Cooking with class

If anyone can light a culinary fire under the residents of Sun City, Huntley, it is 61-year-old Paulette Rusk.Brimming with energy and zeal, Paulette signed on two years ago to teach cooking classes to the 55-and-up residents of Sun City, where she lives with husband Walt."To be inspired to cook for just one or two is very difficult at this age," says Paulette, an amateur cook. "I'm not going to create any chefs, but if I have done nothing more than get older people interested in eating well again, I would happy."Gauging by the response, Paulette must be smiling a lot.Her monthly classes fill up the first day of registration; she routinely offers a second session to handle the overflow. Her topics have included savory salads, summer foods for picnics or patios, hors d'oeuvres and a nontraditional Thanksgiving dinner with sweet potatoes in soup, cranberries in a cocktail and pumpkin in cheesecake."I am very ambitious with my students," says Paulette, a from-scratch cook who relies on fresh ingredients."I teach a basic technique, like pastas, risotto or crepes, and then they can run with it."Paulette's recipes don't skimp on fat or sugar."I advocate eating a little bit of everything and then getting moving," she says. "Non-fat and low-fat foods are not satisfying, so we eat too much of it; that is why we are so overweight."She avoids trendy, awkward presentations, too, like stacking food so high it tumbles over when you try to eat it, or putting shell-on clams in a soup."It's dramatic," she says, "but food should be easy to eat. We need to give attention to taste and beauty."Grateful students often praise Paulette for reawakening their interest in cooking or offering them something new to try at home.Following a demonstration of crepes, one resident called to thank Paulette. Though the woman had never cooked much, Paulette had given her the confidence to serve a crepe dessert at a family gathering. Everyone loved them."She was so proud, it was heart-warming," says Paulette.Paulette grew up in a suburb of Cleveland, where she lived for 40 years, inspired by the classic red Better Homes Garden cookbook and her idol, the late Julia Child.But she didn't dive into cooking with a passion until she married Walt, a lover of food and wine, 32 years ago. His appreciation of food and his interest in how it is prepare motivated her to explore new recipes.Though she doesn't place herself in the same league as Child, Paulette says, "She made cooking fun; she made people believe they could do it. I've shown people they can do it too."Paulette says she gets as much out of teaching the classes as her students get from attending."To find something at this age that I can be excited about, and excite other people about, is a thrill."Pork Marsala with Preserves 1 pork tenderloin, 1#188;-1#189; pounds 3 tablespoons flour, dividedSalt and pepper to taste 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided 2 tablespoons butter, divided (refrigerate 1 tablespoon) 5 ounces shiitake mushrooms, caps only, sliced #188;-inch thick 1 large shallot, minced 3 heaping tablespoons fig or plum preserves 1 cup dry marsala 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried 1 can (14 ounces) chicken stockTrim fat and silverskin from pork; cut into #189;-inch medallions. Dredge in 2 tablespoons flour, sprinkle with salt and pepper.Heat a large saut#233; pan over medium-high heat about 2 minutes; add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter. Saute pork 2 to 3 minutes per side.Meanwhile, in a second pan add remaining olive oil over high heat. Saute mushrooms until golden; set aside.Remove pork to plate, reduce heat to medium, add shallots to pan and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.Whisk in preserves; add marsala and thyme. Increase heat to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 to 4 minutes or until marsala is reduced to about #189; cup. Add chicken stock, bring to boil and cook about 5 minutes.Cube the refrigerated tablespoon butter and with your fingertip, knead in remaining 1 tablespoon flour. Just before serving, whisk butter mixture into the sauce a bit at a time to thicken. Add pork and mushrooms to the sauce and heat through.Serves four.Cook's note: You can use veal, chicken or turkey instead of pork. Serve with gnocchi, sweet potatoes, mashed or roasted potatoes.Nutrition values per serving: 530 calories, 23 g fat (8 g saturated), 25 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 43 g protein, 135 mg cholesterol, 140 mg sodium.Roasted Vegetable Pasta8-10 cloves garlic, divided 2/3 cup olive oil, divided 1 small eggplant, partially peeled, cut in 1-inch cubes 1 medium red pepper, cut in 1-inch piecesSalt and pepper to taste 2 small zucchini, cut in #188;-inch rounds 1 yellow summer squash, cut into #188;-inch rounds 2 large plum tomatoes, seeded and cut into chunks 1 can (35 ounces) crushed tomatoes 1 teaspoon dried oregano1#189; teaspoons dried basil or 3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped 1 pound pasta, cooked, such as rigatoni, penne or farfalleAt least 1 hour ahead, crush one clove garlic and add to 2/3 cup of the olive oil. Allow to steep at room temperature.Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.Strain garlic from oil. Coat eggplant and red pepper with half the infused olive oil; spread on prepared pan. Salt and pepper to taste. Roast 30 minutes, stirring after 15.Meanwhile, coat zucchini, yellow squash and tomatoes with remaining infused olive oil.When eggplant and pepper are done, remove vegetables to a bowl. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees and bake zucchini mixture on the same pan for 30 minutes, stirring after 15.In the meantime, slice remaining garlic. Add remaining 1/3 cup olive oil to a saut#233; pan over medium-low heat and add garlic; cook gently for about 8 minutes or until garlic is golden. Add crushed tomatoes, oregano, basil, salt and pepper to taste. Increase heat to medium-high and simmer gently for 30-45 minutes. Add roasted vegetables and heat through. Serve with pasta.Serves six to eight.Cook's note: You may prepare vegetables several hours ahead of time and keep at room temperature.Nutrition values per serving: 400 calories, 15 g fat (2 g saturated), 57 g carbohydrates, 6 g fiber, 11 g protein, 0 cholesterol, 200 mg sodium.Creamed Chicken with Pecans and Mushrooms 2 split, bone-in chicken breasts with skin 2 tablespoons olive oil 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced #188;-inch thick 1 tablespoon butter 2 ribs celery, sliced #188; cup vermouth #189; cup chopped pecansBechamel sauce 4 tablespoons butter 4 tablespoons flour 3 cups whole milk 2 teaspoons dried tarragon or 2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped #188; teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 1 teaspoon saltHeat oven to 325 degrees.Roast chicken on a shallow pan for 40 minutes; cool, remove skin and cut into #189;-inch pieces. Place meat in large bowl.Heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute mushrooms until golden and liquid has evaporated. Add mushrooms to chicken.Reduce heat to medium, add 1 tablespoon butter and saut#233; celery until soft. Add vermouth and reduce by #189;; add to chicken mixture.Reduce heat to low, toast pecans until fragrant; add to chicken.For b#233;chamel: Melt 4 tablespoons butter over medium heat; whisk in flour. Cook and whisk 1 minute. Add milk, tarragon, nutmeg and salt; cook and whisk until mixture simmers and thickens. Blend well into chicken mixture. Serve over rice or as filling for crepes.Serves four to six.Nutrition values per serving: 320 calories, 19 g fat (8 g saturated), 11 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 23 g protein, 75 mg cholesterol, 280 mg sodium.