The Guild · skilled trades & applied crafts
Culinary & Baking
Knife work, heat, and timing — the disciplines of a working kitchen, taught in order.
A sharp knife, a stable board, and everything in its place before the heat goes on.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~8 hours
Unit I — The Knife
Anatomy of a chef's knife · Grip and the guiding hand · Honing versus sharpening
Unit II — The Cuts
Slice, dice, and mince · Julienne and brunoise · Working through an onion properly · Accuracy first; speed follows
Unit III — Mise en Place
Reading a recipe before cooking it · Prep lists and containers · Station setup and cleaning as you go
Bones, aromatics, and patience — the five mother sauces and the stocks beneath them.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~16 hours
Unit I — Stocks
White and brown stocks · Skimming, simmering, and clarity · Reduction and glace
Unit II — Thickeners
Roux: white, blond, brown · Slurries and liaisons · Emulsions, and why they break
Unit III — The Mother Sauces
Béchamel and velouté · Espagnole and tomato · Hollandaise by hand · Small sauces from mother bases
The danger zone, cross-contamination, and the habits that keep a kitchen from making people sick.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~10 hours
Unit I — Hazards
Biological, chemical, and physical hazards · The temperature danger zone · The major pathogens and where they live
Unit II — Practice
Handwashing that actually works · Preventing cross-contamination · Cooling and reheating rules · Thermometers and calibration
Unit III — Systems
Cleaning versus sanitizing · HACCP in plain terms · Preparing for a manager's certification exam
Fermentation, gluten, and heat — straight doughs through sourdough, judged by the crumb.
Syllabus · 4 units · ~20 hours
Unit I — What Dough Is
Flour, protein, and gluten · Hydration percentages · Yeast and fermentation · Salt's three jobs
Unit II — Handling
Mixing and kneading · Folds and bulk fermentation · Shaping boules and batards · Proofing and the poke test
Unit III — Baking and Judging
Steam and oven spring · Scoring · Reading the crumb · Troubleshooting dense loaves
Unit IV — Sourdough
Starting and keeping a starter · Levain builds · Sourdough schedules for working people
Laminated doughs, custards, and tart work — where a few grams and a few degrees decide everything.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~24 hours
Unit I — Doughs
Pâte brisée and pâte sucrée · Blind baking · Keeping butter cold, and why
Unit II — Lamination
Butter blocks and letter folds · Croissant dough, day by day · Puff pastry and its honest shortcuts
Unit III — Fillings and Finish
Pastry cream and custards · Fruit tarts and glazes · Choux paste and éclairs
Cooking at speed — station setup, ticket flow, and holding quality through a full service.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~18 hours
Unit I — The Brigade
Kitchen stations and the brigade system · Prep lists and par levels · The expo and the pass
Unit II — Service
Reading tickets and firing courses · Timing several dishes to one window · Kitchen communication: calling back
Unit III — Holding the Standard
Recovering when you fall behind · Quality checks at speed · Closing the station properly