Tonight, I was in Highland Heights, KY, visiting my sister and brother-in-law. Molly, my sister, is performing in an opera scenes performance tomorrow, and so tonight, she and her husband took my mother and me to a very nice Italian restaurant for dinner. The appetizer, and I use the term loosely, was their infamous Wheel of Parmesean. Fettuccini, tossed in butter and cream, turned into a bowl made of a giant wheel of cheese! I had to force myself to slow down or I would've eaten it all in about 5 seconds! It was rich and buttery and just so good! It was prepared tableside by the owner of the restaurant, too. I spoke to him briefly, and dropped off a resume. He was a very gracious host, his food philosophy seemed to be on par with my own. Food is an art form, , one of the most savorable incarnations I can think of. For my main course, since I simply couldn't resist the temptation once presented to me, I had osso bucco. Tender, velvetty veal shanks in a smooth moat of herbed polenta. I've had polenta before that isn't very flavorful, not exactly bland, but still nothing to sing about. This, on every level, was a meal to sing about! As I scooped out the marrow from the bones with the tiny fork they provided, my sister asked "So, is it good?" I replied with a sultry sigh, "I think I need a cigarette." It was a mouthful of creamy, meaty goodness that simply cannot be adequately described in words.
In accompaniment to our lovely meal, the wait staff and some invited guests would come to the center of the dining room and sing. We were treated to musical theater staples (my guilty pleasures included delighting in selections from West Side Story and Man of La Mancha) and opera. Molly performed an aria from Rigoletto called "Caro Nome". It was so delightful, I could see her light up from the inside, she truly sparkled in her true medium. She sings the way I cook, the way I write, as though the act in itsself is its own reward.
Tonight we celebrated my birthday and graduation, as well as my sister's upcoming performance, so we made such a wonderful night of it. This was such a lovely dining experience on all fronts, it will be one I will remember for years to come.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
I'm not dead!
Okay, I know I've been off the blog scene for over a month, I can't believe how the time has just flown by. My internship is almost over! I've really enjoyed it, but I've been kind of homesick for school and my class. That includes teachers, too, Chef! It's a difficult transition, I'm not quite a student anymore, and I'm not technically in the real workforce yet, I'm kind of in-between. That's always a rather iffy place to be in life. I had a mild bout of depression during this period, just feeling lost and confused and wondering what's going to happen next. Plus, right after I was getting used to my classmates and everyone at Indian Hills I had to move! Moving in general always gets me down, but I came back from it. I wasn't sleeping well, I had no appetite, I went a month without even feeling up to writing. It's helped to call my friends and hear about their internships, looking forward to graduation and our trip to France. I've been feeling better lately, sleeping and eating normally again, and I was actually singing in the car again on the way to my job interview. It took a while to get out of that "bad patch", but I'm feeling normal (save the jokes, I can hear them from all the way over here!)
I've really enjoyed certain aspects of my internship, others could have been better. The owner of La Dolce Vita, Jim McCaffrey, is totally awesome. He's passionate about food, good service, keeping up with what the people want, all that fun stuff. His enthusiasm bouys me up when things aren't going so well. His son, Conor, is a decent guy, but impatient. Rather than have me do something and learn, he'd rather just do it himself because it's faster. I've been told not to take his attitude personally, he's just a tricky person to work with sometimes. Another cook, Mike, can be the same way sometimes. I was assigned to work with him on grill and saute my first week there. He was a bit more open teacher, he wasn't in such a rush, but he can be a real downer. He comes off as someone who's been broken on the wheel of life far too soon, very downtrodden. He hardly ever even speaks above a low mutter. There's another cook we all call Chile, probably because he's Mexican, who makes up for the other two guys. He's always a good guy to work with, we exchange barbs with each other, and there's mutual respect between us. He keeps things from getting too boring anyway. Then there's Fawn, the owner's stepdaughter, we work together a lot on the pizza assembly line. It can get really hectic when the tickets come flying in, but we get them all out in about a minute! My first night on that line, I balked a little at the sudden rush, but my old training from working as a fitting room girl at Kohls came to my rescue and I thought "It's just another Z-rack to blitz, we can do this" and we did, no sweat.
One really fun thing I get to do on Thursday mornings is bake bread with Jim. That's a riot, let me tell you! We're both such bread geeks it's not even funny. To date we've done baguettes, French rolls, ciabatta, and focaccia. This has all just started while I've been there. We'd talked a few times before I came on that he was toying with the idea of doing bread, and so I helped get that going! A few businesses in town have even gotten accounts with him to sell his bread to them! And he's the one asking me questions! It's weird to be teaching an adult how to do something, but I guess shouldn't think of myself as a kid anymore, since I'm almost 30. I love the smell of yeast, I could get high off of it, especially in a large-scale operation like what we're doing at work! I think Jim does, too, it's nice having someone around who gets the same pleasures from things that I do. We're both like a couple of kids: "Is the oven temperature right yet? Has the dough risen enough? How about now??" This week, Jim's gone, so I'll be baking with Fawn for my last baking day. She came along last week to watch and help out and get a feel for what we get up to when it's just the bread geeks running the kitchen. She didn't get scared away, I'll take that as a good thing!
Today I had a job interview at a nice restaurant up in Rochester, MN. The chef who interviewed struck me as a good guy to work for; although he stressed that there weren't any entry-level positions open, he encouraged me to look at some of the hotels in town and told me he'd keep my resume on file in case something appropriate opens up. I wore my dress uniform, I always like an occasion to whip that out. I think I look good in it, and I feel very professional. I've mailed out a few resumes to other businesses that have been advertising for help, so hopefully I'll hear back from someone who will hire me.
Next week is graduation, and a little over a week after that is our class trip to France! I've been getting French lessons on my iPod, so hopefully I'll learn enough basic phrases to get by. It's not only respectful and polite to do when visiting another country, it's fun! I like drawing the similarities between French and Spanish (I took four years of Spanish in high school, this is helping to bring some of it back), and just the fun of learning a new language is rewarding. In my family, I come from a long line of language-buffs. My grandpa was a cryptographer in WW2, so my code writing/breaking skills have some basis in heredity. He was primarily stationed in India. You know who else was with Intelligence, based in India during the war? Julia Child! I doubt the two ever crossed paths though, he was in Delhi and she was elsewhere, so not good chances. Still kind of cool though.
Okay, it's past midnight, so I'd better sign off and get some sleep. I'm back in action though, and it's good to be back!
I've really enjoyed certain aspects of my internship, others could have been better. The owner of La Dolce Vita, Jim McCaffrey, is totally awesome. He's passionate about food, good service, keeping up with what the people want, all that fun stuff. His enthusiasm bouys me up when things aren't going so well. His son, Conor, is a decent guy, but impatient. Rather than have me do something and learn, he'd rather just do it himself because it's faster. I've been told not to take his attitude personally, he's just a tricky person to work with sometimes. Another cook, Mike, can be the same way sometimes. I was assigned to work with him on grill and saute my first week there. He was a bit more open teacher, he wasn't in such a rush, but he can be a real downer. He comes off as someone who's been broken on the wheel of life far too soon, very downtrodden. He hardly ever even speaks above a low mutter. There's another cook we all call Chile, probably because he's Mexican, who makes up for the other two guys. He's always a good guy to work with, we exchange barbs with each other, and there's mutual respect between us. He keeps things from getting too boring anyway. Then there's Fawn, the owner's stepdaughter, we work together a lot on the pizza assembly line. It can get really hectic when the tickets come flying in, but we get them all out in about a minute! My first night on that line, I balked a little at the sudden rush, but my old training from working as a fitting room girl at Kohls came to my rescue and I thought "It's just another Z-rack to blitz, we can do this" and we did, no sweat.
One really fun thing I get to do on Thursday mornings is bake bread with Jim. That's a riot, let me tell you! We're both such bread geeks it's not even funny. To date we've done baguettes, French rolls, ciabatta, and focaccia. This has all just started while I've been there. We'd talked a few times before I came on that he was toying with the idea of doing bread, and so I helped get that going! A few businesses in town have even gotten accounts with him to sell his bread to them! And he's the one asking me questions! It's weird to be teaching an adult how to do something, but I guess shouldn't think of myself as a kid anymore, since I'm almost 30. I love the smell of yeast, I could get high off of it, especially in a large-scale operation like what we're doing at work! I think Jim does, too, it's nice having someone around who gets the same pleasures from things that I do. We're both like a couple of kids: "Is the oven temperature right yet? Has the dough risen enough? How about now??" This week, Jim's gone, so I'll be baking with Fawn for my last baking day. She came along last week to watch and help out and get a feel for what we get up to when it's just the bread geeks running the kitchen. She didn't get scared away, I'll take that as a good thing!
Today I had a job interview at a nice restaurant up in Rochester, MN. The chef who interviewed struck me as a good guy to work for; although he stressed that there weren't any entry-level positions open, he encouraged me to look at some of the hotels in town and told me he'd keep my resume on file in case something appropriate opens up. I wore my dress uniform, I always like an occasion to whip that out. I think I look good in it, and I feel very professional. I've mailed out a few resumes to other businesses that have been advertising for help, so hopefully I'll hear back from someone who will hire me.
Next week is graduation, and a little over a week after that is our class trip to France! I've been getting French lessons on my iPod, so hopefully I'll learn enough basic phrases to get by. It's not only respectful and polite to do when visiting another country, it's fun! I like drawing the similarities between French and Spanish (I took four years of Spanish in high school, this is helping to bring some of it back), and just the fun of learning a new language is rewarding. In my family, I come from a long line of language-buffs. My grandpa was a cryptographer in WW2, so my code writing/breaking skills have some basis in heredity. He was primarily stationed in India. You know who else was with Intelligence, based in India during the war? Julia Child! I doubt the two ever crossed paths though, he was in Delhi and she was elsewhere, so not good chances. Still kind of cool though.
Okay, it's past midnight, so I'd better sign off and get some sleep. I'm back in action though, and it's good to be back!
Monday, March 23, 2009
The bridge is crossed, now stand and watch it burn...
I just took my Certified Culinarian exam, and passed with an 89%! I made a few stupid mistakes, which I chalk up to being in a hurry and kind of nervous. I don't really do well on tests! Wednesday I hand in my final project for Culinary Entreprenuership, I think I'll do fine with that, I've had lots of practice in these sort of things over the past 2 years. I'm just glad to have the CC test over with, that was my main focus of worry.
On Saturday my family and I went out for dinner at the restaurant where I'll be interning. I had salmon pizza, with cream cheese sauce, capers, and dill. It was very good! It was the first time in a long time that I've had something that was genuinely new! I'd never even heard of it before, and now I think I have a new favorite!
I've been toying with the idea of doing a "senior exhibition", in the form of a formal dinner for a few select guests. I've been thinking of the people and product I'll need, planning out the menu, all that fun stuff. It'll be like in "Babette's Feast" :-)
I feel sad about leaving my classmates for the last time. There's always been a "see you tomorrow" feel to things, now we don't know if we'll ever see each other again! Oh well, the culinary world is kind of like being in the mob, we all know each other, we'll hear from each other eventually. I'm ready for the next step. I won't say I'm not afraid, I'd be foolish not to be, but I think I'm as prepared as I can be. The rest of my education will have to take place in industry. I can't wait to see what happens next.
On Saturday my family and I went out for dinner at the restaurant where I'll be interning. I had salmon pizza, with cream cheese sauce, capers, and dill. It was very good! It was the first time in a long time that I've had something that was genuinely new! I'd never even heard of it before, and now I think I have a new favorite!
I've been toying with the idea of doing a "senior exhibition", in the form of a formal dinner for a few select guests. I've been thinking of the people and product I'll need, planning out the menu, all that fun stuff. It'll be like in "Babette's Feast" :-)
I feel sad about leaving my classmates for the last time. There's always been a "see you tomorrow" feel to things, now we don't know if we'll ever see each other again! Oh well, the culinary world is kind of like being in the mob, we all know each other, we'll hear from each other eventually. I'm ready for the next step. I won't say I'm not afraid, I'd be foolish not to be, but I think I'm as prepared as I can be. The rest of my education will have to take place in industry. I can't wait to see what happens next.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Countdown to my internship...
I've been away for a while, now to catch up! First of all, our pre-graduation dinner was a good time had by all. A few of my classmates and a few underclassmen met up in the lab, we each made something of our own and it was really fun dinner. I made poulet au porto, chicken in a creamy port sauce with mushrooms. Adam made banana poundcake with raspberries, Astred made acorn squash with sauteed artichokes and candied walnuts, Andreanna made some kind of pasta with alfredo sauce...I don't remember everything else, but it all came together really well and we all had a good time together. I even wore a dress when we were ready to sit down and eat! I think it must have been strange for my classmates to see me "as a girl", too bad no one had a camera!
Then we had a long weekend between terms, so I went home since I hadn't seen my parents since Christmas. When I got home, I took stock of the refrigerator and whipped out the cookbook I'd given my mother. They had leftover pork roast from the night before, so after a trip to Fareway I was ready to turn it into a pork ragout. I had onions, carrots, Pinot Noir, it all came together delightfully. When my parents got home from work, I had supper all ready for them, it was fun to surprise them with a treat. The next night I made my now-signature Chicken Wellington, this time with my Mom's help. She sauteed the onion and mushroom duxelle filling while I rolled out the puff pastry and seasoned the chicken. It's always fun to have someone else in the kitchen, to make it a team effort. They have a nice, big kitchen so it was just right! Normally my Dad doesn't eat "fancy" foods, he claims to just stick to meat and potatoes, but I've gotten him to eat my creations and he's admitted to liking them. I haven't forced anything too outlandish on him, nor will I, I know where the boundries lie. Not everyone's going to like everything, I accept that.
Last week, a couple of classmates and I did some real-estate shopping for our final restaurant project. Students in their seventh term have to go through the motions of creating a restaurant from the ground up. We have to find an empty building, figure in costs of rennovations, all of the equipment and products that we'd need for opening day. It's a fun idea, especially since Chef Gordon, my teacher, is seriously considering opening a student-run restaurant like the larger culinary schools have. It would really be cool if we could help with the planning of it, to leave something behind as our legacy. We found a really promising spot, the owner would love to turn it into a restaurant, so I think he might help us out with our final goal. Wish us luck!
Another thing seventh term students get to do is take our CC exams, to become Certified Culinarians upon graduation. That will look nice on a resume, and it'll help hone my cuts. I can fabricate a chicken in my sleep, but it's those darn vegetable cuts that flummox me to no end! Carrots are round! They want to stay round! Oh well, I'll get a handle on it before the test, I'm pretty sure I'll pass.
I've been getting some more hours at work lately, we just lost a cook, so the chef told me to expect to step it up. The last few gigs we've done haven't been too difficult, concessions for a home expo, but it seemed that no matter how many times we told the serving staff to alert us before they run completely out of something, we were always the last to know. Sigh. That's life.
I hope that when I graduate and become a full-time cook, I'll still be able to keep up with my writing. Both mediums are important to my self-expression, I honestly couldn't choose between them. They make me crazy, they keep me sane. Does that make sense? I've even considered becoming a food writer. That would be fun, going to different restaurants and write about them, to combine the two would be the most delightful dance for me.
Three weeks till my internship! I can't wait!
Then we had a long weekend between terms, so I went home since I hadn't seen my parents since Christmas. When I got home, I took stock of the refrigerator and whipped out the cookbook I'd given my mother. They had leftover pork roast from the night before, so after a trip to Fareway I was ready to turn it into a pork ragout. I had onions, carrots, Pinot Noir, it all came together delightfully. When my parents got home from work, I had supper all ready for them, it was fun to surprise them with a treat. The next night I made my now-signature Chicken Wellington, this time with my Mom's help. She sauteed the onion and mushroom duxelle filling while I rolled out the puff pastry and seasoned the chicken. It's always fun to have someone else in the kitchen, to make it a team effort. They have a nice, big kitchen so it was just right! Normally my Dad doesn't eat "fancy" foods, he claims to just stick to meat and potatoes, but I've gotten him to eat my creations and he's admitted to liking them. I haven't forced anything too outlandish on him, nor will I, I know where the boundries lie. Not everyone's going to like everything, I accept that.
Last week, a couple of classmates and I did some real-estate shopping for our final restaurant project. Students in their seventh term have to go through the motions of creating a restaurant from the ground up. We have to find an empty building, figure in costs of rennovations, all of the equipment and products that we'd need for opening day. It's a fun idea, especially since Chef Gordon, my teacher, is seriously considering opening a student-run restaurant like the larger culinary schools have. It would really be cool if we could help with the planning of it, to leave something behind as our legacy. We found a really promising spot, the owner would love to turn it into a restaurant, so I think he might help us out with our final goal. Wish us luck!
Another thing seventh term students get to do is take our CC exams, to become Certified Culinarians upon graduation. That will look nice on a resume, and it'll help hone my cuts. I can fabricate a chicken in my sleep, but it's those darn vegetable cuts that flummox me to no end! Carrots are round! They want to stay round! Oh well, I'll get a handle on it before the test, I'm pretty sure I'll pass.
I've been getting some more hours at work lately, we just lost a cook, so the chef told me to expect to step it up. The last few gigs we've done haven't been too difficult, concessions for a home expo, but it seemed that no matter how many times we told the serving staff to alert us before they run completely out of something, we were always the last to know. Sigh. That's life.
I hope that when I graduate and become a full-time cook, I'll still be able to keep up with my writing. Both mediums are important to my self-expression, I honestly couldn't choose between them. They make me crazy, they keep me sane. Does that make sense? I've even considered becoming a food writer. That would be fun, going to different restaurants and write about them, to combine the two would be the most delightful dance for me.
Three weeks till my internship! I can't wait!
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Once more, with feeling!
We're down to one term left, so tonight a few of my classmates and I are going to meet up in the lab and have a pre-graduation dinner. We're all going to make something and eat in the Studio, where we've served our board dinners and international cuisine luncheons, only tonight we'll be the guests as well as the "staff". This should be fun! I'm thinking of making a jazzed up roast chicken recipe I found in my Mastering the Art of French Cooking. It's served with a mushroom-cream-port sauce, it sounded really good in the book. We still have a pot of chicken stock in the walk-in, we can make some kind of soup from that, Adam will probably be in charge of making dessert, and I'm not sure what everyone else is making, or precisely who all is coming, but it should be a good night anyway. I'll be sure to post about how it goes. It's the end of the term, we need to celebrate with something better than what the cafeteria sends out, this definitely calls for a sense of occasion. I might even wear my little black dress ;-) Hopefully, it cheers me up a little, I've been feeling kind of depressed today. Must be end-of-term blues.
I ran into Housing today to see if I can get a reduced rate on my room and board next term since I'm only going to be around for half of it, and luckily they told me I'll get a refund at the end of the term. Good enough for me. It would be silly to have to pay for a room while I don't live there. I sold back a couple of my textbooks and got some pocket money for them, but I'm keeping my wine book, I don't see that becoming obsolete any time soon. I took two certification tests today from the NRAEF and passed them both, so that should look good on my resume. Now I just have to wait for final grades to be calculated.
Last night I was on the instant messanger with one of my friends when I noticed that "frolick" (as in, prancing and scampering around like woodland animals in a Disney movie) looks and sounds an awful lot like "froelich" (German for happy, as far as I know), I was strangely amused by this, it was one of those weird lightbulb moments. Anyway, that doesn't have anything to do with anything.
I'm so glad I got my projects done on time, and that I did so well. I wasn't too worried about my grade, I figured I did a decent job, but it's a relief to be done. Now I can relax and read, maybe get some writing done, it's nice not having homework.
I was going to head home tonight since we have a long weekend, but the weather report looked a bit chancey, I didn't want to tempt fate when they're calling for 40mph winds with possible flurries. I'll get an early start tomorrow and beat my parents home. I might even have supper ready for them when they get done with work. That would be fun. I got my mom a cookbook and a new knife for Christmas this year, I might get inspired! That reminds me, bring the sharpener with me. I cleaned out my table drawer today, and my locker, it's like pounding nails into my own coffin. Each "last" thing I do is going to make it one step closer to the day I head out on my own. I hope to stay in touch with some of them. I hate goodbyes. "Never say goodbye, because goodbye means leaving and leaving means forgetting."
I ran into Housing today to see if I can get a reduced rate on my room and board next term since I'm only going to be around for half of it, and luckily they told me I'll get a refund at the end of the term. Good enough for me. It would be silly to have to pay for a room while I don't live there. I sold back a couple of my textbooks and got some pocket money for them, but I'm keeping my wine book, I don't see that becoming obsolete any time soon. I took two certification tests today from the NRAEF and passed them both, so that should look good on my resume. Now I just have to wait for final grades to be calculated.
Last night I was on the instant messanger with one of my friends when I noticed that "frolick" (as in, prancing and scampering around like woodland animals in a Disney movie) looks and sounds an awful lot like "froelich" (German for happy, as far as I know), I was strangely amused by this, it was one of those weird lightbulb moments. Anyway, that doesn't have anything to do with anything.
I'm so glad I got my projects done on time, and that I did so well. I wasn't too worried about my grade, I figured I did a decent job, but it's a relief to be done. Now I can relax and read, maybe get some writing done, it's nice not having homework.
I was going to head home tonight since we have a long weekend, but the weather report looked a bit chancey, I didn't want to tempt fate when they're calling for 40mph winds with possible flurries. I'll get an early start tomorrow and beat my parents home. I might even have supper ready for them when they get done with work. That would be fun. I got my mom a cookbook and a new knife for Christmas this year, I might get inspired! That reminds me, bring the sharpener with me. I cleaned out my table drawer today, and my locker, it's like pounding nails into my own coffin. Each "last" thing I do is going to make it one step closer to the day I head out on my own. I hope to stay in touch with some of them. I hate goodbyes. "Never say goodbye, because goodbye means leaving and leaving means forgetting."
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
The end is near...?
Tomorrow is the last day of 6th term. Our final projects are handed in, we've done our last dinner, and some of us have begun clearing out our tables. It's all gone by so fast. After tomorrow, we start going our separate ways as some of the class begins their internships and the rest of us begin training for our CC tests. It's hard to believe we're all about to break apart, possibly never to see each other again. I've known these people for almost 2 years, it'll be strange not to see them every day after we graduate. I just hope I can hold it together for graduation, I can be overly sensitive, and this is going to be the real-world equivalent to the finale of "Mary Tyler Moore".
I wish I could stay, I can't wait to leave. I think it's normal to feel that way though. I feel good about what I've done here with my time, I just know there's so much more out there to learn, that can't be done in the classroom. Maybe my hesitancy comes from the fact that I tried the "real world" already, and got burned. I couldn't stand it if the same thing happened again. I have no love for Ottumwa in particular, but as usual when it's time to move, I'll miss the "idea of home." I can only hope that there are good things in store for me out there.
I wish I could stay, I can't wait to leave. I think it's normal to feel that way though. I feel good about what I've done here with my time, I just know there's so much more out there to learn, that can't be done in the classroom. Maybe my hesitancy comes from the fact that I tried the "real world" already, and got burned. I couldn't stand it if the same thing happened again. I have no love for Ottumwa in particular, but as usual when it's time to move, I'll miss the "idea of home." I can only hope that there are good things in store for me out there.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Busy...
I haven't posted in the past few weeks, yet it feels like it couldn't possibly be that long since my last post. Time has conspired against me to go by so fast! I've finally gotten some hours at work, after very long dry period, so that contributed to it. It's good to get back to work once in a while, especially when things run smoothly. We even got so ahead of ourselves that we were reallocated to inventory duty! Even that wasn't so bad, though. The times we put our work down for a few minutes to make lunch, stick in a Poison cd, it's the simple things in life that make it worthwhile. Things get kind of crazy, we can get behind, but it all turns out well enough in the end.
Last week my class visited Tassel Ridge Winery just outside of Oskaloosa, that was a really fun field trip. I had a lot of questions about growing wine grapes in Iowa. Tassel Ridge was opened just under three years ago, in March of 2006. Every year that they've been in operation, their production has been steadily growing. While some of their wines boast 100% of their juices come from local grapes, they still rely on some product brought in from California for other wines. We got a brief tutorial of the basic varietals of wine grapes, some of which was a repeat from Fine Dining class and my own "personal research" ;-) I learned that for the first three years of growing grape vines, you're not supposed to let it produce fruit, in order to ensure strong branches and healthy vines. Once it produces fruit, all of the nutrients the plant draws in go to the grapes instead of fortifying the rest of it. By limiting production, it significantly increases quality in the final product. I could go on for much longer about the things I learned at the winery, but I have other things to write about.
Last Friday we held the annual ACF Scholarship Awards Dinner, which I helped serve. I came early to help make sure the kitchen was clean and in good order, then I started setting up the dining room. The awards recipients were all paired up with a chef to prepare a course of the dinner. Some of my classmates helped out in the kitchen, but any time I popped my head in it felt like if I jumped in I would be in the way. The kitchen at Bridge View is large, but we had it filled to its bursting point. I was content just to peek in and watch for a few minutes between dining room inspections. Before the dinner itself there was a cocktail hour, with passed hors d' oeuvres and sparkling wine. That part was fun, meeting and greeting our guests, popping champagne corks, it all had such a sense of occasion to it. When everyone trickled into the dining room and sat down, the dinner began, and I finally got an accurate head count to send back to the kitchen. I'll have to find out if anyone took pictures from the dinner, everything was so beautifully plated that nothing I could say to describe it would do it justice. They varied from simplistic to extravagant, each chef and student assistant fully used this rare opportunity to pull out all the stops.
My instructor, Chef Gordon, gave us all a scare that night when he left abruptly after cocktail hour. We were assured that he was all right and merely "needed rest". When he wasn't in class on Monday, I was getting worried about him, especially when the word was that he was seeing a doctor in Des Moines. Thankfully, he returned to class yesterday, much to our collective relief. He just needs to start taking better care of himself and quit smoking. Turns out it's bad for you ;-)
Today in class, I mentioned that I'd seen an "event" posted on facebook about an "End of the World" party scheduled for Dec 21, 2012, the supposed date of Judgement Day. I said I might go, but I wasn't really serious about it, and likened it to what I predict to be the biggest Star Trek party in history scheduled for April 5, 2063 (First Contact Day: that's supposedly when Earth makes contact with Vulcans for the first time. It's a Trekkie holiday. I'll be there in Montana with the rest of the Trekkies!) when my doom-and-gloom classmate staunchly affirmed that none of us will be around to see that, 50 years after the end of the world. I don't go in for all that Mayan calender stuff. They say that hindsight is 20-20, and you can put a spin on any of these "predictions" to make it match up to what you want it to. It's too easily manipulated. Besides, if we're all going to die in three years, what's the point of finishing this degree? What's the point of anyone planning a future when the universe is going to implode in a few short years? If I thought for one minute that that was true, I'd kill myself. As I said in class today, the best form of getting revenge on people is by outliving them! Now, my belief, when it comes to the whole 2012 theory, is that maybe the Earth may simply change hands to the next civilization. All civilizations die out eventually, and every revolution carries the seeds of its own destruction. It's much more plausible, so I don't think we're facing the end of all creation in my lifetime. Besides, if the world ended and I died with it, I wouldn't have a chance at being sent back, and I don't think I got it quite right yet! When and if the torch must be passed, hopefully we can leave something worthwhile behind.
See you in Montana on First Contact Day, I'll bring the treats!
I finally got my blinis to turn out satisfactorily this week, and I made eggplant caviar and roasted red peppers to top it with, I think Chef Gordon came up with a nice plate presentation for it, and it tastes great! I'll go lighter on the garlic with tomorrow's batch, it's easy to get carried away. I love the sharp, clean smell of garlic! As is usual in the lab, we had an impromptu picnic when Ross made a batch of tasty barbecue pork kabobs. I ate too much in the lab to want anything for actual lunch! With my eating habits, I'm surprised I haven't needed to invest in bigger pants since I began this program!
Last week my class visited Tassel Ridge Winery just outside of Oskaloosa, that was a really fun field trip. I had a lot of questions about growing wine grapes in Iowa. Tassel Ridge was opened just under three years ago, in March of 2006. Every year that they've been in operation, their production has been steadily growing. While some of their wines boast 100% of their juices come from local grapes, they still rely on some product brought in from California for other wines. We got a brief tutorial of the basic varietals of wine grapes, some of which was a repeat from Fine Dining class and my own "personal research" ;-) I learned that for the first three years of growing grape vines, you're not supposed to let it produce fruit, in order to ensure strong branches and healthy vines. Once it produces fruit, all of the nutrients the plant draws in go to the grapes instead of fortifying the rest of it. By limiting production, it significantly increases quality in the final product. I could go on for much longer about the things I learned at the winery, but I have other things to write about.
Last Friday we held the annual ACF Scholarship Awards Dinner, which I helped serve. I came early to help make sure the kitchen was clean and in good order, then I started setting up the dining room. The awards recipients were all paired up with a chef to prepare a course of the dinner. Some of my classmates helped out in the kitchen, but any time I popped my head in it felt like if I jumped in I would be in the way. The kitchen at Bridge View is large, but we had it filled to its bursting point. I was content just to peek in and watch for a few minutes between dining room inspections. Before the dinner itself there was a cocktail hour, with passed hors d' oeuvres and sparkling wine. That part was fun, meeting and greeting our guests, popping champagne corks, it all had such a sense of occasion to it. When everyone trickled into the dining room and sat down, the dinner began, and I finally got an accurate head count to send back to the kitchen. I'll have to find out if anyone took pictures from the dinner, everything was so beautifully plated that nothing I could say to describe it would do it justice. They varied from simplistic to extravagant, each chef and student assistant fully used this rare opportunity to pull out all the stops.
My instructor, Chef Gordon, gave us all a scare that night when he left abruptly after cocktail hour. We were assured that he was all right and merely "needed rest". When he wasn't in class on Monday, I was getting worried about him, especially when the word was that he was seeing a doctor in Des Moines. Thankfully, he returned to class yesterday, much to our collective relief. He just needs to start taking better care of himself and quit smoking. Turns out it's bad for you ;-)
Today in class, I mentioned that I'd seen an "event" posted on facebook about an "End of the World" party scheduled for Dec 21, 2012, the supposed date of Judgement Day. I said I might go, but I wasn't really serious about it, and likened it to what I predict to be the biggest Star Trek party in history scheduled for April 5, 2063 (First Contact Day: that's supposedly when Earth makes contact with Vulcans for the first time. It's a Trekkie holiday. I'll be there in Montana with the rest of the Trekkies!) when my doom-and-gloom classmate staunchly affirmed that none of us will be around to see that, 50 years after the end of the world. I don't go in for all that Mayan calender stuff. They say that hindsight is 20-20, and you can put a spin on any of these "predictions" to make it match up to what you want it to. It's too easily manipulated. Besides, if we're all going to die in three years, what's the point of finishing this degree? What's the point of anyone planning a future when the universe is going to implode in a few short years? If I thought for one minute that that was true, I'd kill myself. As I said in class today, the best form of getting revenge on people is by outliving them! Now, my belief, when it comes to the whole 2012 theory, is that maybe the Earth may simply change hands to the next civilization. All civilizations die out eventually, and every revolution carries the seeds of its own destruction. It's much more plausible, so I don't think we're facing the end of all creation in my lifetime. Besides, if the world ended and I died with it, I wouldn't have a chance at being sent back, and I don't think I got it quite right yet! When and if the torch must be passed, hopefully we can leave something worthwhile behind.
See you in Montana on First Contact Day, I'll bring the treats!
I finally got my blinis to turn out satisfactorily this week, and I made eggplant caviar and roasted red peppers to top it with, I think Chef Gordon came up with a nice plate presentation for it, and it tastes great! I'll go lighter on the garlic with tomorrow's batch, it's easy to get carried away. I love the sharp, clean smell of garlic! As is usual in the lab, we had an impromptu picnic when Ross made a batch of tasty barbecue pork kabobs. I ate too much in the lab to want anything for actual lunch! With my eating habits, I'm surprised I haven't needed to invest in bigger pants since I began this program!
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