Cooking Demonstration by Johnson & Wales University's
Judith Bik - January 2013
Born and raised in South Africa, Judith was accepted to culinary school AND a foreign exchange program after high school. She chose an adventure in the U.S. over college and came to a small town in upstate New York, where, as she puts it "There were more cows than people" . She eventually received her degree in Political Science and then joined the military. While serving eight years in the Coast Guard, she participated in numerous search & rescue missions, served as a military mentor to the Biden family, completed a tour in Iraq and became the Food Service Division Officer in Key West, FL, where she was responsible for four cooks who fed a crew of 44, 4 meals a day along with 225 migrants that were rescued at sea. Judith was then in charge of several thousand volunteers in D.C. and budget of $1.7 million.
After a few years working the desk in that position, Judith realized that she had a enough and took a break. When asked what she wanted to do next, her husband suggested culinary school since this is what she was initially interested in. And so, eighteen years to the day when she was first accepted into culinary school, Judith started her new career path at Johnson & Wales. She completed four study abroad programs, most recently in Peru, where she cooked and learned about Peruvian culture for three weeks. A journal was kept of her experiences and her final exam entailed planning a cocktail party along with her fellow students for the Embassy and University staff. Every detail of the evening was planned and overseen by the students, where Peruvian influences were found throughout the menu. After their final, the students spent the last week in Cusco, a small town in the Andes Mountains where they visited Machu Picchu, an former Inca city.
Judith shared her background with us as well as providing insight into the exciting culinary world that awaits our students in the future. JWU provides exceptional opportunities for its students, both in the culinary and food service/hospitality industries and also in a vast array of other majors, including Business, Technology, Equestrian Studies, Criminal Justice, Finance, Marketing, Psychology, Liberal Arts, Mass Communications and most recently, a Physician Assistant program done in collaboration with Brown University, a leader in medical training.
Judith shared with us a delicious vegetarian dish of Stir-Fry Sesame Noodle with a Crunchy Veggie Salad. The students were impressed with Judith’s background, wealth of knowledge, cooking and food preparation techniques (sauté, julienne cuts, balance of all the tastes, etc.) and information presented on the University. Of course, they loved the dish she prepared as well! Thank you, Judith, and we wish you all the best in your new endeavors!
After a few years working the desk in that position, Judith realized that she had a enough and took a break. When asked what she wanted to do next, her husband suggested culinary school since this is what she was initially interested in. And so, eighteen years to the day when she was first accepted into culinary school, Judith started her new career path at Johnson & Wales. She completed four study abroad programs, most recently in Peru, where she cooked and learned about Peruvian culture for three weeks. A journal was kept of her experiences and her final exam entailed planning a cocktail party along with her fellow students for the Embassy and University staff. Every detail of the evening was planned and overseen by the students, where Peruvian influences were found throughout the menu. After their final, the students spent the last week in Cusco, a small town in the Andes Mountains where they visited Machu Picchu, an former Inca city.
Judith shared her background with us as well as providing insight into the exciting culinary world that awaits our students in the future. JWU provides exceptional opportunities for its students, both in the culinary and food service/hospitality industries and also in a vast array of other majors, including Business, Technology, Equestrian Studies, Criminal Justice, Finance, Marketing, Psychology, Liberal Arts, Mass Communications and most recently, a Physician Assistant program done in collaboration with Brown University, a leader in medical training.
Judith shared with us a delicious vegetarian dish of Stir-Fry Sesame Noodle with a Crunchy Veggie Salad. The students were impressed with Judith’s background, wealth of knowledge, cooking and food preparation techniques (sauté, julienne cuts, balance of all the tastes, etc.) and information presented on the University. Of course, they loved the dish she prepared as well! Thank you, Judith, and we wish you all the best in your new endeavors!
warm_sesame_noodles1_-_jwu_presentation.docx | |
File Size: | 15 kb |
File Type: | docx |