Cook
in
France
A Cooking, Painting & Photography Holiday in France
Do you and your partner enjoy taking holidays together, but want to do different things?
Or maybe you have a friend who would like to go on a cooking holiday while you come for a painting and/or photography holiday. Or vice versa?
Well, here you'll find the best of both worlds: a combined cooking, painting and photography holiday.
One cooks while the other paints or snaps away...
So, for instance, while your partner paints and draws on the painting holiday, or your friend merrily snaps away on the photography course you could be cooking the gourmet dishes that you'll both be eating later.
Over lunch and dinner you'll be able to swap stories about what you've each been up to during the day.
And where better to learn not only the culinary arts, but also painting and/or photography, than France: birthplace of some of the greatest chefs, painters and photographers in the world.
Choose one course or pick 'n' mix...
Either come for one dedicated course or flit between two, or even all three - whatever takes your fancy!
If you'd like to have a taste of what each other's doing, no problem - as long as there's space on a particular course you're welcome to pick 'n' mix until you find what's right for you.
The cost...
Prices start from just €130 Euros per person and everything you'll need is included in the cost of a standard five day/five night cooking/painting/photography holiday.
But, if you only want to come for a day or two, ask about our One, Two and Three-day courses.
Either way, contact us for availability.
Your COOKING holiday in France chef, Jim Fisher...
Patiently guided and encouraged by your chef, Jim Fisher, you'll quickly become highly adept in the kitchen.
And you won't be punished for every mistake by some starched Fanny Craddock type either - just patient guidance and jovial encouragement from an experienced friendly chef.
Skills you'll be learning on your COOKING holiday in France include:
- Pre-prep
- Ingredient selection
- Knife skills
- Pastry work
- Butchery
- Fish and seafood cooking
- Cakes, desserts and patisserie
- Sautes and roasts
- Stocks and sauces
- French, Mediterranean, Italian, Spanish classic and regional dishes
and much, much more...
Your PAINTING holiday tutor, artist Gill Mitchell...
As soon as you meet your painting holiday tutor, Gill Mitchell, you'll realise that she is easy to get on with. Naturally chatty, brimming with character, and possessing a great sense of humour, she is a born teacher who'll use her enthusiasm and keen eye to guide and encourage you.
Skills you'll be learning on your PAINTING holiday in France include:
- Perspective
- How to 'see' (very important, but much overlooked)
- Chiaroscuro (the use of light and dark)
- Preliminary sketches
- Proportion
- Preparing various supports
- Pictorial composition
- Mount cutting
- Colour basics
among many others...
Your PHOTOGRAPHY holiday tutor, David Quinn...
David Quinn has has been taking photographs since he was eight years old, but started work as a freelance photographer in 2001 when he left the IT industry.
Since moving to France with his young family in 2002 he has been running advanced photography workshops here in the Dordogne.
Says David: “The relaxed pace of rural life and constantly changing light throughout the seasons provides the ideal venue to practice my passion”
Skills you'll be learning on your PHOTOGRAPHY holiday in France include:
- Landscapes - how to frame a scene and which camera settings to use
- Portraiture - how to light and position your subject
- Still life - how to set up a convincing arrangement and how to light it
- Food photography - how the pros get those mouthwatering shots
- Action shots - using shutter speed, aperture priority and ISO settings to capture that fleeting moment
- Nature - the Dordogne is home to an abundance of flora and fauna just ripe for snapping
- P, TV, AV, M & B. What's all that about?! - those mysterious camera settings explained and explored
- The 'SCN' and 'AUTO PICT' setting - use your cameras' built-in SCENE and AUTO PICTURE settings for spontaneous on-the-hoof shooting
among many others...
Chef, Jim Fisher, and
artist, Gill Mitchell
Your tutor, artist
Gill Mitchell
Pro-photographer,
David Quinn
Gill (right) with recent student, Finola, and her painting of the cooks collecting herbs from our garden
One of the dishes you
could be cooking:
Salad of Spring Vegetables with an Orange and Walnut Oil Dressing
Guest, Preethi, finding some humour in courgettes (!?)
Need a unique gift for someone special?
Then why not send them here on a course?
Infinitely flexible and valid for up to a year from date of purchase, gift vouchers can cover our full range of courses.
So, make someone's day a special one - order a gift voucher now and we'll get it to you today!
Are you worried about the Pound/Dollar/Euro exchange rate?
Read more to see how your holiday can beat the recession...
5 Day/5 Night Cooking Courses Include:
(Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday)
Want to be sure? Read our great testimonials
Some of the things you'll be doing on the cooking course:
Learn how to cook pastries, breads and soups
Select and prepare the best fish and shellfish
Butcher common joints of meat
Cook classic French and Italian sauces
Construct modern dressings
Master the art of stylish contemporary food presentation
Our day courses:
• Hands-on practical tuition with experienced friendly tutors
• All ingredients
• Utensils
• Aprons
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Wine and beverages
