Culinary Arts & Meal Planning
A high-school course in real cooking: Escoffier’s organized kitchen and the food-handler standard, knife skills, every major cooking method, sauces, eggs and baking, flavor, spice and the grill, nutrition without talk of weight or appearance, and the planning, budgeting and hospitality that put a good meal on the family table.
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What to cover
46 of 50 lessons are MUST COVER. They are tested on the unit tests and exams, or are skills the SAT/ACT relies on. OPTIONAL lessons are enrichment. Do them if time allows. The course is complete when the MUST COVER lessons are done.
Unit 1: The Professional Kitchen and Food Safety
- MUST COVER 1.1 Escoffier and the Brigade de Cuisine · exam
- MUST COVER 1.2 Mise en Place: Everything in Its Place · exam
- MUST COVER 1.3 Typhoid Mary and the Food-Handler Standard · exam
- MUST COVER 1.4 Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill and the Danger Zone · exam
- MUST COVER 1.5 The Food Code, Cooling Leftovers and the Food-Handler Card · exam
Unit 2: Knife Skills and Tools
- MUST COVER 2.1 Choosing, Honing and Sharpening Knives · exam
- MUST COVER 2.2 The Classic Cuts: Julienne, Batonnet, Brunoise and Dice · exam
- MUST COVER 2.3 Herbs, Chiffonade and Mince: A Genoa Pesto · exam
- MUST COVER 2.4 Pots, Pans and Materials · exam
- MUST COVER 2.5 Fannie Farmer, the Level Cup and the Kitchen Scale · exam
Unit 3: Cooking Methods: Dry Heat
- MUST COVER 3.1 Sautéing and Pan-Searing: Julia Child’s Mushrooms · exam
- MUST COVER 3.2 Roasting: Hannah Glasse and the Roast Chicken · exam
- MUST COVER 3.3 Broiling: Herschel’s Invisible Heat and the Broiled Fish · exam
- MUST COVER 3.4 Shallow Pan-Frying: Mary Randolph’s Fried Chicken · exam
- MUST COVER 3.5 Doneness, Carryover and the USDA’s 2011 Pork Change · exam
Unit 4: Cooking Methods: Moist Heat and Combination
- MUST COVER 4.1 Boiling, Simmering and Blanching: Joseph Black’s Latent Heat · exam
- MUST COVER 4.2 Steaming: James Watt and the Power of Steam · exam
- MUST COVER 4.3 Braising: Abraham Darby’s Iron Pot and Collagen to Gelatin · exam
- MUST COVER 4.4 Stocks and Soups: Escoffier’s Foundations · exam
- MUST COVER 4.5 The Pressure Cooker: Denis Papin’s Steam Digester · exam
Unit 5: Sauces, Eggs and Breakfast
- MUST COVER 5.1 The Mother Sauces: Carême, Escoffier and the Béchamel · exam
- MUST COVER 5.2 Tomato Sauce: Antonio Latini and the Neapolitan Tomato · exam
- MUST COVER 5.3 Pan Sauces and Gravy: Escoffier’s Brown Sauce at Home · exam
- MUST COVER 5.4 Egg Cookery: Mère Poulard’s Omelette · exam
- MUST COVER 5.5 The Family Breakfast: Amelia Simmons, Pearlash and Pancakes · exam
Unit 6: Baking and Pastry
- MUST COVER 6.1 Baker’s Percentages: Raymond Calvel and the Focaccia · exam
- MUST COVER 6.2 The Home Loaf: Fleischmann’s Yeast, Kneading and Gluten · exam
- MUST COVER 6.3 Quick Breads: Eben Horsford’s Baking Powder and the Muffin Method · exam
- MUST COVER 6.4 Pie Crust and Cookies: Fat, Flour and Flakiness · exam
- MUST COVER 6.5 The Pound Cake and the Creaming Method · exam
Unit 7: Flavor, Spice and the Grill
- MUST COVER 7.1 The Five Tastes and Balancing a Dish: Ikeda’s Umami · exam
- MUST COVER 7.2 Herbs, Spices and Vasco da Gama’s Voyage · exam
- MUST COVER 7.3 Complementary and Contrasting Flavors: The Flavor Network · exam
- MUST COVER 7.4 The Grill: George Stephen’s Kettle and the Two-Zone Fire · exam
- MUST COVER 7.5 Texture and Plating: Service à la Russe · exam
Unit 8: Nutrition and the Balanced Diet
- OPTIONAL 8.1 The Dietary Guidelines: From the Basic Seven to Today’s Food Pyramid
- MUST COVER 8.2 Macronutrients, Food Energy and Eating for Sport · exam
- MUST COVER 8.3 The Nutrition Facts Label and Added Sugar · exam
- MUST COVER 8.4 Cravings, Reward and Habits That Last · exam
- MUST COVER 8.5 Food Allergies: Cooking for Guests Safely · exam
Unit 9: Meal Planning and Budgeting
- OPTIONAL 9.1 Planning a Week of Family Meals: Joseph and the Seven Good Years
- MUST COVER 9.2 Clarence Saunders, Piggly Wiggly and the Unit Price · exam
- MUST COVER 9.3 Cost per Serving and a Weekly Budget: The Rumford Kitchen · exam
- MUST COVER 9.4 Batch Cooking and the Freezer: Clarence Birdseye’s Fast Freeze · exam
- MUST COVER 9.5 Gather Up the Fragments: Reducing Food Waste · exam
Unit 10: Hospitality and the Capstone Meal
- OPTIONAL 10.1 The Family Table and Saying Grace
- OPTIONAL 10.2 Table Setting and Service: Emily Post and Martha’s Kitchen
- MUST COVER 10.3 Cooking for a Crowd: Fred Harvey and the Harvey Houses · exam
- MUST COVER 10.4 Timelines: Sarah Josepha Hale and the Thanksgiving Dinner · exam
- MUST COVER 10.5 The Capstone Meal: Abraham’s Welcome · exam
36-week pacing calendar
From the course’s own 33-week pacing guide, with catch-up and review weeks added to fill a 36-week (180-day) year.
| Week | Plan | Done | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | Day 1: Lesson 1.1 Escoffier and the Brigade de Cuisine: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 1.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 1.1: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 1.2 Mise en Place: Everything in Its Place: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 1.2: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 2 | Day 1: Lesson 1.2: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 1.3 Typhoid Mary and the Food-Handler Standard: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 1.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 1.3: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 1.4 Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill and the Danger Zone: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 3 | Day 1: Lesson 1.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 1.4: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 1.5 The Food Code, Cooling Leftovers and the Food-Handler Card: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 1.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 1.5: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 4 | Day 1: Unit 1 test Day 2: Lesson 2.1 Choosing, Honing and Sharpening Knives: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 2.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 2.1: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 2.2 The Classic Cuts: Julienne, Batonnet, Brunoise and Dice: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 5 | Day 1: Lesson 2.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 2.2: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 2.3 Herbs, Chiffonade and Mince: A Genoa Pesto: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 2.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 2.3: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 6 | Day 1: Lesson 2.4 Pots, Pans and Materials: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 2.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 2.4: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 2.5 Fannie Farmer, the Level Cup and the Kitchen Scale: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 2.5: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 7 | Day 1: Lesson 2.5: practice set and corrections Day 2: Unit 2 test Day 3: Lesson 3.1 Sautéing and Pan-Searing: Julia Child’s Mushrooms: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 3.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 3.1: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 8 | Day 1: Lesson 3.2 Roasting: Hannah Glasse and the Roast Chicken: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 3.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 3.2: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 3.3 Broiling: Herschel’s Invisible Heat and the Broiled Fish: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 3.3: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 9 | Day 1: Lesson 3.3: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 3.4 Shallow Pan-Frying: Mary Randolph’s Fried Chicken: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 3.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 3.4: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 3.5 Doneness, Carryover and the USDA’s 2011 Pork Change: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 10 | Day 1: Lesson 3.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 3.5: practice set and corrections Day 3: Unit 3 test Day 4: Lesson 4.1 Boiling, Simmering and Blanching: Joseph Black’s Latent Heat: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 4.1: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 11 | Day 1: Lesson 4.1: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 4.2 Steaming: James Watt and the Power of Steam: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 4.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 4.2: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 4.3 Braising: Abraham Darby’s Iron Pot and Collagen to Gelatin: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 12 | Day 1: Lesson 4.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 4.3: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 4.4 Stocks and Soups: Escoffier’s Foundations: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 4.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 4.4: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 13 | Day 1: Lesson 4.5 The Pressure Cooker: Denis Papin’s Steam Digester: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 4.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 4.5: practice set and corrections Day 4: Unit 4 test Day 5: Lesson 5.1 The Mother Sauces: Carême, Escoffier and the Béchamel: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 14 | Day 1: Lesson 5.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 5.1: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 5.2 Tomato Sauce: Antonio Latini and the Neapolitan Tomato: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 5.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 5.2: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 15 | Day 1: Lesson 5.3 Pan Sauces and Gravy: Escoffier’s Brown Sauce at Home: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 5.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 5.3: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 5.4 Egg Cookery: Mère Poulard’s Omelette: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 5.4: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 16 | Day 1: Lesson 5.4: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 5.5 The Family Breakfast: Amelia Simmons, Pearlash and Pancakes: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 5.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 5.5: practice set and corrections Day 5: Unit 5 test | ||
| Wk 17 | Catch-up and review week (no new lessons) | ||
| Wk 18 | Day 1: Review day for the midterm Day 2: Midterm exam Day 3: Lesson 6.1 Baker’s Percentages: Raymond Calvel and the Focaccia: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 6.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 6.1: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 19 | Day 1: Lesson 6.2 The Home Loaf: Fleischmann’s Yeast, Kneading and Gluten: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 6.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 6.2: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 6.3 Quick Breads: Eben Horsford’s Baking Powder and the Muffin Method: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 6.3: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 20 | Day 1: Lesson 6.3: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 6.4 Pie Crust and Cookies: Fat, Flour and Flakiness: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 6.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 6.4: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 6.5 The Pound Cake and the Creaming Method: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 21 | Day 1: Lesson 6.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 6.5: practice set and corrections Day 3: Unit 6 test Day 4: Lesson 7.1 The Five Tastes and Balancing a Dish: Ikeda’s Umami: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 7.1: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 22 | Day 1: Lesson 7.1: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 7.2 Herbs, Spices and Vasco da Gama’s Voyage: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 7.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 7.2: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 7.3 Complementary and Contrasting Flavors: The Flavor Network: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 23 | Day 1: Lesson 7.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 7.3: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 7.4 The Grill: George Stephen’s Kettle and the Two-Zone Fire: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 7.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 7.4: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 24 | Day 1: Lesson 7.5 Texture and Plating: Service à la Russe: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 7.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 7.5: practice set and corrections Day 4: Unit 7 test Day 5: Lesson 8.1 The Dietary Guidelines: From the Basic Seven to Today’s Food Pyramid: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 25 | Day 1: Lesson 8.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 8.1: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 8.2 Macronutrients, Food Energy and Eating for Sport: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 8.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 8.2: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 26 | Day 1: Lesson 8.3 The Nutrition Facts Label and Added Sugar: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 8.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 8.3: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 8.4 Cravings, Reward and Habits That Last: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 8.4: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 27 | Day 1: Lesson 8.4: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 8.5 Food Allergies: Cooking for Guests Safely: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 8.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 8.5: practice set and corrections Day 5: Unit 8 test | ||
| Wk 28 | Day 1: Lesson 9.1 Planning a Week of Family Meals: Joseph and the Seven Good Years: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 9.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 9.1: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 9.2 Clarence Saunders, Piggly Wiggly and the Unit Price: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 9.2: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 29 | Day 1: Lesson 9.2: practice set and corrections Day 2: Lesson 9.3 Cost per Serving and a Weekly Budget: The Rumford Kitchen: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 9.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 9.3: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 9.4 Batch Cooking and the Freezer: Clarence Birdseye’s Fast Freeze: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 30 | Day 1: Lesson 9.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 9.4: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 9.5 Gather Up the Fragments: Reducing Food Waste: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 9.5: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 9.5: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 31 | Day 1: Unit 9 test Day 2: Lesson 10.1 The Family Table and Saying Grace: video, teaching and worked examples Day 3: Lesson 10.1: kitchen lab and notebook Day 4: Lesson 10.1: practice set and corrections Day 5: Lesson 10.2 Table Setting and Service: Emily Post and Martha’s Kitchen: video, teaching and worked examples | ||
| Wk 32 | Day 1: Lesson 10.2: kitchen lab and notebook Day 2: Lesson 10.2: practice set and corrections Day 3: Lesson 10.3 Cooking for a Crowd: Fred Harvey and the Harvey Houses: video, teaching and worked examples Day 4: Lesson 10.3: kitchen lab and notebook Day 5: Lesson 10.3: practice set and corrections | ||
| Wk 33 | Day 1: Lesson 10.4 Timelines: Sarah Josepha Hale and the Thanksgiving Dinner: video, teaching and worked examples Day 2: Lesson 10.4: kitchen lab and notebook Day 3: Lesson 10.4: practice set and corrections Day 4: Lesson 10.5 The Capstone Meal: Abraham’s Welcome: video, teaching and worked examples Day 5: Lesson 10.5: kitchen lab and notebook | ||
| Wk 34 | Day 1: Lesson 10.5: practice set and corrections Day 2: Unit 10 test Day 3: Review day for the final Day 4: Final exam | ||
| Wk 35 | Catch-up week: finish any MUST COVER lesson not yet done | ||
| Wk 36 | Year-end review, portfolio and records |
Grading: Practice sets (completed and corrected) 15%, Kitchen labs (safety, technique, measurement, cleanup and the repeat round) 25%, Lab notebook 10%, Unit tests 30%, Midterm exam 10%, Final exam 10%. Scale: A 90–100, B 80–89, C 70–79, D 60–69. Below 60: review the unit, redo the practice set and retake the test.