The Christmas
Cookie Tin 2026

Chef Tom’s online cooking lessons are full of fun facts and tradition, not just about Czech cuisine, but Czech culture as well.  I enjoyed learning about so many Czech entrées, desserts, pastries and cookies.  Chef Tom is very thorough about preparations and guides his class through the cooking process step by step.  I also enjoyed making online friends from around the world through this course.

The online Czech and Slovak cooking classes I have attended with Chef Tom were exceptional. Sometimes my daughter and I were cooking together in my kitchen, and other times my sister and I were online with Tom. The recipes are authentic, the steps were easy to follow, and Tom made the experience fun. I also enjoyed his personal stories when he included them. The bonus, we enjoyed the Czech food we prepared after the class! If you are curious about Tom’s cooking classes, I highly recommend them. Děkuju, Tom.

As one of the benefits of my membership in the Czech & Slovak Museum and Library, I had the opportunity to sign up and attend numerous classes of Chef Tom Slepicka’s online Czech cooking series. He presented a very professional and thorough program which was easy to navigate and visualize in every detail. The class participants can also refer back to each class through his precise video/recording which is very helpful. Chef Tom is very professional and takes time to explain the process in every detail. His recipes are very authentic and delicious. I give Chef Tom my highest recommendation.

I have had the distinct pleasure of participating in Chef Tom’s cooking classes and cannot recommend them highly enough. Chef Tom is not only a gifted culinary instructor but also a genuinely kind and wise person. His teaching style is stellar—he creates a holistic cultural experience infused with humor and lightness that is truly unparalleled. The value of his classes extends far beyond cooking techniques. Chef Tom artfully weaves together cultural generosity, practical guidance on food preparation and kitchen skills, and meaningful insights on health and wellness—showing how to select nourishing ingredients and use food as medicine. The online format makes participation accessible no matter your schedule. Broadcasting live from his professional home kitchen, Chef Tom invites you to cook alongside him from your own. Over time, his classes became a kind of home for us—a warm and joyful space we looked forward to joining each week.

Chef Tom’s online cooking classes have been an absolute delight and a highlight of my culinary journey over the past three years. His expertise in Czech and Slovak cuisine shines through in every session, and his approachable, engaging teaching style makes even complex recipes achievable for cooks of all levels. Chef Tom’s live online format is highly interactive—there’s no need for elaborate prep work beforehand, as he leads each class at a pace that feels natural and inclusive. He’s always ready to answer questions in real time, especially when ingredients (or home kitchen quirks) don’t cooperate, ensuring that everyone can confidently master the techniques being taught and end up with a delicious dish! What sets Chef Tom apart is that he is also a recipe creator and has a deep commitment to genuine, from-scratch cooking with a minimal reliance on processed foods. Each class not only boosts my skills—from safe chopping to mastering efficient preparation—but also leaves me with new go-to meal options that my family loves. A unique bonus of Chef Tom’s classes is the warm community atmosphere. Chef Tom weaves in fascinating background stories about the origin and history of the class recipe, and there’s always time to hear classmates share their own memories of serving the dish, or variations of it, in the past. For anyone curious about Czech or Slovak cuisine, or simply looking to elevate their home cooking and get some great dishes for the family meal rotation, I can’t recommend Chef Tom’s classes highly enough. Each session is a delightful learning experience and a chance to connect with both culinary heritage and a welcoming community of fellow food enthusiasts.

These classes are easy to enjoy! Our instructor is both professional and down-to-earth, easy to understand, and very good at pacing the class. There is good technical support, such as the many camera views, so the online approach works perfectly. Chef Tom listens to our input, answers all our questions, and creates a friendly, fun experience. The group interactions give a sense of community and fun. The recipes are fail-proof yet flexible, and I enjoyed success when trying new techniques in this supportive setting. I like to cook along with the group but one can be inspired by just observing as well.

I’ve attended more than 15 classes by Chef Tom and during every class I’ve learned something new. I appreciate the effort Chef Tom dedicates in taking a traditional Czech dish, putting a modern twist on it, and emphasizing healthier ways to adapt a recipe. During the on-line Zoom classes, he does an excellent job of demonstrating each step and is always available for questions. I like the flexibility of these Zoom classes and have access to the recipes even if I have a scheduling conflict or just watch the preparations. Thanks Chef Tom!

Techniques are explained thoroughly with good visuals, interesting background is included and the recipes are delicious. Chef Tom gives many opportunities for questions and participant interaction during the live class and, in fact, encourages it. The recordings let me watch the class later when my schedule conflicts with the live show, an important feature for me.

I have attended many of the online Czech & Slovak cooking classes over the years, and I can honestly say that they have made me a better cook. Chef Tom explains techniques so well, from how to chop an onion efficiently to how to do the six-stranded braid for the Vanocka (Christmas bread). The first Czech & Slovak cooking class I ever attended included boiled side dumplings, which honestly sounded really intimidating, but Chef Tom’s instruction was so good that not only did my side dumplings turn out well, I became confident enough to make them on my own outside of class. It’s great that you can ask him for advice or to take a look at your dish in progress when you’re not sure if it is quite right. The online format of the classes creates a community of home cooks from all over, and I love that I don’t have to be tied down to one location for class. There have been more than a few times that I have participated in class while at my parents’ house, and then they get a tasty dinner out of it. I always look forward to new classes from Chef Tom.

I have taken cooking classes with Chef Tom and highly recommend them! His instructions and video are clear and easy to follow, and he adds basic cooking skill instructions as the class progresses. I especially liked the stories about Czech holiday traditions (the classes I took were Christmas recipes.) The classes were fun and the recipes were delicious!

I am interested in other cultures as well as cooking and baking. Although my ancestry is Italian, it is interesting to learn about recipes from other countries. I have taken several classes from Chef Tom to include making walnut sandwich cookies and the Vanocka sweet braided bread as well as many other cookies and complete meals. The walnut sandwich cookies and the Vanocka sweet braided bread are two of my favorite recipes. I love the live online format that Chef Tom uses to teach as it allows me to cook in my own kitchen while being able to see him cook as well as being able to ask questions and get answers real time and hear the answers to questions that other students ask. He has always had an answer to the questions asked and is willing to show what he is doing from different angles to help explain the answer to the question. Even if I cannot attend a class live online, I know I will receive the recipe and the video of the class to watch later as many times as I like. I feel it is well worth the price of the class.

It’s hard to find truly authentic recipes in the U.S., but Chef Tom’s Czech dishes are the real thing. I’m Czech and have lived in the U.S. for 6 years, and his recipes taste just like the food my grandma makes back home.