Bill Briwa

16 lessons on cooking in the Mediterranean style designed to boost your confidence in the kitchen and help you create meals that you are proud to share.

Take the hassle out of making what's undoubtedly the most important meal of the day. Chef Briwa shows you different recipes and ideas for putting together a quick and well-rounded breakfast, including a basic muffin recipe, whole-grain cereal with fruit and nuts, and a traditional Chinese fried rice, just right for breakfast.

A small dish tradition exists all around the Mediterranean. Among the most well known is Spain's tapas, which you'll explore here starting with bartender's chorizo, a dish served flaming in an asador. Take a detailed look at sherry, which is central to tapas culture, and learn how to make other simple small plates.

Learn how to cook with what's on hand in your house - and elevate it with a simple fresh ingredient or two. By cooking with canned beans, jarred pesto, leftover bread, "planned overs," and more, you'll be able to create dishes ranging from a hearty frittata to a fresh take on minestrone soup.

Turn your attention to northern Italy, which - with its pastureland and cooler climate - has far more in common with the cuisine of northern Europe than it does with other regions of Italy. Learn to scratch make ricotta gnocchi, vitello tonnato, and tiramisu, plus a quick hors d'oeuvre that makes the most of any leftover ricotta.

If all the tastes of Spain could be captured in a single dish, it would be paella. Learn the subtleties of cooking this national dish, which can be made with a variety of meats and vegetables. Complete the meal with a marinated olive appetizer that pairs perfectly with sherry and a roasted salad called an escalivada.

We’d all love to create the same wholesome, delicious meals that professional chefs make. But there is one thing that often prevents us from doing so: lack of time. Now, in six innovative and practical lessons, award-winning Chef-Instructor Bill Briwa of the prestigious Culinary Institute of America shows you the same skills, strategies, and tricks that professional chefs use.

Olive oil is a defining element of Mediterranean food. In this lecture on the quintessential ingredient, explore its possibilities from the beginning of a meal through the end, with a salt-crusted branzino preparation, a tomato soup, and even a chocolate dessert. Discover how olive oil is made and how its flavor profile evolves.

Because Italy extends into the Mediterranean, it has adopted many culinary ideas from other countries. Learn how to make one such dish: an African-inspired caponata with seared tuna rolled in spices. Also, discover how to make authentic Neapolitan pizza with a home oven and finish with a refreshing coffee granita dessert.

While the cuisines of Morocco and Tunisia share much in common, such as using sweet spices, their differences can be striking. See how they vary, then turn your attention to making a complete Moroccan meal featuring mezze, an elaborate seven-vegetable couscous, and bisteeya, a savory pastry made with chicken.