So, FML
I have indeed been hard at work to memorize my recipes. I have a midterm going on tomorrow where I have to make a few sauces, a few soups and do a few knife skills. It's all pretty simple and straight forward, but of course, I shall find some complaint! Chef Nash, who is my lab teacher and Chef Redman, who is my Theories teacher, clash on so so so many subjects. There is a classical way of cooking French cuisine, and every one has their own ideas as to what that should be. Much like the bible, all the ways that have been written and passed down to make the Mother sauces and basic soups has been interpenetrated differently. To ask a chef how they make any sauce of what it should look like is very different. Imagine asking a preacher about some event that is mentioned in the bible. He'll tell you the same kind of story, mention the same kind of people (ingredients and what you'd use the sauce for) but a totally different meaning to what the story portrays or how one should feel about it (how it looks and tastes with all the seasonings and basic proportions) because everyone is different.
I normally value diversity but this is really just too much. It's a lot to remember, how it classically is written, a modern interpretation and how my chef's like it to look for their own personal aesthetic desires.
Just as in any place of education or career I have my favorite chefs/teachers. I am personally in love with Chef Redman. He's for sure the youngest professor or chef that I have. Perhaps that is part of is, he's not as cranky. He's also my theories professor so he's much easier to please. To state how a dish is made is like a walk through the park. To do it is another story.
Chef Nash I am slowly coming to love. He's for sure a bit rough around the edges, but in a way that is a comfort. I know that if I mess up, I am deserving of a "no, do it again." and he's seemed to connect with all of us a lot more then the first few weeks. He's in his mid to late 50's and reminds me a little of a chef who I once dearly loved who just passed away from brain cancer. They have the same twinkle in their eye, perhaps that is why I am coming to adore him in his own way.
Tonight I made probably the most delicious fritatta I've ever had in my life, not to toot my own horn or anything. But, never in my life have I ever found an eggs so challenging as my attempts at a French Fried Egg or as us American's say, Sunny Side Up. SCREW YOU FRENCHIES!
The goal is to have a perfectly white bottom NO browning, it creates a rubbery texture. And you don't flip it. You want to have NO bubbles coming up through the white. I spent probably 80% of the time "cooking" off of the pilot light and the other 20% was on a very very low flame and yet I still had to do it 3 times before perfection was reached. I shall practice tomorrow, along with the same process but a flip for easy over eggs.
Also, I have the secret to PERFECT BOILED EGGS.
Place eggs in pot with COLD water just over the shell, and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes exactly and the second that you turn off the stove, dump eggs into a bowl of ice water to end the cooking process and pull the surfer in the egg away from the yolk.
For soft boiled eggs,
Place eggs in pot with COLD water just over the shell, and bring to a boil. Boil for 60 SECONDS and remove them from heat immediately. Cover the pot with the eggs inside and let stand for 10 minutes without heat and without lifting the lid on the pot.
**When boiling eggs the sulfuric acid will form around the yolk and kind of collect there. So when you over cook the egg, that is what the greeny ring is. to avoid this, quick cooling is a huge help. Obviously if you over cook an egg, there is not much that can help you then.
Okay, just a quick side note, I'd like to thank a few people while I have the time. Thank you to my grandparents. I'm so grateful to have you behind me. I'm not going to let you (or myself) down with this endeavor. This is a passion that I can't describe. As well I must thank my Aunt and Uncle, for they have provided me with something I haven't felt in a very long time and I have a really solid sense of belonging and home. Their kitchen is my canvass and I thank them(and their stove) endlessly. Lastly I must thank my boyfriend. I appreciate all the love and support you give and for being adventurous and tasting things you never would have if I hadn't pushed you to. :)
*thank you to YOU too, it's nice to have readers of my banter...
GOOD NIGHT ALL, the midterms continue tomorrow and it's already midnight.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
A Chef's Toque
Hello my sweets!
I just got out of concepts and theories (yay for early nights) and I turned in a paper I just wrote about Auguste Escoffier for some extra credit. I think it'd be nice to get through this first quarter with 110% in two of my classes and settle for a 98+% in my others...
I happened to chose to write this paper right as we are discussing eggs.
Eggs are fascinating. Truly one of the most amazing ingredients one could ever handle. They are so versatile, and beautiful. An egg can be packed with salt and be cured through the shell. An egg can simply be lightly cooked sunny side up and stuck on a piece of well buttered toast and be one of the best meals of your life. An egg can be soft boiled and fried and turn into a heavenly bundle of flavor, but there is nothing quite as lovely as a creamy white perfectly poached egg with just a hint of salt and pepper. If any of you have ever poached an egg (which I am sure all of you have, or least attempted) you know it requires an acid (usually white wine or white vinegar, dark will discolour the egg) in the poaching liquid (which is generally water) but I have taken a liking to using lemon on mine. If you poach eggs regularly this can be expensive, but if you are doing it just for kicks it's a nice flavor(be careful with hollandaise which already has a zesty flavor).
But back to what I was saying. Eggs.
As I was writing all about Escoffier's life and at the same time reading about all these egg recipes, I figured I might as well check out a few of his own personal recipes on the subject. So this evening I went into the library at school and looked at the egg section in Le Guide Cluninare. Escoffier, the god of modern French cuisine, had 101 recipes on eggs. I recalled having to remember that number for something else... The folds of my chef's toque! I thought I'd bring up this odd similarity with one of my instructing chefs and he told me that it's isn't just an odd similarity, the reason why there are 101 pleats on a chef's hat is in direct correlation to the fact that Escoffier's original first edition book had 101 egg recipes. This right there tells you how important eggs are (and how ridiculously traditional our uniforms are... Damn all neckerchiefs by the way)
Eggs are a food that most can relate to.
I have good memories of scrambled eggs. I had them in the morning with a glass of orange juice because that was my favorite food from birth to age 13. Now I find that for 18 years of my life I have not had them to their full potential.
I have quite a bit of homework to attend to and a long day tomorrow of crepes and fritattats, but before I depart I shall share a quick word. When making scrambled eggs, do so in a double boiler as though you were to make hollandaise. But don't whisk, and be sure to turn the heat up a bit to make the most fluffy amazing scrambled eggs you've ever indulged in. Also, adding just a hint of heavy creamed is a gift from the kitchen in the sky.
I shall post the most fantastic weekend breakfast recipe involving eggs and baking tomorrow moring, perhaps you've heard of Shirred Egg? Well now you have. Check back soon, and you will not be dissapointed.
Good night to all!
peace.
I just got out of concepts and theories (yay for early nights) and I turned in a paper I just wrote about Auguste Escoffier for some extra credit. I think it'd be nice to get through this first quarter with 110% in two of my classes and settle for a 98+% in my others...
I happened to chose to write this paper right as we are discussing eggs.
Eggs are fascinating. Truly one of the most amazing ingredients one could ever handle. They are so versatile, and beautiful. An egg can be packed with salt and be cured through the shell. An egg can simply be lightly cooked sunny side up and stuck on a piece of well buttered toast and be one of the best meals of your life. An egg can be soft boiled and fried and turn into a heavenly bundle of flavor, but there is nothing quite as lovely as a creamy white perfectly poached egg with just a hint of salt and pepper. If any of you have ever poached an egg (which I am sure all of you have, or least attempted) you know it requires an acid (usually white wine or white vinegar, dark will discolour the egg) in the poaching liquid (which is generally water) but I have taken a liking to using lemon on mine. If you poach eggs regularly this can be expensive, but if you are doing it just for kicks it's a nice flavor(be careful with hollandaise which already has a zesty flavor).
But back to what I was saying. Eggs.
As I was writing all about Escoffier's life and at the same time reading about all these egg recipes, I figured I might as well check out a few of his own personal recipes on the subject. So this evening I went into the library at school and looked at the egg section in Le Guide Cluninare. Escoffier, the god of modern French cuisine, had 101 recipes on eggs. I recalled having to remember that number for something else... The folds of my chef's toque! I thought I'd bring up this odd similarity with one of my instructing chefs and he told me that it's isn't just an odd similarity, the reason why there are 101 pleats on a chef's hat is in direct correlation to the fact that Escoffier's original first edition book had 101 egg recipes. This right there tells you how important eggs are (and how ridiculously traditional our uniforms are... Damn all neckerchiefs by the way)
Eggs are a food that most can relate to.
I have good memories of scrambled eggs. I had them in the morning with a glass of orange juice because that was my favorite food from birth to age 13. Now I find that for 18 years of my life I have not had them to their full potential.
I have quite a bit of homework to attend to and a long day tomorrow of crepes and fritattats, but before I depart I shall share a quick word. When making scrambled eggs, do so in a double boiler as though you were to make hollandaise. But don't whisk, and be sure to turn the heat up a bit to make the most fluffy amazing scrambled eggs you've ever indulged in. Also, adding just a hint of heavy creamed is a gift from the kitchen in the sky.
I shall post the most fantastic weekend breakfast recipe involving eggs and baking tomorrow moring, perhaps you've heard of Shirred Egg? Well now you have. Check back soon, and you will not be dissapointed.
Good night to all!
peace.
Week 4
Perhaps I am starting this a tad bit late, but better late then never, right?
I am a culinary student at the Art Institute in Seattle, getting my Bachelors in Culinary Arts and Business Management. This is my first year, first quarter and I'm rounding off my first month. We work on a quarterly system at school, so I will be having my first midterm THIS WEEK on on Thursday.
I know that it all sounds very soon to be having a midterm in my first month of school, but I must let you in on something. Culinary school is the most fast paced crazy thing I have ever done. If you've gone to a regular University or College you have NO idea, even summer quaters/semesters when things are crammed, doesn't compare.
My midterm is on incredibly basic stuff.
Stocks
-white
-brown
-fish fummet (isn't a stock, but very similar process)
-mirepoix (by weight 25% celery, 25% carrot, 50%onion)
-sachet d epices and boquet garnis (10 cracked pepper corns, 6 stems parsley, 2 pinches of thyme, and 1 bay leaf wrapped in a leak leaf or cheese cloth and tied with butcher twin)
Sauces
- The Mother Sauces which are Veloute(white with blonde roux and white stock, generally chicken), Bechamel(white roux with milk+ an onion piquet), Hollandaise(a sauce created from emulsification of eggs and pure butter fat), Espagnole (brown sauce, brown roux and brown stock), and Tomato (I think we all know what a tomato sauce is)
-Knife skills; We are doing very basic cuts which are, Large Dice, Batonnet, Medium Dice, Allumette, Small Dice, Julienne, Brunoise, Frine Julienne, Fine Brunoise and very rough coarse chopping for our mirepoix
Vocabulary
-A various jumble of French words/cooking utensils and proper equipment names and various phrases one will need to know to read and write our recipes
*no recipes, no notes and no team assistance... it'll be interesting. We've learned and memorized this in less than 4 weeks (this is just one class mind you)
I didn't know that I was going to be having a midterm this week until last Thursday when my Chef (Chef Nash, you'll be hearing a lot about him) sprung this on me and my 8 other classmates. (our classes used to have more people... but we'll touch on that later).
Fortunately this is relatively easy stuff when you break it down in your mind. I've found doing it at home is great for me because when I am in the kitchen at school, all dressed up in my uniform, I tend to get very nervous. Chef's are not always the most pleasant or forgiving teachers. There is nothing quite like having a pile of perfectly carved out laborious mini footballs from potatoes getting dumped in the trash casually and then being instructed to start again with a dismal look from the teacher.
It's funny, when you first start, you're given your uniform and your texts. The knife kits is fabulous almost to a point of intimidation. You feel like you're starting off already knowing something. Let me just say right now, you know nothing. In fact, if you think you do, then you for sure don't. After your first week you'll realize this. I've been cutting things wrong all my life, I haven't made a cheese sandwich correctly ever. Cooking is a very personal thing, so even as an extreme novice it's a hard pill to swallow when you're told you're work is worthless and a an utter disappointment.
Now that I'm on week #4 I have a various number of projects occurring right now. I will touch on those in further blogs as they happen. There is a bit too much for me to write.
It's 6 a.m. so it's time for me to start my day!
(normally I'm not up this early, but I have an unruly amount to do today)
Culinary school is no picnic, But it is just the place for a hungry artist like me.
peace.
I am a culinary student at the Art Institute in Seattle, getting my Bachelors in Culinary Arts and Business Management. This is my first year, first quarter and I'm rounding off my first month. We work on a quarterly system at school, so I will be having my first midterm THIS WEEK on on Thursday.
I know that it all sounds very soon to be having a midterm in my first month of school, but I must let you in on something. Culinary school is the most fast paced crazy thing I have ever done. If you've gone to a regular University or College you have NO idea, even summer quaters/semesters when things are crammed, doesn't compare.
My midterm is on incredibly basic stuff.
Stocks
-white
-brown
-fish fummet (isn't a stock, but very similar process)
-mirepoix (by weight 25% celery, 25% carrot, 50%onion)
-sachet d epices and boquet garnis (10 cracked pepper corns, 6 stems parsley, 2 pinches of thyme, and 1 bay leaf wrapped in a leak leaf or cheese cloth and tied with butcher twin)
Sauces
- The Mother Sauces which are Veloute(white with blonde roux and white stock, generally chicken), Bechamel(white roux with milk+ an onion piquet), Hollandaise(a sauce created from emulsification of eggs and pure butter fat), Espagnole (brown sauce, brown roux and brown stock), and Tomato (I think we all know what a tomato sauce is)
-Knife skills; We are doing very basic cuts which are, Large Dice, Batonnet, Medium Dice, Allumette, Small Dice, Julienne, Brunoise, Frine Julienne, Fine Brunoise and very rough coarse chopping for our mirepoix
Vocabulary
-A various jumble of French words/cooking utensils and proper equipment names and various phrases one will need to know to read and write our recipes
*no recipes, no notes and no team assistance... it'll be interesting. We've learned and memorized this in less than 4 weeks (this is just one class mind you)
I didn't know that I was going to be having a midterm this week until last Thursday when my Chef (Chef Nash, you'll be hearing a lot about him) sprung this on me and my 8 other classmates. (our classes used to have more people... but we'll touch on that later).
Fortunately this is relatively easy stuff when you break it down in your mind. I've found doing it at home is great for me because when I am in the kitchen at school, all dressed up in my uniform, I tend to get very nervous. Chef's are not always the most pleasant or forgiving teachers. There is nothing quite like having a pile of perfectly carved out laborious mini footballs from potatoes getting dumped in the trash casually and then being instructed to start again with a dismal look from the teacher.
It's funny, when you first start, you're given your uniform and your texts. The knife kits is fabulous almost to a point of intimidation. You feel like you're starting off already knowing something. Let me just say right now, you know nothing. In fact, if you think you do, then you for sure don't. After your first week you'll realize this. I've been cutting things wrong all my life, I haven't made a cheese sandwich correctly ever. Cooking is a very personal thing, so even as an extreme novice it's a hard pill to swallow when you're told you're work is worthless and a an utter disappointment.
Now that I'm on week #4 I have a various number of projects occurring right now. I will touch on those in further blogs as they happen. There is a bit too much for me to write.
It's 6 a.m. so it's time for me to start my day!
(normally I'm not up this early, but I have an unruly amount to do today)
Culinary school is no picnic, But it is just the place for a hungry artist like me.
peace.
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