Summer is here, and we are still pretty lucky as far as the 100’s are concerned.  Our Memorial Day weekend had incredible temperatures and hopefully you enjoyed yours as much as I did.  The kids are out of school now and are probably just about going stir crazy looking for things to do.  Don’t forget we have lots of classes this summer for kids of all ages.  If you are planning on enrolling your kids in any of our summer programs, be sure to do so quickly.  We still have a few spots in our Teen boot camp the week of June 9.  We also still have plenty of availability for the individual day teen classes scheduled throughout the summer.  For other classes, you can get on the waiting list in case somebody ‘drops out’.

With the onset of summer, we’ve been looking at making lots of hot weather foods.  You will notice our calendar is packed with summer fun, including an ice cream class.  My friends and neighbors have been eating a lot of fantastic ice cream desserts coming out of our ‘test kitchen’. 

During the summer we do not have a lot of demand for evening and weekend classes.  However, we can add classes to the calendar if necessary.  If there was a class that you really wanted to take and it is not available on the weekends or evenings, just let me know.  I’ll see what can be done about adding it to our calendar. 

With the price of food skyrocketing, I put together a top 10 list on how to save money in the grocery store.  Please see the list at the end of the newsletter.  In the future, we will be holding some classes that are geared toward helping you save even more money in the kitchen. 

May Drawing Winner – I would like to congratulate Pat Stillwell for winning the Spring survey drawing.  I haven’t contacted Pat yet, so shhhh, don’t tell her.  Congratulations, Pat.  You’ve won a free cooking class. 

June Adult Classes – June will bring not only our adult classes, but two weeks of kids and teen boot camp classes.  June classes prepare us for a variety of meals from Salads to Salmon.  Our Tuesday classes are held from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and our Thursday quick classes are from 10:00 a.m. Noon.  See our class calendar at June Class Calendar to see all the class details.

On Tuesday 6/17 we will be offering a new salad class, Healthy and Hearty Salads class.  We will prepare several salads that are perfect for summer.  $63/person.

On Thurs 6/26 we will have our quick morning class, Grilled Salmon class.  We will be making cedar planked salmon as our main dish.  Cost is $49/person.

Upcoming Classes for July – July will bring not only our adult classes, but more kids boot camp classes and individual day classes for teens.   We have both 3 hour and the new ‘quick’ 2 hour classes for adults in June.

On Tuesday 7/8 we will have our Warm Weather Entertaining class where we will prepare appetizers perfect for our hot summer days.  This is a brand new class with brand new menu items.  Cost is $63/person

Tuesday 7/22 we will be having Fun with Ice Cream.  We will make several recipes featuring ice cream; including home made ice cream as well as some from your grocers.  Cool off with some refreshing ice cream in this brand new class.  Cost for this class is $63 per person.

Upcoming Kids Classes – We have two full weeks of kid’s 8-12 boot camps.  These boot camps are from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.  The first week is scheduled for June 2 thru June 6, but we can put your child on the waiting list ‘just in case’.  The second session is for the week of July 14 thru July 18.  Our boot camp menus feature five daily themes.  We will have different menus for each session so your child may want to attend both.  Please see our website at http://www.simplyimpressive.com/Tab_June.htm and click on the week you are interested in to see the class themes.  Each week is $240 per child.   

Our teen boot camp is scheduled for the week of June 9 thru June 13.  Class is from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.  The cost for our teenager boot camp is $255.  We still have a few spots open in this week long boot camp so let us know if you want to book your child.

We also know that your teens are busy too and cannot always take a week out of their busy schedules to attend classes, so to accommodate them, we added single session classes for teens only.  The individual classes are scheduled on Tues 6/24-Pizza;  Mon 6/30-Pasta; Wed 7/9-Mexican; Fri 7/11-Desserts and Thurs 7/24-Pasta with Chicken.  Each class is $47 per person.  These classes are all from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Special Offers – Our special for the month of June is bring a new friend to any adult class through July, and get $10 off YOUR next class. 

For our kids, sign your child up for one of our boot camp classes and they will receive $5 off of a future kid or teen class.

Private Groups – If you want to schedule a private class for your group, we can hold classes at your place or ours.  For private groups we can customize a menu perfectly suited for your group.  We have had great feedback on our private group parties held previously, and we would love to hold one for you, too.  

Methods of Payment – Remember that payment is due up front for classes.  While we prefer checks, we also take PayPal as an alternative payment method.  If you absolutely must pay with credit cards, let us know so that we can send you a PayPal invoice via e-mail. 

Cancellation Policy – For our adult classes, we must have at least 72 hour notice before class in order to apply a full credit towards another class.  Cancellations made less than 72 hours before class will NOT receive a credit.  Of course, if WE cancel a class, you are entitled to a full refund.  For our boot camp classes, no cancellations are refunded unless we can fill your child’s spot.

In the media -- We held our first special needs kids class this week and the East Valley Tribune was there to cover it.  They wrote a wonderful article featuring these fantastic kids.  See the article at Special Kids Cook.

We hope you got a chance to hear our interview on KTAR radio regarding ways to save money at the grocery store.  There were lots of great tips and ideas you can use.  We put together a top 10 list of saving money that you can find later in the newsletter.   To hear the interview, click on Saving Money at the Grocery Store. 

If you didn’t see our write-up on VibrantNation.com, you can still see it.  That website focuses on women in their 50’s and celebrates life with us (oh, of course I’m not in my 50’s…you know I’m much younger than that!!! NOT).  That article also featured my favorite top 10 gadgets.  See Vibrant Nation Website for the article.

Gift Certificates – Reminder – there are still some of you with gift certificates that have not been redeemed.  If you received one for the holidays, their expiration date is coming up soon.   Don’t forget to book your favorite classes so that you will not be disappointed. 

I would like to thank for your continued support of Simply Impressive Cooking School and I hope to see you in a class soon. 

Making the  Most out of Your Grocery Budget
Prices are going up everywhere and we are all looking at ways to save at the store.  I was asked to put something together for a woman’s website and thought you would enjoy reading a few ideas on ways to stretch your dollar further.  Here are my thoughts.  Some are commonly known, but hey, it doesn’t hurt to remind ourselves occasionally.  If you haven’t already listened to the KTAR interview, take a few minutes to hear some other great money saving tips Saving Money at the Grocery Store.

1. Make a shopping list….and follow it

2. Don’t’ shop hungry

3. Shop the weekly sales.  Plan your meals according to what’s on sale.  If you have a freezer, but extra and freeze it.  It’s great when you’re eating chicken breasts you paid $2 a pound for and they’re $4 this week!

4. Use coupons; both ones from your store and online coupons

5. Get a rain check when the store is out of the sale item.  Use it on a week when the item is NOT on sale.

6. If you have a local store that price matches, go thru your local food ads and note what the sale price is elsewhere.  Your store will give you the item for the same price.

7. Don’t assume that the larger package is a better deal.  If your store has a tag by items showing how much it costs per ounce, pound, etc., do some comparisons.  Often the bigger package is more expensive per pound than the smaller package.  You can always bring a small calculator to do the comparison yourself.

8. Don’t assume that a name brand is always better.  I have found some store brands that I like even better than name brands.  Buy a small size item to try it out.  If you don’t like it, you only have a small amount to deal with OR return it for a refund.  If you do like it, buy more next time you go to the store.

9. It’s not a bargain if you just buy it because it’s cheap and you don’t use it.  

10. Splurge on the items that are important to you.  I prefer fresh (never frozen) fish.  It costs more, but it’s well worth it.

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