I haven't posted in a while because I've been ridiculously busy and have used all my spare time to catch up on much needed sleep! But I wanted to tell you all about what I've been spending my time doing. I'll start with class. I'm now just over halfway through culinary school (jeepers!), but after volunteering to assist chefs at events and spending a few weekend shifts in a small nyc restaurant kitchen, I realize just how far away from truly being a chef I am. But back to school...In class, we cooked our way rather quickly through France and have now moved on to Italy for la dolce vita. While in Italy, we're making homemade pasta every night. I love it. There is truly something about working with dough that I just love. Its meditative and just relaxes me for some reason. I try to take a good number of pictures of the final product of all our hard work in class and I wanted to share a few of these masterpieces. Plus, I figured it would be easier for me to just let the pictures speak for themselves rather than having to describe it. Here are a few for your viewing pleasure...
Normandy Day - Pork Chops with Apples in a Calvados & Cream Sauce
Alsace - Choucroute Garni - it was just screaming for a good beer
Alsace - Tarte Flambe (another day of loving dough - very similar to a pizza dough topped with a mixture of ricotta, cream cheese, bacon and caramelized onions - yes I do believe they serve this in heaven)
Plating Lessons - Scallops with cauliflower puree and braised cabbage - We practiced plating for a few lessons focusing on multiple colors on the plate, unity, and balance.
Italy - Hand-rolled lamb and mushroom ravioli with a tomato cream sauce
Italy - Hand-rolled fettuccine with tomato sauce
Now for the restaurant work. It's been hard. There's a lot to learn and get used to. First of all, it's hotter than Cabo on the line. Seriously hot. Second of all, you have to move quickly in all your tasks. Before the dinner rush, you're working hard to make sure you have all your prep work done so you don't have any worries during dinner. And during the dinner rush, you're trying to move quickly enough to avoid the tickets from amassing at an alarming rate. The speed is something I haven't quite mastered. And in my various attempts to speed up, I've managed to waste a lot more time by cutting myself more severly than I would like with anything sharp I can find, including a harmless looking peeler. The thing is though, I still keep going back and I love how much I'm learning about what goes into a dish. You'd be amazed how much has to happen for your order to come together at your favorite restaurant. I've been pretty awestruck by it. The last thing I've learned from my view into kitchen life is how young the people that cook for the city are. I mean early twenties. I'm practically a grandma in the kitchen!
Well that's the update from me! I wanted to make sure you all didn't worry...I'm still cooking and loving it!
