Week 8- Skills

We are to the point in Skills class where we are plating things properly once we have finished cooking them. We are given a "menu" to prepare with at least two complete plates of food. Chef is now checking to make sure we are plating correctly as well as making sure that our food tastes how it should. He helps us with plating when we need it, all without making us feel like idiots. I'm sure this is hard for him sometimes. Haha.

This week we made pan fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and collard greens for one plate and trout meuniere with fried green tomatoes for the other. We tend to do things more as a team instead of individually unless he specifies otherwise. This week, I was especially thankful for that.

I have a confession to make. I got a horrible, horrible grade on a quiz. It was a quiz over vegetables and sometimes the questions he asks are in the tiniest box off to the side of the page or one little niblet of information buried deep in the reading. If any of you know me, you KNOW I read and study. Chef and I have had conversations about the questions on his exams. His point is that if he puts things on there, and we get them wrong, we will remember it from then on BECAUSE we got it wrong where we probably wouldn't remember that piece of information otherwise. I get his point. I just get irritated that it affects my grade. However, all that aside, I approached him after the bottom dropped out of my stomach when I saw my grade and asked him what I could do to bring that grade up. He, apparently, had been expecting me to approach him because he was kind of laughing at me. He told me to put on a pot of chicken stock and that would help raise it. I jumped on that as soon as it was out of his mouth. Then I asked if that made it an "A". No. Get the three people who need to do make up labs to fill out the learning contract and turn it in to Ridsdale by the end of class and it will be even higher. Done. *Although Curtis was giving me a hard time about it because I made him mad by telling him I didn't like his new whisk tattoo. I know, I know. You hate me, Curtis. It's ok. I hate you, too. I think you really hate me because I stayed in longer than you at poker, though.*

Back to the point, I was running around doing these extra things. I guess my whole team was feeling kind of lazy Friday, though, so it didn't really matter. We all were working at a leisurely pace but we still managed to get everything done by 10:30am. I made the mashed potatoes and helped season and bread the chicken. Curtis made the green tomatoes and fish and Natane made the collard greens and actually pan fried the chicken. I plated with the help of Chef and made the sauce, again, with the help of Chef since the pan was washed with the drippings before it was realized it was needed to make the sauce. So we made a sauce from sherry, butter, shallots, parsley, salt and pepper. It tasted amazing and we used it with the fish and with the addition of a little cream, with the chicken, as well. I like how he will go out of his way to help us do that something extra to make the plate awesome instead of just, "You're in Skills, it doesn't matter how the plate looks." I'm glad he helps us practice our plating skills from the beginning so we can get in the habit of doing it correctly.

Here are our finished plates.




We didn't have school Friday because of Memorial Day. Marc and I were able to have Thursday night, Friday, and Friday night ALL BY OURSELVES because friends of ours agreed to take the kids so we could have some time alone. Amazing! It was like being able to BREATHE for a day because the only people we were responsible for were ourselves. We haven't had that in almost five years. It was SO needed and I feel so refreshed. It was a day where we didn't think about what someone else needed or schoolwork or work *for Marc* or anything. We were just...together. I love how after almost 6 years of marriage, we still LIKE being together. I know I CRAVE time alone with Marc when we don't have it for awhile. I am so thankful for that. It's especially important that we stay connected with how busy we are and I am continuously grateful that Marc feels the same way and that we give it such priority. I <3 you, Marc!

Week 8-baking

This week in baking we made cinnamon swirl raisin bread, hot cross buns, and used the danish dough we made last week to make pastries- I made mine into bear claws, some made theirs into pinwheels.

The cinnamon swirl and hot cross bun dough were easy peasy. The raisins were a little difficult to knead in because they were conditioned first *soaked in hot water to rehydrate a little* so they were slippery and the dough was slippery from the butter that gets added at the end. Those two things together made it so the raisins just kept slipping out. It was odd, but in the end it all worked out.

The hot cross buns were interesting. They had cardamom in them which I have never had before, along with cinnamon, cloves, and allspice. I drizzled them with a sinfully rich and indulgent glaze made only from confectioners sugar and- wait for it- heavy whipping cream. Seriously, there is no other word but sinful to describe that glaze. It was so thick and creamy and complemented the rolls perfectly.


We formed our laminated dough this week, as well. A laminated dough is one that you mix and then roll into a rectangle, spread with softened butter, fold in thirds to encase the butter in the dough, refrigerate to let the dough and butter harden. Then you take it out, roll into a rectangle again, fold in quarters, refrigerate, and repeat. Once all the "turns" have been completed, you have puff pastry that you can form into many other things. I made mine into bear claws with almond cream in the center. They were delicious, but SO unhealthy.


It was also Chef Mattern's birthday on Tuesday, so CJ enlisted my help to make a plate for him. I warmed the chocolate and she piped the words on the plate while I made some chocolate covered strawberries. Then I chose a pastry from another team *ours weren't out of the oven yet*, sprinkled it with powdered sugar for effect, and arranged it on the plate and put it on his desk for him to find later.



I also got my latest quiz back and I was the ONLY one who got the bonus question right this week. I haven't had a single quiz/test in baking that I have received under 100%. That makes me thrilled.

Next week we are making cookies and brownies!

Skills weeks 5, 6, and 7

I know I've been sadly behind in Skills postings. I think the reason is that I have to do a journal for that class *Chef CJ counts my blog as my journal for Baking* and so I do that part and then don't feel like writing AGAIN about it here more candidly. I suppose I could just copy and paste the journal entries, but they are much more formal than I usually write in here. Better than nothing, though, huh? So for now, to catch up, I'm going to paste the journal entries and then go through and insert anything I feel is worth inserting.

Week 5-
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Objective: Braised collard greens, blanched green beans, steamed broccoli, tempura veggies, grilled veggies, and roasted butternut squash
Utensils used: Chef’s knife, rubber spatula, slotted spoon, tongs, emulsion blender, deep fryer, steamer
Today I learned:
How to braise vegetables
How to make tempura batter and use the fryer
How to use the steamer
What braised collard greens taste like

Personal observations: Today was a veggie-riffic day. I was excited to try collard greens as I had never tasted them before. I was satisfied with how they turned out, but was told by Natane and Chef that the greens should cook a little longer. I put them back on and got caught up plating my squash and ended up burning it. I, personally, tasted some other students and I preferred how mine was originally. I didn’t like it completely wilted, I preferred just a little bite to it.

The blanched green beans and steamed broccoli were things that I had had before, but I did learn how to use the steamer, which was new for me. The tempura batter was easy to make, but it got soggy as soon as it began to cool after frying. The oil in our fryer was also disgusting which made it a little more unappetizing, as well. The grilled vegetables turned out well and I was happy to learn to oil/butter a little and then season them before grilling.

My favorite was the butternut squash. I mashed it with some butter and a little cinnamon and then pureed the remainder with a little cream, strained it to form a little sauce, and plated it as a heart with the sauce around it. Natane loved it and she doesn’t usually like squash. Chef thought it tasted good, too.



Friday, May 7, 2010
Objective: glazed beets, glazed carrots, cauliflower gratin, ratatouille, sautéed green beans, stir fried summer squash
Utensils used: Chef’s knife, rubber spatula, slotted spoon, tongs
Today I learned:
When to add dry/fresh herbs when cooking
How to glaze beets and carrots
What the texture should be when glazing beets and carrots
How to prepare cauliflower gratin
What ratatouille is and tastes like *amazing!*
Practiced my knife cuts
Practiced béchamel sauce
Practiced flipping/tossing things in a sauté pan without utensil

Personal observations: The glazed beets and carrots turned out well. They had a nice caramelization on the outside and were tender on the inside. Chef an Curtis both like them. I ate almost all the carrots. I’m still not a fan of beets.


I learned to add dry herbs towards the beginning of cooking to extract the flavors but to add fresh at the end because it does not need as long to do the same thing. I absolutely LOVED the ratatouille. I got to practice knife cuts and learned a way that I like eggplant. I am excited to make ratatouille at home for Marc. Chef, Curtis, and Richard all enjoyed the ratatouille, as well. Chef also kind of laughed at me for my love of plating items creatively. I can’t help it. I love it.

We finished the cauliflower gratin right at the end of class so I didn't have time to mess with the plating of it. I got a picture of what the dish itself looks like, though.

I got to practice flipping things in the sauté pan, which I am getting much better at. Over all, I would say it was a decent day, even though we, along with many other students, didn’t have time to prepare the sautéed green beans or stir fried squash.


Week 6-
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Objective: Mashed Potatoes Duchesse,Tournee Pomme Anglaise, Croquettes, Au Gratin Potatoes, Pommes Lyonnaise, Baked Potatoes, Gnocchi

Utensils used: Chef’s knife, rubber spatula, slotted spoon
Today I learned:
-The key to successful mashed potatoes is to make sure the potatoes are DRY
-You need to have stiff potatoes to pipe the croquettes and duchesse or they will just “plllllllbth”
-It takes some work to make sure your gnocchi will turn out right


Personal observations: There were SO many potato dishes going today. I wish I had realized that and gone through my recipes and made a list of what to do in what order- which recipes needed boiled/baked potatoes, etc. I think it would have made it easier to keep track of everything. Overall, we got everything done, but it was a little confusing at times.
The gnocchi ended up falling apart/being kind of gummy. Natane and I had split up some of the work, so I’m not exactly sure why that happened. I am going to practice at home at some point to get a feel for it. This is a picture of someone else's gnocchi.

I was better at tournes today. Marc just ordered me a bird’s beak knife that matches my kit, so I’m excited to get that and see how much easier it is.

The flavor of my duchess potatoes were really good. I didn’t love them once they were baked, though. They were kind of dry and just...blah.

The croquettes, however, were delicious. I tasted someone elses and loved them. I loved the flavor of mine before they were fried, but I don’t think I let them fry quiiiiite long enough. This, again, is a picture of someone else's.




Friday, May 14, 2010
Objective: Rice pilaf, Risotto, steamed rice, died pasta, polenta, spaetzle
Utensils used: Chef’s knife, rubber spatula, slotted spoon, whisk
Today I learned:
-Spaetzle can be made many, many different ways. There is not one “right” way to form the dough before cooking. Some rolled it, some cut it into strips.
-To brown rice, you need to have oil in the pan. Watch that it doesn’t burn because it quickly goes from brown to burned.
-How to work the steamer
-What polenta is supposed to look and taste like

Personal observations: I learned that I do not like dark brown pilaf. I like it slightly browned, but don’t like the flavor when it gets very dark. I am learning to trust my palette more. Chef has not had to tell me that I should add more salt/pepper lately. Natane and Curtis and Richard all liked my polenta and risotto. I didn’t care too much for Curtis’. It was too “wine-y.”
Left to right: pilaf, risotto, polenta, spaetzle



Week 7-
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Objective: truss chicken, fabricate chicken, roast chicken, vichy carrots, sautéed green beans, wild rice pilaf, stock *3 pots!*, sugar cookies
Utensils used: Chef’s knife, rubber spatula, slotted spoon, filet knife
Today I learned:
-That when sautéing green beans, you need to cook them completely first in boiling water, shock them, and hold them until service. Return to boiling water to heat up BEFORE sautéing because just sautéing them will overcook them and make them shrivel up.
-The reason Chef puts crazy questions on the quizzes is to teach us things we normally would not learn this early and help it stick in our brains. Terragon is the seasoning in a béarnaise sauce.
-What an oblique cut is
-How to truss a chicken
-How to fabricate a chicken
-The ratio for wild rice pilaf
-Center of the plate presentation to help keep food hot. Build UP when plating. This picture was taken before I learned about that.


Personal observations: I usually hate touching raw chicken but I “manned” up today and did what needed to be done. I trussed a chicken, wearing rubber gloves, but then decided that it wasn’t worth it and fabricated the chicken bare handed. It really wasn’t that bad and I felt a great sense of accomplishment being able to do this without whining. I couldn’t share this, though, because I knew people would probably not understand and make fun of me. Haha. I’m working on getting over my squeamishness of raw meat. It’s more a sanitation thing for me. I think knowing we had the sanitation bucket and sink right there really helped me. I did turn my apron around before making cookies, though.

I, literally, dreamed about trussing a chicken after doing it yesterday. I just keep going over and over it in my head, I guess. It wasn’t difficult and I got it on the first try. Sometimes I just think about all the things we learn SO much that they keep going when I get to sleep.

I am happy that I am getting more comfortable doing “real” cooking and not just baking. I definitely am feeling more in my element as time goes on.



Friday, May 21, 2010
Objective: Top sirloin, chicken chardonnay, tomato duxelle, broccoli hollandaise, mashed potatoes, pommes anna

Utensils used: Chef’s knife, rubber spatula, slotted spoon, carving knife, tongs
Today I learned:
-Carving of a top round
-trussing of meat
-how to blanch/peel/seed a tomato
-potatoes for pommes anna need sliced very thin
-how to cryovac

Personal observations: I did not love the carving of the top round. It reminded me too much of my anatomy and physiology class *which I got a “D” in because I stopped going to labs because the cadavers made me too nauseous.* I just don’t love the huge slabs of meat where you see all the muscles and can picture the live animal. I just...don’t. I don’t love the blood or the smell. On top of that, the smoker was going and that smell makes me nauseous, too. I did my best to pay attention, though. Once the steaks were cut, I had no problems handling the individual steaks and trussing them. Natane showed Curtis and I a way to loop the twine over that is easier than the way Chef Ridsdale showed us. She learned it at work.

I loved the mixture for the tomato duxelle. I understand that it is dated to “Three’s Company”, but I still found it tasty. Maybe it can be updated.
I made the mashed potatoes, as well. I’ve been making these a lot at home, and everyone that tasted them loved their flavor. I really need to start bringing in my magic bullet blender to grind up black pepper daily because it’s a pita to use Curtis’ little handheld grinder to get enough pepper for a large quantity of food.
I learned that you need to sear the meat for color and flavor as well as to seal in the juices. You should season the meat prior to searing and the pan and oil has to be HOT before you put the meat into the pan to achieve the correct sear.
I also learned how to make a wine sauce at the end of class that was thick enough to stand on the plate. I learned the amount of sauce you need to put on a plate so the guest has enough to use with meat and potatoes, etc.
I know, I'm silly and like to make faces out of food. I know this presentation would never fly at an upscale restaurant.


Chef Harris made the carrot flowers and I left off the hollandaise sauce from the broccolli. It was made earlier and had kind of congealed so it wouldn't pour, it just would splat. *shudders* When you aren't a huge fan of the sauce anyways, then it's congealed, you REALLY don't want to use it.

Now this is life...

"feels like some kind of ride but it's turning out just to be life going absolutely perfectly" ~Brian Andreas, StoryPeople



Things have been a bit hectic around here for me lately. I have ALOT going on: Classes, homework and studying, parenting, being a wife, showering...and I've taken on Cookies for a Cause to raise money for my sister and her family. Their situation has been weighing on me for some time now, and I wanted so much to be able to help. It's hard to know what to do when you are in Florida and your sister is in Ohio. My best friend started talking about organizing a fundraiser and while mulling that over, Cookies for a Cause popped into my head.

Monica once sent me a card that said to continue using food as my "Love Language." I loved that. I loved that because it's true. I even said in my application process that one reason I love to cook for people is because it is a way to connect with them. Food is such a personal thing to share with someone, as is any craft. You are putting a piece of yourself out there to be either enjoyed or criticized. This is why I don't understand those people who are cooking and have the attitude of, "Eh, it's good enough." Good enough? Good enough, for me, is only when it's my personal best. It's good enough when I have done the absolute best I could do. When someone eats your food, there is such a level of trust there. With many other crafts or jobs, you may look at or use the product, but with food you are putting it IN YOUR BODY. If you don't trust someone, if that person doesn't take the necessary precautions while preparing your food, you could end up really sick.

On the lighter side, though, when you take a bite of something that is absolutely delectable, it can take a really tough day, and at least for a moment, make it a little better. *I'm sure a therapist would say something about not using food for comfort, but in some cases, it's just necessary. I'm SURE you have all had at least one day where you just had to have a piece of chocolate or a good steak and when you took a bite, you closed your eyes and everything went away for the moment that you savored that bite. It may all come rushing back as soon as you open your eyes, but that moment is SO worth it.*

These are a couple of reasons that I love food. I love cooking. I love that this is a way that I can connect and share with people. I love that this is a way that I can help my sister. I'm busy. I am extremely busy. I love it, though. I am loving every single second of it. I was a stay at home mom for over 5 years including pregnancy. I loved it. I was so thankful for the opportunity to spend the time with Harmony and Layla. It was also a little monotonous at times, though. The same routines, the lack of mental stimulation, busy in a different way. I had to work to stay busy and engaged. There are only so many times you can sing Twinkle, Twinkle before your mind starts to drift. You begin to worry about things not because they are actually worth worrying over, but because your mind has nothing else to do. I am absolutely positive that many of the stay at home parents out there know this feeling.

Being this busy is a wonderful feeling. It may be stressful at times, but I wouldn't change it. Sometimes that extra stress is what gives you that push to really get things done and to blow people away. I may not have the time I used to have to exercise as much as I was able to when I was just staying at home, but I'm learning to be ok with that. I feel like the things that are the most important right now are being taken care of, for the most part. I am happier than I have been in a long, long time. I am doing something I love. I am so thankful for that opportunity every single day. I am thankful for the support of my amazing husband, my family, and my friends. Not everyone gets to do what they love for the rest of their lives. It blows me away daily that I have been given this chance and I am making the most out of every second of it.

Week 6 baking

This is going to be short because I am exhausted. This week in baking we made pizza. I chose to make a hawaiian pizza with bbq sauce, sliced fresh pineapple, mushrooms, and bacon topped with, of course, mozzarella cheese. It turned out well and I shared it with my friend, Natane, who has America Regional in the lab next door.



We also made onion bread rings which I didn't taste because Marc won't kiss me after I eat onions. It looked like it came out good, though, although we forgot to add herbs in during the mixing stage so we kneaded them in later and they didn't get very evenly distributed.


We made English muffin loaves this week, as well. Ours was a definite fail- probably because the pan was sprayed with pan spray and then was supposed to be sprinkled with cornmeal and then the batter should be poured in. Someone forgot the cornmeal, though, poured in the batter, remembered the cornmeal, poured out the batter, didn't wipe out the pan or pan spray it again, kind of sprinkled it with cornmeal, and then poured the batter back in. So...I wasn't surprised it failed. Here is a picture of a properly made loaf, though.


We then finished the day by making milk bread. When this guy was done, I thought it looked like a caterpillar, so I made it so. How do you like the little guy? The texture and the taste of the bread was nice- a little sweeter than the breadsticks we made the other week, and little more moist.


Now I am off to study for class tomorrow. At some point I will update on Skills last week.

My Sweet Neice, Danica

Some of you know about my sister, Monica, and her daughter, Danica, and the struggle that their family has been facing. Danica was diagnosed with Chiari shortly before her second birthday. She has already had one brain surgery in November. After a period of hope where her symptoms were reduced dramatically, everything has come crashing down again as the symptoms began to return and scans have shown that things are much worse than anyone had predicted. She is facing a multitude of surgeries in her future, some in her very immediate future and some throughout the course of her life.

To read more about the exact things going on, or to keep up to date on her condition, you can read my sister's blog. She began the blog in an effort to keep everyone thinking and praying for Danica informed on what is going on. You can imagine that she cannot possibly have the time or even emotional strength to speak to each and every person who is concerned for them, so in this way people can still continue to stay connected to them and the situation. To read more, you may wish to visit the blog yourself.
To read more, you may wish to visit the blog yourself.


As they make their way down this extremely difficult road, they are faced with many challenges. It is difficult enough to stay emotionally stable *or as close as you can be when your 2 year old is being poked and prodded and going through a multitude of medical tests* but on top of that, they are facing extreme financial distress. They have doctors appointments almost daily, and on top of that they are having travel expenses because with the recent knowledge of how bad her condition really is, they have been referred to a specialist in Iowa. Many of the doctor appointments up to this point have been in Cleveland which is still a costly drive when you have to do it daily. They have vehicle maintenance that also comes with such frequent, lengthy travel. Then they have copayments for daily doctors appointment and also, even once their deductible has been met, they have to pay 20% of the surgeries. They are trusting God to provide, but it is still a stress for them to have to think about finances on top of trying to focus on their little girl and making all the tough decisions about which path to take for treatment.





I am telling you all this so you can get a feel for where they are at. I am not asking you to simply give money to them, although if you are moved to do so that would be an amazing blessing to them and there IS a donate button on the blog. All of this has weighed heavy on my heart and I have been trying to come up with a way to help. What I have come up with is Cookies for a Cause. Many of you have enjoyed my sugar cookies in the past. What I have decided to do is to offer these cookies for sale with 100% of the proceeds going to help give a little peace of mind to my sister and her family. I will gladly ship these cookies to anyone who wishes to purchase them.

The cookies are priced as follows:

$10- baker's dozen (13 cookies)

If you need these shipped to you, there will be a shipping fee of $5 on top to maximize the proceeds that will go to my sister. If there is some other baked good that you have seen me make and you would like me to make it for you instead of the cookies, just let me know and we can work something out. The way I am going about the payment process if you are out of town is through my etsy site. I have single listings available at the moment, but if you would like to order something special, contact me and I will create a listing for you and provide you a link. If you would like to make a donation on top of the order price, let me know and I will add it to the listing price OR you can just go donate on the blog page. If you would rather send a check in the mail instead of electronically, let me know and I will give you the address. Feel free to share this with your friends, coworkers, etc.


Here is the etsy listing

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers even if you are unable to purchase cookies or donate. :) PLEASE let me know if you have any questions at all!!

Week 5- Baking

We had our midterm this week in baking. We have only covered two chapters so far- quick breads and yeast doughs. The yeast doughs chapter, however, is very lengthy and contains a massive amount of information. I have read, reread, and reread again and again this chapter. Last week, the quiz was completely fill in the blank. It told us to list the three types of yeast as well as any additional information we could tell about them, with more points being given for more information. Then we had to list the ten steps to making a yeast bread. I flew through it since I had read, reread, and reread more. Apparently others didn't do so well. So far, I have over 100% in the class and I'm fairly confident that it will still be around that number after midterms are graded. There were only two questions that I wasn't 100% confident in the answers, but through the process of elimination I am pretty sure I got them right. Even if I did miss them, though, I know that I got the 10 point bonus question correct.

Once the midterm was over, the recipes for the week were passed out. We made peanut butter banana muffins, chocolate almond bread braid, cocoa bread, and chocolate chip bread. We each had to make a batch of the chocolate chip bread and then our team chose to split up the rest of the recipes. I made the cocoa bread since I have made a ton of muffins and I have also made bread braids at home before *different than the ones that we did in class, but still the same concept.* I ended up helping finish off the bread braid just because I am a girl and have experience in braiding. I decided to do more of a french braid instead of the classic look that most of the people were giving their loaves. Yes, I am aware that our loaf came out a bit...phallic. It was not intentional, as hard as that may be for some of you to believe. I did, however, take advantage of this accidental, humorous mistake and take a funny photo but I will leave you to email me if you would like to see that one.




The peanut butter banana muffins were alright. The texture was perfect- moist and tender- but I thought it lacked flavor. I think it could have used more banana flavor and maybe the addition of some kind of spice. It could just be that I'm not a big peanut butter and banana combination girl. For the photo I cut out a flower of butter and topped it with a white chocolate center followed by a peanut butter chip to really set it off. I also added a walnut "leaf" which is kind of hard to see in the photo.




The cocoa bread was more like a muffin to me. It was good, don't get me wrong, since I am a chocoholic, but it wasn't what I was expecting texture wise. We had a little trouble since the tops began to get a little too dark before the center was cooked all the way through. To remedy this, we placed parchment paper over the tops of the loaves while they finished cooking.




I did like how the chocolate chip bread came out. It was a fluffy bread texture but it was sweet which was a different experience. I have had cinnamon raisen bread before but this was a whole different thing. I noticed that when others followed the recipe exactly and put in their chocolate chips when the recipe told them to, the chocolate began to melt because of the warm water used to dissolve the yeast. This turned their bread brown all the way around. I decided to completely make the dough and knead it to the right consistency, and THEN knead in the chips. This is what the book has said to do- to make any additions at the end so they hold their shape and integrity. This worked much better, and even though they still melted a little, it was nowhere near what others experienced.


After baking, I attended a luncheon that had been set up for those that made the President's list and I received a certificate recognizing that achievement. I am working extremely hard to make sure that I maintain this achievement and earn the award again this quarter.