Tag: Harmons Cooking School

Meet Cooking School Chef Casey

In this episode of the Taste of Harmons Podcast, Chef Casey Bowthorpe joins our hosts Chef Lesli Sommerdorf and Brandon Young to discuss his career with Harmons. In an interesting journey, he joined Harmons as an associate in 2007. But he held many positions, including dairy manager and café manager, before he took a job as the cooking school coordinator in 2013. It was then that the “chef” fire was lit.

Chef Casey took a three-month sabbatical from Harmons to work as an intern at a New York restaurant. But when he was ready to return to his position as cooking school coordinator, he was instead offered a job as sous chef. After that, he ended up attending culinary school.

As a 14-year Harmons associate, you’ll want to tune in to learn about his fascinating career path, and his love for food. Chef Casey specializes in many things, but he is known for his meat-based meals and also desserts. 

To sign up for Chef Casey’s cooking classes, along with those offered by our other amazing chefs, click here. 

Chef Casey Bowthorpe

After joining Harmons as an associate in 2007, Chef Casey Bowthorpe discovered a calling in food. In 2013, he joined Harmons Cooking School as a cooking school coordinator and also assisted other Harmons chefs in cooking classes, exploring his taste for creative fare and soaking in the education.

Chef Casey spent some time in New York working with top chefs, including Alicia Walter of Once Upon a Tart and Chef Cynthia Sestito of Cynful Foods.

In 2018, he graduated from the Park City Culinary Institute, where he “learned to get nerdy” with food.

Chef Casey loves mixing things together and putting it into an omelet or serving it with a fried egg. He also likes to cook seasonal dishes and enjoys finding a classic dish and reviving it with his own little creative spin.

He says the thing he likes the most about teaching at Harmons Cooking School is showing people that the best food in the world doesn’t have to be difficult. “I like breaking some of the myths and explaining why things cook or work the way they do.” From high-heat and fast-cooking to low-heat and slow-cooking, Chef Casey likes giving people the technical knowledge and confidence to understand what is required. He especially feels gratified knowing no matter where they are, they will know what method they are going to use for the best results.

If you enjoyed this podcast, listen to our other episodes here. Recent episodes include “Local Flour Power” with Lehi Mills and “The Coral Reef Rescue” with Brent Anderson of the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium.

Meet Harmons Cooking School Chef Daniela Oliveira

Chef Daniela Oliveira, the instructor at our Mountain View Cooking School, came to America from Brazil, a country where “every celebration revolves around food.”

She grew up in a middle-class Brazilian family and came to America—the first time—when her husband accepted a teaching position in the US. Chef Daniela had a lot to learn when she first came to this country, including English and how to drive. Despite those obstacles she enjoyed life here, but because of her husband’s profession she ended up back in Brazil several times before the family finally settled here.

Chef Daniela has a varied and fascinating background, both as an artist and in the food business. She has a degree in fine art and is a skilled painter and has worked in other mediums as well. She ran her own catering company, and both her cooking and baking background as well as her creative artistic skills, apply to her current occupation as a cooking school chef.

To Chef Daniela, making good food means using a wise combination of flavors, using fresh ingredients, and knowing how they go together. For example, she mentions that cookies and lemonade are not a good combination, while cookies and milk definitely are.

Like most of the world, our cooking schools were greatly affected by the coronavirus pandemic, and in order to keep offering classes, we had to get creative. The virtual format has turned out to be a great answer, as customers can cook along with our 

chefs, and a great variety of classes is offered. Chef Daniela says the new format has had its ups and downs, and while she still likes teaching classes in person, there are a lot of benefits to taking the classes virtually, including the ability to cook in your own kitchen in the comfort of your home.

Click here to find classes with Chef Daniela, as well as our other cooking school chefs,

Make sure you listen to the podcast to learn more about Chef Daniela and her fascinating past, including time spent in New Orleans. All of her travels and experiences have “flavored” her food, and she loves to share that. 

If you enjoyed this podcast, you’ll want to listen to our other episodes. You can find them here. Recent episodes include the ABCs of Bean-to-Bar Chocolate with DeAnn Wallin from Solstice Chocolate and Meal Prep and Planning Made Easy with Dietitian Genevieve Daly.

At Harmons, we’re lucky to have incredibly talented artists at each store, and we’re sure you’ve seen their amazing chalk art as you wander throughout every location. We’re excited to be able to feature some of their work as the featured art on our podcast blog. This art is the work of Randall Forbush, a seasonal artist at our Mountain View location.