Media Center · News Releases

ROANOKE, Va. - (April 2, 2008) - The Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center is offering a new selection of monthly cooking classes for the Spring and Summer featuring programs in healthy and organic cooking.

Award-winning Chef Billie Raper will instruct budding culinary experts on the secrets of preparing delicious food - from light and organic cooking to pairing food with wine. Here's this year's lineup:

April 27- Lighten Up!
Balanced recipes that celebrate spring and give you the energy you need to shed those winter blues. We will be working with recipes that include fresh ingredients and health-conscious items. You'll also learn about keeping yourself to a budget and places to find these foods without breaking the bank.

May 18th - Thrill of the Grill.
Our annual class to get you ready for the summer grilling season. Stay a step ahead of your friends and neighbors and learn some new tricks and food trends for summer. We will also work with some items that you may not think about when it comes to grilling.

June 29th - Organic & All Natural.
These items are all the buzz right now and getting hotter. Organic and all-natural foods are not a trend. We will cut through the clutter to find the best products in the market. We will work with some organic produce, organic and all-natural meats and maybe even some ways to green up your kitchen.

July 27th - Discovering Spain.
Please join us as we take a culinary tour of Spain. This class will cover some of the traditional recipes of the country such as Paella and Chimichurra. We will also talk about the history of the food and sample some Spanish wines to go along with the foods.

August 17th - Cooking with Wines.
Take a closer look at pairing food with wine and how to prepare dishes with the right wine. This class will focus on some classic and not so classic recipes that you can, with a little time and love, prepare at home. We will also sample a variety of wines and talk about how to use them in cooking and what to look for when pairing wine with food.

More classes are scheduled for late summer and fall.

Classes meet on these dates from 1-5 p.m. at the Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center. Cost is $85 person and must be secured with a credit card. A $30 cancellation fee will apply to reservations cancelled within three days before the class. A minimum of eight people will be required to hold each class.

For more information visit www.hotelroanoke.com or to register, call the Regency Room at 540-985-5900.

ABOUT THE HOTEL ROANOKE AND CONFERENCE CENTER

The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center has 332 luxuriously appointed guestrooms and a 63,000-square-foot, high-tech conference center. It is a joint project of Hotel Roanoke LLC, the City of Roanoke and Virginia Tech operated by Doubletree Hotels, a part of Hilton Hotels Corp.
To learn more about this historic hotel, visit www.hotelroanoke.com.