Good start going into the 3rd week. So far the commute has been smooth and even and the weather continues to be beautiful! Go Giants! My classes are moving along a pretty steady clip, we have 2 quizzes a week and I will have 6 finals by the end of the first 6 weeks as well as 4 written essays from fiction or nonfiction book on or having to do with cooking or cookery or gastronomy. I’m currently reading “Heat” by Bill Buford (which is what I should be doing instead of writing on this blog right now – the essay is due Thursday!) There is so much more than just cooking to cooking! I have jumped in with great zeal and have signed up for just about every club offered! The Iron Toques, Ice Sculpture, Molecular Gastronomy, and the Competition Club are among my favorites so far! I submitted a “Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipe” for a $1000 scholarship. The competition is Oct. 23rd, I don’t know when the finalist will be selected; there will at least be 20 dishes chosen. My dish is Caramelized Onion Butternut Roast with Chestnuts - yum! It's one of my most favorite from the Veganomicon cookbook, which by the way is so super fabulous if you don't have this cookbook you must get it right away! I am also in the Poetry Club and 2 poems I submitted have been selected for this Thursday poetry reading. Oh boy - I think I may have to stand up in front of people and read them, should be easy! I'm looking forward to the Ice Sculpture Club, we get to use chain saws! Wow, isn't that the best! This is the only school in the country that actually gives sharp knifes and other dangers cutting implements to their students and then turns them loose in the city with a bag of weapons. Cool! The Starbucks and Wholefoods surrounding the CCA building at 8:25am on 17th & Rhode Island is dotted with men and women in black, white & bleu. I get the feeling this is what military school is like; well, as long as no one tries dropping a bomb on my street I guess it's all good!
Most of last week was spent on stocks/fumets’ and this week we are making the 5 mother sauces that every sauce is created from. I am making a vegan béchamel sauce tonight to bring to class tomorrow and see if Chef Patricio can tell that it doesn’t not have real milk or real butter. I was happy to know that I have been making a roux and the béchamel the traditional French way – I’m sure my knowledge of this comes from working at Mr. Stox in Anaheim, 20 years ago. I have to say I would credit a great deal of my know how of sauces and stocks to the culinary team lead by Chef Scott Raczek who still is the chef there. I goggled them the other day; they need a better web site. San Francisco is really an amazing city of culinary explosion! What we used to refer to as a “Roach Coach” in SF is just about some of the best gourmet fast food you will ever have in your life! And then there's the Gourmet Ghetto in Berkeley! Outstanding restaurants! This truly is a foody's paradise.
Most of last week was spent on stocks/fumets’ and this week we are making the 5 mother sauces that every sauce is created from. I am making a vegan béchamel sauce tonight to bring to class tomorrow and see if Chef Patricio can tell that it doesn’t not have real milk or real butter. I was happy to know that I have been making a roux and the béchamel the traditional French way – I’m sure my knowledge of this comes from working at Mr. Stox in Anaheim, 20 years ago. I have to say I would credit a great deal of my know how of sauces and stocks to the culinary team lead by Chef Scott Raczek who still is the chef there. I goggled them the other day; they need a better web site. San Francisco is really an amazing city of culinary explosion! What we used to refer to as a “Roach Coach” in SF is just about some of the best gourmet fast food you will ever have in your life! And then there's the Gourmet Ghetto in Berkeley! Outstanding restaurants! This truly is a foody's paradise.
I'm........Looking for a job again! AHH…Crap! Don’t love it! Ristorante Allegro is not as busy as it could be, so they are cutting back on everyone’s shifts and because I’m the newest hire, I was put on an “On Call” status! Basically, that means look for other employment! Good news is that I have already in the few weeks of working there made a couple good contacts. So there it is, something will come around for me. I do have an interview tomorrow in Berkeley and I’m still getting some little jewelry orders coming in – it’s all by the seat of pants that I live in this city. It’s so expensive to be here that I often think about moving back to LA. and I still feel the sting of a broken heart and deep disappointment but forward is the only plan I have right now! I know it sounds so vague, what are your plans…to go forward!
Oy vey….what ya gonna do!
I'll post a picture of my vegan bechamel sauce later tonight or soon after that!
Have a good night and day as they come to you! xo t
Have a good night and day as they come to you! xo t
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