SHELLY SACKETT, our school director, is also our most popular instructor. She repeats her classes on a regular basis because her foods have such universal appeal and you keep asking her to repeat them. She’s taught more than 30 different menus, and repeats the same dozen or so “stand-bys” every year. Shelly has one rule: You don’t need any great skills to take these classes, and these are recipes you will use again and again.

On Saturday, August 2 at 9:30 a.m. Shelly will repeat The Middle East Comes West ($45). For several years we couldn’t sell this class. I don’t think people even knew what Hummus was. Today, it’s again popular, along with Tabbouleh salad, Felafel sandwiches on Pita and Yaourtopeta, a Greek yogurt cake you will just adore. This is a lighter menu, but great food! Don’t miss it.

On Saturday, August 16 at 9:30 a.m. Shelly will repeat a class which sells out regularly. A Mexican Fiesta ($45) is a compilation of recipes collected during and after the years we lived in Arizona (You didn’t know we lived there?) Half the recipes are not authentically Mexican, but all are delicious and filled with Tex-Mex flavor. We awaken your mouth with a Pico de Gallo (Beak of the Rooster) Salsa, then cool things a little with a Guacamole Appetizer. The Layered Taco Salad makes a great party dish; and the Chiles Relleno have an authentic Picadillo (meat and nut) filling. The Green Chile Enchilada Casserole is a make-ahead entrée you’ll love. And for dessert, an authentic Caramel Flan (custard). If you don’t sign up for this one, there’ll be more for me to eat!

On Saturday, September 6 at 9:30 a.m. Shelly offers round two from Mexico as she repeats A New Mexican Dinner ($45). This is an entirely different menu of Southwestern-inspired foods, beginning with one of my favorites adapted from one of my favorite restaurants, Turtle Creek Tortilla Soup. The main course is a Short-Cut Chicken Molé, served with Yucatan-Style Black Beans and Arroz Mexicana. It’s garnished with a Tropical Fruit Salsa, and for dessert you will enjoy the very best Sopaipillas you have ever tasted, I promise! This is a terrific menu I could eat every week.

Tuesday, September 16 at 6:30 p.m. Shelly travels halfway around the globe to do her basic techniques class in Asian cuisine which we call Hot Wok, & Easy! ($45). This class starts with a pretty standard Dim Sum appetizer called Shao Mei (similar to steamed pot-stickers). We’ll then share 4 different stir-fry dishes, each with a different sauce, and each unique to that night’s class. The showpiece of the class is actually a Thai dish called Rosie’s Spicy Chicken which is very similar to the General Tso or Marquis Tso’s chicken which is so popular in local restaurants. This class usually sells out quickly, because it’s great food and a great way to get comfortable with wok cooking at home.

Ok, so now round two Asian style. On Saturday, September 27, at 9:30 a.m. Shelly will repeat her other often-requested Asian class which we call Sizzlin’ Chinese ($45). This class features three appetizers and one entrée, but you will love them all! We’ll start with Chinese Bar-B-Que Pork, the rich red color is for good luck, but the taste is terrific, too. Crab Rangoon is the first of our three fried dishes (That’s why we call it Sizzlin’). Then Shelly will make Fried Egg Rolls, sometimes called Fried Spring Rolls, with a meat and shrimp filling and we’ll make our own hot mustard sauce, and sweet-and-sour sauce to eat with them. That sweet-and-sour sauce is important because we use the same sauce to finish our Sweet & Sour Shrimp served over steamed rice. This is the way this dish should taste, Sweet, sour, salty, with a vinegar tang, and a non-soggy breading on the shrimp. Want to make it at home? Come see how it’s done! You’ll be amazed at how easy it is. You won’t go home hungry from this one, either.

On Monday, August 11, beginning at 6:00 p.m. Shelly and Mike Sackett will together teach our Basic Kitchen Skills Class ($75). Limited to just 9 students, you will prepare your own dinner as you learn some basic kitchen rules regarding cleanliness, safety, and knife skills. We will together make a Tropical Fruit Salad, an Italian (Bell) Pepper Steak served over Steamed Rice, and for dessert, home-made Biscotti. This class is only offered once or twice a year, and it usually fills quickly, so if you really want to learn to cook, and gain some confidence in your ability to put out a great meal, come join us. We promise you all the individual attention you might need. That’s what this class is all about!