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Class Title: Baklava & Spanakopita! Sweet & Savory Mouthwatering Greek Phyllo Pastries
Full Class Description: Participants may find themselves involuntarily dancing The ZORBA during this one-of-a-kind cook-along experience with Chef Tess. Dive into the world of creating two scrumptious traditional Greek Phyllo pastries, Baklava and Spanakopita that have been known to awaken taste buds and the “inner Greek”. Baklava is a Traditional Greek layered dessert pastry made with phyllo, chopped nuts and other secret ingredients. They are baked to golden perfection and bathed in dreamy honey-kissed syrup. Spanakopita, on the other hand, is a Greek savory pastry, consisting of a savory filling made of spinach, cheese, herbs and other secret ingredients that is enrobed in delicate sheets of phyllo pastry. Talk about mouthwatering goodness! Tess grew up in a Greek home where Baklava and Spanakopita were made and enjoyed throughout the year, but especially for any and every holiday. She too joined in the tradition of creating these delicate pastries ever since she was roughly 6 years old. Tess now combines her decades of knowledge, secret ingredients and techniques full of tradition, sharing them with participants of this virtual cook-along class only. Join Tess as she guides you through the process of creating one of her versions of Baklava she calls ‘Baklava Rolls’ and through the process of creating her spanakopita triangles. Regardless of level of skill working with phyllo, participants will leave with two show-stopping recipes and the confidence to serve them at any gathering. BUT Shhhhh!!!!! Remember, Tess is only making her SECRET recipes available to those who REGISTER for this class. They will be asked keep these secrets SECRET as Tess has done so for over 50 years! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ While cooking-along is loads of fun, and highly recommended, it is optional. Make it a date night or family night as you create lasting memories in your kitchen! This class will take place on Zoom, free online software. Participants will receive instructions on how to access the class prior to it starting. A list of ingredients and class details will be received in advance of the class with enough time for shopping and preparation. The Instructor’s Personal Recipes from this class will be included in a professionally made PDF packet to be received by participants after the class. NOTE: The instructor’s recipes are copyrighted and are only shared with those who register for this class. As an added bonus, the instructor has created a private group and a public group on Facebook for participants of her cooking classes. Everyone will receive an invite to the groups although joining is optional. Come join the fun! Note: One registration fee for this online virtual interactive class can include immediate family members living full-time in the same home ONLY. If children are participating, adult supervision is required. If friends, adult children, or extended family members are gathering for a fun night together, EACH household must register SEPARATELY even if participating together.

Instructor biography: Tess Georgakopoulos, also known as “Chef Tess—Culinary Artist”, has been cooking and baking for well over 45 years since she was roughly 6 years old. Born into a Greek family, the art of cooking traditional meals using one's own hands and creativity was and continues to be an expression of love in her home. Her father was also a trained chef who brought the magic of food to life in another form on the weekends as they cooked elaborate family meals together. As an accomplished cook and baker and always working towards expanding her culinary repertoire, Tess enjoys experimenting in her test kitchen daily creating new recipes, creative culinary techniques and building “Gold Standard” culinary experiences for communities across Minnesota and beyond. Tess is proficient and experienced in creating cook-along experiences and curriculum for conventional cooking, baking, pressure-cooking, air frying, pizza making, Mediterranean Cooking, and meal preparation as well. More recently, she has expanded her creativity and experience in the creation of Cooking Master Classes! A Culinary Artist indeed! She has been teaching both in-person and on-line cooking classes through community education for a number of years, and is currently working with almost 60 public school districts in and around the Twin Cities, in many corners of Minnesota, in addition to school districts in Wisconsin, Missouri, New York, and Oklahoma, having worked with just over 5000 participants over the years. Through her teaching, Tess has helped people of all skill levels increase their confidence and expand their skills in the kitchen reaching heights of their own personal creativity that they never knew existed, all while having fun and creating memories to last a lifetime. Her motto, eloquently put, is to make “dishing” delicious, and simple. Tess has recently started writing her first cookbook, and her food blog is also in the works! Some of her creations can be seen on her Facebook page, “Dish it up Good”, https://www.facebook.com/dishitupgood/ or on her Instagram Feed.