Provisions

One of the things many people assume about The Culinary Institute Of America is that one gains weight while studying there, especial in my case because my area will be baking and pastry arts. Sure enough, many do during baking class, but usually these are the general culinary students who are unused to consuming such calorie-rich food on a regular basis. Pastry students know to keep on top of their classroom consumption because they're quite familiar with what happens if that isn't controlled. They also know that hitting the gym is not optional when your entire class schedule revolves around dessert. Additionally, they know that bakeshop class cuisine, while delicious, does not constitute a meal, which means that they're not going to fill up on the stuff. Instead, they will favor the diverse culinary offerings available at CIA for their three squares.

The thing about student dining at CIA is that it's kind of self-perpetuating. First semester students always fill the kitchens of the various levels of Skills classes. Skills students are constantly preparing mother sauces, performing basic knife cuts, and generally fabricating various basic ingredients and bases that will be used by more advanced classes to make actual meals. Baking classes bake all manner of artisanal bread, which will be sent off for other students as ingredients, as well as for all dining on campus. In fact, everything a student produces at CIA that isn't tasted or consumed in class goes to feed either the students or the paying public. This gives a sense of pride and unity to the students, as well as an enhanced sense of the importance of safety and sanitation, because the last thing any students wants to do is make classmates sick.

Although I cannot claim every meal offered at CIA is healthy, what with the inevitable French influence in classical cuisine and the requisite utilization of butter, I can fairly claim that it is likely more nutritionally balanced than whatever one is eating at home. Vegetables play a much larger role in dishes served at CIA than they do in the average American meal. Part of this, again, because of the French influence, which is largely based upon a combination of two parts onion, one part celery, and one part carrot called a mirepoix. Another part of it is simply the encouragement of as diverse a palate as possible. Vegetables that aren't seen much on the American plate, like okra, turnip, radish, various leafy greens, parsnips, and more are frequently utilized. So we see that CIA, while putting you amongst rich food, also encourages you to not spoil your dinner and eat your vegetables, just as mom told you.

-Frank