Skip to main content

Introductions :)

Introduction

My name is Tiffany Zellner, and I am a high school culinary arts teacher.  
You can call me Z. 
You can follow me on twitter @tz7432, and on Pinterst.com/tz7432    

 What can you expect from this blog?
A lot of people wish they could take a cooking class. I cannot tell you how many times fellow teachers and members of our community say, "I wish I could take your classes".  I want this blog to be for those members of my community and your community. I also want it to be a place for culinary and foods teachers to be able to find information and ideas for their classrooms. In this blog I want to provide short bursts of knowledge about cooking and food.

 *This will probably change as I explore this new adventure of blogging:)

So why I became a culinary arts teacher????

Food has not always been my friend, and for a short time in high school that relationship was out of control. I struggled with Anorexia and Bulimia. I went from a healthy 5' foot 6 inch 152 lbs to an unhealthy 118 lbs (my BMI was under 18 which is considered to be unhealthy for my age/height/weight). I was a walking skeleton. Accompanying my physical transformation, I also develop crazy subconscious habits, like tugging at my sides to try to feel the thickness of my abdomen. I would stand in the mirror or lay on the bed to look for the bikini dip between my hips. Once, I was sent to the emergency room because my blood pressure and heart rate dropped dangerously low. It was a horrible time in my life both physically and mentally. Food was something that I could control and had became my dangerous out.  

 Then school started. I took my first Family and Consumer Science course (Home Economics on Steroids) Nutrition and Foods. It was an awesome class.
In Nutrition and Foods, you learn about meal preparation and personal/family nutritional habits. I found out that I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED TO COOK.  I was good at it. It gave me a place that I could focus my need for control and create something positive. I was able to create and not destroy. During this class, I began my road to recovery. Food became something that I could control, but healthily.

 (Shout out to my Family and Consumer science teacher. Mrs. Winnigham) 

 So, after high school, I enrolled in a Human Ecology Program at Tennessee Technological University. There I received awesome instruction under great professors. 

 Now here I am.

 Cooking is very special to me. It is one of my first and greatest loves. I became a teacher so that I could share with others all that it means to me. 

 So, I hope you enjoy my future blog posts. 

 Z




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Yeast Bread Mixing Methods

Yeast Bread Mixing Methods Straight Dough Method is a one step mixing method in which all the dry ingredients such as flour, sugar, salt and yeast are mixed, and then wet ingredients such water and eggs are added. All the ingredients are then mixed straight to dough. It is the easiest of all yeast bread mixing methods. Sponge and dough is a two-step bread mixing process. The first step in this method is making the sponge which consists of a certain amount of flour, yeast and water. This mixture is allowed to ferment. The second step is adding the sponge to the rest of the ingredients to form the final dough. Old Dough Leavening aka Mother Dough or Preferments is exactly what it sounds like, a piece dough from a previous batch of dough is held back and used to help leaven the new loaf. This type of leavening with give more complex flavors because the old dough has been developing stronger fermenting flavors. Sourdough (Preferment) is a “natural leavener” it is made
Post a Comment
Read more

First Day of School!!!!

I am so excited to begin school tomorrow!!!!!!!! I decided to have this showing as students walked in the door to get them excited for what they will be able to accomplish this semester :) Lets look back at last year: I have been planning most of the day today trying to get my lessons planned for the nine weeks. I like to start the year with an idea of where I want to go, however;  the most important day of school is the first. It sets the mood for the entire school year. So here we go.... its M arvelous to M eet you I ways start the year with an ice breaker :) Then I teach a little bit about me :) with an intro to the teacher PPT.  Students learn more from someone they know.....and form a relationship with. Remind formally Remind101 is a group texting for the classroom. It helps me remind my students about assignments, projects or club meetings. It also allows students to ask m
Post a Comment
Read more

Kneading!!!

Kneading Techniques “Working the Dough” Kneading is one of the most known terms in baking, but do you really understand its importance.  Could you recognize if you have a well kneaded product? Do you know the different kneading techniques? Do you know how to test if you have kneaded well enough? When I set out to create my lesson plans over baking, I could answer a few of those questions listed above. I had an idea about what I was looking for, but I did not know half of the information that I kneaded to know. So as I researched, I found information that I think all teachers, students, and aspiring bakers need to know.  Why Knead Kneading develops a gluten network (net) As flour is hydrated gluten strengthens and adds to the structure of the dough. Gluten helps to bind the dough together and helps it keep from falling apart during baking Gluten creates a net in the bread product that captures carbon dioxide produced by yeast. Kneadin
Post a Comment
Read more