Welcome to A’la Minute, the blog for information on food and dining at Michigan State University. As the Corporate Chef for Culinary Services, I’m working with a talented team of professionals to deliver outstanding dining experiences for all the guests across campus.
This fall, we launched a new core menu in our residential dining halls featuring 26 new recipes, including a spicy maple glazed pork chop with Michigan apple ginger chutney and a panko crusted black bean cake served with mango salsa. We’re also moving from canned ingredients to fresh, seasonal ingredients, and we’re cooking from scratch rather than preparing pre-cooked items.
Our new philosophy is to “cook-to-flow,” which means we cook and serve the food as our guests come to dine instead of preparing large quantities ahead of time. This ensures that each guest receives the highest quality food possible. Our “cook-to-flow” philosophy is reflected in the blog’s title, which literally means “at the moment” in French. In the culinary world, “a’la minute” is the concept that food is cooked to order fresh, often right before the guests.
As always, Culinary Services and Residential Dining Services welcome your feedback, so please feel free to comment and let me know your thoughts about what’s new in campus dining!
Kurt Kwiatkowski is the Corporate Chef for Culinary Services in the Division of Residential and Hospitality Services at Michigan State University. As Corporate Chef, he sets the standards for the core menu and develops staff training.
Chef Kurt holds a bachelor’s degree in Food Systems Management and Economics and a master’s degree from The School of Hospitality Business, both from Michigan State University.
Peggy Crum is the nutritionist for Health4U in the University Physician’s Office at Michigan State University. She is responsible for the food and nutrition component of MSU’s health promotion program. Her focus is to help individuals discover how to eat what is right for them.
Peggy enjoys gardening and cooking which helps her write about foods in season. Recipe for Health is entering its fifth year as a partnership between Health4U and Culinary Services. Peggy is a registered dietitian. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in dietetics from Purdue University and currently is pursuing a master’s degree in health and risk communication.
Comments
Good to find a blog here on delicious recipe.“Cook-to-flow” is a nice idea to serve guests by beautiful & tasty foods.
interesting :)
Hi,I have to say, I love the food at State. I'm a transfer student and my old school can't hold a candle to my experience at MSU thus far. I'm very impressed. My only concern is that the cooked vegetables always seem very buttery. I love green beans and carrots, but despite their health benefits, I can't justify all of the butter intake. Is there anyway to steam them or cook them in olive oil? Thanks for everything!
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