Desserts, Beaches, and Packing

So, finally i have some photos of the desserts week! Some pretty exciting stuff that was really good and looked pretty good too! First we have a strawberry tort that had crema pasticcera in it or a custard filling in english.
Here we have some bomboloni or you might better now them as doughnut holes. They were delicious and were a big hit around the building.
Finally we have profiteroles with crema pasticcera, vanilla gelato and chocolate sauce. These weren't the only ones but these were my favorite and there are pictures of some of the others in the slide show. The great thing was that i got to make the profiteroles in my final that was this past monday.

Speaking of which went really well. My recipes were gnocchi di patate and profiteroles con crema pasticcera e salsa di ciocolato. I thought they were a bit on the easier side for our last final but i took it. I scored a 90 on the practical and it should have been a little better, the gnocchi were a little salty and my crema pasticcera was not as smooth as it should have been but overall not bad. I brought it back with the last theory test, scoring a perfect 100. We then celebrated with some champagne and a beautiful sunset on the rooftop!


The last three days have been filled with just relaxing, running, beaches, and walking around the city. Lived it up in the Hamptons yesterday on a gorgeous day. 80 degrees, sun shinning although the water is still a bit cold so no swimming but definitely enjoyed the sun! And it was a beautiful evening to be out in the city.

Now, its on to Italy. My bags are packed, my tickets are punched all that is left is getting on the plane. So, if you need me DON'T CALL or TEXT but i will have facebook and email and of course the blog. The next post will be from Italy, so long New York, so long U.S. next time i see you is TBD.

Showing the love

Well, only one more day in the kitchen here in new york.....kind of crazy but so excited to leave for Italy next friday.

This past week has been a great week. Actually it really began last sunday when i was lucky enough to have one of my best friends come and visit. It was an excellent day with lunch in the park, wondering through the museum of natural history, shopping a little bit, and ending with some coffee and crossword puzzels. Learning about the temperature of lakes and when the earth might slip into another ice age. It was a picture perfect day and i think she should come to italy next to visit ;)

Then i got to spend the next couple days with my mom. She was in town again for work, so that means eating out at some great restaurants. Monday night was Becco. One of the great Italian restaurants in the city in midtown owned by Lidia Bastianich. The same owners of Del Posto and Esca. It was a happening place and packed but we snagged a place at the bar and had a great meal. Their signature three pastas are excellent and the veal parm was excellent and big enough for at least two to share. Plus they have an entire list of bottles of wine that are $25, you won't find a better deal in the city. On tuesday we went to The Mark by Jean George at the Mark Hotel on the upper east side. Very good food, they make a great grapefruit gimlet, however, it is definitely the place where all the yuppities of the upper east side come to eat. Old money, cigars, jewelry that costs more than my life, and now within the last decade botox and tanning beds galore. Oh, and these people were all at least 65 years or older. There were only two other tables that i could see younger people at. It was pretty entertaining to people watch, so if you like to people watch i definitely suggest it.

As for the kitchen this week, it has been all about executing, timing, and presentation of dishes. On tuesday we were given a menu with four different items: Antipasti, Primo, Secondo, and Dolce. On tuesday i made the antipasti and secondo and then on wednesday made the primo and dolce. Thursday and friday were the same but with a new menu. It was pretty fun and we made some tasty stuff. Spaghetti with clams and oysters and a presecco zambione, spinach and ricotta tortelloni with a tomato and olive sauce, red mullett with asparagus, fava bean, strawberry panzenella sprinkled with lavender bread crumbs, buttermilk panna cotta with cherry compote and pistachio crisps....that was tuesday and wednesday.....thursday and friday as follows: tuna tartar with pickled onions, avacado sauce, and black olive wafers, risotto with pea shoots, roasted tomatoes, and pan seared salmon with balsamic reduction, duck braised in burgandy with poached figs and marsala/burgandy reduction sauce, and finally a ricotta/mascarpone, rhubarb/strawberry compote tart with ginger strawberry sauce and almond ice cream.

Yes, quite the week. Now, all that is left is the final theory and practical on monday. Then Italy next friday! Can't wait!

Last week of classes.....then its off to Italia

Its been a little while since my last post, so i am going to post a quick one then add more in a couple of days.

We finally finished up desserts last week and to be honest i am a little relieved because it was a lot of sugar but i still love my sweets. Made some pretty good stuff and it was a little more laid back in the kitchen which was a nice change. I can see why some prefer to be pastry chefs, a little less hectic and you get to play with chocolate, butter, and sugar. I have some good photos so i will post those soon.

Last wednesday we changed back to main courses with some fish, then pasta on thursday and meats on friday. Tomorrow we will finish with some pork and fish, after that we will move into timed exercises with different menus that we will get each day in class. So, hopefully a good and exciting week.

On the restaurant front things still continue to go well. Cooking more and more each time i am there. Actually got to run the second station twice last week, meaning it was just me and one other cook, usually there is three of us. It was pretty cool and i didn't screw anything up. I also got to work an event with Chef Cesere last tuesday. It was put on by wine and spirits magazine and there were a handful of restaurants and a bunch of wineries from around the country and the world on hand. It was a great experience, met a lot of people and got hooked up with some free wine. This coming saturday there is another event on the upper west side that i will be helping out with too, hopefully it is equally as successful.

Only 11 more days here in new york then off to italia!

Best week ever.....nuff said

A great week indeed. First, we were done with meat for the most part and started into fish and seafood. Second, I was one of the risotto challenge winners as explained in the last blog entry. Third, kicked ass on the second practical that was on friday. Finally, spent the weekend seeing some sights with my cousin and her finace. Add some great weather and some good runs and you get the best week ever.

Practical #2:
Knew the day was off to a good start when i got in a good 9 miler before class. Cleared my head and got focused for the tast ahead. I knew i could do much better than practical #1 and wanted to show the chefs what i was capable of. Again, there were two dishes that had to be plated at specific times, however, both were a little bit more involved and the second dish had two components to it. The first dish was Risotto con Funghi (Risotto with Mushrooms). With the risotto challenge victory just two days prior i was very pleased to see this recipe. The mushrooms are sauteed and mixed with some tomato puree, chicken stock, and some herbs and reduced to a nice consistency. The risotto is made the same way we made it in the challenge. When that is done you add in the mushroom mix, butter, and some pecorino cheese. Again, consisteny is crucial, you want all'onda, which means like a wave. Together but not too loose and runny but not too tight and sticky.

The second dish was Costolette d'agnello con carciofo alla romana (roast rack of lamb with artichokes roman style). The key to this dish was cooking each part to the right temperature and right doneness. Overall not a really difficult dish but timing was key. The rack of lamb had to be cleaned and frenched. We had to make a lamb stock to make a pan sauce for the rack. Clean the artichoke and marinate in mint, parsley, garlic, and lemon. Steam artichokes til tender. Sear and roast lamb to a perfect medium-rare (about 135 degrees internal temp). Serve rack with sauce and artichoke. Doesn't seem so difficult, right? ;)

This was also a dish i was happy to see. For the past week or so while working with meat and fish, cooking it to the right temp and doneness has not been a problem. The one problem i have usually had is the pan sauce. Either not cooking it long enough and it is broken or too long and it burns and reduces too much.

The first dish was a breeze and while we don't get comments or much reaction from the chefs when we plate i could tell by the facial reactions that it was decent. So, on to the second dish, rack of lamb with artichokes. To help things along i frenched my rack and let it marinate in some evoo, garlic, thyme, and salt and pepper before i started on the risotto. I also got my lamb stock going while i was doing the risotto. So, when it came time to put together the dish it was pretty straight forward. First, take care of the artichoke. Clean it and marinate it and then get it steaming because it takes about 45 minutes to fully cook and be nice and tender. Then it was time to sear and roast the rack. Finally make the pan sauce. I had my times down perfectly, no timing misstakes this time around. Get the rack going about 25 - 30 minutes before plating. This allows the rack to rest after cooking and gives you the right amound of time to make your pan sauce. Everything went according to plan and every second i kept telling myself to relax, stay calm, you know how to do this and you know how to make it perfect. In the end the pan sauce was no problem and was delicious. The rack was like butter, a perfect medium-rare. The artichokes were good but could have been better. The last thing to know is to never, ever put your sauce over your meat, always around. If you put it over it takes away from the beautiful color the meat has. If i had a picture of this dish i would post it but unfortunately i don't think the chefs would have taken kindly to me snapping a photo before serving them.

Outcome:
Practical - 90% (second highest in class, highest was 92%)
Theory - 90%
Evaluation - 94%



It ended a great week of cooking and started a weekend full of fun. Saw West Side Story saturday night, even though someone tried to set off a bomb in times square but thankfully nothing happened. Spent sunday visiting the statue of liberty, ellis island, south street seaport, and central park. It felt like summer and was a bit humid but i welcome the warmth and hope it is here to stay.

This week we start desserts and pastries, so best week ever might be challenged. Today was good but incredibly unhealthy. Butter, lard, eggs, pancetta, etc....all baked to a flaky goodness but oh my i felt like i was covered in crisco by the end of the day. Not too mention the goodies the pastry department sent down during the day: molten lava chocolate cake and these banana cakes with banana ice cream = delicious = incredibly unhealthy. Tomorrow and the rest of the week probably no better from a health standpoint but i don't care cause it is all going to taste amazing plus i run i think i can afford a little dessert!

Risotto Challenge

For those of you who have been craving the Foodnetwork esq challenges, this past week was about as close as it gets without having a tv crew in the kitchen.

On wednesday we had a risotto challenge. Who could make the best risotto con mare which in english is seafood risotto. It had shrimp, scallops, mussels, clams, lobster, squid, and octopus. To make the perfect risotto one must first sweat out some finely diced white onion but be careful, you don't want to put any color on the onion. Then you must add your rice, preferably carnaroli, and heat the rice. Yes, heat the rice, get it nice and warm but no color. Next on the list is to deglaze with white wine. Do this off the heat unless you want to singe some eyebrows. Should have mentioned this earlier but have some chicken or vegetable stock that is simmering and warm. After deglazing add enough stock to cover the rice and let simmer. The liquid will cook down and you will have to add more stock until the rice is tender. This usually takes about 15 minutes but can very. Just before the rice is done you add your seafood mixture that has already been cooked and just needs to warm up in the risotto. At this point you take the pan off the heat and add some tarragon, parsley, extra virgin olive oil, and salt and pepper to season. This is how you make a montecetura. This means you make it creamy and smooth but not too soupy and not too thick, perfect. In some risottos you use butter and cheese but for this one you use oil. Serve in a warm bowl. Good Stuff!

There was a time limit on the challenge, however i felt the time was more than enough and was either the 3rd or 4th done. It was perfection and it had a very nice, light tarragon flavor. In the end it came down to myself and my partner. Each station in our kitchen is made for two people and we cook there for the whole week and then rotate. She also had a great risotto and in the end both of us were awarded the win. It was very close and i was very happy to be considered for the win.


Our winnings!!! We cooked it first before taking it home of course.