We are very excited to make available some Orchards training at the click of a button! Not quite the same as doing a course at the school, in person (more about that later), but it will enable you to get started at home and it could be all you need to set you off on your life’s culinary journey…
Sample menus & Reviews below (There is also a separate Christmas course available - view in shop)
Why might I opt for this course?
- You would like to start your training with us before you do a course later in the year (a good percentage of the cost of this course is deducted from the course fees if a student attends the school at a later date).
- You are unable to book a course due to lack of availability.
- The cost of training at the school is outside your budget.
- You are concerned about the risk of Coronavirus to you and your family whilst training at the school.
Is it suitable for me? The Online Course has been put together carefully so that it is suitable for a wide range of students. It is great for those heading off to work in a Chalet or holiday house, for those wanting to entertain more at home, those who need help cooking for the family, or perhaps those starting cooking for themselves.
What are the advantages of doing the Online course instead of, or in addition to, training at the school?
- You can do the training at home at a time to suit you.
- The Orchards Online course, together with training at the school, will significantly improve your chances of gaining employment in a Chalet/Villa in a competitive market.
- If you are already booked on a Chalet course later in the year, this course will enable you to talk confidently about your cooking experience during your interviews (ski companies normally start recruiting from the end of May).
- It is a cheaper way to get some Orchards training.
- The courses at the school are intensive so there is a lot information to absorb while taking part. Having done the Online course you should get more from the residential course at the school as we will have already taught you a fair part of the content. However, there are over 50 additional dishes covered on a five day course at the school including many extra tips and practical shortcuts. Students who have repeated the five day course at the school have told us that they could not believe how much information they missed the first time and how much they gained the second time round. Taking part in both the Online training and a course at the school will ensure students don’t miss out on anything there is to learn.
- Your family and friends will be able to enjoy the delicious and beautiful meals you have cooked for them.
What are the disadvantages of doing the Online course instead of training at the school?
- You will miss out on all the experiences of a Residential Cookery course at The Orchards. A course at The Orchards is so much more than just cooking. It is huge amounts of fun in a “work hard, play hard” environment, much like seasonal life in the Alps. Students meet up to 47 (usually likeminded) students at the school (numbers depend on the time of year) so the networking opportunities are huge, students often making lifelong friends and useful acquaintances. “The best week of my life” (quite something to live up to!) comes up time and time again on feedback forms, so do come if you can! For many it is an amazing experience that is not to be missed!
- You will miss out on over 50 additional recipes that are covered during a five day course at the school as well as hands-on experience under the guidance of one of our tutors.
- Employers in the catering industry are more likely to look favourably at students who have attended the school, rather than those just doing an Online course.
- You may get so much out of the Online course that you don’t think you need to do the full course at the school – which would be a great shame (this is why we are discounting courses at The Orchards if you have already done the online course).
How does it work?
- The course is really flexible so you can do the training when it suits you, within a four month period (although this can easily be extended if needed). You may choose to do a dinner party a week for example, or one weekend you might feel like making a cake or eggs Benedict for breakfast! You may prefer to have a very busy couple of weeks and do the course from start to finish!
- Students buy the ingredients from shopping lists provided (to serve 4 or 8 people, we supply you with both shopping lists). The lists are categorized to make it easy. Many ingredients are store cupboard items so may already be in the house.
- Students are provided with a small list of equipment for them to check to see if they have the items at home eg cake tin.
- Students use the recipes in the Orchards Cookery book which is posted to them. Most recipes in the book serve 8 as that is an easy number to alter when cooking for different numbers. In the videos of the meals prepared our tutor halves the recipes so is cooking mostly for 4 people, which is what we think students might start with at home, and then they will move on to 8 when entertaining.
- Students watch the videos and cook along with tuition from a tutor. They prepare the food together (we don’t use already weighed out or prepared ingredients), the tutor demonstrating each technique and showing students how it should look. The tutor shows tricks of the trade, educates students about food and cooking and highlights the problems that they may come across.
- Each menu (meal plan) has two videos, a morning prep session and a service session to help you cook a perfect four course evening meal.
- You can press pause (you may need to if the doorbell goes, the phone rings, you can’t find what you need or you spill something on the floor etc.)
- You can rewind and watch a demo again.
- Once you start watching a single video it is available to you for 48 hours, so you can rewatch it. There are over 30 different training videos covering 60 recipes in the cookery book.
- You pay by card through the website to access the training and you will be given an access code for the Student Log in page. At the checkout you need to put the name, address, date of birth, mobile number and email address of the student taking part in the course for the certificate that you will receive on completion of the course, verification that the course has been completed (need for ski companies if the student is doing a ski season) and the discount on a future residential course. Once submitted, the student name can not be changed.
- Should you go on to do a five day or a two week course at the school a good proportion of the Online course fees will be deducted from the residential course fees: £200. (Where this discount is applied, students will not receive a second Cookery Book and Chalet Guide at the school, as they will have alreayd received one).
- The filming has been done in house (so is not to be compared to cookery programs with large budgets and a production team).
The Online course is not:
- Live! We have experienced first-hand the difficulties with live training while helping our own children with home schooling. It is very apparent that students learning online work at different speeds, some needing more time than others to process information and learn new skills.
- Refundable. If you decide to buy the course and your plans change, we are not able to refund the course fees.
- Aimed to replace a cookery course at The Orchards which is an altogether different experience.
What does it cost?
- £375, but if a student then takes part in a five day or two week course at The Orchards, £200 will be discounted from the residential course fees (so the online course would cost only £175).
What is included in the price?
- Orchards Cookery book (usually £46 plus £4 P&P).
- Step by step tuition for: 6 four course dinner party menus, 6 vegetarian options, 3 chocolate petit fours, 2 cakes (a traditional cake demonstrating icing using ‘cooking at altitude’ ingredients and a lemon drizzle cake), biscuits, 5 cooked breakfast options and lasagne (to teach making a white sauce!).
- Introduction to knife skills (also covered throughout the course).
- A food hygiene booklet, similar to the one used to teach the Level 2 Food Safety in Catering course.
- The Recruitment Service - interview training video, sample CV’s, checking and mailing CV’s out to ski companies, sample menus to help with applying, a list of ski companies who are more likely to employ Gap Year students etc.
- Chalet Guide - this will be posted with the cookery book (if you are not doing a ski season please let us know ASAP as it will be of no use to you).
- Changeover training (so you all know how to clean a loo etc!).
- Kitchen garden tour (hoping to make available in 2024).
- Dishwasher training and keeping a kitchen clean.
- Students are able to access discounts on products in the Orchards Shop. The large Magimix 5200 XL is discounted to £250 from the RRP £320.
What is not included?
- Ingredients and equipment for cooking.
- Orchards Cookery apron £10 (plus £4 P&P).
- Orchards tea towel £2.50 (no postage charge if bought together with an apron, otherwise £4 P&P).
- Level 2 Award in Food Safety and Catering – [link to online course to be provided].
Dinner parties / suppers on the course MENU 1 Canape: Filo fun Filled with Prawns
Starter: Rocket & Baby Spinach with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Mozzarella, Avocado
& Warm Garlic Mushrooms
Main: Duck with Wild Berry Sauce
Potato: Amandine Potatoes
Vegetable 1: Bevington Parsnip Bake
Vegetable 2: Buttered Mangetout
Pudding: Passion Fruit & Hazelnut Cheese Cake
MENU 2 Canape: Sautéed Beef Fillet with Horseradish Sauce on Mini Yorkshire Puddings
Starter: Smoked Haddock Fish Cakes with Tartar Sauce on a bed of Salad
Main: Pork Fillet Wrapped in Spinach & Parma Ham with Madeira Mushroom Sauce
Potato: Rösti Potatoes
Vegetable 1: Roasted Carrots with Tarragon & Orange
Vegetable 2: Sautéed Courgette Ribbons & Baby Sweetcorn
Pudding: Raspberry Meringue Roulade
MENU 3 Canape: Peppadew Toasties
Starter: Courgette & Mint Soup
Main: Roasted Leg of Lamb with Garlic & Rosemary
Potato: Roasted New Potatoes with Red Onion & Rosemary
Vegetable 1: Sugar Snap Peas
Vegetable 2: Savoy Cabbage with Wholegrain Mustard
Pudding: Honeycomb Ice Cream with Strawberries / Raspberry Coulis
with Twisted Langues de Chat
MENU 4 Canape: Red Onion & Parmesan Crostinis
Starter: Shredded Duck on Rocket in Tortilla Baskets with Hoisin Sauce
Main: Chicken Dijonaise
Potato: Mini Roasties with Rosemary
Vegetable 1: Roasted Swede in a Parmesan Shell
Vegetable 2: French Beans with Sesame Seeds
Pudding: Iced Lemon Tart with Winter Berries
MENU 5 Canape: Lamb Koftas with Mint & Garlic Dip
Starter: Wild Mushroom Risotto with Rocket & Parmesan
Main: Orange Crusted Salmon with Hollandaise Sauce
Potato: Buttered New Potatoes with Mint, Parsley & Chives
Vegetable 1: Pea Purée
Vegetable 2: Asparagus
Pudding: Coconut Panna Cotta with Pineapple, Mango & Lime
MENU 6 Canape: Sautéed Chorizo with Avocado Mousse & Feta Cubes
Starter: Smoked Salmon & Prawn Méli-Mélo
Main: Beef Wellington
Potato: Potato Dauphinoise
Vegetable 1: Sautéed Baby Spinach
Vegetable 2: Broccoli with Buttered Almonds
Pudding: Chocolate Profiteroles filled with Ice Cream
VEGETARIAN Leek Tart with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Ratatouille Pasta Bake
Stuffed Portobello Mushroom topped with Peas, Cheese & Pinenuts
Spring Rolls with Chilli Sauce
Stuffed Red Peppers
Chef’s Omelette
LASAGNE Mince
Béchamel Sauce (white sauce)
PETITS FOURS Strawberries with White Chocolate
White Chocolate Discs
Nutella & White Chocolate Squares
CAKES & BISCUITS Butter Biscuits
Lemon Drizzle Cake
Cake / Altitude Cake
Breakfasts Fried Egg
Scrambled Egg on Toast
Eggs Benedict
American Pancakes
Full English
some feedback so far... "I’m really enjoying the online course, it’s put together so well. It’s really easy to follow too and I’m so impressed with what I am cooking! You guys have done a great job pulling this together. It’s excellent."
"I’m about halfway through the course and it is utterly brilliant! John’s tuition is so engaging and I’m very surprised indeed at the progress I’ve made in such a short time - as are my family!"
"I did my first menu on Saturday and it was absolutely AMAZING! I never thought I’d be able to serve a menu of that quality!!"
"The online course was awesome, nearly done and Bella has thoroughly enjoyed it!"
"I have very much enjoyed this online course, finding it to have thoroughly improved my skill set as well as opening my eyes to how the simplest of dishes can create such an exquisite dining experience when combined together. A real benefit being the techniques I have learnt vastly reducing the effort and amount of time needed to prepare a large evening menu, strongly helped by the clear layout of the videos highlighting the importance of having a well structured plan prior to starting any cooking, something which I had previously underestimated!"
"I am really enjoying the course - the videos are fantastic"
"The on-line course proved invaluable, not only were we treated to wonderful 4-course meals every night but I picked up some tricks too! The video in real time sounded like a nice touch too. He has most certainly benefited."
"Absolutely shell-shocked by Flo’s first supper she has kindly cooked for Mum & Dad..... Blooming delicious!"
"She’s so enjoying the course - it’s just brilliant."
"The Orchard’s online cookery course was an amazing learning experience for me, and opened up so many new opportunities. With the help of everything I had learnt, I set up a homemade meal delivery service during lockdown. Not only was this something fun and fulfilling to spend time doing, but it was a great way to expand my culinary skills, using the expertise I gained from Orchard’s."
"I have started the online courses and my family have loved it! I have completed menu one and done a veggie dish and the lemon drizzle cake. It has all been so delicious and I can’t wait to do more"
"Daisy is enjoying the online course and we are very much appreciating the end results. The teacher has a lovely approach and makes the lessons fun"
"The meals are FANTASTIC!! We had a wonderful 4 course meal a couple of days ago - I’m loving it!" (says Mum)
"I have completed your course through the most recent lockdown which was an amazing experience!"
"I have just completed the online version of the course. It went really well and I thoroughly enjoyed it!"
"Still absolutely loving the course"
"My daughter signed up for, and started, your online cookery course just before Christmas, while she was at home for the university holidays and is now continuing the course in and amongst work / studies back up in Newcastle. Just wanted to let you know that she’s really enjoying it and we are extremely impressed with how you have approached it. Well done! I can imagine it was quite an undertaking"
"We have been loving the cookery course and doing one big meal a week. It has been brilliant and the highlight of my husbands lockdown!"
"Great start yesterday on the online course, what an amazing dinner!"
"I was totally blown away by his dedication to the menu… I am very proud of him… ” Menu 2: "Another great success!"
"I am doing the online course as part of my resettling process from the Army. I’ve been working through the menus week by week and really enjoyed it."
"Loving the online course"
"I have very much enjoyed doing the online cooking course and have been completing the lessons on the weekends much to my parents delight. It has certainly helped develop my skills"
"Just wanted to let you know that I am thoroughly enjoying your online cookery course! I’m learning so much from it and making the family and neighbours very happy!"
"I have just completed the Orchards Cookery online cooking course. I really enjoyed it, and my family have loved eating all the food I produced!"
"Sophie served a splendid meal for eight to celebrate our hostess's birthday..."
"I am really enjoying it and the meals are tuning out great!"
"I am still cracking on through the online course and made a rather splendid Portobello Mushroom for my discerning vegetarian family, they loved it!"
"I can’t wait to try more of the menus and recipes. I am really enjoying doing the online course at the moment and had a dinner party the other night where the duck in berry sauce and the coconut panna cotta were particular hits"
"I'm really enjoying the online course so far - the lemon drizzle cake was amazing!"
"I am really enjoying the online cookery school so far, I am almost finished and I think it is really brilliant."
"I have almost completed the online version and thoroughly enjoyed it - I’m really pleased with how it went..."
"I have started the course and am thoroughly enjoying it!"
"I am currently waiting for my train to Chambery for the start of my ski season. I just wanted to take the chance to say a huge thank you for all your help over the last few months with helping me get a job. It has been a series of ups and downs but I finally made it! I am very sad I never got to meet you and do the residential course but I found the online course very good and I have learnt a lot. Please pass on my thanks to John as well!"
"I’ve been loving the online Orchards course and have completed all the 4 course meals and am about to start the veggie meals..."
"I am really enjoying the online course"
"Really enjoying the online course, as are my family who are really spoiled normally once a week, and like to score my efforts! Honeycomb ice cream with langurs du chat biscuits was the highest scoring dish from my children and husband who has a sweet tooth!!"
"I really enjoyed the cooking course and hope I've become a calmer and more prepared cook from it!"
"I have really enjoyed doing the online cooking course during lockdown and my easter holiday, and have finished it!"
"I really enjoyed doing your online cookery course which I finished just before going back to school at the beginning of March. The videos were really easy to follow and enjoyable to learn from. My family particularly loved their Saturday nights with a three course meal and canapés! I have since remade some favourites as well as trying new recipes from your book."
"Emily really enjoyed her online course at the end of last year (and we loved all her creations!)"
"Really enjoying the course so far, especially the hoisin duck baskets!"
"I’m loving the course, it’s fantastic!"
"The online course was amazing"
"We are really enjoying the meals, they are amazing! The duck is my favourite"
"I really enjoyed the course, it has helped me so much with my confidence when cooking!"
"Thank you for all the effort that has clearly been put in and I really enjoyed all the cooking"
"I really enjoyed it and found the course really useful - thank you so much!"
"I have been taking part on your online cookery course for the last couple of months and have throughly enjoyed complete all the recipe videos"
"She has loved the online course and is catering for friends of ours the night before she goes [on her course] so that is money well spent"
"I am absolutely loving the online course - cooking is such a relaxing break from revising at the moment, and has really helped build my skills and confidence before the residential course"
This is a new product and so we reserve the right to make any changes we feel necessary to improve the course for students.