Bugs in the Kitchen: The Science of Cooking and Eating

image courtesy cbertel
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Taught by Ansley Watson

Ansley is all about food, for work and play. She has a master’s degree from the NYU Food Studies program and teaches Food and Culture at Hudson County Community College. In her free time, Ansley likes to experiment with brewing, baking, and ice cream making.  Her writings are published in The Cultural Encyclopedia of Vegetarianism and They Eat That.

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Learn how to harness the powers of microbes for good and avoid evil pathogens in this class, Bugs in the the Kitchen.

Some are helpful and some make us sick, but cooking and eating would be impossible without the tiny bugs that make it happen. In this class, we'll learn about the microbes that make beer and bread bubbly and flavorful. What is a fungus really and how is it different from mold and yeast? Why is it important not to reheat leftovers more than once? And why does food poisoning strike on Thanksgiving more than any other day of the year?

This fascinating talk will make science simple and has something for everyone who eats, from non-cooks to food nerds alike.

You'll take home all the information you need to make your own wild yeast sourdough starter (easier than you think!), keep your kitchen safe (and annoy your friends with food safety tips), and judge whether that block of cheese has yummy edible mold or is only suitable for a laboratory.

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