Bonnie Morales

Chef/Owner of Kachka

Eater “Best Restaurants in US” List
Livestreamed from Portland, OR
$15

About the Host

Growing up in Chicago, Chef Bonnie Morales née Frumkin, the daughter of immigrants from the Soviet Union, wanted nothing to do with Russian food. “I thought the smell of mushrooms boiling was disgusting,” she told NPR. As she got older, however, the food of her upbringing became the focus of her career. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, and cutting her teeth in the Michelin-starred kitchens of NYC and Chicago, she opened Kachka in Portland, OR, as an ode to the food of the former Soviet republics. Fast forward 6 years, and Kachka is now widely considered to be the best Russian restaurant in the country; Eater named it one of America’s Essential Restaurants of 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 and inducted it into their restaurant “Hall of Fame,” and it was a semifinalist for James Beard’s “Best New Restaurant” Award in 2015. Did we mention that Chef Morales also won StarChefs' Rising Star Chef Award and was named a finalist for the James Beard’s “Best Chef: Northwest” Award in 2018?

About the Event

In this chefstream, Chef Morales livestreamed from her home kitchen, as she taught us how to cook two of her signature contemporary Russian dishes: ‘Ukrainian’ Sunflower Seed Tahini with garden veggies, and Khachapuri with spinach, artichoke, and crab. And, as is the case at every chefstream, she answered questions from attendees throughout the evening and participated in an extended Q&A to close out the night!

What will we be making?

Appetizer: ‘Ukrainian’ Sunflower Seed Tahini with Garden Veggies

Entrée: Khachapuri with Spinach, Artichoke, and Crab

What does my ticket get me?

In addition to getting unlimited viewing access to the on-demand recording of this class, where Chef Morales demonstrated how to cook both dishes and answered plenty of questions from attendees, you will receive access to the companion Recipe Book PDF, which outlines step-by-step cooking instructions, kitchen equipment, and a detailed list of all ingredients needed to make each dish.

How long does this event take?

From start to finish, this class ran 1hr 21min.

What will the yield be?

2 servings of each dish.

What kitchen equipment, appliances, and utensils will be used?

  • Medium saucepan

  • Baking sheet

  • Blender or food processor

  • Large mixing bowl

  • Small bowls for ingredients

  • Sharp knife & cutting board

  • Measuring cups & spoons

  • Rolling pin

  • Shot glass or other small glass

  • Utensils: spatula and mixing spoon

  • Plastic wrap

  • Kitchen scale (optional)

  • Kitchen thermometer (optional)

  • Liquid measuring cup (optional)

  • Stand mixer with a dough hook (optional)

  • Bowl scraper (optional)

  • Vegetable peeler (optional)

What ingredients will be needed?

In addition to the following kitchen staples – all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, kosher salt, neutral oil (e.g. canola or vegetable), and sea salt – Chef Morales used the following ingredients listed below:

  • Active dry yeast

  • Bread flour

  • Cream cheese

  • Crab meat

  • Edible flowers (optional)

  • Eggs

  • Frozen spinach

  • Garlic

  • Lemon

  • Marinated artichoke hearts

  • Parmesan cheese

  • Seasonal crudités

  • Sulguni or mozzarella cheese

  • Sunflower seed butter

  • Unsalted butter

  • White wine

  • Yellow onion

*Note, the Recipe Book PDF outlines the exact quantities of each ingredient from the list above that are needed in each dish.

Member Reviews ( 11 )

Carson D.

Bonnie was great and engaged with her demonstration. Technical difficulties were not her fault and she did her best
Lou M.

Mainly the delayed start and intermittent tech issues which is really not anyone's fault, it is technology after all!
Erwin C.

Bonnie had an easy, friendly presence. All the steps were simple to follow. The end result was delicious! I've been in enough virtual sessions to expect a little snafu here and there.
Iliana H.

Chef Morales was awesome! Super poised, super knowledgeable! She's a real pro, and very approachable! However, the streaming quality was very poor. And the host/moderator needs to get out of the way! Dude, it's not about you. Ask questions, sure, but stop saying, "Uh huh...yeah...oh...". She's not actually talking to you, she's talking to us, so let us hear her! Also, half the time you weren't even listening to what she said and weren't paying attention to the cooking she was actually doing. Just let the chef be the focus!
Miss C.

Jonie R.

The tech stuff was very distracting and broke up the rhythm of the evening. I take several classes of varying sorts each week, including cooking classes. Usually they have few if any glitches. This one bordered on disaster. The chef’s presentation was great but the crudité was a bit too simple to learn very much from.
Gino C.

Bonnie was easy to understand, calm and clear in her instructions. She was able to work and talk, which kept things moving. I really appreciated that we could eat the snack/appetizer while finishing the dinner so that we're not starting dinner at 830/845 on the East Coast.
Trey B.

A great date night with my husband!
Mrs. W.

Terrence F.

The only issue was the technical ones. Chef Bonnie was awesome and her recipe choices were perfect. Would love to see her do Pelmeni with the pelminitza.
Gene L.

Just fun to watch!
For answers to the most common questions we get about our events, check out our CLASS FAQs
  • Bonniemoraleshero
  • Bonniemoralesadd1
  • Bonniemoralesadd2
  • Bonniemoralesadd3
  • Bonniemoralesadd4