Carole Chiang will be returning to teach another exciting class. Carole was born near Beijing, China, and has been educated in both China and the U.S. She began teaching in 1976 and has taught throughout Europe and Japan. Carole has owned her own restaurant and has a published cookbook, "Carole Chiang's Chinese Cooking Book". She has an excellent reputation as a fine culinary teacher and talented chef.

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Samantha Christ is part of the culinary team that opened Deadwood Thymes Catering in March of 2004. Before coming to the Black Hills area, Samantha spent 25 years as the chef and owner of Lafayette Restaurant and Samantha's Deli in Sioux Falls. Samantha's recipes have appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle.

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Teresa Ciani is innkeeper at High Prairie Inn, a local bed and breakfast establishment. Teresa and her husband David also run an outfitting business and guide hunters in Saskatchewan, Canada, Nebraska and South Dakota. Teresa has taught several cooking classes for us, prepares gourmet meals at her inn and caters small parties.

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Chris Coleman is a long time Rapid City resident and a teacher at Central High School. She is an active member of the Black Hills Community Theatre as a board member and performer. Chris has two sons, now 24 and 27, who became vegetarians in their early teens. Her concern for providing proper nutrition has inspired Chris to become an expert at preparing food that is fairly quick, but still achieves a wonderful balance of taste, texture, and visual presentation. She has also been a member of a local gourmet club for 30 years.

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Clay Dykstra is a Black Hills native from Spearfish, where he is a potter and owns Dykstra Pottery. While studying pottery in Casper, he worked at a sushi bar for two years and learned to roll sushi. “Food and pottery are so integrated, and I enjoy both cooking and how food is displayed on pottery. A piece of pottery is not finished until it is being used.”

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Pete Franklin has been in the restaurant business for almost 30 years. He is currently owner and chef of Delmonico Grill, 609 Main Street, Rapid City. Since coming to the Black Hills in 1999 from the west coast, Pete has been active in the business community. He was the owner of Pete's kitchen in Spearfish and is a former owner of Mad Mary's Steakhouse in Spearfish.

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CJ Hunter is the executive Chef at Black Hills Surgery Center and also operates Hunter's Garden Catering, specializing in dinner parties. He previously was executive Chef at the Ristorante Marsala. He received his formal training at the Western Culinary Institute in Portland (a Cordon Bleu school). Before moving to Rapid City, CJ worked at the Home Ranch / Relaxis and Chateau near Steamboat Springs and also worked for Russell Lowell of Lowell Hunt Catering in Seattle, Washington.

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Colleen Lecy is principal at St. Elizabeth Seton and has been an elementary school teacher for 12 years. In addition to being a wonderful cook, she taught a series of cooking classes for St. Elizabeth Seton during the summer of 2005 and has been a part-time staff person at Someone's in the Kitchen for several years.

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Pamela Light opened Wine Cellar Restaurant, located in downtown Rapid City, in 2001. Her fresh and innovative cooking is influenced by her years of living in California and her annual trips to Europe. She uses the freshest seasonal ingredients available and puts her own special “twist” on each of her culinary delights. The restaurant's menu, which changes on a regular basis, includes fresh fish, quality meats, seasonal produce, pastas, homemade gourmet pizzettas, and an array of tantalizing appetizers and delectable desserts. She also boasts a large garden that supplies her restaurant with fresh picked herbs, vegetables and flowers during the growing season.

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Helen Magnusson is a noted authority on meat cookery and was a consultant for the South Dakota Beef Council for 30 years. Helen has taught many classes in the Rapid City area and always delights her students with an appealing variety of unique recipes and an endless knowledge of useful hints and creative innovations. Helen is also a Master Gardener specializing in culinary herbs. She is a member of the team that creates and tends the city park sundial herb garden and you may also recognize her from past appearances on the KOTA noon show. Helen has also served as a member of the coordinating team for state and national Beef Cookoffs.

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Shiraz Nelson has recently joined the cooking staff at the Fireside Inn. Originally from Alaska, Shiraz worked in numerous kitchens including Spezia's in Sioux Falls before he attended the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. After graduating in 2005, Shiraz was the Head Chef at Louhelen Retreat and Conference Center in Michigan. After returning to the Black Hills he worked at Botticelli Ristorante.

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Helen Nichols is a registered dietitian, a licensed nutritionist, a Certified Diabetes Educator and a Nationally Certified Weight Loss Consultant. She serves as the consulting dietitian to several healthcare facilities in the Black Hills. Helen has a passion for helping people with special diet needs and her interest in cooking and baking goes back to early childhood. "I used to spend hours in the kitchen preparing desserts from scratch. Now my time in the kitchen is spent preparing healthy foods my husband and I can enjoy all during the week."

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Sergio Nunez is the executive Chef at Tiffany Grille in Rapid City. He is a member of the CIA, and the Black Hills Chefs Association. Sergio has a great deal of experience preparing ethnic cuisine from different cultures, including Asian, Latin American, French, Southwestern and Mediterranean. He was previously executive Chef at Jakes in Deadwood for several years after moving here from the Pacific Northwest.

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Sheila Poklemba began her 20 year cooking career after graduating from the Culinary Arts program in Mitchell. While working as a private chef for a local couple, Sheila attended Le Cordon Bleu-London Campus, Culinary Institute of America in New York, and the Lavarenne at the Greenbrier for continuing education. Sheila was also an active member and officer in the local chapter of the American Culinary Federation before leaving the Black Hills.

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Beth Poppen received her culinary, baking and pastry degrees at the Art Institutes International Minnesota in Minneapolis in 2005. While attending school she interned at Tryg's on Lake Calhoun. After graduation Beth worked in Tuscany, Italy before moving to the Black Hills and working at Sage Creek Grille as a Sous Chef. Beth is currently a wine and spirits representative for Johnson Brothers Western Wholesalers.

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Andy Schneider has been owner operator of Canyon Lake Liquors since 1993. He has always been a helpful resource for making good wine selections. Andy is now a sommelier after completing the sommelier program at the international Sommelier Guild of Canada this past year. The program includes over 600 classroom hours.

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Erik Severinson is sales representative for Wüsthof-Trident of America, Inc. Wüsthof is considered to be the cutlery of choice by professionals all over the world. Selling and servicing independent and national accounts, Erik teaches knife skills classes all across the Midwest. Being around Wüsthof knives almost his entire life, Erik will be ready to answer any questions you may have about high-end cutlery.

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Eric Sharpe is a classically trained chef with 16 years in the kitchen. He has attended Greystone, Culinary Institute of America, Napa Valley, Culinary Institute of America, Hyde Park, New York, and Le Petite Rouge, Le Mans, France. Eric has been a private executive chef / cellar manager, executive chef at Chathams, Livingston, Mt and rostier / saucier at Magnolia Grille, Durham NC. He has also been at stage in many famous kitchens including Emerils, Nola, Delmonico, Aquavit, Babo, Pesca, and Otto. Eric is currently wine specialist for Republic Beverage Company.

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Sara Spellman has recently relocated to Spearfish from Las Vegas where she was Banquet Sales Manager for McCormick & Schmick's Catering. She has worked in various aspects of food preparation and has interned in kitchens internationally since attending the American Culinary Federation accredited course at the Western Culinary Institute of Portland, Oregon in 2000.

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Bob Spomer has shared his expertise and passion for cooking with us before and his classes are always well attended. Bob generously shares family recipes and creative techniques from his trips to Italy. He is the owner of the catering business The Chocolate Rose Chalet in Sturgis.

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Connie Suto is the owner of Piece of Cake, 901 Mt. Rushmore Road, Rapid City. Piece of Cake serves delicious sweet rolls and lunches as well as Piece of Cake's signature confections. In business for over 14 years, Piece of Cake specializes in special occasion cakes.

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Vicky Tennefos and her husband Dave own My Girlfriend's Kitchen in Rapid City. She has participated in classes taught by Julia Child, Alice Medrich, and others through the I.A.C.P. (International Association of Culinary Professionals). She taught cooking classes for Dayton's in Bismarck, ND. Since moving to Spearfish, she has catered special events and taught small cooking classes.

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Cheryl Wolff is one of the most enthusiastic campers we know and is an expert in gourmet cooking over the campfire. She is returning to Someone's in the Kitchen to offer the extremely popular Dutch Oven cooking class that was first offered many years ago. Cheryl is now residing in Denver, Colorado and we are thrilled that she will be visiting the Black Hills in June and has agreed to do a class.

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If you wish to register for classes or need further information, please call us at 605-341-5044 or if outside of Rapid City, call toll free 1-888-817-5078.