Adult Culinary Classes in Baton Rouge: Learn the Principles of Cajun and Creole Cuisine

Charlie Ruffolo • September 20, 2018

If there is one thing south Louisiana is known for its food. Specifically Cajun andCreole. These two cultures have a flavor as rich as their history. With LouisianaCulinary Institute’s adult culinary learning classes focused on Cajun and Creole cuisine, you can learn the principles of these dishes, as well as kitchen safety and knife skills. The classes in this series will feature tasting samples, discussion topics, and hands-on cooking. Here is a quick look at what this 4-part class includes.


Classes will be every Wednesday during the month of October from 6pm to 9pm, taught by Chef Colt Patin. The first class will cover all of the basics of Cajun and Creole cooking, but that’s not all. This class will teach the difference between smoked and andouille sausage, as well as the differences between Cajun brown jambalaya and Creole red jambalaya. There will also taste testing, and desert preparation.


 

The second class will teach you the backbone to many popular Cajun dishes, roux. Learn the steps from blond all the way to dark roux. In addition to roux, stocks will also be addressed, including a seafood stock. Next you’ll make boudin for boudin egg rolls, as well etouffee sauce to go over catfish filets, and more.

 

Your third class will continue with roux, as you prepare a Cajun gumbo. You will also learn how to prepare blackening seasoning for blackened pork chops with an andouille cream sauce. This class will be capped off with Pain Perdue / Lost Bread, with a classic Bananas Foster sauce.

 

The final class of the series be highlighted by making beignets inspired by Café du Monde, as well as an alligator sauce piquant.

 

In order to participate in the Cajun and Creole Cuisine Adult Learning Class at LCI, you must be 16 years or older. Credit earned in this class can potentially be used toward a degree at Louisiana Culinary Institute. The cost to attend this series of classes is $500, however you can sign up as a couple, or with another person for $900.

 

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From Music to Kitchen Mastery: Student Spotlight on Ben Messina

By Charlie Ruffolo • March 25, 2026
Some people know from childhood exactly where they're headed. Ben Messina took a different route. He started college as a music major, took a gap year to find his footing, and leaned on his brother's encouragement before landing exactly where he was always meant to be: a professional kitchen . Now a senior in the Savory program at Louisiana Culinary Institute (LCI) in Baton Rouge, Ben is weeks away from graduating in May 2026. He arrived at LCI with a love of cooking and a family connection to food. He's leaving with a world-class culinary foundation, a mentor who pushed him to be his best, and a dream of opening multiple restaurants of his own one day. His story is proof that the path to a culinary career doesn't have to be a straight line. Is It Too Late to Change Careers and Go to Culinary School? For Ben, food has always been part of the family fabric. Growing up in Baton Rouge, he spent time in the kitchen with his grandmother, learning to make snickerdoodles as a kid. Those early memories planted a seed. But Ben initially followed a different passion. He'd played trumpet and piano since a young age, so he enrolled at Southeastern Louisiana University to study music. It wasn't long before the questions started creeping in: "What am I actually going to do with a music degree?" He took a gap year to figure it out. And the answer, when it came, was simple: go back to his other love. Cooking. His brother, who owns a food truck, had been encouraging him to consider culinary school. More specifically, he encouraged Ben to look at LCI. And then, without warning, he signed him up for a campus tour. 
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