Archive for February, 2010

Feb 26

Week 8 – Exams and Comfort Food

The past two weeks have been intense. Due to the snow, we had a makeup class last Friday on my beloved day of rest. Saturday was Open House, where we had to work the buffet. Sunday was spent catching up on recipes and studying for exams. And making homemade pasta again and again until I finally mastered it. This week our recipe notebooks were due and we had our second written and practical exams. I’m up to around 130 recipes, if I’m counting correctly.

As usual, we made amazing food. I’m wouldn’t say I’m exactly refined in the kitchen but I think I’m making slow and steady improvements. My second practical exam went much smoother than the first one. Though several times Chef walked by and told me to breathe. And every time he said that I realized I was in fact holding my breath. I don’t know how to be calm and speedy at the same time. I need to work on my kitchen zen.

But I’m so happy to be there. I don’t know exactly where I’ll end up after graduation but aside from my travel adventures I haven’t felt this alive in years. Culinary school is where I’m supposed to be.

Between the weather and exams, I’ve been craving comfort foods recently. School has made me a huge fan of soup. And nothing goes better with soup than fresh bread. I know bread-making is just around the corner because Chef has begun teasing us with fresh baguettes and focaccia throughout the day. In the past two weeks we’ve made naan and cornbread, both of which I loved. I thought I’d share the cornbread recipe with you.

Also on the menu this week was a delicious cauliflower soup. Not something that would typically be pared with cornbread but I made them both one evening and they went surprisingly well together! The cauliflower soup is rich with a delicate flavor, and the cornbread is one of the lighter, tastier versions I’ve tried. You might want to make them separately. This soup would go well with hearty artisan bread. The cornbread goes great with chili or pork chops.

Feb 11

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Valentine’s Dinner For Two

2011 © copyright Savory Simple, all rights reserved

Classes have been canceled for the rest of the week! I’m not surprised; it looks like the end of the world outside. We had over two feet of snow this weekend and in the past 24 hours we were hit with another huge blizzard. I’m getting a bit stir crazy. Someone suggested I put together a Valentine’s Day dinner menu. Perfect idea!

I’ve put together a menu I think you’ll love. It’s not too heavy but is rich with flavor. It’s also not super complicated. There shouldn’t be any stress over a Valentine’s Day dinner! On the menu is: chicken with a savory pan sauce, rice pilaf, broccoli, and chocolate mousse to finish.

You can make the mousse in advance and let it chill until just before dessert.
You can blanch the broccoli next, since you’ll finish cooking it before serving.
Next take care of the rice, which can be kept warm under parchment paper while you cook the chicken last.
You can finish the broccoli before serving dinner but make sure you time it with the chicken so that everything is served warm.

If this seems like too much, you can skip the rice or broccoli and just serve the chicken with one side.

Feb 7

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Homemade Chicken Stock

I’ve mentioned the importance of homemade stock over store-bought products. There are countless recipes for stock on the internet, but I thought I’d post one here.

There are two types of stock: white and brown. The main differences between them is that the bones and vegetables are roasted when making brown stock, and tomato paste is an ingredient. Both should be made with raw bones, a detail I’ve noticed is missing from many recipes. You want raw bones because the prized ingredient in stock is collagen, a natural protein found in animals. Collagen is used to make gelatin, which is then used to make an assortment of commercial products from marshmallows to jello and some low-fat yogurts. This gelatinous material is what gives homemade stock the thick, rich flavor found in many restaurant sauces. Not only do commercial stocks lack collagen, they are often full of salt and even sugar. Real stock should be salt free, so you have the option to season your dishes to the desired level.

Stock pots come in a variety of sizes; mine holds eight quarts, which is kind of small. Stock isn’t difficult to make but it takes time. You might as well make it in large batches.

I made chicken stock this weekend. I bought three whole chickens, broke them down, and used the carcasses in the stock. The next day I used the dark meat for coq au vin, which you can make following the exact recipe I posted for beef bourguignon. Just swap out the beef chuck for legs and thighs.

Another option for making chicken stock is to buy bulk raw chicken wings, which are sold in the freezer section at most grocery stores.

Feb 5

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Week 5 – Are you going to blog about that?

I learned an important lesson this week: don’t mention your culinary school blog while at school because heckling will ensue. I also realized that I cannot stay up late on a school night. I become practically useless in the kitchen.

More importantly, I learned about food! Among other things we made puff pastry, grilled fish, coq au vin, melting hot chocolate cake, decadent mashed potatoes… and started learning about food costing, which may be a challenge for me. I’m kind of embarrassed to admit that I haven’t touched math in at least 10 years. It’s a shame because I used to be pretty good at it. Now, my head spins while trying to figure out how to put the numbers together. I know what I’ll be studying this weekend.

And it may be an extra long weekend! We’re supposedly in for a blizzard. I stopped by the grocery store to pick up ingredients for stock and I’ve never seen so much madness.

During these chilly winter months, I can’t get enough soup. It’s warm, comforting, and simple to make. I thought that in honor of this week’s blizzard I’d offer up a yummy version of potato leek soup. In Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child states “Leek and potato soup smells good, tastes good, and is simplicity itself to make.” I love Julia and I like her recipe, but I really really like this recipe. Again, I highly recommend using homemade stock. It’s easy to make and the results are dramatically different. Real chicken stock contains collagen (gelatin) from the bird, which gives a richness and thickening power to recipes that cannot be replicated by store-bought products.