Students to Help Manage Kitchen During Fall Semester

Students in Pennsylvania College of Technology's School of Hospitality will learn about planning a menu, helping to run a kitchen, and satisfying the public in the school-operated Le Jeune Chef Restaurant this fall, as they take turns as student managers in the restaurant's kitchen.

Students enrolled in two classes Regional American Cuisine, which offers fare from around the U.S. on Friday evenings, and Breakfast and Brunch, which serves up both a traditional breakfast menu and a huge brunch buffet on Sundays and Mondays will take on the task of assigning kitchen duties to their fellow classmates, preparing recipes, and calculating quantities and costs.

In the Breakfast and Brunch course, taught by Chef Judy P. Shimp, associate professor of hospitality management/culinary arts, the students come up with their own buffet menus, which are centered around a different theme each week.

In Regional American Cuisine, taught by Chef Michael J. Ditchfield, instructor of hospitality management/culinary arts, the students must research the region on which their menu is based, learning about its climate and native foods.

Upon their turn as manager, the students work closely with the chef instructor, serving as their assistant, or sous chef.

Regional American Cuisine offerings begin Sept. 21 and are served beginning at 5:30 p.m.

On Sept. 21, students Annie M. Kinney, of Milton, and Katelyn M. Dymond, of Dushore, will lead "Nature's Bounty (A Local Market Basket)."

"My menu is exciting this semester because we have the opportunity to use some of the freshest ingredients: foods that are grown locally, within about a 50-mile radius of Williamsport," Kinney said.

On Sept. 28, Russell J. Hackenburg, of Pittsburgh, and Tyler S. Shoup, of Muncy, will present a "Southwest" menu with such items as roasted poblano and potato soup, lobster enchiladas, and "pechugias bahia," a chicken dish that features hearts of palm, jalapeno peppers, fresh tomatoes and coconut lime sauce.

On Oct. 5, Joshua R. Jensen, of Pleasant Mount, will serve up "California Fusion." Among five entrée selections, his menu will feature mahi mahi, salmon and turducken.

On Oct. 12, Leanda J. Hill, of Allenwood, will lead her classmates in serving food from the "Pacific Rim," which she said will feature "fruit, vegetables, a lot of seafood, and a little bit of venison, pork and beef," noting that seafood selections are accompanied by fruits.

On Oct. 26, Sarah J. Dries, of McEwensville, will serve a "Heartland" menu with choices that include Wisconsin cheese and beer soup, flat-iron steak with grit fries, and buffalo with Maytag blue cheese.

On Nov. 2, Mark R. Capellazzi, of Rochester, N.Y., will serve a menu from the "Chesapeake Bay," which he says will feature "classic selections from the Mid-Atlantic," including crab cakes and fresh flounder.

On Nov. 9, Aaron D. Hileman, of Altoona, will serve foods from the "Deep South." Among his favorite menu items for the evening is sautéed grouper. "My goal for that week is to give that out-to-sea feeling, where the things you just ate feel like they were caught just yesterday," he said.

On Nov. 16, Joshua R. Gemberling, of Mount Pleasant Mills, will lead the class in preparing a "New Orleans" menu with such selections as Cajun chicken cordon bleu, pork and beans, and authentic filé gumbo, made with pork, seafood and poultry.

On Nov. 30, Anthony W. Suttile will wrap up the semester's Regional American Cuisine offerings with a "New England" menu, for which he hopes to feature items from across the region.

The Breakfast and Brunch course will begin serving customers Sunday, Sept. 23 and Monday, Sept. 24 with a "Welcome to Penn College" menu. On all Breakfast and Brunch dates, the restaurant is open from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with buffet service beginning at 11:30.

The semester's first student manager, Kristen L. Winslow, of Carlisle, will lead the class in preparing an "Oktoberfest" celebration Sunday, Oct. 7, with such German-inspired dishes as bratwurst, apple cider and Black Forest cake.

On Oct. 8, William A. Baker, of State College, will present "Oktoberfest" with German-inspired foods.

On Oct. 14, Angela L. Hess, of Lewisburg, and Joshua R. Gemberling, of Mount Pleasant Mills, will present "Morning on the Ranch" with lots of spice, color, and a touch of the Southwest.

On Oct. 15, Samuel H. Brechtel, of Clarks Summit, will present "Morning on the Ranch."

"My menu is a Southwestern theme, so I will be having many spices and savory items," he said. "I will have foods that I enjoyed as a young child."

On Oct. 22, Jack L. Fetzer, of Jersey Shore, will present "Caribbean Vacation" with skewers and tropical dishes.

On Oct. 28, Kristen M. Bastian, of Montandon, and Michael R. Yaw, of Trout Run, will present "Late Autumn Harvest," featuring apples, squashes, zucchini, frittata, lemon chicken, ham, and peach and plum crostata.

On Oct. 29, Pamela N. Staib, of Riverside, will present "Halloween" with pumpkin, squash, zucchini, ham and lots of color.

On Nov. 4, Noah C. Bech, of Philadelphia, will present "Brunch on the Farm," with Pennsylvania Dutch selections.

On Nov. 5, Amanda H. Shughart, of Mechanicsburg, will present "Brunch on the Farm," with such Pennsylvania Dutch traditions as tzvivvelle supp, ham and dumplings, apple chutney, scrapple, seven sweets and seven sours, and shoofly pie.

On Nov. 11, Matthew S. Dansky, of State College, will present "Breakfast in Little Italy" with traditional Italian foods.

On Nov. 12, Anthony W. Suttile, of Wellsboro, will present "Breakfast in Little Italy" with Italian-inspired foods.

On Nov. 18, Elisabeth J. Callahan, of McSherrystown, and Meagan S. Morris, of Herndon, Va., will present "Brunch in the French Quarter" with such New Orleans foods as seafood gumbo, cheese grits, dirty rice and a garbanzo chicken dish, Callahan said.

On Nov. 19, Nicole R. Furman, of Williamsport, will present "Brunch in the French Quarter," during which she will incorporate such New Orleans tastes as Cajun recipes and seafood.

On Dec. 2, George E. Logue, of Trout Run, will present "A Holiday Buffet" that will include turducken, which he calls "a duck-stuffed, chicken-stuffed turkey."

On Dec. 3, Katelyn M. Dymond, of Dushore, will present "A Holiday Buffet" with such items as turducken, pumpkin cheesecake, pineapple ham and golden matzo ball soup.

For complete menus and reservation information, visitonline or call (570) 320-CHEF. For more information about the academic programs offered by the School of Hospitality, call (570) 327-4505, send e-mail or visit on the Web.