November 2009 Exercise – Robert Wilson, Sous Chef, Wingate University, Wingate, NC

Mini crab cakes w/ a strawberry and habanero pepper puree and beef tenderloin w/ roasted red pepper and chocolate demi-glaze

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I had an interview on Wednesday for a Sous Chef position at a popular downtown cafe. The interview went well, and both the owner and I felt a connection. He said it first, he liked me from the start when I turned in my resume. It helps that one of my former co-workers is employed there as the Pastry Chef.

They called me back and I have an “audition” tomorrow. at 8:00 a.m. in the morning. I also work my other job from 3-11 p.m., so yeah, a 16 hour day for me after being off for a week with 2nd degree burns on my chest.

All in a day’s work. I posted about the burns elsewhere. I was pulling hot green chili out of the steamer, the Chef was standing there telling me to correct the level of the pan instead of coming over and helping me push it back in so I could get a better grip. It all went wrong, and I got scalded and ended up in the ER at 11:00 a.m.

I really don’t want to go back to that job, but I have to. I don’t like hostile environments, or work places where people don’t get along. There is no fostering of team members in this kitchen, there is no encouragement to help your fellow cooks, and I’m really tired of that mentality. A great kitchen, a successful kitchen runs on the cooks getting along.

I do want this job, whether it is as Sous Chef or just a line cook, it would be a great place to be. If the Universe is watching over me and listening, it will pay attention to my pleas!

I really haven’t missed going into work over the last seven days. Is that wrong? I’m a chef, I love to cook, and I love to feed people, but my current situation does not feed the part of me that loves the industry. I am looking for a “home” in my work environment.

Hopefully I’m on my way to finding it.

There it is--the first piece of meat I've ever cooked.

There I was on a Sunday night, all by my lonesome, cooking duck for the first time in my life. Actually, I was cooking meat for the first time in my life, unless bacon counts.

It’s a little depressing to eat something delicious alone. Or at least to cook for two hours only to eat something delicious alone is a little depressing. But I’m quite a misanthrope, and even more of a glutton.

After being cooped up in your apartment doing homework all weekend, you just want somebody to eat Chinese Five-Spice Duck with Mushroom Ravioli Sautéed in Bacon and Rapini with. So I guess it’s pretty lucky that one of my high school friends texted me: “Hey Rox what’re you up to?” He was in Syracuse for the night, and wanted to, y’know, maybe meet for coffee and catch up.

Little did he know he’d end up my sous-chef. Mohammad showed up later with his attempt at being adorable and giving me a housewarming gift: about a quarter of a crumpled bag of hot fries. 

I can’t reduce wine for shit. It sat on the stove for twice as long as it should have, and I ended up with a congealed, purple layer of goo in the bottom of my lovely Paula Deen non-stick pan. I guess the bacon was a problem too. I’ve cooked bacon before, I swear. But somehow it went straight from raw to burnt in the skillet. We had to scrap half of it.

The best sous-chef ever.

All in all it was pretty good. Chinese Five-Spice Blend is cinnamon, anise, cloves, ginger, and star anise, and it tasted amazing on the duck. My whole apartment smelled like cinnamon and cloves. I think I overcooked it a little, but undercooked poultry is a lot worse. And Mo must have enjoyed it, because he really did offer to do the dishes, insisting that it’s his “favorite part.”

Even though it goes against my misanthropic nature, I like cooking for people. I think making something delicious for somebody else is not such a bad way to spend time with them. I mean, if you absolutely must be around people, that is.

~Roxanne Broda-Blake

I’ve become a little depressed lately. I am interviewing for management positions, and am yielding no success. I have been told I don’t have the right amount of experience, and that I need to take more training.
I am good at what I do. I can organize, clean and cook. I can get the respect of pretty much any Kitchen Crew I work with. I’ve proven that over and over again. So why is it so hard to bump up to the next level?
I am a white female over the age of 40, I live in a place that has a population of mostly indigenous or hispanic people. It is hard to find a job in a depressed market that is going out of season (although the skiers will be here soon).
I’m sucking it up. I have decided that where I work is my JOB not my career. I am a chef by trade, and by rights, people love my food, and there are those who enjoy working with me. I conduct myself in a civilized and hopefully professional manner.

Still I was told during the interview process that there are people on the property who despise me. It didn’t feel very good hearing that. The Chef I work for gives me little or no time, and doesn’t explain the vision of the banquet parties we are working on. The other chef treats me like I’ve never worked in a kitchen before. I was working a pasta station last night, and he explained and explained and explained how he wanted it done, and how it was a “Show”.  I have worked many stations, and put on performances while cooking in front of people.  It was really hard to stand there and listen to someone tell me how to do something I already know.

I want out of this job. I am still looking. I have an ad up on craigslist for private chef work. I am watching the help wanted signs.
I don’t want to give up or give in, or get so discouraged I start calling off, but I have to do something to change my working circumstances.
It is a struggle. And I’m not even sore about the 19 year old that they’ve put in charge mostly. I decided I’m going to just put my head down and work until I find something different.

Blog surfing yesterday, I came across a touching entry from The Asian

Still smilling at 90!

Grandmother Cookbook. The entry titled a Tribute to Oma, really inspired me to start the project I have been postponing for too long.

I am trying to collect stories  and memories about my grandmother, my oma, especially relating to her cooking, food and recipes. So dear cousins, please help me complete this.

So here goes, the first story in this project.

My Grandmother’s Sous Chef

I remember when I was under the care of my Oma. Both of my parent work, so everyday after school I would be sent to my aunt’s house, where my Oma resides. The afternoon usually started with lunch. My Oma, my aunt, my cousins and I would gather together at the dining table, each recollecting events and incidents of the day. Mind you, my stories are usually the most bland, as I was the youngest. My cousins’ would retell who bullied who, who kissed who, the politics of high school, while I stared in amazement listening to their tales.

As the lunch party dissolved, my aunts returned to her gardening and my older cousins continued their gossips, I find myself faced with a dreadful activity, an afternoon siesta. I looked at my older cousins in envy, as nap time is exclusively for the young ones. All attempts failed miserably to avoid it, until one day I came across my Oma on the porch preparing a dish. Finally, a ticket out of Siesta-dom!

Helping my Oma cook became a routine and I was really involved in the preparation process. Despite my denied entry to the kitchen (reason for this requires a separate entry), I was experienced enough as a Sous-Chef to prepare the ingredients of Sarang Burung (birds’ nest), roll the Ronde (red bean dumpling with ginger water), shape and bread the Dutch Kroket (look for the recipe here!), and weave the Ketupat (Indonesian rice cakes). Thinking back, this is a stark contrast to my current reluctance to enter the kitchen.

As a highly skilled helper, I was entrusted with more responsibility come Chinese New Year. With nine children and their immediate family, small is not really the exact way to describe our gathering. Thus my skills and experiences are employed, this time not only for the dish preparations. I was promoted to be part of the actual cooking and be allowed to enter her domain, the kitchen.

The party was a success! The food ravished and the tummies filled.  Now it is the time the children have been waiting for, the handing out of Hong Baos or red packages filled with money. My cousins and I lined up, saying our greetings with terrible accents “Gong Xi Fat Cai,” and received our shares. While my Oma gave one to me, she said ‘Don’t forget to give me a kiss me before you go home tonight!’ and I nodded.

As bid my adieu and kissed my Oma goodnight, she gave me another Hong Bao and told me to keep it a secret. I followed my parent into the car, and as the engine revved, I rolled down the window. Called my cousins, who are still gossiping instead of bidding their goodbyes, and flaunted the hong bao given by my Oma, while quickly drawing the identical one from my pocket, the special hong bao just for me.

This gesture prompted my cousins, to quickly reach their pockets and count their red packages. The car drove, and a sigh of relieve was exhaled by my cousins. I closed the window and giggled at the back seat of the car, self-indulgingly thinking that I am my Oma’s favorite grandchild.

BABIEZZZZZ!!!!!!

September 2009 Exercise – Jeremy Miller,  Sous Chef, Ireland’s Steak House,  Hyatt Regency Bonaventure,  Weston, FL

 Mojito Shrimp with pepper slaw

Shrimp and scallop with mango slaw and ancho chili sauce

 To participate in the October exercise, please send an e mail to:   jeffrey@bauscherinc.com

 http://deepplate.wordpress.com

Travis Holland

Mobile Phone:
Secondary Phone: 760-484-8097
E-mail: firedup01@gmail.com
Travis W. Holland

12001 Woodside ave #73 Lakeside, Ca 92040 (760) 484-8097

Objective: A position in a company with integrity, team work, and a Customer comes first attitude.

Experience:
9/08-Current – Jimbos Naturally
Kitchen Shift Leader

Manage day to day Kitchen operations in a Organic/Natural Food Store
Help Train New Hires by Company Standards
Customer P.R. – Helping with questions about nutritional, organic, natural foods and diets. Help Customers with Recipes and food knowledge of products in store.
Assist Head Butcher with Meat Cutting, recipes, and Customer Help
Assist Regional Kitchen Manager with food prep, submitting recipes, inventory, and food cost control.

2/08-9/08 – Z57 Internet Solutions
Internet Marketing Consultant

Worked hands on with Real Estate Agents & Brokers increasing there online exposure.
Focused on Design, Content (for search engines), and Traffic from the Internet.
Exceed sales targets to real estate professionals.
Focusing on client acquisition Including:
sales lead generation, outbound calling of prospects, online sales presentations, and educating Real Estate agents on how to successfully integrate the Internet into their marketing.
Conduct in-depth needs assessments of potential clients.
Overcome technical and business objections of potential clients.
Emphasize features, quote prices, and prepare orders.

11/01-10/05 – Five Star Gourmet at Home Poway, CA
Personal Catering Chef/ Owner

Owned and operated catering business, setting up all clientel, business contacts, and part time hiring.
Trained all Front of the House (Servers & Bussers) in Service, Wine Paring, and Customer Satisfaction.
Taught the art of Gourmet Cuisine with a variety of cultural diversities. Sessions include personal training, food preparation, presentation, and serving. Catering of parties from 1 to 300 people. Includes the creation of menus, purchasing ingredients, food preparation, and serving. Creating menus and themes to match every occasion or desire.

2/06-10/06 -End of Season, Grand View Lodge Resort & Spa
Executive Sous Chef
Responsible for running and operating all 7 food outlets.
Create Menus, specs., recipes, and specials for all outlets.
Govern Food cost and Labor Costs according to budget.
All Hiring of culinary team (Sous Chefs to Dishwashers)
Handle all operations for Banquets and off site catering.
Create Work Schedules, Staffing guides, Cleaning schedules, and event assessments for all outlets. Handle all inventories, High Cost Food counts, and purchasing guides for all outlets. Create, Build, and Train all culinary personal. Responsible for all disciplinary or terminations for culinary team.

3/01/04- 11/08/04- Le Belissimo, Rancho Cucamonga, CA
2nd Chef (Assistant Executive Chef)

Customer P.R., handling any negative or positive reports about their visit, making sure their experience was one to remember. Trained Front of the House servers in Wine Paring, Table side manor, and Designed the Front of the House Servers Test.
Help create menus and specialties, for a French and Italian Restaurant Delegated tasks to employees for efficient daily work, building Team Work and Trust. Communicated with front of the House Manager, to ensure teamwork and efficiency. Built long lasting relationships with customers, clients, and sales reps. Daily work included butchering meats, fishes, and poultry, preparing exotic fruits and vegetables, gourmet sauces, and eye appealing garnishes.

12/31/03-12/30/04- Twins Nightclub and Restaurant, Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Executive Chef

Head up the restaurant for the #1 club in the Inland Empire
Creating menus, specials, and theme for nightclub and banquets Maintaining labor and food cost Set up weekly inventory and purchasing Setting up contacts and clients to further promote and supply our club Communicating with staff to insure a quality product and environment

3/3/03-12/29/03 – Harrah’s Rincon Casino, Valley Center, CA
Cook III Lead Supervisor

Handled all customer service on my shift personally to ensure great customer relations were built and customer satisfaction was always met. Prepare closing reports for restaurant’s food and beverage costs. Maintain shift operations, including training of new employees, scheduling breaks and early outs (to maintain labor costs). Run Micros Systems for comps, voids, and other restaurant system checks. Set up prep and cleaning lists for crews.

07/02-03/03 Nordstrom Café Escondido, CA
Line Cook

Head up the line in daily organization, prep, service, and expediting. Create and place purchase orders for produce, and breads.
Preformed all of the butchering, and many of the sauces, for specials. Create a wide variety of specials, including French, Italian, and Pacific Rim Cuisine. Responsible for running the kitchen, making sure everything comes out with the highest standards of excellence, when kitchen managers are absent.

7/00-12/01 – Rancho Valencia Resort Rancho Santa Fe, CA
Sauté/Wood Fire Grill

Headed up the team making the sauces and stocks, and the butchering of both fresh fish and meats for banquets and lines. Ensured all preparations were freshly made with the both the quality and excellence of a five star restaurant in a four star resort. Prepared nightly seasonal specials. Responsibilities included maintaining kitchen line/preparation when Chef was absent from the resort. Responsible for customer satisfaction, safety in the kitchen, and maintaining a cohesive team. Studied French Cuisine and Pacific Rim under Chef Steve Sumner, learning all new styles, techniques, and artistry of both cuisines.

07/4/99-7/22/00 – Rancho Bernardo Inn – El Bizzcocho/Veranda San Diego, CA
Garnishee Chef/ Lead Cook

Headed up the position of First Cook in the Veranda kitchen (lunch) – lead broiler, sauce, and griddle. Received the Pinnacle Plus Award for excellence while training for this position. Helped create menus for the Veranda.
First seven months at Rancho Bernardo Inn I was the Garnishee Chef in the El Bizzcocho Restaurant. Duties included preparation of ingredients, making everything fresh including the dressings, for items on that evening’s menu. Studied French Cuisine under Chef Patrick Ponsaté after preparation completed, learning sauces, stocks and helping the sauté station.

The Above are the most current positions from the year 2000-Current. I have been in other restaurant positions Dating back from 1995. I can provided more info if needed.

Education:
Palomar College, Business Management Classes including Business Tactics, Speech, Economics, Small Business Management and General Education Classes.
Harvest Bible Training Center, G.E. in Theology, and finishing my Assosiates in Theology (Ministry Ethics, & Evangelism)

Related skills and Training:
On the job training: Management Training Courses Through Harrahs Rincon Casino. All duties required of a Chef in a High or Low volume Restaurant. Including sauces, wood fire grill, butchering, stocks, banquets, catering, Italian, French, Pacific Rim, and European Cuisine. Trained under Frank Galiteri, Executive Chef, Nevada; Patrick Ponsaté, Chef de Cuisine, El Bizzcocho, California; Steve Sumner, Executive Chef, Rancho Valencia, California

Ramsay asks Amanda to stay behind after dismissing the other chefs. He tells her he’s concerned and she should bounce back. She says she will (and cries in her confessional).

Robert says the women are terrible. Meanwhile Tennille yells at them for putting her up. She says the past is the past, she’s done better now.

Challenge time. Low calorie options are always available. Each team must create 3 dishes with a total of 700 calories for the entire menu. Robert is upset because he like to cook lots of fat (he takes 700 cal bites). They have to make an appetizer, entree, and desert. He’s brought in nutritionists. The table of supplies have been labeled for their calories amounts. They have 45 minutes. The nutritionists make sure they remain in the limits.

The men split into groups of two to do their dishes. The women listen to Sabrina who works in a health and spa place.

The men are moving quickly but they are way over the calorie count without all the dishes. over 1,000 calories. The women seem to be doing well so far. Amanda worries because she isn’t sure how to make things well with less fat. Sabrina says holding Amanda’s hand will be fine if need be. The men cut down and end up 100 under. Finally they start cooking. Both teams have managed to cook the requisite dishes now it’s the taste test.

Women’s appetizer is delicious. The men’s dish is refreshing. Each team gets a point. Women’s entree is delicious. The men’s meal looks like it’s been made smaller and Ramsay say it’s dry and boring. Women 2, Men 1. Final course: deserts. Sabrina is nervous because Amanda had so many questions about a fruit bowl. The women’s is zesty, vibrant, and refreshing. The men bring up something that makes Ramsay laugh and say “come on what is that.” Well, that’s always a good sign. Ramsay says it tastes foul. The women win, finally. After the men have won 3 in a row. The women’s dishes are on the menu for the night.

As punishment the men are responsible for buying the ingredients and prepping both kitchens. The women are going to Venice Beach to play volleyball with one of the best volleyball players in the world. They get driven in “little sporty convertibles.” Sabrina’s all, “I’ve never been in a convertible but I have cute hair for one. JP welcomes them to the beach and they meet Annett Davis, an Olympic Volleyball player. She teaches them the basics so that they can play.

The men are upset about the prep. Van is aggravated. They are called out the kitchen to go pick up the ingredients. They have to ride bikes to do it. It’s the most bizarre 6 person bike. They are in a circle so the front people can’t even see where they are. They hit a hill and it seems ridiculously hard to pedal uphill. Cars are honking. Robert struggles. Van is pushing hard.

The women toast to a good service that night. They bonded as a team. When the women return there’s blenders waiting for them. They’re all thrilled.

The men finally make it back. Robert is sitting in the hallway. He’s having a hard time breathing and he finally asks for a medic. Come on! You already left the show once for health issues! They call an ambulance and he’s taken to the hospital. One person down, the men must push on.

Ramsay enters and calls them all in to inform them that Robert won’t be back for dinner service which means both teams have 5 people each (though one man on the men has only one hand really though it hasn’t slowed him down yet).

Both teams talk about being positive. Right off Andy messes up understanding the order. He says he has a hard time understanding Ramsay’s accent and speed. Ariel delivers poorly delivered scallops. Jim on the men’s side delivers a peppery dish.

Ariel rallies and brings properly cooked scallops up. Tennille has brought up too much spinach rather than by table. Tennille is pissed by the way Ramsay talks to her. Jim makes an attempt but his second dish fails as well, this time too bland.

The red kitchen is nearly finished with their appetizers but this time Tennille has put in too little food. Ramsay tells her she’s crap and she’s responds that he’s crap. He kicks her out. She curses at him and *gladly* leaves. The women are pissed because they have to work her station. Ramsay yells at her, she wants back in the kitchen and says she’s working so hard etc…He tells her if she keeps her mouth shut she can get back in. She yells at the others to get off her station.

Jim delivers another attempt but it’s still not right. Ramsay sends Chef Scott to do it. Scott delivers an appetizer. Finally the men are serving. The women have moved on to entrees. Except that the chicken has disappeared. Sabrina has to make another one.

Scott yells at Dave for cooking the wrong garnish. Kevin starts helping Dave. Sabrina can’t seem to cut the chicken. Suzanne tries to help but she can’t do it. Because she’s using the wrong chicken.

Andy can’t seem to remember the number of dishes ordered. The halibut is served up raw. The red kitchen is sending out entrees but some pork is returned raw. He calls them in the yell at them. She was a superstar until now.

Andy finally delivers halibut but it’s too well done. Everyone’s getting annoyed with Kevin telling everyone what to do. Andy delivers another bad halibut. Will Chef Scott have to step in for him too?

More food is delivered raw and Sabrina is yelled at again. He yells at Sabrina and Andy and says shut it down. Ariel’s upset.

Ramsay is upset. Both teams lose. Jim and Andy, Tennille and Sabrina? Jim says he got yelled at the least (because he was replaced!) Jim suggests putting up Robert for missing a service. Hmm, now that seems kind of unfair. I don’t see Ramsay going for that after maneuvering to get him back. Ariel says they nominated Sabrina. when asked, Van says he’s trying to figure out where Robert is. It would be unfair to judge him for not being in the service but if he’s not back by next service he’s out. So Van nominates Andy.

Sabrina and Andy step forward. Sabrina thinks she should stay because she’s a team player and she keeps pushing through. Andy says he should stay because he wants to learn the system, which he’s used to working with. Ramsay makes him nervous apparently. He thinks back on previous services and the person who lacks the passion and is being eliminated is…JIM. Well, why do they bother nominating people? Just for drama’s sake?

Cast Sans Robert

Having watched seasons 4 & 5, I now appreciate the return of Robert. While I will say that he wasn’t THAT amazing (the way Ramsay maneuvered him to returned you’d have thought he was the messiah of all kitchens) but it’s still nice to see him back, healthier, and with a second chance. And also, it’s always nice to see the moments where Ramsay has a heart. He actually seems like he’d be a lot of fun outside the kitchen. 

Lovely thinks Ramsay was just using scare tactics to inspire her to do better. Suzanne is kind of upset that no one was going home. Tennille and Suzanne fight because Tennille doesn’t like that Suzanne said she’d be pissed if Tennille sunk them. 

Van blames Andy for the men almost losing. They just want to get the fools out.

Ramsay has noticed the tension on the two teams. In his kitchen teamwork is key so Tennille and Suzanne are partners. Van and Andy are partners. Does Ramsay have a spy? He finishes partnering everyone and tells Amanda to sit out. She’s upset because she’s stronger than Lovely. 

Scott and Heather bring in the meat for sausages. 6 inches is the perfect sausage. He wants each one perfectly done. The first team to fill their lines with 6 perfect ones wins. Notice theme of penises? Because it goes beyond just Van’s crude mouth.

The women seem to have no trouble. Dave is trying to do what he can regardless of his broken wrist. 

Suzanne and Tennille work quickly together and get the first sausage up. Kevin and Dave get one for the guys. Women get a second. And a third. Kevin’s getting concerned. (Ha, just realized they’re the gimp team.) Guys get a second. Only Robert and Jim have not produced a sausage. Women get a fourth. Men get a third. Men get a fourth to tie it. Tennille and Suzanne have produced the fifth. They put up a sixth but it’s not done properly (the first bad one so far) done by Ariel and Sabrina. They have another one to try…well done, ladies win. (Robert and Jim produced nothing and everyone’s mad at them, blaming them for the loss.)

Men’s punishment–cleaning the dorms. Women’s reward–private party. 

Kevin makes comments about Robert and Jim’s failure and Robert gets in his face, pissed off. He’s sick of being battered down, he’s had enough of that in his life. (If you haven’t watched season 5, we learn that Robert was put down by his father a lot and had a tough childhood.) The women party German style while the men clean. The place is known for its sausages. Tennille discovers that she likes sausage. Kevin comes to the conclusion that it was Jim, slow and mellow, who is to blame. Scott (the sous chef working for Ramsay) gives him a hard time and Robert once again goes off. “Last season I almost died for this place!”

Prep time. The women are all smiling and things seem to be going well. The men seem to be falling apart. (Jim says they have Dave’s wrist, Kevin’s ankles, and Robert’s obesity against them.) Dave gets a phone call about his wrist. He has a fracture and should get a long arm cast that will prevent him from moving his thumb. He’s crushed and doesn’t know what to do because he gave everything up for this one shot. He goes to talk with Ramsay. Dave says he’s still committed to the competition. How effective he’ll be is another question but Ramsay’s glad he’s back. 

For the dinner service, someone will be a greeter on each section. Ariel and Jim will be doing the greetings. (They do the welcome and then return to their section.) A bunch of celebrities show up to the restaurant including NFL player Dwight Freelie and singer Drew Lachey (red table). They give an amous bouche as an appetizer gift. Jim seems to be lagging. Tom Green is sitting at a blue table. Because Jim is so slow the men are falling behind. Ariel is fast, getting them set. 

Suzanne and Tennille are having difficulties again but Tennille still get risotto out. John O’Hurley thinks his pasta is too salty and sends it back. Tennille moves over to help and it’s much better. 

The blue kitchen is rushing to catch up. He gives a salad that Ramsay says is very nice. Melinda Clarke, at a blue table, is happy.

Red team is on to entrees. Lovely struggles. Sabrina steps in to help her. 

Blue team is still trying to catch up. Kevin cooks his fish perfectly but Andy’s stuff isn’t hot. His second attempt is also a failure and Robert is pissed. Blue team hits a standstill. Again he fails at the lamb. Robert is screaming and Ramsay yells at him for yelling. (Tom Green is being not funny while waiting for his food.)

Lovely seems to have no clue what’s going on. She can’t say what food has been ordered. 

Andy’s next attempt goes up and finally it’s good enough. Tom Green eats the lamb and pretends to choke.

Suzanne’s lamb is too thin and he tells her to go again. 

The blue team is having trouble communicating and coordinating things. “Headless idiots” Ramsay says. Dave returns and is assigned to desserts. They wonder how he’s going to do things. He’s moving faster than everyone despite his one hand.

Both teams have 45 tickets out. 3 tickets left for each and first to finish is the winner. Robert is determined. They each get one out.

Andy knows he’s on the chopping block so he’s determined to fix it. The women get out another order. The men get out another order.

One left for each. Tennille can almost taste the win. Scott points out raw chicken on the men’s side done by Andy. But the pasta for the women is bad too. It’s down to the side dishes. (My only issue with this is that each table orders different actual foods and amounts are ordered despite the same number of customers.)

Lovely is the reason they lost because of the vegetables. Suzanne asks for a play by play because she thought theirs was up. He talks her down and then says he was impressed by Sabrina so her job is to nominate two individuals for elimination. 

Lovely goes to Sabrina and says she did the best as she could but that Tek broke down (must have missed that). Sabrina says she dragged them throughout. She’ll be putting her up clearly. Second nominee is lovely for failing at her station. Ramsay has them step forward. This is Lovely’s third time being nominated. She’s too laid back. She says she was moving so fast he couldn’t see it. (Yeah…) Tek says she should stay because she loves food.

His decision is…SUZANNE! Wait, what? Oh, he’s calling her out for not being shy to give her opinion. He asks who she would send home. She says Lovely. And he agrees. 

Lovely removes her jacket and leaves. 

He warns Tek to be careful. 

Next dinner service something will change and it will be one of their most important service yet. What does that mean?

Suzanne thinks that Ramsay agreeing with her means she’s a threat to the others and they should be intimidated.

Previous Episode

Sadly, our last produce basket of the season from Tecolote Farms arrived on Monday. I will so miss our weekly abundance, especially the challenge of identifying and using much of the bounty.  Luckily, this week was a no-brainer.  The basket was filled with favorites.  Eggplant, zucchini, basil, tomatoes, peppers, melons, edamame, garlic…

One of the Littles asked if she could help me make dinner today.  Be still my heart.  She’s become quite the little chef and I love watching her discover and create on her own. And, this soon-to-be eight year old can hands down make the best guacamole. Ever.  ‘It’s all in the limes and seasoning,’ she says.

First, we assessed the produce in the basket this week and determined we had everything we needed.  We didn’t follow a specific recipe, but I’ll give you approximate measures and ingredients so you can make your own.  Or follow the meathod, but experiment with your own favorite veggies and flavors!

We had an abundance of eggplants, onions and zucchini.  So, that’s what we used.

Slice up the veggies lengthwise.  They will arrange better in the tart, if the slices are long and skinny.  We used these darling little white eggplants, but if you are shopping a medium sized purple one will work too.  We sliced about 5 small zucchini, but 1-2 medium ones are fine.  And, two small purple onions.  We ended up roasting two pans full of vegetables.  But, I always roast more than I need. Roasted veggies are yummy on sandwiches, tossed in pastas, served with chicken or added to couscous….So, roast what you’ve got, err on the side of too much, and have fun eating up the extras.

Toss your veggies in a little olive oil, sprinkle generously with coarse sea salt, and roast at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or so.  You want them to be browned, still firm, but not crispy.

While the veggies roasted we made our own pesto.  We have oodles of basil right now in our garden and from Tecolote, so I made a really big batch with all the usual suspects…basil, pine nuts, parmesan cheese, garlic and olive oil.  My little sous-chef grated the parmesan for me.

When the veggies and pesto are finished it’s time to assemble your galette.  To quote my daughter this is the bestest part.  You’ll need about 8 – 10 sheets of phyllo dough.  I used Athens Fillo because I had it in the freezer.  Carefully, arrange the dough sheets making a cross-pattern as you line your pie pan.

Next, paint the pesto onto the pastry.  Use a light hand as the dough is very thin and delicate.

You are not seeing double.  We are making two galettes!  Feel free to make two, or three of your own.  It’s just as easy to make two as it is one.  Plus, we really had an abundance of veggies today. And as you recall, I have an abundance of mouths to feed.

Next, fill the galette with the roasted veggies arranging them in a layered star pattern.  Or just toss them in.  Really it doesn’t matter.  For some punch and undeniably delicious flavor, we added a handful of pitted, sliced greek olives and a sprinkling of goat cheese to our galette.  I also topped the tart with a rosemary sprig.

Fold up the sides of the pastry, rotating the dish as you crimp up the edges.  I brushed an egg wash (one egg beaten with a little bit of water) over the top of the pastry to give it a yummy golden glaze.

Bake the galette for about 25 minutes at 325 degrees.

We served our galette with cedar plank grilled salmon topped with extra pesto.  But the galette is perfect with anything, or even on it’s own.

Roasted Vegetable Galette (list of ingredients)

1 -2 medium eggplant, sliced lengthwise

2 medium zucchini or squash, sliced lengthwise

2 purple onions, quartered and separated

olive oil

coarse sea salt

Pesto (home made or store bought)

Phyllo dough (about 8- 10 sheets)

5-6 greek olives, pitted & halved

2 -3 Tbs crumbled goat cheese

rosemary sprig, for garnish

1 egg + 1 Tbs water, lightly beaten for egg wash

A few weeks ago Heather visited and whipped up this amazing meal… in MY kitchen.  She made pasole and it was delicious, some of the best Mexican food I’ve ever eaten.

The best part was girl just took charge and I quickly became her sous chef… which was just fine with me.  I mean how often does someone come to you house and cook a fabulous meal and you just sit back and enjoy?

I knew Heather was a great cook, however seeing her in action was so fun.  When Heather’s cooking she’s in her element.  She’s comfortable, in charge, and smiling.

Just wondering, in what situation are you in your “element”?

Words of Wisdom for the Class of 2009

Congratulations Class of 2009. You’re a graduate, so pat yourselves’ on the back and give a giant round of applause. You’ve made it through the long hours, hard classes, and sometimes boring professors. Finally it’s the day when you can take off the toque and walk out a free cook.

As you push through the doors of your culinary school, realize the wide world of restaurants is a tough business. You’ve managed to acquire a job and it’s time to put your schooling to use. Here is some tried and true advice based on experiences in some of the toughest restaurants. Take it with a grain of salt and use it as best you can. Be advised this is a harsh environment and these words of wisdom are meant to help you steer clear of many of the problems you may encounter. The advice may seem jarring, but it’s tough in hopes you avoid bearing the worst brunt of kitchen abuse. With your guns of knowledge fully loaded, you will be ready to learn and grow into the best cook possible.

- First of all, swallow your pride just a bit. Yes, you graduated culinary school, but, compared to everyone else in the kitchen, you don’t know much. Head into your new kitchen home acting like hot stuff and you are more than likely going to get pushed around. Treat the older and wiser cooks with respect, and if you are lucky someone might tell you there is tape stuck all over the back of your chef’s coat. If you go in showing respect, chances are you will gain some along the way.

- Be prepared. Always have a sharp knife, a notebook, and a sharpie. If you can’t manage those three things, think seriously about whether this is the career choice for you. You will always need these tools. You don’t want to be the guy with a dull knife when the chef comes around and borrows it, do you? And you need a notebook to write down everything. Because you won’t be able to remember anything when the chef, sous chef, and senior line cooks are barking orders down your throat.

- Appearances are everything. Don’t walk into the kitchen looking like you just rolled out of bed. And it’s a good idea to have a clean jacket, hat, knife, and apron if you are staging. Even if the restaurant tells you they will provide these things, it’s better to be safe then sorry.

- Never, ever wear Crocs in the kitchen. They have holes in them. Hot liquids go through holes. Sharp knives go through holes. Please go and buy a decent pair of chef shoes. Preferably a wooden soled pair, because you are starting a job that requires you stand on your feet for 10-12 hours a day. Wooden soles will hurt your feet at first, but you will adjust and they are the best thing for your back. The only person who can get away with wearing the ridiculous Crocs is Mario Batali and that’s because he is a rock star.

- Always say “behind you,” “hot behind” when you are carrying something hot and “sharp behind” when you are carrying your knives as you pass behind your coworkers. If you don’t, you will get burned, stepped on, cut and even worse, you will hurt your coworkers. This is not optional.

- Always wrap and label everything you touch. Pull out that sharpie and put it to good use. Always take the tape labels off of everything you send to the dish pit. If you don’t, there will be a sticky residue left over from the tape. This residue is a sign of laziness. Do not be lazy.

- Always keep at least two side towels on you. Use a towel to touch any pan. Even when you know it’s cold. Take a pan from the freezer, use a towel. Trust me on this one.

- See the chef over in the corner, leaning against the counter, chatting with the manager? Don’t do that. Follow suit of your fellow co-workers and stand up straight with your head down, working quickly, very quickly. At one point, that chef did the same thing, but now he is the chef and has decided he has the time to chat it up. Hopefully, one day you’ll have that option as well. Today, however, you are being paid minimum wage to attempt whatever task your sous chef has given you. So be quiet and work.

- Always work like you are in the weeds. Quickly and efficiently. That way when you are actually in the weeds you will be ready. And everyone around you just might believe you are taking your job seriously.

- There will come a day when someone newer and less experienced comes along and you suddenly get moved up from the lowest spot on the totem pole. When this happens, it is likely that your coworkers will invite you along for drinks after work. This presents a dilemma. Commodore in the work place soothes the anxiety of a high stress environment and bonding over beers after work definitely helps in building a solid team. However, if you party all night with the guys, then everyone knows why you are lagging the next day during prep time. And it’s probably not the best idea to have one too many drinks and call your sous chef a jerk, especially when you need him to help you get set up for a big party the next day. So be fair warned, when you play with fire, you may get burned.

- Try not to make constant references to culinary school. You graduated and that’s wonderful, but no one wants to hear stories about your professors or your recipes. We all had them and we all have learned new and better skills and tricks. So start learning your new tricks too.

- There is always work to be done. If your prep list is done, then prep for tomorrow. If you are done with that, then clean. What if you’ve already cleaned your station? Okay, detail all of the equipment with a toothpick. There is always work to be done in the kitchen. If you don’t find it, chances are someone will find some work for you, and you probably won’t like it.

Kitchens are tough, hard places to survive in. They are full of a lot of ruthless, unyielding, people who only look out for themselves. You have to really, really love food and have tough skin to survive in this world, but at the end of the day if you are doing what you love, it will get you through the rough patches. You will almost certainly get yelled at, but everyone does. When you are eating that amazing juicy fig, or plating the perfectly cooked steak, it will be worth it, I promise. Hopefully this advice will help you along your way. Good luck and welcome to the kitchen.

So probably one of the coolest things as of late is cooking with my daughter, granted she is only 19months old… but she loves to help. A couple months ago i, in an effort to quell the cranky todler had her help me snap green beans. 

I asked her if she wanted to help daddy with beans, to which she replied “Helper Bean”, needless to say i was smitten. 

Yesterday i was whipping together a little bourbon Salmon with Jasmine Rice and Roasted Beets, and i her one of our chairs scrapping on the tile floor and my daughter yelling… “helper bean daddy, helper bean cook.”

So it looks like i have my very own sous chef… i love it… although she hasnt really masted the art of pouring yet… but then again, who really has right.

Though you might like this.

A sous chef preparing his signature dish, carefully and skillfully placing the chilli topping on top of the glutinous rice.

All photos are copyright reserved - firdausradzi ©2009.

Hey kiddies, sorry for the hold up…

the past week or so I have been battling what Little Stevie and I thought was probably The Swine, as in of the influenza variety.  Mainly I had the WORST sore throat of my life… (aside from the time I had tonsilitis and had to have my tonsils removed.) 2-3 week later I think it has finally subsided and given way to a minor cough.

Also, I guess I really didn’t do anything blog worthy… just been laying low in recovery mode.

Did some painting-

This is the very first Pirate Series from Bubble Gum Head

This is a little project I just started…

I have been working on it here and there, mainly while hanging out with Little Stevie.

As you can see the shapes resemble that of a piece of Hubba Bubba or Bubblicious, thus the name.

Keep watching for more- I plan to let these puppies loose on etsy.com

I have found painting to be : time consuming, rewarding, and addictive.

Yesterday I had the day off and hung out with Larold Gunther, the chef.

Aside from painting and making delicious foods, I have also been partaking in this random sci-fi marathon. So far we’ve watched Event Horizon… it was… not so good. Last night we watched Terminator 1. We’re prepping to watch the new one…

Ciao!

Sous Chef Vicki

Why does one dedicate all there time and put in great efforts into food? Every great Chef uses the word passion in there vocabulary. There has to be passion, without it, the story never unfolds. But what does that truly mean? As Thomas Keller puts it, in The French Laundry Cookbook: “When you acknowledge, as you must, that there is no such thing as perfect food, only the idea of it, then the real purpose of striving toward perfection becomes clear: to make people happy. That’s what cooking is all about.”

Boca Bacchanal 2009

(Above From right to left) Chef Anthony Pizzo, Chef Jeff, Micheal Cappiello, Celebrity Chef Stephen Asprinio and Jeff Mickler.

Organized by the Boca Raton Historical Society, Boca Bacchanal is a 7-year-old series of food and wine events. Presented as a weekend affair to benefit educational programs in BRHS and the community. This post is dedicated to the Grand Tasting that was held at the Centre for the Arts at Mizner Amphitheatre on March 1, 2009. A stupendous wine tasting and “by the bite” lunch prepared by 30 top local restaurants as well as a phenomenal presentation of 140 wines. My personal favorite was Cut432’s short rib sloppy joe topped with Cahill Irish cheddar mornay sauce, accompanied with a housemade jalapeno spiced pickle and paired with 1812 lager from Chef Anthony Pizzo’s hometown Rochester, New York.

Chef Pizzo Slicing Jalapeno Spiced Pickles                                           finishing the mornay sauce

So the day started pretty early, after a busy Saturday night shift at the restaurant I got up Sunday morning took the 15 minute drive north on Ocean Blvd to Delray Beach. Decided to stop and take a picture of the sunrise.

So anyway we arrive at Mizner Park and get to work setting up Our Table.

Brandon Belluscio (owner) and server Mike Cappiello setting up Cut432’s table at Boca Bacchanal 2009.

As the day went on we continued to serve our visitors the same same way we do so at the restaurant. With one goal in mind, to offer exceptional service and quality product to our guests. It’s not easy as many might think it is. There is alot of blood, sweat and tears that go into a successful dining establishment especially in today’s world. As many restaurants shut there doors this year Cut 432 continues to grow. We take great pride in what we do, and more importantly we work as a family even though at times it feels more like a disfunctional one. But we put our differences aside and focus on the few common interest we all share deep within our hearts; to allow customers to escape from there everyday lives even for just a couple of hours, enjoy themselves in a beautiful relaxing ambiance, awaken there senses and deliver them the service they deserve. Our hunger for success is what drives us.  

The day was a success, we all had a great time and can’t wait for next year’s event. As for me, this is my first blogg. I will continue to document my experience as a cook and look forward to hearing from like minded individuals.

“To obtain an assured favorable response from people,

it is better to offer them something for their stomach instead of their brains”.

-Albert Einstein-

Treasure, Jordan, Gina, and Riz- boop battle
Riz and Gina- boop battle II
Riz and Sandellas Flatbread- Riz won
Michael and whomever he deems worthy- still in the making

Michael swore i tried to turn all the bedsfolk against him but i wasn’t i just like the numbers with zero or five after them when it comes to television volume. The bedsfolk werent even really paying attention to this abrubt and completely irrelevent argument between us.

Ruby Tuesday is a photo sharing concept, or meme, if you will, y’all. Every Tuesday you post one of your own  photos that contains something red. It can be a whole lotta red, or a little bit of red. I liked the eclectic collection of pictures I saw over at  Work of the Poet, so I decided to play.

And I really, really like the cute little red Dorothy shoes in the Ruby Tuesday button (left). Ain’t they just too cute? If you click on them, you can look at lots of other folks’ Ruby Tuesday photos.

This is a picture of my middle son, Ryan, cooking red peppers on our grill. He is an excellent cook, and he was grilling the peppers to make a red pepper sauce to go over a fancy fish dish that he made for us. It was my Mother’s Day present a couple of year’s ago – a gourmet meal for the whole family.  Ryan has been a sous chef for several years, and  has even cooked meals for several stars, including Queen Latifa and Dakota Fanning!

This year, his Mother’s Day gift is going to be a grandchild, y’all!

I have often wondered whether my children will have the same love and passion for food and cooking that I do. I have always encouraged them to try everything food wise from smelly blue cheese to salty anchovies. When confronted with something that might look a bit ‘icky’ like brains or chicken liver or smell a bit high like a ripe washed rind cheese, they now repeat the mantra ‘eat with your taste buds not your eyes or your nose’ before I even start.

The question is, will they follow the pursuit of flavour and freshness or are they harboring a deep resentment of all things culinary and long for the day when they can escape and eat fast food for every meal.

I must confess I can be a tyrant in the kitchen and my sous chef and line cook (read 10 year old daughter and 7 year old son) often get cut with words sharper than the knives they are using when they are compelled to lend me their help. ‘No wonder it has taken them so long to begin to enjoy the delights of cooking’, I am told by my wife in answer to my pondering my childrens reluctance to join my culinary adventures. ‘They have no room to experiment and learn’ she continues ‘you insist they do everything your way whenever they peel chop or stir they can’t just have a go, it must be done perfectly or you take over’, she accuses.

Recently however I flipped through a cooking magazine and my Daughter pointed to a dish and said yummm I would like to make that. So we gathered the ingredients and she set to work. She peeled and diced onions browned mince, salted water for pasta, grated cheese, measured, weighed and cleaned up the mess afterwards.

We enjoyed her cooking for dinner, true it was just a simple pasta bake BUT the difference was that my daughter not me had chosen what to cook, she was one in control.

Ah the pride, the swelling of my chest as I stood and watched her cut and dice onion, portioning the meat, putting just a small portion in the pan at a time to cook so it wouldn’t stew, understanding which ingredients need to be exact measurements and which she could alter to taste.

I fondly remember claiming certain dishes at home as my own ‘signature’ dish and would be called upon to cook them each time. As I gained confidence I would tweak the recipes (sometimes with success sometimes with spectacular failure).

I am beginning to wonder now if the kitchen will be big enough for the two of us.