Durham College’s (DC) Centre for Food (CFF) and Bistro ’67 hosted CFF ambassador and celebrity chef Jamie Kennedy on December 1. He was at DC’s Whitby campus to join community members for lunch at Bistro ’67 and visit with students studying in the college’s field-to-fork-based culinary and hospitality programs. Kennedy is an avid proponent of the field-to-fork movement, a vision at the heart of the CFF as Durham Region’s first-ever post-secondary presence focused on the concept.

“I draw my inspiration from flavours that have imprinted on my palate and memory,” said Kennedy. “Whether it was my first taste of summer strawberries or Ontario corn, the connection I feel with local produce and the land informs everything I do. Students at the Centre for Food are learning to draw on those same inspirations by following the field-to-fork philosophy. With programs like the ones being taught at Durham College, both students and the Ontario food industry have a bright future ahead of them.”

Community members who purchased tickets to this event were treated to an intimate three-course lunch with Kennedy, prepared by students under the guidance of Benjamin Lewis, manager and chef de cuisine at Bistro ’67, a 70-seat, full-service, teaching-inspired restaurant open to the public. Based on recipes from his new cookbook, J.K. The Jamie Kennedy Cookbook, dishes included cucumber and sheep milk feta with bulgur wheat and cherry tomato; hors d’oeuvres including curried sweet potato and Swiss chard, chicken liver pâté and marinated pickerel; roast and confit of duck with roasted potato and sour cherries; and bread and butter pudding with homespun ice cream. Following lunch, Kennedy shared insight about the field-to-fork movement, answered questions, and signed cookbooks for 140 students studying in culinary and hospitality programs.

“Our Centre for Food offers students a best-in-class education across culinary, hospitality, event management, food science, agricultural and horticultural programs, from completing the full cycle of farming to the preparation, serving and celebration of food,” said Don Lovisa, president, DC. “Our field-to-fork focus teaches students a valuable philosophy, one that is shaping the future of our local food and farming industries and helping maintain Ontario’s strong agricultural tradition.”

With the capacity to accommodate 900 students, the CFF is a green-restaurant certified building. In addition to Bistro ’67, it houses Pantry, a retail store featuring food prepared by the college’s culinary students. The CFF grounds also feature an apple orchard, farm fields and greenhouses that support academic applied-learning and research while growing fruits, vegetables and other produce for use in its kitchens, laboratories and Bistro ‘67.

Community-based and committed to providing an outdoor extension to the indoor classroom for students, the CFF is currently involved in two fundraising campaigns: Field to Fork: Sowing the Seeds of our Community, a crowdfunding campaign, and the Plant a Tree and Watch a Student Grow Program, both in support of the landscaping needed to complete the CFF’s grounds.   

For more information on programs offered at the CFF please visit www.durhamcollege.ca/cff.