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Tiny Kitchen February Spotlight Member: Erica Lieppman!

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We are SO excited to announce our very well-deserving February Spotlight Member, Erica!

Erica is a ray of sunshine and she has dedicated a lot of her time to cooking with Tiny Kitchen. She was our 4th founding member and we hope she stays cooking with us for a long time! THANK YOU ERICA!

Erica did a special video interview with Chef Anja Lee, and you can watch some of it here. A few highlights:

Tell us more about yourself: I live in Seattle Washington most of the time, but often go to Anchorage Alaska where my partner grew up. I am 31 years old.

What hobbies do you have? Anything outdoors! Downhill skiing, backcountry skiing, Nordic skiing, swimming, hiking and more. 

Do you cook at home a lot? I do! We try to cook at home a lot. We like eating out too, but we love the satisfaction of making your own meal, especially when it tastes better than when you go out. I cook with my partner Max most of the time – we try to divide up the jobs because we both have our own little tendencies where we both think we should chop something a certain way, etc, so we cook together but we divide up the jobs. It’s a good marital exercise! 

What is your favorite restaurant and why? That’s a hard one. I love going out to sushi because it’s harder to make myself. In Seattle we’re by the coast and there are a lot of good fish out there! For take-out I love Thai food. There’s a special place by our house called Marlan Thai which is our go-to. I love going out to Canlas in Seattle for unique flavors that I can’t usually make myself. I love trying whatever is new and exciting!

What’s your favorite food? This time of year (winter) I love any and all soups and curries. If I had to choose one meal for a last meal, I’d probably say green curry. And I also love salmon and all fish. I also love chocolate, fruit (watermelon, cherries), I could eat them all day!

Why did you decide to join Tiny Kitchen Cooking Club? I love that question! I joined with an intention to learn to cook things that are out of my comfort zone, perhaps something that requires more of a skill set. I don’t have any professional training, so I like it because it pushes the boundaries of what I’d explore making in the kitchen. It also helps me figure out what I want to cook during the week instead of searching on Google, Instagram etc. to find a recipe etc. 

I also love all of the little things I learn, like the difference in flavor between minced garlic vs pressed garlic. As another example, the fact that you want to preheat your pan before adding your oil (“hot pan, cold oil”), or also that you don’t want to wash your mushrooms but instead wipe them with a damp towel. I did that last night!

What do you love about Tiny Kitchen Cooking Club? I love all of the little things that I pick up along the way, and that it’s a small enough group that I can ask questions along the way and gain little tidbits of knowledge throughout the class. I also enjoy that it isn’t one on one, it’s great camaraderie, and it is helpful to know that if I am struggling, other people are struggling too. It’s nice to know that we’re all in this together!

Have you learned anything else in Tiny Kitchen Cooking Club? If a recipe looks too complicated to create in my kitchen, I heave learned that if you break it down, it isn’t that bad! I love how you give me the confidence to try those daunting recipes. I also love how you improv and give substitutions, and it always turns out amazing. 

Are there any upcoming classes that you’re looking forward to? I love the calendar – it helps me get organized! I am really looking forward to baked salmon sushi and French onion soup. But I am excited for all of them!

Is there anything that you might like to tell your friends about the club? I don’t think you can go wrong by joining! There are many options at different times of the week. The menu is awesome because it has a healthy twist to it so it helps me know that I’ll always feel good after class! I like that the recipes are typically traditional and authentic French cuisine, so there’s a nice balance. It’s really fun! And I am very proud of the skills I have gained. 

What I want to tell everyone is that they should all join Tiny Kitchen Cooking Club! 

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Meet Chef
Anja Lee

  • Founder of Anja Lee & Company, Anja Lee Catering and Silicon Chef (our company arm of Team-Building Cooking Competitions)
  • Food Network's Supermarket Stakeout CHAMPION! Season 4, Episode 13
  • Competitor in the Food Network's Cutthroat Kitchen
  • Chef for the Golden State Warriors & Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Cookbook author of 2 Cookbooks
  • World traveling culinary artist and master cooking & wine tasting instructor

Anja brings an appreciation for great food and cooking that will keep your team entertained from beginning to end!

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