Culinary Institute at UPenn - Overview

Healthy Cooking, Nutrition & Sustainability 

• Savory Cuisine  First 3-week session
  July 1-July 21, 2012 ($5,399)
• The Art of Baking  Second 3-week session 
  July 22-August 11, 2012 ($5,399)
• Full 6-week High School Culinary Institute 
  July 1-August 11, 2012 ($9,999)

Utilizing instruction by the professional chefs from Bon Appetit at the University of Pennsylvania, this hands-on, one-of-a-kind summer culinary program emphasizes the total culinary experience, including preparation, low-impact farming, restaurant management, and cooking in a fully-equipped professional kitchen at the University of Pennsylvania. 

Bon Appetit is an onsite restaurant organization offering full food-service management to corporations such as Yahoo, eBay and DreamWorks Studio; universities such as PENN; and specialty restaurants at the Getty Center in Los Angeles and the Art Institute of Chicago.  They are committed to sustainable fresh-food cooking, using local ingredients at all their 400 cafés/restaurants throughout the USA.  This intensive program aims to bring students closer to culinary expertise and foster a commitment to socially-responsible practices.

Both sessions will allow students the opportunity to learn about restaurant management, etiquette and catering, from professionals in their industries, and participate in a testing lab that will exemplify quality difference, in flavor as well as nutrition, from fresh, frozen & canned/prepared food items.  Additionally, the first 3-week session will focus on savory culinary preparation from around the world.  The second 3-week session will focus on baking production including breads, cookies, chocolate, cake and decoration, and puff pastries.  All recipes will include preparation options designed to improve healthy dining.

This program is open to motivated high-school students who are interested in cooking and the culinary arts and meets Monday-Friday for approximately 4-6 hours per day.  It features a combination of demonstration, culinary training, lecture and field studies (farm, market and restaurant visits). Student chefs and two Bon Appetit chefs share PENN’s professional kitchen Monday-Thursday for daily preparation and cooking.  In addition to hands-on training, students will also attend seminars on nutrition, sustainability and farm-to-fork, local food cultivation/purchase.  The Dedicated Nutrition Sessions will include such topics as “Food for Fuel, Function and Fitness”, “Portion Distortion”, and “Media and Peer Smarts”.  Fridays are spent on full-day visits to farms, food processing plants and notable restaurants in the Philadelphia area.

Students will create food that is alive with flavor and nutrition, prepared from scratch using authentic ingredients and.  They will do so in a socially-responsible manner for the well-being of themselves, their community and environment.  The Bon Appetit philosophy recognizes the great power and importance of food.  Food preparation and dining helps to create a sense of community and comfort.  This summer, students will: 

• Cook (and eat) food from scratch under the tutelage of professional chefs using fresh seasonal ingredients.
• Make socially responsible food and supply purchasing decisions
• Prepare and serve healthy, great tasting, authentic and nutritious food, focusing on whole foods; including vegetarian, vegan, and international meals
• Prepare food with flavor beyond salt and fat - using herbs, spices, and proper techniques to enhance flavors and increase appreciation of the natural flavors of foods.
• Use healthy preparation techniques, including roasting and oven-frying.
• Practice the Bon Appetit Healthy Cooking Initiative, emphasizing the use of fresh vegetables, fruits and whole grains, and trans-fat free oils

Hendricks Farms Interactive Tour: Students will visit a sustainable farm famous for its artisanal cheeses, and have the opportunity to milk a goat, make sausage from scratch, make a pizza and cook it in a brick oven, plus witness a cheese making demonstration.

Culinary Institute participants will be provided with a professional, embroidered chef's coat, and chef's hat, as well as a detailed recipe book of all items prepared during the program.  Students will be housed in the same location, and share many evening, weekend and extra-curricular activities with the Penn Summer Discovery Pre-College and Academy programs. 

Apply Now to begin or perfect your culinary training!

Culinary Institute Staff and Faculty

Terri Brownlee, MPH, RD, LDN
Regional Director of Nutrition

With a love of nutrition and a passion for great food, registered dietitian, Terri Brownlee, helps her clients combine the science of good health and nutrition with the enjoyment and pleasure that comes from good, wholesome food. She has over 20 years of experience in the field of nutrition with experiences that span from private practice and corporate consulting to food service and nutrition education. In her current role with Bon Appétit, Terri works to increase the appreciation and understanding of nutrition through strategic nutrition programming in colleges and businesses nationwide. She frequently talks with student, faculty groups and other guests about sports nutrition, popular diets, healthy and mindful eating, eating disorders as well as many other nutrition topics and supports the management and culinary staffs in a variety of nutritional areas including healthy cooking techniques, special diets and food allergies.

Prior to joining Bon Appétit, Terri served as the Nutrition Director for Duke University's Diet & Fitness Center and Center for Living where she directed the comprehensive nutrition services, authored the Diet and Fitness Center cookbook and served as the media contact for numerous magazine, internet and television articles. Terri received her Master of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As a foodie, Terri continues to apply her knowledge of nutrition in helping her clients develop a healthier, more holistic approach to food, nutrition and overall wellness.

Scott Myers
Director of Catering

Scott Myers has over twelve years of experience as a professional caterer and has been classically trained in etiquette by some of the country’s top etiquette leaders at the Emily Post Institute. No matter if it is dining etiquette, or understanding how to survive in the business world, etiquette is a vastly important part of our lives and Scott has developed a diverse and energetic approach to teaching this nearly lost art form.

Prior to joining the Bon Appétit team, Scott was the Director of catering at the University of Denver, Kansas State University, and currently serves at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dottie Deitch
Dining Manager of Steinhardt Hall

Dottie Deitch graduated from the Pennsylvania Institute of Culinary Arts in 1997. She has worked as a pastry chef at the Wright's Seafood Inn, Pennsylvania’s oldest family owned restaurant of 114 years. Dottie also worked at Soba Lounge, one of the top three best rated Asian restaurants in Pittsburgh, where she earned recognition in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, who named her Chocolate Three Way Dessert the best in the city. On the savory side, she has worked her way from culinary roundsmen to chef in several restaurants featuring new American, fusion, and Nouvelle cuisine.

For the past three years, she has been educating the public in culinary arts and working with various non-profits as a culinary therapist and life skills/nutrition counselor. Since August 2010, Dottie has managed Falk Dining Commons, the premiere kosher dining facility in Philadelphia. All food is glatt kosher and prepared under the supervision of the Community Kashrus of Greater Philadelphia.