Let me start by saying I love soup!! Just in case you didn't know that about me this is my declaration to the soup gods. So I was pretty friggin excited for class #7 to come about because I thought I had this one in the bag...boy was I wrong...that is what I get for being cocky. We made sauces and soups I had never heard of and come to find out last night was also cooking terminology 101....we got hammered on random cooking knowledge and terminology. I think my proudest moment was during the verbal quiz, when the Chef asked the group,"What is the best way to cook a rib eye?" And I responded without thinking,"in a pan." As soon as it came out of my mouth I thought to myself,"oh crap that was me being a smart ass, don't think that was the best timing." However, I got lucky and although you could tell he was trying not to laugh...he was full on laughing. My mouth always gets me in trouble!!!



Let me start by telling you about the grossest part of the night. Yes, misery loves company and so I enjoy sharing those areas of culinary school which are less than sexy. Do you like consomme? I have always loved the rich beef flavor and I have found it delicate, multi-dimensional and intense. However, do you know what consomme is made of? It is a combination of leeks, onions, celery and carrots...ok that part is fine. It is also raw ground beef, egg white and EGG SHELLS!!! You cook it at a low heat and as it cooks the meat and egg shell mixture congeals, allowing you to strain it and get the luscious broth that I love. Sure it still tasted incredible even with that knowledge, but I am still thinking ignorance is a pretty cool thing.

I also fell in love with a new cooking tool-stove top smoker. You take this smoker add wood chips on the bottom for flavor, add a rack and you can smoke shrimp, tomatoes, meat, etc. Last night we did a smoked tomato sauce and it was incredible!! You place the smoker on the burners of your stove and it smokes, but in less time than an outside smoker and its smaller and more portable. Another wonderful birthday idea for those who love me!! Yes, I am still very subtle!!

Now let me share my wonderful terminology lesson:

• Fond-tasty brown bits on the bottom of a pan. I know I always thought they were just the tasty brown bits on the bottom of a pan too, but no they have a name.
• Docker-tool used to perforate dough that kind of looks like a lawn aerator. 
• Mirepouix-mixture of leeks, celery, onion and carrots often used as soup or sauce base. I just feel so cultured saying that word
• Paillard-chicken or veal that is pounded thin
• Pullet-this is a chicken that is less than a year old. Yes, I know this sounds like a nasty sex term, but it is not. 
• Emulsification-combining fat and oil together so they don't separate like in a mayo. 

Up until last Saturday my most amazing celebrity moment was definitely meeting David Copperfield last year in Vegas. And although I didn't get to touch his hair, which was kind of an obsession of mine, the fact that I got to be on stage to watch the car disappear and I got to pose with him backstage was pretty cool.

 However, as all of you know food is definitely my passion so Copperfield got bumped from the #1 spot by the fact that I had the pleasure of spending the day with Chef Edward Walsh. He was the Chef for Kendall Jackson for many years and he has received awards from the James Beard Foundation and Rolling Stone named him one of the Top 10 Chefs in the Nation in 1987. He is the personal chef of a dear friend of mine and so when I landed in Phoenix last week I spent all day Saturday eating some of the most amazing food on the planet.

Let me just say that not only is "Chef Ed" an amazing chef, he is also by far one of the most down to earth people I have ever met. He cooks in hiking boot style shoes, shorts and a t-shirt. There was seriously nothing better than sitting on a stool, drinking an amazing glass of champagne and watching him cook. The speed and accuracy as he wielded a knife was by far one of the most memorable experiences of my life....lightening fast and no fear of losing any fingers...unlike my personal culinary experiences.

Chef Ed grew up in the New York area and both of his parents were chefs, so not only was cooking his passion it was in his blood. And it definitely shows as he moves around the kitchen. He loves to tell stories as he cooks and he definitely had an avid audience with me in the room. He is super easy to talk to and had no problem joking around with me as I asked him random questions about lobsters screaming, East coast vs West coast lobsters, types of rose, etc. I pretty much peppered him with questions the entire day.

The day started with an amazing cheese and fruit plate. I seriously have never liked jicama but he put lime and chili pepper on it and it made me a believer!!


The next course consisted of grilled vegetables which I could have eaten all day!! The grilled artichokes were incredible as well as the grilled zucchinis and roasted peppers. Yum!!


Then for lunch we had crab hoagies with snow crab!! There was also potato salad with jicama and roasted asparagus. I wasn't even hungry but I ate everything on my plate! The rolls were light, buttery and lightly toasted.


 We took a short break from eating to hang out near the pool. I learned how to play with toy dump trucks in the gravel, all of the working parts on a toy helicopter and heard some pretty incredible pick-up lines from a 3 year old...like "You, me and my room." It is a sad day when a 3 year old has more game than most of the guys you date!!

Finally, around 5 or 6 we started to ramp up for dinner...because obviously I was starving to death and wasting away after the lunch we had. We started the evening with this incredible rose champagne. It was light, slightly dry and perfect paired with food.


And for dessert...because I hadn't eaten enough...there were strawberry shortcakes that had whipped cream and grand marnier. Dear god!!


Not only was this the perfect food day it was the perfect weather. We got to have our clam bake outside on the patio in a beautiful backyard on a warm night. I got to enjoy fun company and I got to be blessed by the amazing culinary experiences of Chef Ed. Thank you!! And no I didn't ask to touch Chef Ed's hair either, but it wasn't nearly as creepy as Copperfields.

So if you are in the Scottsdale area and you are looking for authentic Italian style pizza Grazie is the place for you! They seriously have some of the best thin crust pizza I have had on the West Coast in a very long time. They also have an impressive Italian wine list and not that I am an expert in Italian wine, but they had wines I had never heard of and it was a lot of fun to try something outside my comfort zone.


Grazie is not in the heart of Downtown Scottsdale, it is more like 3 blocks away, but it actually has a great quiet location on a side street with a beautiful patio that is perfect for warm nights. It is tiny and inviting inside and the wood fired pizza oven is visible and just makes the place feel like home.


I decided to stick with tradition when I was there and so I ordered a plain cheese pizza with tomatoes...which is the way I ate pizza as a kid. The crust was thin, crispy and still had the marks of the pizza oven, which made me happy. They use homemade mozzarella which in and of itself is impressive. The sauce was tangy and tasted like fresh herbs! And I just loved that the pizza was not too greasy like so many of them are!


They also had gluten free pizza crust options and they actually had gluten free beer which spiked my curiosity, but I decided to stick with wine because of their impressive list. Maybe next time!

The wait staff was helpful and knew their wine. I asked for a full bodied red that involved an out of the ordinary Italian varietal. They asked me if I prefered a more jammy or earthy wine and I said earthy. They recommended a 2010 Palazzo Delle Torre-Ripassa and it was perfect!! They also have these cute business cards that allow you to write down the wine you drank or liked. Cool idea!!

I would definitely go back next time I am in town. Grazie!

Pan Seared Rock Cod w/Tomato Olive and Fennel Sauce

I think my proudest moment of yesterdays class involved learning how to fillet a fish. I called it "butchering" but the Chef corrected me and said it was filleting. However, I corrected him when I showed him my "fillet" and said I am pretty sure I butchered the hell out of my fish. He laughed...and I was being honest. It was an experience and a little gross, but a valuable lesson all the same



I do have have to say that after culinary school I had kind of a rough day and I am pretty glad that I didn't get my "news" until after school was over, otherwise I would have definitely broke my rule about naming animals. This fish would have had a name and it would have truly been butchered something along the lines of a voodoo fish. Just sayin'!!



The fish lesson was extremely valuable and I loved the fact that all of the fish dishes cooked quickly and allowed for the eating portion of the class to commence in a much more timely fashion. Yesterday was a make-up class for me as I was out of town for my normal Monday night class and it was strange being the "new girl," since this group already had their routines, their alliances and their styles. I definitely missed my "normal" crowd.


So I learned that it is this portion of the salmon which is high in omega-3's. Which is funny because this is also normally the part of the fish that we all scrape off.


I learned this these are fish tweezers. They are used to take the bones out of the fish. And although I have fairly bushy eyebrows these would have been too big even for my eyebrows...so they are not dual purpose.

I also learned the difference between cold smoked and hot smoked fish. Cold smoked takes a raw piece of fish and smokes it, kind of like a lox. Hot smoked takes a cooked piece of fish and smokes it, like smoked salmon. Did you also know that Atlantic salmon is the best type of salmon to smoke due to it's high fat content? I thought that was interesting since I grew up in the Pacific Northwest and I have always been accustomed to smoked salmon from that region, however it tends to be a less fatty salmon varietal and less conducive for smoking...talk about learning that you have been living a lie.

Grilled Salmon Fillets with Champagne Sauce

Now for some random fish facts:

• If you soak catfish in milk it takes the earthy taste out of the fish. I am definitely going to try that. 
• True Dover Sole is only found in the channel between France and England
• Tilapia is the largest farm raised fish 
• Buying fish that is farm raised decreases the flavor
• Pollack is the fish varietal that is used to make faux crab
• If you can easily separate the muscle on a fish it has been previously frozen. The muscles become separated due to the thawing process that occurs when the water gets into the muscle of the animal. 
• On whole fish, look at the fins and smells the gills to determine it's freshness. The eyes can be deceiving...talk about a life lesson that has many applications. haha
• Do not put the gills in fish stock as it will change the flavor

Hickory Smoked Shrimp w/Mango Smoked Corn Salsa

Fillet of Sole Bonne Femme

So let me just say that as many of you know I was pretty sure that conquering the chicken butchering was going to be my biggest obstacle. And although not a lot of women can admit when they are wrong I am one that can. So let me just say I WAS WRONG!! For some reason watching the demo of the lamb leg dissection made me pretty darn green. I don't know if it just looked too much like a lamb, had too much fat, tendons and bones or if I just wasn't feeling well that day. But whatever it was it was not my favorite!!




The rest of the class, thankfully, went really well. The highlight being the creme brulee torch. I was definitely a little afraid of it at first as I had visions of being the first student to set her chefs coat on fire, however once I had that torch in my hand, all was right with the world. It was the huge industrial size torch and I pretty much wanted to play with it all day. However, my Mom did teach me how to share, so I did my creme brulee and passed it on like I was supposed to. But my birthday is in August and I want a torch!!


I was actually really surprised by how easy creme brulee was to make. I always just assumed that since it was on fancy restaurant menus it would be challenging, over complicated and disastrous for me to attempt. However, it truly is just a custard that is baked in a water bath and then you sprinkle it with sugar and torch. If you are unfamiliar with water baths, you just put the ramekins in a cookie sheet with slightly higher sides, fill the sheet with water about half way up the ramekin and let it bake with the water. The water bath just adds moisture to the oven which eliminates cracks in such things as custards or cheesecakes.

Now here are a few pork, veal and lamb tidbits that I acquired this week:

• When cooking lamb you do not want to keep most of the fat on the cut of meat as it has a very strong taste.
• Fell is a paper like outside covering on pork. It is also referred to as silver skin and you do want to remove it.
• The anatomy and cuts on a pork, veal and lamb are very similar and so they are butchered in very much the same way. 
• Always butcher meat cold cause it is firm and easier to cut.
• When cutting meat use a boning knife and always use the point of the knife as your guide.

So we had a one week hiatus due to "spring break" while our instructor traveled throughout Japan or maybe I should say ate his way through Japan. He had amazing pictures, stories and descriptions of food. But this week it was back to the grind. We had French baguette homework so on Tuesday I took off work early so I could spend 5 hours making baguettes. Let me start by saying I don't think I have ever done anything for 5 hours so just the fact that I had to be in one place for that period of time was a huge accomplishment in and of itself. When I turned in my baguette I got props for it's shape, however I did get feedback that it was slightly undercooked and that it needed a slightly crispier exterior. Those students that baked their baguettes the day of class definitely got higher ratings....hmmm show offs and over achievers!!!




 Here are a few of the dishes we made. The Asian Style Braised Boneless Beef Short Ribs were definitely my favorite and they were easy...they are going to be made again!!!



The Beef Stroganoff was very traditional but we made homemade noodles using a pasta maker that was attached to a Kitchen Aid mixer. That is a tool that I definitely need to add to my kitchen wish list. I have one of those traditional hand crank pasta makers that attach to your counter and wow they are a lot of work!!



Well this class was all about beef. We had a demonstration on how to butcher beef and thankfully I didn't have to tackle that task....yet...because I am pretty sure that every cut of meat I would have touched would have ended up looking like ground beef. And come to find out most steaks are not meant to look like that.

Here is a random fact for the day, did you know that kosher beef has to be from the 14th rib forward?

My favorite kitchen utensil of the night was the potato ricer. I had seen one before, but never used it and I got way too much pleasure putting boiled potatoes into the contraption and pulling the lever to create riced potatoes. However, in my little world the riced potatoes looked like playdough hair. Does anyone remember that little machine that you would put your playdough in and out comes colored hair?

We also learned how to make veal or beef stock. I did not take pictures of this process because there is just nothing asthetic about roasting bones. However, I did learn that you want to start your stock with cold water to allow the flavors of the stock to develop fully and that you should use 1qt water to 1lb bones.  Good to know!

The rest of the evening was spent making our dishes. I conquered my fear of frying as I was in the group that was tasked with making pommes lorette, which is like a mashed potato fried glob that resembles a tater tot. Amazing and super tasty!!


We learned how to make beef wellington:

Beef with pate on a slab of puff pastry

Mushroom tapenade stuff added on top of the pate

Beef Wellington before it was cooked

Beef Wellington after it was cooked

There is seriously nothing better than spending your Friday night after a long week on the couch with a good glass of Opolo merlot, a lap top and a blog...and oh yeah kitty is here too. I feel as if I am writing a letter to a dear friend and I guess since I have had this blog for a few years now I can probably call you all friends, right? And as many of you know I make friends rapidly so we are all probably best friends now.

Quick side story, when I typed the word couch it reminded me of an auto correct error I had not too long ago. I got a text from a friend asking me what I was doing and I responded "laying on the coach." She was like "sorry I didn't mean to interrupt," and at first I was pretty confused until I realized that she thought I was in a compromising position with a coach and not my couch. Oopsie!!



So as many of you know I made Charleston Shrimp and Grits this week. I just bought the cookbook From Mama's Table to Mine by Bobby Deen and I liked the idea that he takes Southern Cooking and makes it a little more health conscious. I also thought he was pretty darn attractive based on his picture on the cover, but just like most love affairs you start to get to know him better (aka. thumbing through the other photos in the book in which he is less attractive) and your crush quickly is extinguished. Thankfully he is still a pretty decent chef so I got over the loss of my eye candy and moved on to his food. Yes, this analogy does replicate my real life dating experiences just in case you were wondering.

One more side note, it is no wonder that I am single because I am not only the most unromantic person on the face of the planet, I am also the least smooth. I am that girl who texts the guy instead of her best friend describing how horrendous the date was, gets turned off by a guys spelling in his text messages and refuses to go out with him, falls out of love with the butcher even though I think he is super cute because he doesn't know what risotto is, ridicules a guy on fb for wearing socks to bed and well you get the picture.

And since I am always down for a cooking adventure I decided to try something out of my comfort zone. Now let me start by saying I don't have much experience eating Southern food, I have no experience cooking Southern food and even when I was in Atlanta I had an offer to go eat some good 'ol Southern fried food and I was like "eh I'm ok." So I don't call myself a Southern food subject matter expert by any stretch of the imagination. Damn is this enough of a disclaimer before I shatter my Southern friends hearts. Here it goes....I didn't like the grits. I thought they were bland, a little mushy and felt like I was eating cream of wheat cereal with my shrimp. In my opinion, this shrimp dish would have been awesome over some steamed rice.

I know all of my Southern friends are now swearing, breaking up with me and probably declaring my above statements as sacrilegious, but I just felt the need to be honest. I do have to say I really liked the shrimp part of the dish. It had a saffron flavor to me even though it was devoid of saffron and I loved the consistency of the sauce, almost tasted like a French roux, minus all of the fat.

This recipe cut fat by using Canadian bacon instead of real bacon and at first I was a little hesitant, but it truly worked. Sure real bacon would have been awesome too, but seriously what isn't bacon good in. It also uses fat free half and half and the consistency was perfect and it still gave the sauce a great creamy texture.

First of all, cook the bacon, onions and bell peppers until softened. Add the garlic and the white wine. As a side note I love the smell of white wine as it cooks. It almost just feels festive to me. Oh wait wine is always festive for me!!

In a bowl, combine the cornstarch and chicken broth and dissolve. This is obviously what thickens up the sauce and it works perfectly. Add the chicken broth, half and half and cornstarch mixture and cook until thickened. Finally, add the shrimp and cook until opaque.

Cook the grits and serve the shrimp mixture over them. Sprinkling with green onions.


Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 Canadian bacon slices, chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup fat-free half-and-half (or use low-fat)
3/4 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
3/4 cup quick-cooking grits
Chopped scallions (dark green tops only), for serving
Directions
In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the bacon, onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the white wine and let it bubble until it is mostly evaporated, about 1 minute.

In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of the chicken broth and stir until dissolved. Add the remaining broth to the skillet along with the half-and-half and the cornstarch mixture. Bring to a gentle boil and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes, until slightly thickened. Add the shrimp and cook until opaque, about 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the grits according to the package directions.

Serve the shrimp and sauce over the grits and top with the scallions.


The sauce has a nice nutty flavor, the shrimp gives it a flavor that reminds me of Old Bay Seasoning and the vegetables add some nice texture. The shrimp mixture I found to be very decadent and rich and I truly could have eaten the entire pot in one sitting. But the grits slowed me down in my consumption...they were a little gummy, kind of grumpy and yes I mean grumpy, stuck to the back of my throat and just didn't make me happy.

And as a side note I definitely recommend a nice robust white wine with this dish...like an oaky Chardonnay of the Sonoma Cutrer or Rombauer variety...just in case you wanted my opinion.

Have a fabulous weekend and for those of you who are waiting for my culinary school update I promise to post one this weekend. Last week we had off due to "spring break," also known as our instructor was eating his way through Japan. But this week we tackled beef....and turned in our French baguettes...stay tuned.