My First Six Weeks at Rouxbe!

It’s been about six weeks since I started Rouxbe’s Plant-Based Professional Certification Course online, and I’ve been loving every minute of it! See my previous Rouxbe posts here and here.

I’m by no means a professional cook, but I have been food blogging for several years, so I’m no stranger to the kitchen. Before I started Rouxbe, I wondered about the level of the class: would it be too basic? Too advanced? Would I just be blindly remaking recipes someone else wrote?

After six weeks, I can positively say that I’ve found none of these assumptions to be true at any point in the course. Rather, it’s served as a refresher for things I already knew, steered me into the right direction on those things I kind of half-knew and is introducing me to things I’ve never heard of or tried before. It’s presented a good balance of fun and challenge throughout, and I always look forward to “opening” each task to see what’s inside.

Best of all, by solidifying foundational cooking principles, Rouxbe has enhanced my own creative process, allowing me to embrace my own style of cooking with better results—using the ingredients and techniques I naturally gravitate towards.

But what does that mean exactly? Instead of just asking me to replicate a task, Rouxbe tells me why I’m doing it, what impact it has on a dish, then shows me how to do it correctly (and what happens when it’s done incorrectly!)—and what I need to do to practice and perfect it on my own. The course so far has been packed with aha! moments when I make a connection or discover something new. I love that Rouxbe’s highly structured guidance not only expertly instructs, but also empowers.Learning at Rouxbe has taken me about 8 hours a week to keep up with so far. Not all tasks require cooking or replicating a specific technique. Some involve watching instructional videos, reading or visual learning, and it’s presented a nice balance of reading, observing, doing and proving (hello unit quizzes!).Another part of Rouxbe that adds a new dimension to learning are the bi-monthly live webinars, led by Chef Chad Sarno. Being able to ask questions as well as listen to other fellow Rouxbe classmates’ questions, then get answers in real time by Chef Chad or an expert guest speaker has been invaluable. So far in the course, webinar guest speakers have included Dr. Michael Greger, Dr. Michael Klaper and Chef Fran Costigan, with Neal Barnard, M.D. to speak later in April.

Some guest speaker webinars at Rouxbe are free and open to the public, so hop in on one or watch a recorded webinar if you’d like! Past Rouxbe webinar speakers have included Julieanna Hever, M.S., R.D., C.P.T. (Plant-Based Dietician), Whitney Lauritsen (Eco Vegan Gal), Raghavan Iyer and Chef Jason Wrobel.

I’m excited to see what the coming weeks will bring at Rouxbe. Stay tuned for another update sometime in April that will include more of what I’ve learned … I can’t wait to share it with you!

In the meantime, head over to Rouxbe and sign up for a free seven-day trial if you want to try it out. But if you’re ready to learn about plant-based cooking or take your already fabulous plant-based cooking skills to the next level, Rouxbe’s next seating starts May 7. If you sign up by April 10, they are offering a discount on tuition.

Click here or on the graphic below for more information. Come join me at Rouxbe and make your cooking better by learning together!

Rouxbe generously waived my tuition in exchange for blogging about my experience and sharing my honest opinions about their Plant-Based Professional Certification Course.