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Everything I learned.....

I'm sure that many of you are aware of the poem, "Everything I know I learned in Kindergarten" well this applies to the kitchen as well. Everything I learned I learned in Chef Tom's kitchen. Sure, I've had many teachers since I started culinary school, and I learned many things from my Grammy and Mom. But the real depth of my knowledge has been learned from Chef Tom this semester. I have learned many things in Advanced Cookery, but I have learned the most while I spent my Tuesday and Thursday afternoons with him. In class we have a few of what I like to refer to as Chef Tom ism's:

Question: How long do I cook this for?

Answer: Until it's done!

Question: How do I cut the asparagus?

Answer: With a knife??

Question: Where is ______(insert any item)?

Answer: If you were Todd.........

Question from Chef Tom: Did you season it?

Answer: There is no other answer but YES!

I have learned the necessity of a prep list, mise en place, and just simply making sure that the walk-in is orderly. 

Garde Manager Competition

Tomorrow is our student day and I just want to make sure that everything is completely prepped. Chef Tom has also let us know that if we come in today we can ask him questions about our food.  When I first started coming in on our non-service days I would spend quite a bit of time prepping other people's dishes. Now I try to do things that Chef Tom needs rather than just doing the things for other people. So first and foremost Lianne and I want to make sure that we have all the vegetables that can be prepped done. Then we need to make sure that there is enough tamale dough for the guests on Friday. We also added a little more jerk seasoning to the cornish game hens. It looks like there are more hens in the hotel pan so I will have to make sure that Mateo knows that we did not prep any more hens. 

The Garde Manager competition is also today; hopefully it will be I opening as I plan to take it in the fall. Wow! I don't know if I'll be able to compete in the competition next semester. The items in the mystery basket were all things that we have cooked with during our time in class act. It was valuable to see how Chef Dean and Chef Kyle grade while in the kitchen. Sanitation, teamwork, and utilization of tools seemed to be a huge thing. Then I stayed to watch the judging of the first two courses. Some of the judges were harder than others. I just hope that I'll be able to accomplish what they have.

Coconut Lime Dressing for Ceviche

2 cups coconut cream

1 clove garlic, minced

1 shallot, peeled and chopped

1 cup lime juice, fresh squeezed is best

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 cups olive oil blend

1 tablespoon chipotle chiles canned in adobo

2 ounces honey

1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar

1 cup cilantro, chopped

Put all ingredients in blender except the oil and blend. Slowly add in oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Ancho Chile (Enchilada) Sauce

20 ancho chiles, dried, seeds, and stem removed

8 onions, large, rough chopped

15 tomatoes, cut into quarters

20 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 cup oil

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 cup cider vinegar

salt and pepper, to taste

2 gallons chicken or vegetable stock

1/2 cup olive oil

cinnamon, to taste

cumin, to taste

chili powder, to taste (Mexican chili powder is best)

1. Place oil, garlic, and onions in large sauce pot and slightly caramelize onions until sweet.
2. Carefully toast dried chiles in low oven until fragrant, careful not to burn.  
3. Simmer chiles in water for 5 minutes to reconstitute, discard water if bitter.
4. Roast tomatoes in oven with olive oil until soft.
5. Add tomatoes, chiles, oregano, vinegar, and stock to pot and simmer for 1 hour.
6. Puree sauce and season to taste.

Masa, masa, masa anywhere masa??

It's the end of the semester and I am sure that as a program in a state school we MUST be over budget. Chef Tom went to three stores on Sunday to try to find the masa and dried corn husks that we need to make our fresh corn tamale dish. Alas, we live on the beautiful island of Maui and if it doesn't make it on the boat then it's just not here. Lianne and I left class yesterday to try to find masa and corn husks. After she and I went to two different stores she remembered a Latino Philipino market on Lower Main Street and low and behold they had masa and husks. When we got back the masa was not the right kind of masa for tamales but that which was perfect for arepas. So my quest for masa was not over until I called three sepearte stores in Kihei, my side of the island, and found six bags of masa at Safeway. I purchased four bags and hoped that it would be enough. Thankfully one bag  is more than enough to make one batch of tamales. 

Fresh Corn Masa Dough

12 cups masa harina

3 teaspoons salt, to taste

6 teaspoons sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 pound butter, softened

2 cups vegetable shortening

8 cups corn water*

14 cups fresh corn kernels

1 bunch fresh basil, chopped

1. Season corn and saute with 4 ounces of whole butter for 2 minutes. Puree half the corn after it is finished sauteing.
2. Place masa, salt, sugar, and baking powder in a mixing bowl fit with the paddle.
3. Add butter and shortening and beat together for 3 minutes.
4. Add the corn water (add almost half of the water) and beat for 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl. If you need to add more water, do so. 
5. Add the corn and basil and beat for 1 minute. Adjust seasoning. Take out the dough and let rest in a covered bowl at room temperature.

I don't like beets

I grew up with grandparents that LOVED beets. They would eat them canned, fresh, or any other way they came. I had a good Mommy that me try things even when she didn't like them. I never particularly cared for beets. Until about a year ago...I happened upon local beets being served in salads in Washington, D.C. restaurants. These were not the slimy, archaically pink, odd tasting beets of my childhood. These were sweet, colorful, delightfully lovely. I loved them with different types of cheeses and a small nut on the plate to give it some crunch. Little did I know I would be come a beet lover. In Hana we roasted beets at least twice a day. I found that I loved to quality check them. I was given the task of prepping for one of the holiday cocktail parties at the main house and beets with goat cheese were on the menu. I was told to add some herbs to the goat cheese and let my imagination go wild. It's amazing how the proper cooking process or just the change in our taste buds over time can have such an impact.

The first week of service I had wanted to make the beet salad but Michelle and Lianne picked it so I worked on vegetables. But I did get to impart some of my wisdom on them. The first time they did the beet salad it was just the dark beets and neither of them really liked the flavor. However on Thursday we received different varieties of beets and after much prodding Lianne finally tried them. She now loves golden beets. I'm just so happy that my Mom taught me to try things more than once. 

Roasted Beets

10 pounds beets (purple, yellow, or white), scrubbed

olive oil (enough to lightly coat the beets)

10 thyme sprigs

salt and pepper, to taste

1. Remove any stems from beets.
2. Rub beets lightly with olive oil, season and wrap in foil with sprigs of thyme.
3. Place in preheated 350 oven. Roast until tender or knife can easily be inserted into the beet.
4. Cool and peel beets when needed

Be careful not to mix dark beets with pink, white, or golden because they will dye them all the same color.

For the amuse this week Chef Tom had me roast the three colors of beets and then Lianne, Aaron, and myself cut them all into cuts that were slightly larger than a bruniose. We kept all the beets separate so that they could be tossed together right before service with a touch of truffle oil and then finished off with goat cheese. I think of all my favorite combinations of food...goat cheese and beets has got to be pretty high up there. 

The only thing that I wish the person that had finished the amuse had done was to put some herbs in the goat cheese. I think the flavor would have made the dish perfect. 

Lamb Cannelloni

Braised Lamb Shank Cannelloni  with Spinach, Blue Cheese, Toasted Pine Nuts, and Lamb Jus

Pasta Dough

32 ounces flour

24 large egg yolks

4 large eggs

6 teaspoons olive oil

4 tablespoons milk

1. Mound flour on board and make well in center
2. Put egg yolks, egg, oil and milk in center. (be careful to make sure that well is large enough to hold everything)
3. Use finger to break yolks and slowly incorporate flour by stirring center mixture. Eventually you wont be able to stir with fingers. 
4. Begin incorporating flour with pastry scraper until dough is formed. (will look flaky but hold together)
5. Knead dough for until silky smooth 10 to 15 minutes.
6. Make sure it is well-kneaded extra 10 minute or in mixer for 5 minutes. 
7. Double wrap dough and let rest for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour.
8. Can be made a day ahead.
9. Roll pasta through pasta maker until very thin about a 1.5 on the pasta machine dial.
10. Blanch the pasta in small sheets cut for cannelloni.

Braised Lamb

lamb shanks

mire poix

1.5 liter bottle of red wine

thyme rosemary

1. Sear off lamb shanks. 
2. Brown mire poix.
3. Deglaze with red wine. Allow to cook down.
4. Place lamb in roasting pan with mire poix and liquid.
5. Cover roasting pan tightly with foil, cook at 350 until the meat falls off the bone.
6. Meat will needed to be pulled off the bone for filling. Be careful to make sure there is no gristle in mixture.
7. Reserve lamb jus for sauce.

Filling

3 onions, diced

1 head of garlic

spinach

pine nuts, toasted

blue cheese

1. Caramelize onions and garlic.
2. Saute spinach with a small amount of butter or oil. Drain spinach well and then squeeze dry in cheese cloth.
3. Pulse lamb meat in food processor until coarsely chopped making sure to make the meat will not put holes in the pasta when rolled.
4. Mix onions, garlic, spinach, lamb, pine nuts, and blue cheese to make filling for cannelloni.
5. Fill cannelloni sheets with mixture in small amounts and roll up no more than one full roll.
6. Place in pan and set so that each cannelloni does not touch the other. Put a small amount of water or stock in bottom of pan. Cover pan with saran wrap and foil creating a steamer.
7. Cook for about 10 minutes.

Lamb Jus

Reduce lamb jus until flavorful and season. Red wine can be reduced and added to the lamb jus but is probably unnecessary.