Every year, Les Marmitons Winnipeg contributes financially to assist one promising young chef from the RRC Culinary Arts program. Bradyn Palmer, is this year's recipient of our annual award. Unfortunately (for us), he has moved away so he will not be able to host this event.
Bradyn Palmer
Luckily for us, we will have the opportunity to showcase the skills of other chefs from the RRC Culinary Arts program.
This month's event will be lead by Anna Macdonald and David Sawatzky.
Anna Macdonald
Anna's Bio
I grew up in the small town of Pinawa, Manitoba and moved to Winnipeg after graduation to pursue a Science degree at the University of Manitoba. During the third year of my degree, I began to work as a cook in a small restaurant and discovered I looked forward more to my hours at work in kitchen than the hours I spent studying. I had always loved cooking and reading about food while growing up, but never considered it as a career option. Within the next 6 months, I transferred to Red River College to attend the Culinary Arts program and was happier and more enthusiastic about my studies than I had been while at the U of M. Since then, I have worked at The Grove Pub and Restaurant, Sous Sol and volunteered at a number of culinary events. Once graduated, I hope to travel to Europe and Asia, learn about local agriculture/farms while back at home, and eventually open a restaurant one day.
David Sawatzky
David's Bio
My name is David Sawatzky, and I am 25 years old. I am currently a student of Culinary Arts at Red River College.
Culinary Experiences/Co-op Placements
Winnipeg Squash and Racquetball Club - 2012-2013 (Full-time)
Burrito Del Rio - 2013-2014 (Part-time)
Canadian Mennonite University - 2013-2015 (Full-time)
Bergmann’s on Lombard - 2013-Present (Fulltime/Casual)
Marion St. Eatery - Winter 2016 (Full-time)
Why Did I choose Culinary Arts?
I grew up surrounded by food on a potato farm in central Manitoba. As you can imagine, I was never surrounded by a variety of modern ingredients or cooking styles on the farm. It wasn’t until my older brother came home from culinary school when I was in grade 10 that I started to appreciate food. He decided to showcase what he had learned for my family. He made panko crusted pickerel filets with prosciutto wrapped asparagus, potato gratin and a lemon cream veloute. I remember that it was the first time I realized food could be so much more than just nourishment, but it could bring joy, wonder and flavour into people’s lives. Since that moment I started volunteering in church kitchens, camp kitchens and soup kitchens whenever opportunity presented itself. It wasn’t until the fall of 2012 that I had my start in a real restaurant kitchen at the Winnipeg Squash and Racquetball Club. Since then, I have enjoyed learning from the people that I work with.
Chef Michael Fitzhenry, Program Coordinator from RRC will also be joining us as a special guest.
Menu
- Course 1
- Spring Vegetable Tart with Goat Cheese, Herbs and Green Goddess Dressing
- Suggested Beer Pairing - Half Pints Lil’ Scrapper IPA
- Course 2
- Ravioli stuffed with Blue Cheese, Parsnips, Toasted Walnuts, in Sage Brown Butter Sauce and Parmesan
- Course 3
- Confit Arctic Char with Pearl Barley Risotto, Seasonal Vegetables, and Beurre blanc
- Course 4
- Manitoba Pork Chorizo with Baby Roasted Potatoes and Apple Fennel Slaw
- Suggested Beer Pairing - Torque Brewing Company “The Witty Belgian” Wheat beer
- Course 5
- Rhubarb Berry Platz with Cornell Ice cream and Prairie Crumble
