Hands-on experience presented by Chef Melissa Pelkey-Hass Summary: Learn the art of creating a stunning cheese and charcuterie board and how to pair it with party perfect wines! Chef Melissa Pelkey-Hass will teach you the ins and outs of crafting the perfect show-stopping board for your upcoming celebrations. Learn board crafting basics including types of cheese, flavor profiles, textures, visual appeal, plating, accoutrements, aesthetics and wine pairings. Walk away with the skills to craft and style a customized board, pair it with complementary wines like a professional time and time again, and take home your stunning creation! Class will include: - 3 wines for tasting- Cheese, charcuterie, crackers, nuts, fruits and other accoutrements- Palm leaf tray for assembly- Live charcuterie board instruction from an expert- Wine pairing suggestions from an expert- Your board creation to take home About Chef Melissa: Melissa grew up in rural South Carolina and was born with a whisk in her hand. Over the years, her love for cooking and competition has been carefully crafted into an award-winning obsession. She uses her culinary skills to compete in cooking and recipe competitions locally and nationwide. Her craft has earned over 320 State Fair Blue Ribbons, 160 Red Ribbons and titles of Spam Champion, Fleishman’s Yeast Baking Champion, Hidden Valley Ranch Recipe Winner, and the Chicago Cutlery’s “The Cut” Sandwich National Grand Champion to name a few.Melissa has had over 100 recipes published in national publications such as “Taste of Home”, “Southern Living”, Epicurious.com and “Healthy Cooking” books and magazines. She created The Front Porch Gourmet to give her friends, family and readers a place to talk food, feel at home and share a little Southern humor. She likes to share all types of recipes from Mama’s Southern Fried Chicken to an elaborate Beef Wellington. Melissa is a devoted wife to her husband Keith and together they have raised 3 amazing kids, are completely enamored with their four grandchildren and are servants to “Princess Onyx”, the Great Dane! When asked why she feels the need to share her passion for cooking with others, she simply replies, “Ya know, life is too short to eat ugly food.”
