Well today is "someday"... finally. I haven't logged in my experiences for a month, and instead of saying someday, I am saying "today', by gollie!
I have finished Cuisine III and a very hairy final. We had to present four courses of 2 identical plates to the Chef in 4 hours. I created the most elaborate timeline which I have developed to date. It worked well. Once I found out what was in the "market basket" I only had a few adjustments that had to be made. I made an asparagus soup, an appetizer... can't remember what it was; the entree was grilled lamb chops, with some kind of vegetables (I can't remember what they were either :-o), and a panko encrusted polenta; dessert was a white chocolate panna cotta with Grand Marnier. I have never experienced a final which everything went smoothly. :-] My hands were shaking so badly during the knife skills portion I wasn't sure if I could cut anything straight. I ask myself, "why are you so stressed over these knife skills?" Myself didn't have a good answer, but the test was survived and I managed an A-.
Last Thursday was the final for the nutrition section. During these nutrition classes we cooked without any fat, sugar or salt... can I just say, you may be able to cook without one, but not the others. At least not at the same time. The best thing we made were oatmeal cookies (applesauce instead of fat). The final was only 3 courses and it seemed like a cake walk (or a nonfat yogurt walk) compared to Cuisine III. We were allowed to choose a nutritional focus - mine was "lowfat/ low cholesterol... not sugarfree!! I made a delightful composed crab salad which had a orange/honey vinaigrette and an entree of sea bass and fruit salsa (pomegranate, orange, blueberries, and serrano chili's) with cilantro couscous and roasted vegetables. The dessert I made was a fruit smoothie (served in a cute little sherry glass) with banana schnapps, and the oatmeal cookies.
I have finally reached a point where I am feeling some confidence and freedom to experiment a little bit in class. It has taken me a while to learn the ropes - to understand what the expectations are and how to meet them. Eureka - free at last!! Why is it these young adult classmates didn't seem to have these barriers I experience? I could probably figure it out, but don't really think it would have added-value to my life, especially since that is water under the bridge at this point. (That is a big bunch of baloney or "hooey" as my father used to say.)
This week we start "Garde Manger" aka salads, charcuterie, etc. We will be working in teams, as usual, but our final will be working in teams as well. I love working in teams! I am a youngest child - I am social! I need brainstorming! I need... people!
