Weeks 8+9

Week 8 I was serving again. I have come to the point that I am not nearly as anxious about this, and it's pretty much a breeze. Aunt Toshia brought in three of her kids and Harmony and Layla on Tuesday, and since she "never says no!" to my kids, they promptly ordered desserts only (Harmony ordered the whoopie pies

AND the gingerbread men with butterscotch pudding)

and sugary beverages. Oh well. I was in class until 6, what did I care? She got to deal with the aftermath. Haha!! It was a fun surprise, though, and the kids loved getting to see me at school.

Week 9 I was back on Garde Manger with Stacy. Everything went even more smoothly that the first week. The Duck Confit salad had been taken off the menu, and Stacy got to prepare the Amuse Bouche for the day instead, which Chef had prepped the items for. Tuesday, Chef had me mise out a batch of focaccia bread which I then made and baked on Wednesday.

We are getting SO close to the end and I am scrambling to finish up my final projects. There is other big news in my working world, but I will leave that for another post. :D It's pretty friggin' exciting though.

Week 7- Sandwich

This week Stacy and I were on the Sandwich station. The sandwiches we responsible were Pork Cemitas, Bratwurst, Fried Chicken Sliders, and Fried Green Tomato and Shrimp. I decided to be responsible for the Sliders and the Green Tomato sandwich since they both came off the fryer. This also meant I was responsible for the Sweet Potato chips that come as a side to the majority of the dishes that come out of the kitchen. (These photos are from the food show, again. I never seem to remember/have time to take photos this quarter.)

The sliders are served with AI Bacon, pepperjack cheese, sliced avocado, and a lemon remoulade with a side of pickled green tomatoes.

The Green Tomato Sandwich is served with a red pepper syrup, goat cheese spread, and smoked shrimp.

Monday was prep day, and we, once again, managed to get everything done that needed to be done in a timely and organized fashion. We always decide the week before what two dishes we will be in charge of so we can both make lists of what we need to get accomplished. I got the green tomatoes sliced, breaded, and frozen so they just had to be pulled out and into the fryer for service. All the spreads and garnishes were prepared. The only thing I needed to do Tuesday was breading the chicken.

Service went smoothly. I sliced the sweet potato chips a little too thin, but it wasn't the biggest deal in the world. At least they weren't overcooked like the time Marc and I visited the restaurant to eat. Chef CJ came through and tried my chicken and said *in a surprised voice, might I add* "This is really good!" It was definitely seasoned well (season the flour, eggs, AND panko, people!) and juicy due to NOT overcooking. Not rocket science, but I am happy that this is a skill I have learned.

The most annoying part of this station is breakdown because part of that includes cleaning/emptying the fryer. Once you do this, you smell and feel like used fryer oil. Sexy. (I think someone should invent a sarcasm font. It is desperately needed.)

Chef decided that this week our stations will be chosen by luck of the draw...Stacy and I both got "unlucky" and are serving.......A-freaking-gain. Ah well. Now I am REALLY glad I didn't throw out my shirt, tie, and bistro apron.

Week 6- Garde Manger

This week Stacy and I were on the Garde Manger station. We had four dishes- A Lebanese Shrimp Salad, BLT Caesar, Duck Confit, and a Sous Vide Chicken Salad. Stacy took the Duck and Chicken salads, and I took the Shrimp and BLT salads. This worked out well because you, by now, should realize how I feel about raw poultry, and Stacy really didn't want to do the emulsions which I have really come to enjoy.

The Lebanese Shrimp salad is served on grilled pita bread, with Za'atar spiced shrimp, lebneh cheese balls, pickled red onions, and a lemon parsley vinaigrette.

The BLT Caesar is served with AI Pancetta, roasted tomatoes, fresh croutons, shaved parmesan (this week it was grated because we didn't have a block to shave), and of COURSE, Caesar dressing.
(This is the photo from the food show day. I didn't get a photo of one of mine)

Prepping is easy peasy for the most part. Stacy and I are both on the same page for the most part when it comes to organization and cleanliness, and on prep days we get to have some tunes playing overhead. This class has a good camaraderie, and many of us are about to graduate. We all are comfortable with each other and get pretty silly together.

Tuesday was service. I love how much I have picked up working in the industry as far as setting up stations for service. It's pretty much second nature now, which is comforting to feel. The one comment we got from the dining room was that the pita bread under the shrimp salad was hard to eat and a little impractical. Wednesday when I came in, Chef Thompson approached me and we said, almost together, that we should cut the pita into wedges. "You knooooow, Heather...You're alright." That is Chef's classic praise in this lab when someone has done something right or thought ahead.

Next week, Stacy and I will be on sandwich station. We will see how THAT goes, since they seemed to be in the weeds the whole class this week.

Weeks 4+5- Saute

(This is my plating. The other photos are the ones from the food show on week 1. I didn't get the time to take a photo of my veloute this week.)

The last two weeks I was on the saute station for A La Carte. The four dishes that come off saute are:

a Shell Bowl (mussels, clams, and scallops)

Short Ribs and Chili Mac with Potlikker Greens (yes, that's spelled correctly)

A Mushroom Veloute (soup)

and Seared Scallops with Spaghetti Squash. There are two of us on the station, so we each are responsible for two dishes. I was in charge of the Veloute and the Scallops.

Prior to the first Monday, I made a list of everything that needed done and the time each would take. I also made a list of mise en place to gather. This ended up being a huge time saver, as well as helping us stay organized.

Mondays we prep everything for service. I made the Veloute, roasted the squash, and prepped all the items for the Bouillabaisse for the shell bowl. Stacy seared and braised the short ribs and prepared it's sauce, cooked the pasta, and cleaned her shellfish. The Roundswoman prepared the Bechamel for the Chili Mac.

Tuesday we have an hour prior to service to get everything ready. I, again, had made a list of everything left to do and the order we needed to do it in (IE, prepare crackers asap!), the utensils and pots I would need for service, and the plates we were going to need to gather. I realized how much I have actually learned working the line at Nippers when it came time to set up the station and get ready for service. I immediately set up a bain marie on the stove to hold all our hot items that are not prepared a la minute. I set up a sani bucket for my utensils in addition to the one for the station. I gathered our plates and put them in an oven at 175F to keep warm for service. I gathered all the pots and utensils I would need during service. Chef came by and began to tell us several items on that list we needed, and everything was already done.

We warmed our items that were prepared the day before, and I made the crackers and a buerre blanc, as well as thawed and panned the scallops. We set up the cold station and it was time for service!

Service is only two hours long and was over before I knew it. I stayed calm and my scallops came out so wonderfully. It was actually kind of fun working saute, and I enjoyed the experience. Our homework was to prepare a list of what we could do better to improve the flow of service.

The second week on the station was a little...well, absent. This quarter has just been a terrible quarter for being sick and the kids being sick. Such is life, I suppose, but I still felt guilty about leaving Stacy to manage a couple of the days with who(m?)ever Chef decided to throw on the station with her.

Next week we will be moving to Garde Manger!

Weeks 2 and 3

Weeks 3 and 4 were spent serving. This was fairly easy since I did it for a whole quarter previously. Mondays are spent getting the restaurant ready for service. We iron the tablecloths, polish the glasses and silverware and fold napkins, make simple syrup for tea, set the tables, and cut paper for the table tops. When we come in Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, we put together bread baskets, fill the ice well with ice, brew coffee and tea, fill the tiny pitchers with simple syrups and cream for coffee, fill the mini fridge with sodas, place flowers on the tables, turn on the *horrible* music, wheel out the hostess stand, hear about the special of the day and the amuse bouche, pipe butters into ramekins for service, and we are ready for customers.

The restaurant is open from 11-1 Tuesdays and Wednesdays. I was hostess on Tuesday of week 2. As hostess, it is my job to greet and seat customers, ring in to go orders and take payment for them, and answer the phone.

The internet at the school was down that day, so noone received an email letting them know we were open. We had barely any customers. Wednesday I had two tables, one of which was the new head of culinary at AI, and also the HEAD of culinary at all AI who was visiting the school. No pressure. It all went well, though, and the week was over.

Monday of week 3 I had a mandatory meeting I had to attend at work at 10AM. Tuesday and Wednesday were service days, again, and I had one table each day.
(Chef Heidi and three staff of AI)

I am finding it more and more challenging to keep a positive attitude as I near the very end. Actually, I'm finding it downright impossible. The majority of this is due to the changes that have been taking place at the Art Institutes. The rest of it is due to the fact that I am completely burned out. School, work, kids, homework, housework...I am mentally breaking down. I've been informed that I "will not just flip the eff out and lose it" by a licensed professional. That is slightly comforting. "Make it to the end of December" has become my mantra. 8 more weeks. 8. More. Weeks.

Last Quarter!

This quarter is my last. I am taking A La Carte, which is the class that produces the food for the school's restaurant, Passport, and is a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday class. I am also taking Capstone, which is the class that ties all the previous classes together so you walk out with a business plan for opening a restaurant and is scheduled on Tuesday after A La Carte. It is also the class in which you take your final cooking exit practical.


A La Carte started week 1 with us being given the menu for the restaurant and choosing stations for the first three weeks. Since I hated serving SO MUCH, I decided to just get it out of the way. The servers were split among the stations for the first week to help with some prep items, as well as to just kind of get a feel for how it would go. I was put on Pastry.

Tuesday of week 1, I woke up not feeling well AND it was my birthday, so I decided to stay home and take a mental health day. Wednesday I returned to school and we had a "Food Show" so we could view all the dishes the restaurant would be putting out.

Pastry items include Butterscotch Pudding with Gingerbread Men (too large, in my opinion), and Whoopie Pies.

I may not end up working the Pastry Station in the actual rotation, since I need the least practice on this station, so I'm including the photos here. Pastry is also in charge of putting out the bread baskets daily.

Next week I will be serving. Again.

Almost There

This will cover weeks 8 and 9. I didn't post last week, week 8, because it was only a one day class due to Labor Day, and because my dish turned out horribly. I think we all need days like that sometimes to keep us humble. haha. I had a good idea for the dish, but it just didn't work out like I wanted it to.

I wasn't too thrilled about the recipe anyways, but disliked it the least out of all the other recipes. The recipe was for Warm Berry Soup. *pauses to let this sink in* It was to be served with a mint ice cream. This was where I ran into the first problem. We were low on mint. One table used all that was left, so I went down to the "herb garden" to pick more. There was hardly any there. This meant I had to overcompensate for the mint taste by adding more creme de menthe than the recipe called for. It was ok tasting, but definitely not what it could have been. I put it in the freezer to hold it and finish setting up while I worked on the other components.

The soup itself called for raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries simmered and slightly mashed. I hate, hate, HATE raspberry seeds. I simmered the strawberries and raspberries, strained them to remove the seeds, them added in the blueberries for the chunks of fruit. This component worked well and tasted good, but a warm berry "soup" doesn't stand well alone.

The recipe said to serve with the ice cream in the soup. Right. Cold ice cream melts when it hits warm soup. So I decided to make a tart dough bowl for the soup, then serve the ice cream on the side. This would have worked, except someone turned off the oven somewhere during the tart baking process so they didn't finish in time. My ice cream was also SUPER soft (maybe due to the added liquor?) so it wasn't holding up when I tried to plate it on the side. This meant I served the soup as the recipe said and it looked like a disaster. I was so annoyed. I didn't even want to talk about it when I got home that night. And I definitely didn't take a picture. Oh well. Can't win 'em all, right?

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This week was a different story. Thursday I made a chocolate almond flourless cake. I cheated and used almond flour instead of toasting the almonds and pulsing them in the food processor. This recipe also called for just chopping up the chocolate finely and folding it into the batter as opposed to melting it down and folding it in.
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I had the idea of making this plate into a s'more type dessert. I saw a recipe for graham crackers on The Busty Baker's Blog a few days ago and really wanted to try them. I made some tiny ones for garnish, as well as a couple larger ones to use as the base of the dessert. Then I made a simple meringue to pipe on as the marshmallow portion of the s'more, as well as to give it the melty texture that s'mores are known for. I toasted this with a torch. I also made a ganache to use as decoration on the plate, and to fill the cake with for the melted chocolate element.

I also chose to make a chocolate cake shot to go with one of the plates. This is equal parts vodka and frangelico served with a lemon wedge dipped in sugar. You take the shot and immediately bite into the lemon. It tastes just like chocolate cake!!!

Friday I chose to make Salt Cod and Potato Pancakes. Apparently this is a staple dish in Europe that everyone grows up eating. It was to be served as an appetizer. I chose to make a lemon sauce to go with the cakes made by sauteing shallots in butter and olive oil, followed by adding some roasted garlic and fresh thyme. I strained this, then, and whisked in some white wine and lemon juice. It went really well with the cakes. I also took some shredded parmesen to bake and make discs for a garnish, along with some fried thyme. I was surprised by how well it all tasted together. I wasn't thinking that I would be a huge fan of the dish, but I actually enjoyed it with all the components.

Onto week 10!!! Two weeks left in this quarter, then I will be in my LAST QUARTER!!!!!!! It can't come soon enough.