Step into Caitlin Verdier’s kitchen and you’re enveloped by warmth — her lovely English accent, the enthusiasm she brings to her favorite subject, cooking.
By Caitlin Brown
Step into Caitlin Verdier’s kitchen and you’re enveloped by warmth — her lovely English accent, the enthusiasm she brings to her favorite subject, cooking.
Wanting to share her love of all things culinary, Verdier started Caitlin’s Cuisine. She offers two-week sessions (two meetings per session) to small groups — no more than six at a time — in her Rye home. Her goal is a unique one: teaching everyday cooks to use what they already have in their cupboard.
“What I found upon moving to America, was that people don’t know how to use what they have in their fridge… so I have each person come with a bit of whatever and we have a go of it,” explained Verdier. One person may bring an onion, another a tin of tomatoes, another an artichoke. Verdier takes stock of what she calls each person’s “mystery ingredient” (each person is asked to bring one) and she’ll say, “OK, we’re going to make three dishes using these ingredients.” Verdier provides the protein, from meat to fish, and the fun begins. What makes her classes special is that there is no recipe roadmap; the meal essentially becomes a fun group effort, and when it’s time to sit down and eat it together, everyone has made new friends and learned how to make do with what they had in their larder.
“Delicious doesn’t require a big shopping trip,” stresses Verdier.
Her make-do approach is informed by her background. Having grown up on a farm in West Sussex, England — her mother, a schoolteacher, and her father, a farmer — she often was her father’s “right-hand man.” By the age of 8, she was cooking the family meals. “I had to cook what we had. There were no recipes.” She cultivated the skill of the ad-lib at a very young age.
Verdier’s feelings about food are also rooted in her background on a farm where, she says, “we mainly used what was available to us from our fields and backyard.” She tries to stay away from all things processed and tries to buy what is in season and what is fresh. Unlike most of us who make many trips to the grocery shop per week, and often per meal, Verdier goes once and tries to teach others to learn to do the same.
Verdier’s prowess in the kitchen is not the only skill that has made her business a success. She is a people person and truly thrives on bringing people together. A big part of her cooking classes is the social element.
“I get a kick out of it. I love bringing people together—seeing people who, before my class didn’t know each other, become friends here,” she says.
While groups of friends do sometimes sign up together—sometimes even calling on her to do a themed evening for a birthday or an occasion—often those that sign up don’t know one another. It’s a casual, fun and informal way to make friends with others (most are from the Rye area), while learning invaluable skills… we all have to eat! “While cooking, everyone has a glass of wine … then we eat and engage, it’s lovely,” says Verdier.
The importance of truly enjoying and savoring meals is key to her and it is the primary trait she picked up during the five years she lived in Paris, where she met her French husband. “French cuisine roots and culture are a big part of my makeup… the book, “Why French Women Don’t Get Fat,” is the perfect example and why I focus on enjoying food as an important part of a social/family gatherings not just a fuel to be injected as quickly as possible.” Her mantra is “eat good food of very high quality, small portions, savor every bite, and nothing is off limits.” No calorie counting and no dieting.
Aside from her classes in which each participant brings a mystery ingredient, she also offers ones that are more geared toward more formal entertaining. For example, her “dinner party menu” classes give each student-chef a way to perfect a menu ahead of time. As Verdier says, “You won’t waste any time in the kitchen sweating while your guests are drinking and laughing without you … I can’t abide that.” Verdier is all about helping create easy dishes that can be prepared ahead of time, so that “you can be the hostess with the mostess and enjoy your company.”
Verdier has also been called upon to host Themed Cooking Nights (African cuisine) and Birthday Cooking Nights (Thai cuisine), and to provide post-operative, nutrient-rich recipes. And although she insists that she doesn’t do catering, she will turn her hand to anything. No challenge is too big and her easy way of entertaining and engaging people is unique and ever so appealing.
In December, Verdier will show participants how to whip up handcrafted teacher and hostess holiday gifts. Made with love, beautifully packaged chutneys, relishes, and infused oils — including original recipes of how to use them — will be ready for their close-up.
Her business started with a vision of “creative cooking” and a test kitchen with her close friends. It was an instant hit, so she started Caitlin’s Cuisine. Like most good things, it spread through word-of-mouth. People love it and so might you. To learn more or be added to her mailing list, email caitlinscuisine@gmail.com.
