of large-volume cooking and catering. This course reinforces basic cooking and serving competencies and develops new skills specific to banquet preparation and service. Topics include contemporary American banquets, classical cuisine banquets, hot and cold buffet stations, special events, various styles of service, psychology of service, guest relations, the sequence of service, and professional standards for dining room personnel.
Basic and Classical Cakes**
3 credits
A review of creaming, foaming, and blending techniques with an emphasis on preparing simple to complex unfilled cakes, filled cakes, and tortes. Topics to be covered include comparison of classical and modern preparations, classical cakes (such as gâteaux, St. Honoré, Dobosh Torte, Linzer Torte, and Sacher Torte); glazed, iced, molded, and cream filled cakes; tortes; and bombes.
Beverages and Customer Service**
3 credits
This course will provide an introduction to a wide variety of beverages, models of beverage service, processes of receiving, storing, and preparing beverages. Instruction will emphasize hot beverages such as teas, coffees, coffee-based drinks, and cocoas; cold drinks such as beer, wine, spirits, juices, sodas, and fruit drinks; and the range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks available to patrons of retail food and pastry establishments. Students will learn to pair beverages with food items and serve food and beverage items in an operating café, analyze sales and service, and promote retail sales.
Breakfast Cookery**
1.5 credits
An introduction to the basic skills necessary to prepare breakfast in a foodservice operation. Learn to organize and maintain a smooth work flow on the breakfast line, present and garnish food, and the basic methods of egg cookery, quick breads, grains, fruit presentation, breakfast beverages, meat, and potatoes.
This Independent Study course is designed for students who are interested in developing a realistic business plan. The business plan is the "who, what, where, when, how, and why" of business; it is the road map to follow on the journey to success. These plans are structured documents that include all the details and particulars about a business concept. In this course, students will develop a business plan along standard lines, including information about products or services, staff, marketing, financing, operating budgets, location, and facilities. This is an independent project in which students work closely with the guidance of the instructor.
Experience the reality of producing and marketing products in the setting of an actual bakery café. Students prepare, display, and present savory items, and pastry products, and signature baked goods. In the Apple Pie Bakery Café, students practice the skills of controlling inventory, analyzing sales, and operating a complete shop. Specialty items for customers are developed under the direction of a faculty member.
Chocolates and Confections**
3 credits
This course introduces students to the principles involved in tempering chocolate, creating chocolate sculptures, forming simple centerpieces, and preparing chocolates and other confections with soft, hard, and liquid centers. Learn to use both traditional and contemporary production methods in creating confections by hand and with special equipment. Efficient methods to increase productivity in this highly specialized field will be highlighted.
Composition and Communication*
3 credits
This course continues to strengthen composition, rhetoric, and research skills through the analysis of literature. Particular attention is paid to communicating clearly and correctly, addressing specific audiences, building logical and persuasive arguments of increasing complexity, and correctly assessing, utilizing, and documenting outside research. Students will prepare weekly writing assignments and write essays. Adequate command of usage, grammar, and punctuation is expected. "C" level competency is required for successful completion.
Computers in the Food Business*
2 credits
This class provides an overview of the information needs of fooservice establishments. A focus is placed on computer software applications for restaurant operations, human resources, accounting, and guest services. The course reviews the selection and implementation of computer systems and examines effective use of technology in the restaurant industry.
Confectionery Art and Special Occasion Cakes**
3 credits
An introduction to preparation and decoration of display pieces, occasion cakes, seasonal cakes, and classical and contemporary wedding cakes. Topics covered will include chocolate, sugar, and marzipan; finishing techniques using an air brush; use of molds and templates; and the mise en place of transporting and delivering special items. Students will prepare, cost, and price three-dimensional decorations, centerpieces, cakes for special events, and wedding cakes.
Contemporary Cakes and Desserts**
3 credits
An examination of cakes and desserts that are assembled and decorated with a modern approach using the latest technology and equipment. Topics to be covered will include: small cakes decorated as a whole; cakes finished in molds or rings; and items that can be used for cakes, desserts, or individual pastries. Students will use specialized equipment, practice new presentation methods, and focus on fresh products, simplicity of style, and ease of production.
Controlling Costs and Purchasing Food**
1.5 credits
Examine the information and skills necessary to analyze and improve the profitability of a foodservice establishment. Topics include the flow of goods, income statements, forecasting sales, and controlling labor and food costs. Students will also analyze the complete purchasing cycle of a restaurant, beginning with product and vendor selection and ending with actual orders.
Cookies, Tarts, and Mignardises**
3 credits
An introduction to a variety of doughs, batters, fillings, and glazes with an emphasis on the formulas and skills involved in preparing unfilled and filled cookies, mignardises, and tarts. Topics to be covered include: methods of mixing, shaping, piping, baking, filling, finishing, storing, pricing, and distributing products. Students will prepare sliced, dropped, piped, rolled, and bar cookies; fruit, nut, and chocolate tarts; a variety of petits fours; and other one-bite items.
Prepare, taste, serve, and evaluate traditional, regional dishes of Asia. Emphasis will be placed on ingredients, flavor profiles, preparations, and techniques representative of the cuisines of China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and India.
Cuisines of Europe and the Mediterranean**
3 credits
Prepare, taste, serve, and evaluate traditional, regional dishes of Europe and the Mediterranean. Emphasis will be placed on ingredients, flavor profiles, preparations, and techniques representative of the cuisines of the Middle East, Spain, France, Italy, and Eastern Europe.
Cuisines of the Americas**
3 credits
Prepare, taste, serve, and evaluate traditional, regional dishes of the Americas. Emphasis will be placed on ingredients, flavor profiles, preparations, and techniques representative of the cuisines of the United States, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.
This course covers basic cooking techniques—such as roasting, braising, sautéing, poaching, grilling, and broiling—and their relation to baking methods. Students prepare products such as soups, stocks, savory items, fruits, entrées, sauces (both hot and cold), vegetables, and starches, and practice culinary knife skills and cuts.
An explanation of the basic principles of supply, demand, consumer behavior, and pricing from the perspective of a business. The course will also analyze the cycles of the national economy, methods of measuring and managing the economy, exports, imports, and the gross national and gross domestic products.
An analysis of various schools of ethical thought and their application to real management choices in the foodservice industry. Case studies will be used to help students deal with actual ethical decisions, the principles involved, and the implications of various decisions. Students will be expected to develop their own sense of ethical values and defend them in various classroom activities.
A supervised work experience designed to expand career knowledge while increasing speed, timing, organization, and ability to handle cooking in an approved commercial foodservice and hospitality establishment. Students on externship will receive feedback from their supervisor and keep a journal recording and reflecting on their work experience.
Field Experience and Action Plan*
3 credits
This Selected Topics elective course offers students the opportunity to explore a key issue in the community. Students will select a local agency for which to volunteer; keep a journal of their experience; and develop a paper analyzing their experience, the larger social issues that the agency addresses, and the personal changes that resulted from involvement with the agency. (Enrollment only by permission of the associate dean for liberal arts and the instructor of the course.)
This Selected Topics elective course will build upon the literary analysis required in Composition and Communication. Students will read and analyze four novels and then view each work's corresponding film. For each pairing, students will examine authorial intent and study the effects of and motivations for cinematic alterations from the original text. In comparing the text to its film adaptation, they will analyze the impact of factors such as visual and directorial choices, the screenplay's text, actors' interpretation of characters, and content changes. Each week, students will write responses to the homework or in-class work. As the course's major project(s), students will submit one (or two) in-depth studies of the work(s) of their choosing, which will incorporate outside research, analysis of the work, and an evaluation of the effects of the choices made by those involved in creating the story in two differing formats. (Offered based on schedule and availability.)
Fifth-Semester Baking Examination**
In the baking practical examination, students are required to produce plated desserts from a mystery basket, demonstrate an understanding of baking and pastry production, and perform at an advanced level. The exam is graded on a high pass, pass, and fail basis. (High Pass/Pass/Fail grading)
Fifth-Semester Cooking Examination**
This culinary examination tests the student’s understanding of culinary principles and more advanced proficiency in the principles of cooking. Students will be given a food selection tray and will construct a menu from it which will include a soup, vegetable, starch, and animal protein. They are also tested on station setup, preparation skills, product presentation and flavor, and ability to answer a range of questions posed by the faculty member. (High Pass/Pass/ Fail grading)
Fifth-Semester Costing Examination**
This written examination tests knowledge of controlling costs in foodservice organizations and solving problems using quantitative reasoning. (High Pass/Pass/Fail grading)
Financial Management*
3 credits
An examination of ways to value assets, raise capital, use and increase working capital, understand and improve cash flow, and analyze the financial position of a business. Topics will include: the time value of money, risk analysis, return on investments, asset and liability valuation, working capital analysis, inventory valuation, and capitalization. Students will also complete analytical problems.
In this Selected Topics elective course, students examine the relationship between food and culture with a focus on the cultural rules of food consumption and how they can be compared to the rules of music, dancing, and poetry. Course topics include the relationships between food and religion, gender, folkways, mores, and life-cycle rituals. Emphasizing critical reading and writing, this course gives students theoretical and empirical exposure to food research in anthropology, folklore, history, and sociology.
An introduction to food production practices governed by changing federal and state regulations. Topics to be covered include prevention of food-borne illness through proper handling of potentially hazardous foods, HACCP procedures, legal guidelines, kitchen safety, facility sanitation, and guidelines for safe food preparation, storing, and reheating. Students will take the National Restaurant Association ServSafe® examination in this course.
When it comes to food, nothing just happens. Supply and demand are the result of history, geography, politics, and trade agreements. Of equal importance is the influence of advertisers and special interest groups. Together, they fan the fads and fashions of pop culture. In this course, students will explore food trends and examine the past and present in order to predict the future. This Special Topics elective is designed for freshmen and sophomores who have transfer credits and like to think critically.
French I, II, III, and IV*
2 credits per course
Learn about French vocabulary, grammar, and culture. Classes will be conducted in French, and students will spend weekly sessions in a language lab. Students who have already taken French may have the option of placement in a higher level of the language based on years of high school or college study.
An introduction to three main areas of the cold kitchen: reception foods, plated appetizers, and buffet arrangements. Learn to prepare canapés, hot and cold hors d’oeuvre, appetizers, forcemeats, pâtés, galantines, terrines, salads, and sausages. Curing and smoking techniques for meat, seafood, and poultry items will be practiced, along with contemporary styles of presenting food and preparation of buffets.
Hearth Breads and Rolls**
3 credits
Building on previous knowledge, students learn to mix, shape, bake, store, and distribute breads and rolls. Students also speed and increase their proficiency in meeting production deadlines with quality products. Emphasis will be placed on increased use of traditional fermentation methods, equipment, and methods that emphasize flavor, texture, and appearance as well as techniques that increase shelf life.
History and Cultures of Asia*
3 credits
An examination of the major historical and geographical developments in Asia and ways in which these developments have affected the creation of various cultural patterns. Topics will include the plurality of cultures of Asia, and global interdependency and reactions to it.
History and Cultures of Europe*
3 credits
An exploration of the major historical and philosophical developments that have shaped the European and western experience. Topics will include Christianity, government, enlightenment and revolution, and nationalism.
History and Cultures of the Americas*
3 credits
An examination of the major historical and geographical developments in North, Central, and South America and ways in which these developments have affected the creation of various cultural patterns. Topics will include the making of the Americas as a unique outcome of the five hundred years encounter between the Europeans, Africans, and Native Americans in the Western Hemisphere.
Human Resource Management*
4 credits
An analysis of the legal, operational, and psychological considerations in recruiting, selecting, hiring, training, compensating, developing, disciplining, evaluating, and terminating employees. Other topics will include workforce demographics, substance abuse in the workplace, affirmative action, workers with disabling conditions, workforce stress, human resource planning, collective bargaining, and safety and equity considerations. Students will also analyze current practices in personnel management and develop an operations plan for a foodservice business.
Independent Study**
1, 2, or 3 credits
Individual research on a topic of a student’s interest under the supervision of a faculty member. Students registering to take this course will need to develop a Study Contract with an individual faculty member and obtain the permission of the appropriate associate dean. Independent Study can be taken during the freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior year.
Individual and Production Pastries**
3 credits
Explore the steps for planning and conducting quantity production for banquets and large functions. Students learn how to scale recipes for large volume production, calculate yield, work a brigade line as a pastry cook, and organize the preparation, storage, and delivery of volume production for pastry buffet tables and retail settings. In this course, students create products such as filled cakes, sheet cakes, French pastries, birthday cakes, special occasion cakes, individual plated desserts, and buffet desserts, as well as study basic sauces and plate design for banquet-style desserts.
Introduction to Gastronomy**
1.5 credits
An introduction to the social, historical, and cultural forces that have affected the culinary, baking, and pastry professions; traditional foodways; and ways these traditions translate into the professional environment of the foodservice industry today. Topics include the contemporary challenges facing food professionals in the twenty-first century and etiquette as a historical, social, and professional discipline. Students will be expected to complete several written assignments.
Introduction to Interpersonal Communication**
1.5 credits
A review of the ways in which people communicate with each other and an introduction to the skills needed to communicate effectively in work situations. Through small and large group discussions and problem-solving situations, students will cover the fundamentals of listening skills, group dynamics, verbal and nonverbal communication, and public speaking.
Introduction to Management**
1.5 credits
An investigation of various management topics including leadership, training, motivation, delegation, problem solving, decision making, and conflict resolution as they relate to foodservice establishments.
Introductory Table Service**
3 credits
An exploration of table service principles and skills with an emphasis on customer service in a restaurant. The focus will be placed on wine, beer, coffee, tea, and non-alcoholic beverage service. Topics to be examined include guest relations, professional communications, order taking in an à la carte environment, service sequence, point-of-sale systems, cash handling, beginning merchandising, table skills, and dining room preparation—all in the college’s St. Andrew’s Café or Ristorante Caterina de’ Medici.
Italian I, II, III, and IV*
2 credits per course
Learn about Italian vocabulary, grammar, and culture. Classes will be conducted in Italian, and students will spend weekly sessions in a language laboratory. Students who have already taken Italian may have the option of placement in a higher level of the language based on years of high school or college study.
An introduction to the principles of planning, preparation, and presentation of the foods of Italy. The course will emphasize Italian ingredients, traditional and contemporary Italian cuisine, and menu structure and station organization for production. Students will explore trends, flavor profiles, preservation methods and cooking techniques unique to Italian cuisine, and plate presentation—all in the Ristorante Caterina de’ Medici in the college’s Colavita Center for Food and Wine.
Prepare, taste, serve, and evaluate traditional and contemporary lunch items served in casual foodservice operations. The course will emphasize the basic cooking principles of quantity food preparation. Skills of efficiency, organization, speed, timing, and quality volume production will be stressed.
Managing Quality for the Future: Entrepreneurship and Management*
3 credits
A review and examination of various strategies and techniques effective managers use now and will use in the future. Specific emphasis will be placed on creative thinking, problem solving, managing while being a leader, empowering employees, and assuring quality. The course will focus particularly on total quality management: how it works, why it is necessary, what is involved in launching and supporting a total quality program and how it can help culinary operations.
Marketing and Promoting Food*
3 credits
An examination of the role marketing plays in society in general and in the retail sector and hospitality industry in particular. Topics will include the history and evolution of marketing, the global marketing environment, strategic planning, and market research. In addition, market segmentation, target marketing, and communication will be discussed. Pricing products and strategies, distribution, and modern retailing and wholesaling methods will also be evaluated. The course closely follows current events and trends to illustrate modern marketing techniques.
An exploration of percentages, ratios, the metric system, conversion factors, yield tests, and recipe costing as they relate to the foodservice industry. Students will develop projections and analyze costs in yield tests and recipe pre-costing.
Mathematics Fundamentals**
non-credit
This course covers the basic math skills needed to successfully complete Mathematics. Topics will include mathematical operations using whole numbers, fractions, decimals, and percentages in a practical context. Problem solving will be emphasized as well as estimation for reasonableness of answers. Students who demonstrate a need for this course will be required to pass this course before taking Mathematics. "C" level competency is required for successful completion.
Meat Identification and Fabrication**
1.5 credits
An introduction to meat and meat fabrication for foodservice operations. In this course, students learn the fundamentals of purchasing specifications; receiving, handling, and storing meat; techniques for fabricating cuts for professional kitchens; meat grinding, brining, curing, and smoking; and basic sausage making.
An analysis of menu development for foodservice establishments. Topics to be covered include: menu development, descriptions, layout, design, and pricing; sales mix; and station balance. Students will be involved in critiquing and creating menus from the perspective of concept, clarity, cost, price, and efficiency.
Examine the basic concepts and principles of nutrition. In this course, students learn about basic nutrients, food labeling, nutritional principles, current issues in nutrition, and the application of nutritional principles to menu development. Students will also be involved in nutritional analysis of recipes.
Nutritional Cooking**
1.5 credits
An introduction to the principles of planning, preparation, and presentation of wholesome, nutritionally balanced meals. This course will emphasize designing menus from a market/seasonal perspective. Production realities of the restaurant will be met by using alternative techniques and adhering to the principles of healthy cooking as you work in the CIA’s St. Andrew’s Café.
Organizational Behavior*
3 credits
An examination of personal and small group communication with particular emphasis on methods of perceiving information and transmitting messages, gender bias in communication, nonverbal behavior, cues, and methods of communicating ideas and emotions. Students will also learn about decision-making in groups and forces that influence groups behavior.
This course introduces non-yeast, laminated doughs and the preparation of pastry products using a variety of methods—lamination, blending, creaming, foaming, and thickening. Students learn to combine these methods into new products to create savory items and frozen desserts, and use basic finishing methods by applying glazes, filling pastries, creating simple sauces, and presenting products for service. They will also study the fundamentals of heat transfer as applied to pastries by preparing creams, custards, soufflés, butter creams, meringues, and flavored whipped creams. Additionally, students will taste and test products that they create and complete a research assignment.
Principles of Design**
1.5.credits
Study the basic design concepts of line, shape, texture, balance, color, scale, movement, contrast, and unity. Students learn the principles of two- and three-dimensional design and develop language to analyze plate presentations, decoration, and displays on both visual and functional levels. They will also create stencils and molds, and learn about silk screening and air brushing for use in the Confectionery Art course.
Product Knowledge**
1.5 credits
An introduction to the identification and use of vegetables, fruits, herbs, nuts, grains, dry goods, prepared goods, dairy products, and spices in various forms. Explore both fresh and prepared foods and learn to identify, receive, store, and hold products. Students will also learn to evaluate products for taste, texture, smell, appearance, and other quality attributes.
Professional Food Writing*
3 credits
In this Selected Topics elective course, students write a variety of pieces for professional food and beverage publications and general interest magazines. They also develop research skills with an emphasis on examining trends in the foodservice and hospitality industry as well as analyzing publications for reader profile, voice, content, structure, and style. In addition, students will create a portfolio of their work, including feature and news articles, personality profiles, book and restaurant reviews, recipes, and food narratives. (Offered based on schedule and availability.)
Psychology of Human Behavior*
3 credits
An introduction to various schools of thought that explain why persons behave the way they do. Topics covered in the course include attitude, motivation, adjustment, stress, learning, communication, perception, and human development. The course is designed to increase awareness of human differences and facilitate successful interactions with individuals on a personal level and in the foodservice industry.
Restaurant and Production Desserts**
3 credits
This course covers the preparation and service of hot and cold desserts with a focus on individual desserts, à la minute preparations, and numerous components within one preparation. Students will learn station organization, timing, and service coordination for restaurant dessert production. Products made will include frozen desserts, ice cream, sorbet, glacés, individual plated desserts, and desserts for functions and banquets. During the course, students will develop a dessert menu from the perspective of variety, costs, practicality, and how well it matches the rest of the menu.
An overview of the legal issues and requirements associated with operating a foodservice establishment. Topics include contract law, forms of business enterprise, legal obligations of owners and employees, liabilities, dram shop law, and operating within state and federal regulations.
Restaurant Operations*
4 credits
This capstone course will provide students with the opportunity to plan, organize, staff, direct, and control a restaurant or bakery café from the perspective of menu design, service, finances, staff, design, layout, production, purchasing, and productivity. It will integrate material taught in other classes and result in a culminating assignment developed by each student.
Seafood Identification and Fabrication**
1.5 credits
An overview of the principles of receiving, identifying, fabricating, and storing seafood. Identification will involve round fish, flat fish, crustaceans, and shellfish. Topics include knife skills, yield results, quality checking, product tasting, storage of various types of fish, techniques for fabricating cuts for professional kitchens, special storage equipment, and commonly used and underutilized species of fish.
Second-Semester Baking Examination**
In the baking practical exam, students will be tested on the fundamentals of baking: doughs, batters, cakes, Danish, and puff pastry. They will also draw an assignment and prepare three items. The exam is graded on a high pass, pass, and fail basis. (High Pass/Pass/Fail grading)
Second-Semester Cooking Examination**
This culinary examination tests knowledge and proficiency in the principles of cooking and certain fundamental cooking methods—roasting, sautéing, frying, stewing, poaching, braising, and broiling. Students will be given an assignment (which includes a soup, protein, vegetable, and starch) to prepare, present, taste, and explain. (High Pass/Pass/Fail grading)
Second-Semester Costing Examination**
This written examination tests students’ knowledge of culinary mathematics and costing principles. (High Pass/Pass/Fail grading)
Second-Semester Writing Examination**
Students will take a written essay examination which will be evaluated for organization, content, style, mechanics, and grammar. "C" level competency is required to receive a grade of Pass for this exam. (High Pass/ Pass/Fail grading)
Selected Topics**
1, 2, or 3 credits
An elective course offered on a current topic in order to provide a special educational opportunity for students. The length of the course and the scheduling depend on the credits and the special situation. (Offered only by permission of the associate dean and academic dean. Choice based on schedule and availability)
Senior Thesis: Baking and Pastry Arts*
3 credits
An investigation of a topic of the student’s choice using library resources and other strategies to understand the use, history, and traditions of growing, preparing, or serving various foods. Techniques in this Selected Topics research course will cover the examination of bibliographic material, interview strategies, manuscript investigation, use of interlibrary loan, and assembling a research plan. A final paper (25-page minimum) is assigned. (Enrollment only by permission of the associate dean for liberal arts and the instructor of the course.)
Senior Thesis: Culinary Arts*
3 credits
An investigation of a topic of the student’s choice using library resources and other strategies to understand the use, history, and traditions of growing, preparing, or serving various foods. Techniques in this Selected Topics research course will cover the examination of bibliographic material, interview strategies, manuscript investigation, use of interlibrary loan, and assembling a research plan. A final paper (25-page minimum) is assigned. (Enrollment only by permission of the associate dean for liberal arts and the instructor of the course. Offered based on schedule and availability.)
Skill Development I**
3 credits
An introduction to, and application of, fundamental cooking theories and techniques. Topics of study include tasting, kitchen equipment, knife skills, classical vegetable cuts, stock production, thickening agents, soup preparation, grand sauces, timing, station organization, palate development, culinary French terms, and food costing.
Skill Development II**
3 credits
Continued instruction in fundamental cooking theories and techniques, including product tasting, stock production, vegetable cookery by color and family, potato cookery, grain cookery, rice cookery, fresh pasta cookery, dry legumes, production of stews from vegetables and grains, broth/bouillon, and advanced soup cookery. The course also explores timing, station organization, culinary French terms, and food costing.
Skill Development III**
3 credits
The foundation of cooking techniques and theories from Skill Development I and II will be applied in a production setting. Emphasis is placed on individual as well as team production. Three-course menus consisting of soup, salad, and an entrée with a vegetable and a starch will be rotated throughout the class. Vegetarian and vegan menus will be introduced as well.
Spanish I, II, III, and IV*
2 credits per course
Learn about Spanish vocabulary, grammar, and culture. Classes will be conducted in Spanish, and students will spend weekly sessions in a language laboratory. Students who have already taken Spanish may have the option of placement in a higher level of the language based on years of high school or college study.
This course gives students the chance to learn the principles and techniques of preparing multi-grain breads, sourdoughs, bagels, pretzels, holiday or seasonal breads, and flat breads. Special emphasis will be placed on regional and ethnic breads; handling grains (such as soakers) for specialty breads; mixing, shaping, and finishing specialty breads; and learning innovative baking methods.
Wine and Food Seminar*
3 credits
An examination of wine, food, and the agricultural and gastronomic principles involved in growing, handling, and treating wine and food. Students visit local wineries; agricultural stations; vegetable, poultry, fish, and meat farms; and restaurants in order to learn to appreciate fresh local ingredients, regional wines, and new agricultural methods. The focus will be on broadening exposure through a range of field trips. Students will write a research paper on one of a variety of topics related to the trip that incorporates the insights gained during the trip as well as builds on the interpersonal communication skills developed prior to the seminar. In order to participate in this class, students must have successfully completed Composition and Communication. If a student is in serious academic difficulty or on academic probation, permission to participate in the seminar will need to be granted by the associate dean of liberal arts.
Wines and Beverages**
3 credits
An examination of the roles that wines and spirits play as quality beverages in professional foodservice operations. The course will emphasize styles of wine from around the world; the theory of matching wine with food; tasting wines, beers, and other beverages; and organizing wine service. Subjects to be explored include purchasing, storing, issuing, pricing, merchandising, and serving wines and spirits in a restaurant setting. Students also may participate in a restaurant-based wine and food tasting plus a field trip to a local winery.
Wines and Spirits Management
3 credits
This Selected Topics elective course incorporates theoretical and practical information on the organization of a beverage program within the overall operation of a restaurant. Topics to be covered include licensing issues, the legal and moral responsibilities that come with the sale of alcoholic beverages, purchasing, and marketing. Information on distillation, brewing, and mixology will also be covered. If possible, the course will include an evaluation of quality within certain wine regions. The practical application of the information will be accomplished through the development of a beverage program applied to existing establishments in the Hudson Valley region. (Offered based on schedule and availability.)
In this Selected Topics elective course, students examine different genres and styles of literary works with an emphasis on increasing their writing skills and appreciation of literature. Poems, plays, short stories, and novels will be used to provide an overview of various philosophies, styles, and cultural experiences and to offer insight into the technical and aesthetic aspects of good writing. Students will complete writing assignments ranging from comparisons to creative parodies of materials that they will read. (Offered based on schedule and availability.)
This course introduces students to the principles of expository writing, including grammar, structure, audience, point of view, clarity, logic, use of evidence, and plagiarism. Students will read various literary works and write, edit, and revise papers using various rhetorical modes throughout the semester. "C" level competency is required for successful completion.
Writing Fundamentals**
non-credit
An introduction to the basic tools used in reading and writing correct English prose. Writing Fundamentals covers basic grammar and punctuation rules, methods to enhance word choice, sentence structure, and paragraph construction. By the end of this course, students will be expected to develop a coherent and logical paragraph. Students who demonstrate a need for this course will be required to pass it before taking Writing. "C" level competency is required for successful completion.
* BPS only
** BPS and A.O.S.
