I attended this event as a guest of San Antonio CVB, with all expenses paid. As always, any personal opinions reflected in this post are 100% my own and have not been influenced by the sponsor in any way.
The following post was written by my friend Jen, who stepped in for me when I could not attend the event. Jen blogs at The Mom Reviews, be sure to visit here there and say hello. Jen is also on Twitter, she’s @themomjen.
To be honest, it’s tough preparing meals in the Spring when our schedules are full with 4 evenings of baseball added to dance classes, scouts, and dad’s work schedule. I’d love to venture out and prepare exotic cuisine, but I tend to stay within my comfort zone, alternating among a dozen recipes. Enter the Culinaria press trip and day 2’s agenda: Create a culinary masterpiece at the Culinary Institute of America, San Antonio (CIA).
We first enjoyed a breakfast from the CIA’s Bakery Cafe, located at the historic Pearl, it offers San Antonio residents the first opportunity to enjoy a meal or a snack from the world’s premier culinary college.
The freshest watermelon I’ve ever had was the highlight, I hear it’s the best in Texas, as well as a sausage scone that had a kick to it. Pair those with some coffee and I was excited for the day. 
Yet, I don’t think the words “mini boot camp” really sunk in until we met with CIA chef-instructor Brian West. Brian talked to us about the institute’s Food Enthusiast Courses where foodies can attend demonstrations, tastings, and Boot Camp Cooking Vacations on site. 
Then, before we knew it we were entering a professional kitchen with recipes for Mexican appetizers and in teams were instructed to put together our own lunch in 2.5 hours. Suddenly I forgot everything I knew about cooking and felt like I was on an episode of America’s Worst Cooks. Putting on an apron and toque, I smiled for the camera but the idea of all my unconventional kitchen habits put to the test made my palms sweat. 
I decided that my new friend Candace, a recent culinary school graduate, would be my go-to in the kitchen.
I’m Mexican, but all the meals I’ve learned to love and enjoy have been made from my parents and grandparents. I haven’t tried many of their recipes because the confidence level isn’t there for me. 
But when I saw chorizo in the recipe for Tinga Poblana, I jumped at to fry it up, something I have indeed done before! The pork in the recipe took over an hour to cook, so part of the challenge was getting everything set and ready to be assembled at the last moment. Onions were diced, chiles were roasted, and potatoes were boiled, and we watched the clock and all of our food like professionals do.
Don’t get me wrong, we had lots of help from Chef Brian and many of the culinary students during our “test.” We also got some very hands on tips on our recipes as well of those other’s were making, like how to prepare fish for tacos! Lots of action buzzed around, the aromas in the kitchen made our mouths water, and yes we did a little sweating and stressing too. Not only were we cooking food we were going to eat, but Chef Brian was going to eat it too… 
Amongst a few other dishes, our Tinga Poblana was taste-tested and given the thumbs up for plating and it looked spectacular. Our dishes were all displayed, explained, and then we were instructed to dig in!
Just like I explain to my kids, putting effort in to cooking always makes your meal taste better. Having the kids in the kitchen also encourages them to try out and taste more if they’ve had a hand in it! I was so impressed with our team as well as the others. Other than our group culinary graduate and a few food bloggers that put their skills to the test frequently, the rest of the journalists and I just love to eat and we did a bang up job.
Would I do this again, absolutely! I would love to take cooking classes and get some more recipes under my belt that my family would enjoy. This experience inspired me and I’m thrilled to have had the opportunity!
For more information, visit the Visit Antonio CVB website, www.visitsanantonio.com or call their toll free number 800/447-3372. They’re also on Facebook and Twitter.
patricia Marsden
Monday 3rd of June 2013
The pulled pork recipe intrigues.