Meeting Jamie Deen.

Seriously. Could my daughter and I be any more happy in this pic?? We had the opportunity to meet both Bobby and Jamie last night. They are incredibly nice guys. I think Brenna was disappointed a bit, as she was hoping their mama would stop by. No such luck. But, it was a fun evening!

Feelin' Saucy!

Last night I actually made it to my PCII class! Hoooray. It was sauce night. I actually am a big fan of the utilization of sauces to enhance dishes, so I'm always thankful for the opportunity to practice making them. We divided up into teams of 4 and got busy, and it was an incredibly fast paced and crazy night. We made 1 quart of each - Espagnole, Tomato Sauce, Bechemel, Veloute, and then we all attempted a demi glace. Of course there wasn't enough time, in a 3 hour class, to complete this incredibly time consuming sauce.

It's always pleasing when Chef says that we produced a good sauce. He liked the taste of all of them, and said we had near perfect nappe on the Bechemel.

I would like to meet the person who designed the production kitchen. In my own very special way of saying thanks, I'd like to whap him/her upside the head with a baseball bat. The French stoves give off SO much heat, it's like standing in the sun and just letting it beat down on your face. It's awful.... the heat is insane in that poorly designed kitchen. Though, it certainly does foster the need for team work. If you aren't working with your team.... you are pretty much working against the other teams, and that simply doesn't cut it in the kitchen.

We have next week off for the holiday, but I have to start practicing making a Béarnaise as we will have a practical exam on it. I have a feeling that anything less than a perfect sauce is going to result in a failing grade. Ugh.

On a totally unrelated note, today I attended the Scholarship Recognition luncheon at the college. I was this years winner of the Hector Boirdi Culinary Scholarship. The luncheon was fun and I got to meet a couple people from the college who are involved with the Phi Theta Kappa. I've been a member for over a year, but haven't really done anything with the group. Now that I've met the president, perhaps I will. =)

Stocks....

I missed my second PCII class and first kitchen lab. I was spending the evening in the company of the sweetest 11 year old on the planet. Joshua and I had a room at Children's Mercy, where he was being treated for a severe ankle sprain. Thankfully, Chef Head allowed me to make up the class - so I went in yesterday morning at 8AM. Oh, what a long day it was.

We made Fish Fumet, Court Bouillion, and Vegetable Stock. Unfortunately, we didn't produce the exact quantity that we were supposed to, we fell a little short. But, on the bright side... Chef smiled and said, "Oh, that's tasty" when he tasted the fumet and the other stocks.

I spent a bit of time working on hospitality club fliers for both club membership and NYC. I did get quite a bit accomplished. So, despite the fact that it was a horrifically long day- it was a productive one. I was in class until 9:00. I was so exhausted by the time I finally made it home. That drive seemed to take hours!

I've got to get working on my market feasibility study, it's going to take forever.

On a side note, Joshua is in an air cast and walking on crutches. My poor guy. He's being brave, but we can all see how much pain he's in. He'll go to the pediatrician tomorrow for a follow up. The nurse called me yesterday and informed me that there is water on the ankle joint, probably a result of the trauma to his ankle, but I think we need to follow up even further. I'm going to request a referral for my orthopedic surgeon. I'm afraid he's out for most of the football season, though.

Week 1 - Complete.

What have I gotten myself into? Holy toledo.

Yesterday's classes -

• Seminar: Menu Planning & Design
• Seminar: Purchasing
• Interpersonal Communication

The menu planning class is going to be much harder than I could have ever imagined. And, it'll involve a lot more MATH. Oh, how I hate math. My first project is a market feasibility study for my "dream" restaurant. Where is it going to be? What are the demographics of the area? Who is my target consumer? Etc. Once the study is complete, I get to work on the actual planning of the menu, which then needs to be costed out. Oh. My. I think it'll be fun... but challenging.

Purchasing is going to be a great class. I've had Chef Marcellus previously and he's a great professor.

The communications class is going to be interesting. And that is all I really have to say about that. =)

On a totally awesome and positive note, last night I became a student member of the American Culinary Federation.

Culinary School - Year 2.

Last night I started my 3rd semester (2nd year) of Culinary School, it was my first night in the Professional Cooking II class. Chef Head lectured for the majority of the night, most of it was review but he did fill us in on his career as a Chef. Much to my delight, Chef Head is another person for whom the Culinary Arts was a second career. He was in the military for 25 years and once he was retired, he decided to become a Chef. He's incredibly passionate about his craft and inspired me quite a bit after just one night.

Again this semester I am using Professional Cooking, 6th Ed, Wayne Gisslen, John Wiley and Son.

We toured the production kitchen and I freaked out a bit seeing just how little space we have to work with. The kitchen itself is incredible. One could easily run an entire catering business with one row of equipment - steam jacket kettles, a tilt table, a Combi (convection, convention, & steam) oven, salamanders...etc. Ohhhh so much stainless steel!

Next week we'll start right out in the labs, we'll be making:
Fish Fumet
Court Bouillion
Vegetable Stock

I can hardly wait to get into that kitchen!!

Stock to cook is voice to singer. - Anonymous

Julie & Julia

Seriously, I loved this movie. I feel a little bit sad because I didn't really care about Julie's story all that much. I love Julia Child, I always have - I always will. She was America's Escoffier and is my idol. I remember watching her on PBS when I was a little kid. I would laugh at her funny voice, but even way back then... I was learning!

I honestly did not realize that Julia Child was in her late 30s, much like myself, when she decided to go to Culinary School. All this time I've been thinking that I'm too old for such a huge career change. After learning Julia's story, I think I've changed my mind. I'm ready for this.

Thank you Julia. And, thank you Julie for writing the book that became a movie, that taught me more about Julia Child's life before she made the decision that changed her life forever. ♥

Alaska!

I've been absent for a while, and I have a few new recipes to share now that I'm back. However, I have to tell you about my trip to Alaska. =)

My husband and I have been married for almost 12 years, we never had a honeymoon. We decided to take a trip without the kids, and since I hate the heat - it seemed that Alaska was the perfect answer. We went on a Royal Caribbean cruise and had an absolutely amazing time.

I was one of the lucky few who were able to tour the ships' galley and meet the executive chef.

*Oh dear.... I have to cut this short, the kids need me! I'll be back!