[Ahmia humming]
[Narration] Ahmia Marion hums right along, stirring at the
stovetop. [Ahmia] Right now we have butter melted, for
right now, and then I'ma add water to the mix and brown
sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and white sugar.
[Narration] she mixes a glaze for apple dumplings.
[Ahmia] So it can be syrupy.
[Narration] The kitchen makes Marion happy.
[Ahmia] Yeah it really does. Originally I wanted to be a
lawyer or a judge when I first came to school.
[Narration] But when she sweetened the academic pot
with Culinary it brightened her day. And a chef was born.
[Ahmia] I like the concept of Culinary because I like being
hands on with my work putting recipes together, getting ingredients...
[Narration] In Culinary Marion finds, her soft spot is baking.
[Ahmia] I like baking. I like making pies, cakes, cookies,
anything that has baking in it.
[Linda] Ahmia came to the program very shy but I noticed
that she had really -- a great interest in -- she was creative
and had a big interest in baking.
[Ahmia] With baking you can like make it your own style
Just like so soothing --
[Linda] with a few little encouragements, I got her
interested in -- we -- every month we make birthday cakes
and cupcakes for our faculty members who have had
birthdays. And so I said 'I would like for you to take
charge of that.
[Ahmia] I would make their cakes and design them
myself. And she like critiqued me on my work.
so when I got critiqued, I got good at it.
[Knife chopping carrots]
[Narration] James Plaskon --
[James] -- my whole life I wanted to cook --
[Narration] -- knew from the start.
[James] -- throughout elementary school and middle
school I was in cooking programs and took cooking
programs at summer camps, found out there was a
culinary program in high school and I went right for it all
four years. After a class ended I'll go right to work
cooking all day every day. [smiles]
[Narration] Plaskon graduated from Easton culinary.
[James] Ten days later I packed up my things, went
to New York, The Culinary Institute of America.
[Narration] in two years he's gained a world of experience,
works now as a sous chef in Cambridge.
[Linda] We are accredited by the American Culinary
Federation. 'Okay --'
[Narration] Accredited and accomplished.
[Linda] You have  enough bowls?'
We were named a program of -- an exemplary program
and there are only  a few of those in the country.
'That guy doesn't have enough peaches.'
[Narration] Linda Brown --
[Linda] Elmer?
[Narration] -- runs the culinary program at Easton.
She's taught --
[Linda] '-- you got a lot of plates today.
[Narration] -- for 45 years.
[Linda] So, get at least three more heads of romaine out of there.
[Narration] Sophomore Hailie Peugh preps the greens,
likes the class, and today is special, garden bowl,
lunch for the teachers.
[Linda] A real key important part of this program is that
we operate a restaurant. We took what was an ugly
classroom and turned it into a dining room and we serve
our faculty once every week.
[Narration] The restaurant serves community groups as
well, so the students get lots of practice.
[Linda] We need four semester courses to complete --
'Just give it a good ole toss --'
-- three of them are definitely done in school and the
fourth one they have an opportunity to go in the
community and work in a restaurant under the tutelage of a chef.
[James] So you would leave class a little early, you know
go work at a restaurant, you know, who wouldn't want that?
[Narration] Today it's desserts and salads first as they
work at the restaurant in-house.
[Kristian] We have ranch, a raspberry vinaigrette and
Italian today.
[James] Doing the garden bowl, serving our teachers. We
serve you know appetizer, entree, soup, salad, just to get
the feel of what a restaurant feels like, in the back
of the house and the front of the house.
[Heart beating faster}
[Narration] Lunch hour nears. The pace picks up.
[Sound of tape fast forwarding]
[Elmer] I am topping the casserole with cheese
for the final layer.
[Joseph] Wanna take it out there now -- ok?
[Narration] Turkey casserole --
[Joseph] -- eh, tea -- we're good to go.
[Narration] --tops the menu. Every plate is checked and
double-checked.
[Joseph] It's crazy, it's chaotic, but we love it. We love it.
And our teachers love it too.
[Narration] Senior Ahmia Marion --
[Ahmia] -- but baking, and like cooking, you NEED that!
[Narration] -- leaves her classmates soon for the Culinary
Institute in New York.
[James] Just follow your dreams and work hard.
And don't give up.
[Narration] James Plaskon live his dream right now -- cooking --
[James] Cooking --                                                       [Narration] All day --
[James] All day.                                                          [Narration] Every day.
[James] You know who wouldn't want that?
[Music & website]
