Celebrating …. everything
11 years ago
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Day 5, Homework - Banana Blooper!
Homework
All good movies end with a blooper, so a good blog series should probably end with one too, right?
Out of fear of setting off my smoke alarm, I refrained from repeating any of the grilling techniques from class. Ironically enough, I nearly burned down my apartment, terrified my roommates and broke my camera all while trying to flambe a banana...
You HAVE to see this....
Richard Demonstrates How to Flambe a Banana
I really wish at the end he had said "don't try this at home, Sara."
Sara Demonstrates How NOT to Flambe a Banana
I give myself an F for technique, A+ for effort and entertainment value.
Outakes from Class!
I couldn't include all my photos from class on the blog but I didn't want them to just end up on the "cutting room floor," so I posted a public album on Facebook. Enjoy!
Salads from Class!
I took pretty copious notes in class and promised other class members I would share the ingredients for the 10 different vegetable salads we made on Day 5. Figured I'd post them on this blog as well while I'm at it!
Richard didn't provide exact measurements (I think he made them up as he went along) but at least the ingredients provide a good foundation for recreating the recipes.
1) Fennel and Cabbage Slaw with Horseradish-Dill Dressing
2) Guacamole
3) Roasted Califlower w/ Roasted Red Pepper Mayo
4) Potato Salad
5) Jicama Salad
6) Carrot and Raisin Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette
9) Daikon Radish and Cucumber Salad
10) Roasted Red Peppers
Lost my notes on this! Besides the roasted red peppers... I'm guessing olive oil and herbs...perhaps tarragon? Anyone remember? Richard, are you out there? Help!
Richard didn't provide exact measurements (I think he made them up as he went along) but at least the ingredients provide a good foundation for recreating the recipes.
1) Fennel and Cabbage Slaw with Horseradish-Dill Dressing
- Red Cabbage
- Red Onion
- Green Apple
- Fennel
- Dill
- Celery Seed
- Horseradish Mayo
2) Guacamole
- Avocado
- Red Onion
- Shallot
- Tomato
- Cilantro
- Parsley
- Scallions
- Tabasco
- Garlic
3) Roasted Califlower w/ Roasted Red Pepper Mayo
- salt
- pepper
- olive oil
- cauliflower
4) Potato Salad
- Potatoes
- Mushrooms
- Watercress
- Garlic Paste
- Mayo
- Basil
5) Jicama Salad
- Jicama
- Parsley
- Cilantro
- Salt
- Pepper
- Lime Juice
- Olive Oil
- Jalapeno
6) Carrot and Raisin Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette
- Carrots
- Raisin
- Parsley
- Toasted Almonds
- Thyme
- Fennel
- Salt
- Pepper
- Raspberry Vinaigrette (olive oil, dijon mustard, raspberry vinegar, salt, pepper)
- Celery root
- Parsley
- Chives
- Tarragon
- Remoulade (Mayonnaise with conichons, capers, herbs and anchovy paste)
- Roasted beets
- Mint
- Basil
- Scallions
- Sherry Vinaigrette (olive oil, dijon mustard, sherry vinegar, salt, pepper)
9) Daikon Radish and Cucumber Salad
- Daikon Radish
- Cucumbers
- Scallions
- Julienned Ginger
- Red Wine-Sesame Vinaigrette (sesame oil, dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper)
10) Roasted Red Peppers
Lost my notes on this! Besides the roasted red peppers... I'm guessing olive oil and herbs...perhaps tarragon? Anyone remember? Richard, are you out there? Help!
Techniques of Fine Cooking 1, Day 5
Apologies, apologies! I abandoned my blog temporarily just before posting from Day 5 of cooking class. But...I'm back!
After all the buttery french food, this menu was one of my favorites, much lighter and leaner, (I didn't go home feeling like I ate a brick).
Techniques learned:
Vegetable Salads
Sauce Mayonnaise and Variations
Grilling Techniques for Proteins and Vegetables
Flambeing Technique
Menu:
Lexicon:
crudites - vegetables
mayonnaise - emuslified sauce made with egg yolks, oil, mustard and lemon juice
marinade - acid that aids and abets tenderization
flambe - literally "to flame," use alcohol with a high percentage of alcohol then ignite to create "flaming" effect.
Top 5 Lessons I Learned Today:
1) Let your grill or grill pan heat up for a long time before using it. I love my grill pan but have been using it all wrong. It usually takes at least 30 minutes to heat up. In other words, if you live in a NYC apartment, your grill pan is ready when your kitchen is filled with smoke, your smoke detector is on the brink of going off and your roommates are cursing, coughing and frantically trying to prop a fan in the window for ventilation. I wish I were joking...this is how hot your grill pan should be before using it.
2) To make mayo add oil drip by drip to an egg/mustard/acid base. A cool trick is to put oil in a paper cup and then poke a small hole in the cup and hold it over your bowl with your egg/mustard/acid base. This frees up your hands a bit so you can whisk and control the oil flow at the same time.
3) Never oil a marinade. It won't allow the acid to penetrate the meat and when you go to grill the meat it will be really really smoky. (Use oil after you take the protein off of the heat.)
4) Avocado is a fruit! Refrigerate a ripe avacado. To faciliate ripening, put it in a paper bag or a closed space with an apple or pear.
5) When you flambe, 20% of the alcohol stays behind. Use rum, vodka, brandy or everclear.
Quote of the Day:
"There's nothing worse than touching yourself inappropriately and being reminded you just chopped a hot pepper."
Day 5 in Photos
To roast a red pepper let it char on an open flame until it is "96.7% black" (according to Richard). Put it into a container with a lid or paper bag to help sweat off the skin. Then use a paper towel (not water) to get off the char.
Sprinkle salt and pepper from high up to distribute more evenly
Marinating london broil....(should let marinade for 24 hours +)
Beautiful and seasonal vegetable salads!
Vegetarian nightmare!
The finished product... I didn't do such a good job "plating"... Richard says the rim of your plate should act like a picture frame... I say the rim of your plate should be used to hold more food when you are very hungry and your eyes are bigger than your stomach. Beauty is in the stomach of the beholder anyway.
Banana flambe!
After all the buttery french food, this menu was one of my favorites, much lighter and leaner, (I didn't go home feeling like I ate a brick).
Techniques learned:
Vegetable Salads
Sauce Mayonnaise and Variations
Grilling Techniques for Proteins and Vegetables
Flambeing Technique
Menu:
- Grilled London Broil
- Various Vegetable Salads
- Flambeed Bananas with Ice Cream
Lexicon:
crudites - vegetables
mayonnaise - emuslified sauce made with egg yolks, oil, mustard and lemon juice
marinade - acid that aids and abets tenderization
flambe - literally "to flame," use alcohol with a high percentage of alcohol then ignite to create "flaming" effect.
Top 5 Lessons I Learned Today:
1) Let your grill or grill pan heat up for a long time before using it. I love my grill pan but have been using it all wrong. It usually takes at least 30 minutes to heat up. In other words, if you live in a NYC apartment, your grill pan is ready when your kitchen is filled with smoke, your smoke detector is on the brink of going off and your roommates are cursing, coughing and frantically trying to prop a fan in the window for ventilation. I wish I were joking...this is how hot your grill pan should be before using it.
2) To make mayo add oil drip by drip to an egg/mustard/acid base. A cool trick is to put oil in a paper cup and then poke a small hole in the cup and hold it over your bowl with your egg/mustard/acid base. This frees up your hands a bit so you can whisk and control the oil flow at the same time.
3) Never oil a marinade. It won't allow the acid to penetrate the meat and when you go to grill the meat it will be really really smoky. (Use oil after you take the protein off of the heat.)
4) Avocado is a fruit! Refrigerate a ripe avacado. To faciliate ripening, put it in a paper bag or a closed space with an apple or pear.
5) When you flambe, 20% of the alcohol stays behind. Use rum, vodka, brandy or everclear.
Quote of the Day:
"There's nothing worse than touching yourself inappropriately and being reminded you just chopped a hot pepper."
Day 5 in Photos
To roast a red pepper let it char on an open flame until it is "96.7% black" (according to Richard). Put it into a container with a lid or paper bag to help sweat off the skin. Then use a paper towel (not water) to get off the char.
Sprinkle salt and pepper from high up to distribute more evenly
Marinating london broil....(should let marinade for 24 hours +)
Beautiful and seasonal vegetable salads!
Vegetarian nightmare!
The finished product... I didn't do such a good job "plating"... Richard says the rim of your plate should act like a picture frame... I say the rim of your plate should be used to hold more food when you are very hungry and your eyes are bigger than your stomach. Beauty is in the stomach of the beholder anyway.
Banana flambe!
Friday, January 29, 2010
Day 4, Homework
Homework
Even with my new confidence from class... I must admit eggs still make me nervous. But here we go with my homework...
I whisked together three eggs and one teaspoon of water (not milk!)
I made sure to use my non-stick pan.
Turned my stove on high (this part always freaks me out because my stove is from the Stone Age and is completely out of control!) Added a dollop of butter, swirled it around in the pan. Then quickly added the egg mixture.
When egg mixture set, I sprinkled cheese down the middle like this....
Then, used my spatula to flip over one side...
Then the next part is tricky... I couldn't hold my camera and do it at the same time. I was going to tell you to use your imagination but I included some illustrations below that I borrowed from Julia Child since I'm feeling eggspecially nice today (Cheesy? I know, I know, I'm sorry, I couldn't resist)
I grabbed the pan handle from underneath (it feels incredibly awkward which I'm told means that you are doing it right). When you tilt the pan over the plate, the omelette should sort of drop/plop to one corner.
Then with a swift movement of your wrist....
Flip...pray...success!
Ok it's a little browner than Richard's but not half bad!
Now for poaching...
Sorry we don't all have egg rings handy... but I thought up a pretty good solution if I do say so myself. Apparently, mason jars are so last year...according to Adam Platt of New York Magazine.
Since Adam says I can't use my mason jars for entertaining anymore, I'll use the tops as egg rings to poach eggs!
I tossed one into simmering water... Then added a spoonful of vinegar because it helps your egg hold it's shape later on.
Cracked an egg into a bowl...
I held my bowl right over the ring and very gently slid in the egg.
Nice!
And the poaching begins.... It just took a few minutes (you don't want to overcook because the yolk should still be runny)
Again, not as pretty as Richards... but success nonetheless!
I give myself an A!
Okay and here is where I get extra credit... I remember my friend Ilana said that in Israel, eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce is popular for breakfast.
So I gave it a try. I just used bottled tomato sauce and added some red pepper flakes. (Maybe next time I will make my own sauce) I simmered the sauce and gently dropped in an egg. I didn't use egg rings (but maybe next time I will)...
Delish! A new favorite!
Even with my new confidence from class... I must admit eggs still make me nervous. But here we go with my homework...
I whisked together three eggs and one teaspoon of water (not milk!)
I made sure to use my non-stick pan.
Turned my stove on high (this part always freaks me out because my stove is from the Stone Age and is completely out of control!) Added a dollop of butter, swirled it around in the pan. Then quickly added the egg mixture.
When egg mixture set, I sprinkled cheese down the middle like this....
Then, used my spatula to flip over one side...
Then the next part is tricky... I couldn't hold my camera and do it at the same time. I was going to tell you to use your imagination but I included some illustrations below that I borrowed from Julia Child since I'm feeling eggspecially nice today (Cheesy? I know, I know, I'm sorry, I couldn't resist)
I grabbed the pan handle from underneath (it feels incredibly awkward which I'm told means that you are doing it right). When you tilt the pan over the plate, the omelette should sort of drop/plop to one corner.
Then with a swift movement of your wrist....
Flip...pray...success!
Ok it's a little browner than Richard's but not half bad!
Now for poaching...
Sorry we don't all have egg rings handy... but I thought up a pretty good solution if I do say so myself. Apparently, mason jars are so last year...according to Adam Platt of New York Magazine.
Since Adam says I can't use my mason jars for entertaining anymore, I'll use the tops as egg rings to poach eggs!
I tossed one into simmering water... Then added a spoonful of vinegar because it helps your egg hold it's shape later on.
Cracked an egg into a bowl...
I held my bowl right over the ring and very gently slid in the egg.
Nice!
And the poaching begins.... It just took a few minutes (you don't want to overcook because the yolk should still be runny)
Again, not as pretty as Richards... but success nonetheless!
I give myself an A!
Okay and here is where I get extra credit... I remember my friend Ilana said that in Israel, eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce is popular for breakfast.
So I gave it a try. I just used bottled tomato sauce and added some red pepper flakes. (Maybe next time I will make my own sauce) I simmered the sauce and gently dropped in an egg. I didn't use egg rings (but maybe next time I will)...
Delish! A new favorite!
Techniques of Fine Cooking 1, Day 4
I don't do breakfast.
When I make eggs they are neither incredible nor edible. It's a prerequisite for my roommates or anyone I am dating to be well-versed in breakfast cookery.
That's why half of me was looking forward to today's class on eggs....the other half of me was...well... shaking in my boots that I'd end the day with egg on my face.
Techniques learned:
Compound Salads, Basic Theory and Techniques of Egg Cookery, Perfect Poached Eggs, Beurre Manie, Croutes, Scrambled Eggs, Omelets, Whipping Egg Whites, Souffles
Menu:
Omelet with Fine Herbs
Salad Nicoise
Poached Eggs in Red Wine Sauce
Souffle (4 types - chocolate, banana, orange and lemon)
Lexicon:
poach- to fully submerge in a simmering bath
composed salad- A simple salad is simply, greens with a vinegarette. A composed salad has artfully arranged ingredients and is not tossed.
salad nicoise- common French composed salad, typically made with tuna (in oil), potato salad, haricot vert (green beans), black olives, anchovies and hard boiled eggs
souffle- literally "to rise" - typical French light and airy cake made with egg yolks and beaten egg whites combined with various other ingredients. Can be sweet or savory.
sauce meurette- red wine sauce typically served with poached eggs (also with beef, fish and..ew.. brains). Starts with a red wine base then flavored with vegetables (a mirepoix) and herbs (a bouquet garnis)
nappe- "to coat" - when a liquid is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (the consistency most sauces should be)
Cooking SAT Question of the Day:
ROUX : START ::
a) poach : middle
b) nappe : begin
c) beurre blanc : end
d) beurre manie : finish
Answer: D
A roux is a starting agent when cooking most French soups, stews and sauces. Usually a roux is made of flour and clarified butter.
A beurre manie is a finishing agent to thicken soups, stews and sauces, also made of flour and butter.
Quote of the Day:
"When cooking eggs, remember...hot and fast or slow and cold." (For example, an omelette cooks fast and hot, a poached egg cooks slow and cold.)
Top 5 Lessons I Learned Today:
1. Eggs really are incredible! An egg has every nutrient you need to sustain life except Vitamin C! The average egg in a NY grocery store is two weeks old. The freshest eggs are in the back of the fridge. (Now that I know this, when grocery shopping for eggs I pull out every carton to reach the cartons in the back. This results in fresh eggs but also extremely dirty looks from fellow shoppers.)
2. When making an omelette never add dairy (oops I've been adding milk all these years.) Dairy makes the eggs to dense. Instead use approximately a teaspoon of water for every three eggs. If you are making all eggs whites, use 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil for every three eggs.
3. In French cooking when something is folded into a triangle that means it's going to be sweet. When something is folded into thirds, that means its going to be savory. Americans fold their omelettes in half. The French fold theirs in to thirds.
4. How to make perfect hard boiled eggs:
-Put eggs into a pot of cold water
-Bring to a boil
-Shut off burner and remove from heat
-Put on lid, let eggs sit 13-14 minutes.
-Don't peel the eggs until you are going to use them
5. Souffles are a huge pain! Totally random analogy I know...but I couldn't help but think how much souffles are like cats. They both need to be coddled, stroked and stirred in an extremely particular way, in a very certain order... one wrong move can send them careening over (souffles) or running for the hills (cats). When you do it right the reward is fulfilling, fantastic and blissful. When you do it wrong you end up with a disappointing heap of mush (souffles) or a scratched arm (cats).
Day 4 in Photos:
When making an omelette place your filling in a line perpendicular with the handle of the pan. (This is the French way... Americans mix the filling with the eggs.)
Hold the pan like this.. Then fold the side of the omelette nearest to the handle over in thirds like a letter (Sorry! You will have to use your imagination...didn't take a picture of this part!)
Then flip! Voila! Omelette perfection!
When poaching eggs...these nifty rings are great to have... They help keep the eggs shape (so does adding a tablespoon or so of distilled white vinegar). If you don't have rings like this, you can use a cleaned tuna can with the top, bottom and label taken off.
Once the water comes to a simmer, delicately "slide" the eggs into the rings.
If you did it right it should look like this. After 3 minutes simmering in water your eggs are done!
The final product... poached eggs with red wine (oeufs en sauce meurette)!
Beautiful broken yolk!
Cutting tuna for the nicoise salad
More cutting tuna...
Tuna steaks in a row
Searing the tuna...
Almost all seared...
Getting ready to compose the salad...
And more...
My group's banana souffles.
A duo of souffles - chocolate and banana.
banana
chocolate
lemon souffles.... These rose quite well... "Textbook example" according to Richard.
When I make eggs they are neither incredible nor edible. It's a prerequisite for my roommates or anyone I am dating to be well-versed in breakfast cookery.
That's why half of me was looking forward to today's class on eggs....the other half of me was...well... shaking in my boots that I'd end the day with egg on my face.
Techniques learned:
Compound Salads, Basic Theory and Techniques of Egg Cookery, Perfect Poached Eggs, Beurre Manie, Croutes, Scrambled Eggs, Omelets, Whipping Egg Whites, Souffles
Menu:
Omelet with Fine Herbs
Salad Nicoise
Poached Eggs in Red Wine Sauce
Souffle (4 types - chocolate, banana, orange and lemon)
Lexicon:
poach- to fully submerge in a simmering bath
composed salad- A simple salad is simply, greens with a vinegarette. A composed salad has artfully arranged ingredients and is not tossed.
salad nicoise- common French composed salad, typically made with tuna (in oil), potato salad, haricot vert (green beans), black olives, anchovies and hard boiled eggs
souffle- literally "to rise" - typical French light and airy cake made with egg yolks and beaten egg whites combined with various other ingredients. Can be sweet or savory.
sauce meurette- red wine sauce typically served with poached eggs (also with beef, fish and..ew.. brains). Starts with a red wine base then flavored with vegetables (a mirepoix) and herbs (a bouquet garnis)
nappe- "to coat" - when a liquid is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (the consistency most sauces should be)
Cooking SAT Question of the Day:
ROUX : START ::
a) poach : middle
b) nappe : begin
c) beurre blanc : end
d) beurre manie : finish
Answer: D
A roux is a starting agent when cooking most French soups, stews and sauces. Usually a roux is made of flour and clarified butter.
A beurre manie is a finishing agent to thicken soups, stews and sauces, also made of flour and butter.
Quote of the Day:
"When cooking eggs, remember...hot and fast or slow and cold." (For example, an omelette cooks fast and hot, a poached egg cooks slow and cold.)
Top 5 Lessons I Learned Today:
1. Eggs really are incredible! An egg has every nutrient you need to sustain life except Vitamin C! The average egg in a NY grocery store is two weeks old. The freshest eggs are in the back of the fridge. (Now that I know this, when grocery shopping for eggs I pull out every carton to reach the cartons in the back. This results in fresh eggs but also extremely dirty looks from fellow shoppers.)
2. When making an omelette never add dairy (oops I've been adding milk all these years.) Dairy makes the eggs to dense. Instead use approximately a teaspoon of water for every three eggs. If you are making all eggs whites, use 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil for every three eggs.
3. In French cooking when something is folded into a triangle that means it's going to be sweet. When something is folded into thirds, that means its going to be savory. Americans fold their omelettes in half. The French fold theirs in to thirds.
4. How to make perfect hard boiled eggs:
-Put eggs into a pot of cold water
-Bring to a boil
-Shut off burner and remove from heat
-Put on lid, let eggs sit 13-14 minutes.
-Don't peel the eggs until you are going to use them
5. Souffles are a huge pain! Totally random analogy I know...but I couldn't help but think how much souffles are like cats. They both need to be coddled, stroked and stirred in an extremely particular way, in a very certain order... one wrong move can send them careening over (souffles) or running for the hills (cats). When you do it right the reward is fulfilling, fantastic and blissful. When you do it wrong you end up with a disappointing heap of mush (souffles) or a scratched arm (cats).
Day 4 in Photos:
When making an omelette place your filling in a line perpendicular with the handle of the pan. (This is the French way... Americans mix the filling with the eggs.)
Hold the pan like this.. Then fold the side of the omelette nearest to the handle over in thirds like a letter (Sorry! You will have to use your imagination...didn't take a picture of this part!)
Then flip! Voila! Omelette perfection!
When poaching eggs...these nifty rings are great to have... They help keep the eggs shape (so does adding a tablespoon or so of distilled white vinegar). If you don't have rings like this, you can use a cleaned tuna can with the top, bottom and label taken off.
Once the water comes to a simmer, delicately "slide" the eggs into the rings.
If you did it right it should look like this. After 3 minutes simmering in water your eggs are done!
The final product... poached eggs with red wine (oeufs en sauce meurette)!
Beautiful broken yolk!
Cutting tuna for the nicoise salad
More cutting tuna...
Tuna steaks in a row
Searing the tuna...
Almost all seared...
Getting ready to compose the salad...
And more...
My group's banana souffles.
A duo of souffles - chocolate and banana.
banana
chocolate
lemon souffles.... These rose quite well... "Textbook example" according to Richard.
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