STORY BY DANA BOYINGTON
Chef Kal is his name and don’t you forget it. You have smelled his delicious delicacies in the cafeteria. You’ve been caught carrying one of those Kal’s Corner take-out boxes- but who is that enthusiastic chef and what has he been up to.
“I think it’s every chef’s dream to have a cookbook,” said Chef Kal, whose real name is Kalvin Keigher. “I said to the vice president of marketing today, ‘You’ve made a little boy’s dream come true.’”
With the help of the Sheridan marketing team and Grenville management and printing, Chef Kal has released his first cookbook. It includes some of Chef Kal’s favourite recipes, as well as some of Sheridan’s own faculty’s homemade recipes, such as President Jeff Zabudsky’s Baba’s Borscht.
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“Basically, the people that developed the cookbook was Sheridan’s marketing team. A whole team kinda came together and offered support,” said Chef Kal, an employee of Chartwell Food Services. “All the money raised for the book is actually going towards the emergency fund for Sheridan, so it’s kinda a community built thing.”
Jane Cockton, associate director of marketing said, “[Marketing] organized the photography and edit the content so it was consistent and readable. Kal had most of the recipes in his head and we had to translate them into a format that would work for the home cook. We also coordinated approvals with members of the Sheridan executive team who contributed their own recipes to the book.”
As of Dec. 1, for a donation of $10, anyone can buy the cookbook at the bookstore of Trafalgar Campus.
“Any chef is happy to just get one [cookbook]. I’m very proud to have the first one go and I know marketing has talked about maybe a calendar or sequel or something to that effect next year,” said Chef Kal.
This year he, has a lot on his plate, as he is also is holding cooking classes for faculty and staff for the festive season.
Also, Chef Kal has developed his own food brand, called Kal’s Corner, his own take out service in the cafeterias of Sheridan.
“They just developed Kal’s Corner, launched at the beginning of September, and I think we just launched it at Davis Nov. 1 and looks to be launching in HMC for the beginning on January,” said Chef Kal. “So that’s cool seeing your name in lights. Trying to provide back some quality food to the students and I think the students are reacting.”
Chef Kal has been cooking all his life, following in the footsteps of his late father Gerry, and even today with the loss of his main inspiration, he hopes he makes his father proud.
“My father opened our first restaurant when I was about seven years old. He enjoyed it so much, he had a tremendous passion for it. He was an instrumental man and he guided me into the profession I am at today,” said Chef Kal. “I became a chef because of my father and although he is passed on now- I think he would be proud of the cookbook today.”
Dijon Cream Salmon
“Season salmon with your favourite seasoning and bake in the over or on the BBQ. All I ask is that you don’t overcook it”
~ Chef Kal
Ingredients (serves 4 to 6)
4 to 6 salmon fillets
Dijon Cream Sauce
¼ cup butter
2 cups whole cream
1/8 tsp. white pepper
¼ tsp dill, chopped
1 oz white wine (something fruity like a Chardonnay)
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 shallot, finely chopped
Directions
Prepare salmon in any way you prefer – poached, blackened, pan seared, etc.
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In a medium saucepan, melt butter and warm cream over medium to high heat. Add the pepper, dill, white wine, mustard and shallot, stirring regularly. Once the sauce starts to froth, lower heat and stir. By now, the sauce should be on the creamy side. If it’s not, add additional butter to thicken. Remove from heat.
Pour sauce over each salmon fillet.