GASTRONOMY AND COOKING WORKSHOPS

............................................Recommended by - Gourmet Magazine May issue 2008 (CHI)
.............................................................................. - Paula Magazine (5/2008, USA),
.............................................................................. - la Cav Magazine

A lifestyle, passionate about great food and fine wine

In Mapuyampay, all meals are prepared by the Belgian-born chef and cookbook author; Ruth Van Waerebeek, former Peter Kump’s NY Cooking School (now ICE) instructor and since 2000, a brand ambassador and executive chef for  the mayor international events of Chile’s leading Winery Concha Y Toro.

Ruth has a predilection for the bold flavours of the New World Cuisine, larded with Belgian specialties, or aromatic Moroccan and Indian spiced dishes...on other occasions she will surprise you with exotic Vietnamese spring rolls or a crisp tempura...
A wealth of culinary knowledge that she brought back from her many travels and by cooking side by side with cooks in Asia, Russia, south-America and Europe.

“What sets us apart from so many restaurant kitchens?” It’s simple, we make everything fresh, in small batches and use the best possible ingredients; such as the olive oil from our friends, the producers Diaz Guerrero, the meats from specialty butchers in Curicó, one for pork, one for lamb and another one for beef, we support local cheese makers, artisan beer brewers....and we strongly believe that in the kitchen you just can’t cut corners! Perfectionists as we are, we make our own ice creams and sorbets, jams, chutneys and condiments, breakfast breads, chocolates, cookies...you name it.
Avid gardeners, Ruth and Vicente grow most fruits, vegetables and herbs on the property, organic, needless to say...and before class we’ll go and pick what we need for our meal. The rest of the produce, we buy in the fresh market of Curicó, la feria, a wonderful place to visit! And you’re always welcome to accompany us to the market!

Central in our culinary approach are the wonderful Chilean wines, and you will be introduced in the fascinating world of pairing fine food with great wines. Working closely with the wine makers in Concha y Toro for more than 12 years, Ruth is a true expert in choosing the right flavours to highlight each particular wine.
 Mapuyampay disposes of a well-furnished wine cellar, with some of the best Concha y Toro wines and interesting finds of local, smaller wineries (all very reasonably priced – we want you to take advantage of being in wine country!). Vicente will gladly guide you in your selection of the perfect wine to accompany your meals.

Our Cooking Workshops

Our chef believes that the only way to learn to cook is to do it yourself. While Ruth will demonstrate the techniques, be prepared to roll up your sleeves and put what you have seen into practice. The lessons are informal and our chef is flexible and willing to add those special dishes you always wanted to learn to make. Just ask.

All Cooking Workshops (Minimum 2 persons, maximum 10 ) are hands-on, take about 4 hours,  and are dictated  in our spacious and professional kitchen. After class we all sit down under the shady vines to enjoy the dishes prepared in class with a nice glass of wine.
For every class you will receive a booklet including recipes of all the dishes made during your stay.

Favourite subjects:

For those on their first visit to Chile, we recommend:
Class 1: An introduction in the traditional Chilean Cuisine: you will start with the preparation of the popular Pisco Sour, followed by an array of empanadas. (from the fried seafood empanaditas , cheese and quince empanaditas, to the traditional  baked meat -and -onion- filled empanada), the savoury Pastel de choclo, a delicious beef and vegetable pie with crispy corn topping  accompanied by a Chilean fresh tomato salsa, a fresh bean and pumpkin casserole and typical desserts.

Class 2: Food and Wine Pairing Class: Contemporary Latin-style creations of the chef, inspired by the wonderful, local produce: such as cold avocado soup with ceviche of Antarctic krill, baked Chilean sea bass with a hot pepper adobo, parsley jus and fennel salad; grilled pork tenderloin with spicy quince glaze and merquén, an unique smoked chili pepper mix, salsa verde and pea puré. Desserts include a sumptuous crème brulée of Lúcuma, an unique Chilean fruit. All dishes will be paired with the appropriate Premium Chilean Wine.

Other popular classes include: *The Art of Latin Grilling, marinades and salsas

                                              *Our favourite Chilean and Peruvian Seafood     
                                                 Appetizers, from ceviches to tiraditos and causas

About Our Chef:

*Ruth Van Waerebeek is an adventurous traveler, international chef and cookbook author from Belgium. She was born and raised in the medieval town of Ghent where she received a degree in Romance Languages at the University of Ghent.
She learned to cook at the side of her mother, grandmother and her great-grandmother.
(Subject of her first “Everybody eats well in Belgium Cookbook” )This wealth of home cooking knowledge would eventually lead Ruth on a marvelous journey around the world and to some of America's important culinary schools and positions.

*Ruth has cooked in fine restaurants in her home town, before assuming the position of executive chef of Mr. Edgar Bronfman Sr., at the corporate headquarters of Joseph E. Seagram’s &Sons in Manhattan;  and managed the kitchens of Stone Gate Resort in St Thomas, and the Mount Nevis Hotel, West Indies. (1985-91)

*From 1991 to 1996: Ruth worked in a full time teaching and management position at the Peter Kump’s School of Culinary Arts in NYC (now, ICE).

*Since the year 2000, as the brand ambassador and the house chef of Chile’s most important Winery Concha y Toro, Ruth brings her unique interpretations of the “New Latin Cuisine” paired with the company’s finest wines to the four corners of the world. She travels on a regular base to assume the company’s large events abroad, in Europe, Russia, USA, Latin-America and Asia (China, Japan, Vietnam, The Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong).

Some highlights of these travels:
*Mega event organized on the Great Wall of Beijing sponsored by Concha y Toro. Special Wine-Dinner prepared for 200 guests (2001).
*Guest Chef at the “World Gourmet Festival” organized by the Four Seasons Hotel in Bangkok (2006).
 *Guest Chef conducting a weeklong Chilean Food Festival in the Raffles Hotel in Singapore, (2007)
*Ruth conducted a “Train the trainer program”, Fundamentals of nutrition and healthy eating with detailed recipes, in the Agricultural Trade Test kitchens in Manila, Philippines, sponsored by the USDA (2008)
 

Recently (2008-2010) Ruth has conducted series of Food Pairing Classes in several locations in Texas (Central Market program, 2008) and in Florida (Publix Apron’s Cooking Schools,2009), she was a Guest chef  in the Food  Classic in Aspen (2010), and the Food and Wine Festival in Epcot (2010).
 
Publications:

1996: Ruth’s first cookbook, “Everybody Eats Well in Belgium Cookbook”, published by Workman. The same year the book is chosen as the main selection of the Book of the Month Club.(out of print at this date)

1999: Second cookbook, The Chilean Kitchen, by HPBooks.

1999-2002: Ruth contributed various articles to Food & Wine Magazine, NYC.

2004: Ruth developed all the recipes for a special edition of “Recién Casados, recién en la cocina”, sponsored and published by Nestlé. She also contributed to the “Celebraciones” Cookbook by Nestlé.

2005: Ruth participated in the cookbook “Vino y Compañia”, de Mariana Martínez by Planetavino

Ruth is also a regular culinary contributor to the Chilean magazine “Paula”, having written over 40 food articles, including several articles focused on Low-fat and Healthful Cooking, Nuevo Latino and World Cuisine.

Professional recognition and honours:

1990: Guest Chef at the American Food and Wine Festival, organized by Wolfgang Puck as a fund raising for “Meals on wheels”.

1990: Guest chef, Sandeman Ports and Sherries Dinner, James Beard House

1990: Rising Star Chef, The James Beard Foundation

1997-98-99: invited to present genuine Belgian dishes in restaurant “Cuvee Notredame” in Philadelphia for the popular “The Book and the Cook Week”, organized yearly in the same city.

1997: Special Award presented by the Flemings of the World in NY for her trajectory as culinary ambassador of Belgium.

Languages: Ruth is fluent in Dutch, French, English and Spanish