Chicken photo courtesy of Fleisher’s.

Do you look at this photo and think, man, I would seriously pay $300 to slice that bird’s carotid artery? If the answer is yes, maybe you should attend an upcoming chicken-slaughter workshop sponsored by Fleisher’s butchers. That’s the photo that accompanied an email invitation to “For Cluck’s Sake,” where:

Participants will meet at Fleisher’s in Kingston for a light breakfast, followed by a trip to Meadowview Farm in New Paltz where they will have the opportunity to slaughter and de-feather their own chicken! … Participants will learn how to quarter, spatchcock, and skin a chicken for home kitchen use. All followed by a locally sourced dinner prepared by the Fleisher’s crew … Cost is $300 and includes 3 meals, lecture with Joshua Applestone, and a chicken to slaughter and take home!

So … help me out here, foodies, back-to-the-land beardies, Kenji, anyone… does this sound fun to you?  (more…)

Photobucket image by Nocturntable

With Halloween checked off the ’09 holiday list, our fake blood and platinum wig put away, the culinary bounty of Thanksgiving is fast approaching. To help prepare for the meal of the year, Brooklyn Events is presenting fall-themed cooking classes all month in Park Slope. Soups are next week’s theme, followed by Thanksgiving sides and, finally (naturally), desserts. The $25 pricetag might be harder to swallow than those free squash soup instructions online, but an oil-smeared recipe from Epicurious can’t match the camaraderie of a class (or tell you what, exactly, a “slow simmer” means). And it’s way cheaper than all those Manhattan cooking schools. (more…)