Hello Everyone.
This go around is something I've needed to do for a good bit of time now. Over the past two years many of you have supported me, I thank you for that! I'm thinking of a piece of advice I got from a chef one night. This, in a literal aspect is very direct to any industry in which you are on your feet for long periods of time, but I understand it in a different way now that I think about it. I hope that I'm able to explain my thoughts on this simple statement.
The man stands thoughtfully, slowly sips ice water from a quart container, a bead of sweat rolls down his face, and finally says to me, "The best piece of advice I can give to you," sips the water again, and stares thoughtfully in the direction of the loud overhead exhaust, "Wear comfortable shoes." I laughed and he just stares for a moment and shakes my hand then walks away.
I'd like to say that in that moment I was very literal in thinking something along the lines of, "Of course, otherwise your legs/feet would kill you." Later as I was thinking about that moment I realized a flaw in my thinking. A good pair of shoes is a necessity for anyone who is on their feet a lot, have back, leg, or knee problems, or just in general like to be comfortable when they are on their feet. Yes, that is true, but also through life we need a good pair of shoes. Shoes are also the base of your everyday physical life; so flipping that to a more thought provoking statement one might say, shoes are the base of other parts of your life. To mentally prepare oneself everyday for their tasks is sort of like dawning a good pair of shoes to start your day.
A french term that I am particularly fond of, mise en place (mees in plas), or everything in it's place, is a good way to think of your good pair of shoes. Waking up in the morning with a sense of awareness and preparation will lead to a good mise. A good mise for your day can open so many things up for you. My favorite part of having a good mise is never having to worry if something goes wrong, because everything to fix it is in it's proper place.
My reason for doing this is sharing the best piece of advice I've ever received with all of you, and I hope you understand my comparison of mise en place and good shoes. So, wrapping this up, go through your day with good shoes and a complete mise en place, I promise it'll be better.
Blessing on you, your food, and your kitchen.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Showing Off A Little, Because That's Exactly What Chefs Like to Do
All of this work is Garde Manger. The garde manger was originally known as the keeper of foods meant to be eaten. This is the process of preserving foods, such as smoking, curing, and pickling. The garde manger will also deal with cold foods such as salads, cold soups, and veg/fruit platters. While the highly trained garde manger is very valuable person to have on hand, in today's kitchens they are priceless so many kitchens don't employ them. An example of some work a skilled garde manger would do.
A simple yet very well made fruit platter to feed about 50.
Duck Confit Hors D'oeuvre with Chive Cream Cheese on a Fresh Wheat Cracker.
Ice Carvings, yes that is a squirrel.
A Micro Herb Salad with Green Apple dressed with a Roasted Lemon Honey Vinaigrette on a Goat Cheese Tartlet.
Pickled Red and Golden Beets.
Duck Confit Terrine with Dried Cherries and Foie Gras Tourchon.
All of these things require a vast knowledge and skill. After creating the individual components often times a very skilled garde manger will present these items on a platter. A platter can't just be laid out with random items. The entire experience comes from the flavors of each item blending.
A skilled garde manger is priceless in any kitchen because the natural flavor of edible substance is increased when it is hot. Don't believe it, take a slice of your favorite produce and season it with a little salt and pepper, eat it cold. Now same thing, but cook it a little. The flavor, the smell, the texture, everything is increased. A garde manger must know how to take these flavors and make them appetizing when they are cold.
Humans and animals alike eat with first their eyes, then their noses, then their pallets. If this be the case then a salad must look good and taste amazing, because we shouldn't smell a salad, but to be turned on to it we have to love the flavor. To make this happen one must have a vast knowledge of a product and how to bend it to his/her will in order to make a person crave it.
Humans do not naturally crave cold dishes, we crave our comfort foods, which for everyone holds a memory to something in our pasts that links that dish with happiness. Can you link a cold food dish in your memory to a comfort food? If so, I'd like to hear about it.
Blessings on you, your food, and your kitchen!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Adventure Back to Your Roots
"Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will find them gradually, without noticing it, and live along some distant day into the answer." ~Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet
When normally journeying home for whatever reason it may be, holidays, breaks from school, or just to get away from life I find it a task of sorts to make the drive there, but this time I took a different approach to my entire journey. That approach was to find something; when searching for something in life it's often difficult. This search on the other hand was not going to be difficult at all, I knew exactly where to find what I was looking for. That is encouraging, especially when thinking about the things in life I've lost in the past; expensive sunglasses, wallets, keys, homework, and things that are often lost that take what seems a lifetime to find. What had I lost this time? Something I had never actually found, something that I had mislead myself into thinking I had, myself.
Now some people believe it takes a lifetime to discover oneself, but I feel that the idea of who a person is should be discovered at an early age and like making stock, clarified and fortified throughout one's lifetime. For me a major part of who I am can be defined by food, as can all of our lives. Allow me to explain, food is something that is influenced by your social status, culture, religion, family and geographical location, therefore the type of food in our lives defines who we are. Weather it's a heavily sauced meatloaf made by your grandma in the southern parts of America, or a light fresh caught fish from the Mediterranean that dish will define part of your life. To define my life and who I am I would like to use the comparison of food and what it newly means to me, and I hope you will understand the meaning behind it.
To begin a definition I need to take you back to the beginning. One of life's most educational experiences will come from growing food, that I can promise. For me this experience came my entire life and I never saw it until I left it. To create a fruit that can create and sustain life a few critical components are needed. The first is a teacher, a wiser, and diligent caregiver, a person who is willing to give their time and life to define another. This comes in the form of the farmer. The next is an area to raise this fruit, a safe, clean area to teach it what it should be and ensure it's health and life. Then a seed is needed, the item in which the entire fruit will come from. After combining these items it's not all fun and games. The garden still needs to be weeded and cleaned. The plants need to be nurtured and watered. and once they reach a certain stage of life they need guidelines in which to properly grow. After the guidelines are laid out one can not simply walk away and expect the fruit to grow properly. They still need care and love. Finally after a lot of patience and caregiving the fruit can be harvested and put to work.
Being in touch with the earth, the seasons, and the area around you gives a new meaning to one's self definition and understanding of life and family. Seeing something come from a seed that is smaller than a marble that sustains life is an experience I wish everyone could have. The best part about all of it though is being with the teacher. Talking with the one who gives time, love, and part of their life to another. Listening to their words and their lessons of their past, these are the things that shapes a person into a real human. They've lived, loved, laughed, and lost, and just like their teacher before them they'll give to the next generation the responsibility of the teacher.
After harvest what happens with the fruit. Well it gets a new caregiver. This caregiver has a different relationship with the fruit. This time it's not about being taught it's about being defined, taken from it's original state and unlocking it's potential. Creating something new by interacting the young fruit with other young fruits. What is significant about this stage of the fruit's life? This is the stage the fruit gets to experience new things and people, make mistakes, and learn from them. The new caregiver is there to guide this stage of life. Who is this caregiver? The many people the young fruit comes in contact with while it's on it's own. Or this caregiver is the chef. The chef creating a new life for this single fruit.
After rereading what I've gotten to this point, I feel that I've lost track of my original idea for this posting, but I also feel the above writing is necessary to understanding my journey home. So, back to my original idea. At the beginning of this journey I had an idea of life and my meaning of life and my meaning of what food and a definition of gourmet food is. I must admit how amazing it is that over a period of a few days things can completely redefine themselves. I've explained my new look on life, now my new look on food and what gourmet food really is.
Food is the natural product of someone's labor. It should be appreciated and not destroyed. It should be kept in it's original state and appreciated as it is. Just like people should be. We shouldn't add gelatin to people and alter their flavor, texture, and their lives, we should let them be what their first teacher taught them to be. I feel that from the point of being back with my family and seeing the beauty of the ground and the products that come from it put me back in touch with my life. But, more than that it reminded me of things I'd forgotten and taught me things I hadn't learned. Taught me things about a gourmet lifestyle, and what that means.
The definition of "Gourmet" is, of a kind or higher standard suitable for a gourmet, but the origins of that word are French, and meant "Wine Taster". So this tells me that it is someone with a trained or more defined pallet. Not the idea of current day gourmet, or culinary alchemy, if this be the case shouldn't gourmet be a person's own idea of that standard? A standard set by one's own pallet instead of someone else telling them what that standard should be. Well I've decided to create my own standard, and live my by my own pallet rather than what the "Standard" is rumored to be.
My new definition of gourmet is simple and yet complex, it's obvious and yet you have to look for it to understand it's meaning. Most of all you have to live it to learn it. To define my standard of gourmet I will simply put it as, "Real". Real as in life, real as in what that first teacher's purpose to care for and guide that young seedling. It's more than the good times of life, it is what has to be done. It's a standard set by an individual and their experiences of life and where they come from. If like me you grew up blessed with a close family that came together over meals and grew closer to each other through food then thank your higher power, and I'll thank mine. But, if you were not blessed like me then I'll tie everything together for you now. As a family we prepared the land for planting, we planted, we cared for, and we harvested our fruits. Then as a family we preserved these products to sustain our lives. Finally as a family we prepared and consumed these products. We were the teachers and the caregivers of these lives. We worked together, grew together, and we learned together. That is what has set my standard for "Gourmet".
Why should a person who has never been to the beginning and lived through the up-bringing of the life of their product set the standard of how I should prepare my product? They have no reason to. I have a reason to define my gourmet food, and I define my food as "real". Gourmet should be your life teaching combined with your second stage teaching. It should be that fresh, doing what it takes to survive, combined with the ability to bring back a childhood memory. My new goal for gourmet food is to bring to life every possible sense with every bite from every dish. My food will reflect my life, which will reflect my first caregiver and the wisdom passed on to the next generation, with the teachings of my new ideas and my new life. Food is the bases of survival and the perfect creation of someone who has given their life to providing for others. How does this tie life, food, past, present, and future together? I think that Thomas Aloysius Dorgan said it best, "Life is like eating artichokes; you have got to go through so much to get so little."
Life is about the struggles and the things that make a person real. If a person never had issues and never had to struggle in any manner would they be human? I dare to say they would not be, and if there is a person who lives a life without difficulties and struggles I for one would like to meet this person, because I dare say their life is incomplete and they are not happy because they've never lived. Recently I've decided I'd like to redefine my personal meaning of living; living is the struggle, living is the challenge, and living is becoming a real person. The journey of life isn't supposed to be roses and Foie Gras, it's supposed to be fading flowers and half spoiled tomatoes.
"Ponder well on this point: the pleasant hours of our life are all connected by a more or less tangible link, with some memory of the table." ~ Charles Pierre Monselet
Thank you to my teachers and the people who defined what my gourmet lifestyle is going to be! I love you dearly!
When normally journeying home for whatever reason it may be, holidays, breaks from school, or just to get away from life I find it a task of sorts to make the drive there, but this time I took a different approach to my entire journey. That approach was to find something; when searching for something in life it's often difficult. This search on the other hand was not going to be difficult at all, I knew exactly where to find what I was looking for. That is encouraging, especially when thinking about the things in life I've lost in the past; expensive sunglasses, wallets, keys, homework, and things that are often lost that take what seems a lifetime to find. What had I lost this time? Something I had never actually found, something that I had mislead myself into thinking I had, myself.
Now some people believe it takes a lifetime to discover oneself, but I feel that the idea of who a person is should be discovered at an early age and like making stock, clarified and fortified throughout one's lifetime. For me a major part of who I am can be defined by food, as can all of our lives. Allow me to explain, food is something that is influenced by your social status, culture, religion, family and geographical location, therefore the type of food in our lives defines who we are. Weather it's a heavily sauced meatloaf made by your grandma in the southern parts of America, or a light fresh caught fish from the Mediterranean that dish will define part of your life. To define my life and who I am I would like to use the comparison of food and what it newly means to me, and I hope you will understand the meaning behind it.
To begin a definition I need to take you back to the beginning. One of life's most educational experiences will come from growing food, that I can promise. For me this experience came my entire life and I never saw it until I left it. To create a fruit that can create and sustain life a few critical components are needed. The first is a teacher, a wiser, and diligent caregiver, a person who is willing to give their time and life to define another. This comes in the form of the farmer. The next is an area to raise this fruit, a safe, clean area to teach it what it should be and ensure it's health and life. Then a seed is needed, the item in which the entire fruit will come from. After combining these items it's not all fun and games. The garden still needs to be weeded and cleaned. The plants need to be nurtured and watered. and once they reach a certain stage of life they need guidelines in which to properly grow. After the guidelines are laid out one can not simply walk away and expect the fruit to grow properly. They still need care and love. Finally after a lot of patience and caregiving the fruit can be harvested and put to work.
Being in touch with the earth, the seasons, and the area around you gives a new meaning to one's self definition and understanding of life and family. Seeing something come from a seed that is smaller than a marble that sustains life is an experience I wish everyone could have. The best part about all of it though is being with the teacher. Talking with the one who gives time, love, and part of their life to another. Listening to their words and their lessons of their past, these are the things that shapes a person into a real human. They've lived, loved, laughed, and lost, and just like their teacher before them they'll give to the next generation the responsibility of the teacher.
After harvest what happens with the fruit. Well it gets a new caregiver. This caregiver has a different relationship with the fruit. This time it's not about being taught it's about being defined, taken from it's original state and unlocking it's potential. Creating something new by interacting the young fruit with other young fruits. What is significant about this stage of the fruit's life? This is the stage the fruit gets to experience new things and people, make mistakes, and learn from them. The new caregiver is there to guide this stage of life. Who is this caregiver? The many people the young fruit comes in contact with while it's on it's own. Or this caregiver is the chef. The chef creating a new life for this single fruit.
After rereading what I've gotten to this point, I feel that I've lost track of my original idea for this posting, but I also feel the above writing is necessary to understanding my journey home. So, back to my original idea. At the beginning of this journey I had an idea of life and my meaning of life and my meaning of what food and a definition of gourmet food is. I must admit how amazing it is that over a period of a few days things can completely redefine themselves. I've explained my new look on life, now my new look on food and what gourmet food really is.
Food is the natural product of someone's labor. It should be appreciated and not destroyed. It should be kept in it's original state and appreciated as it is. Just like people should be. We shouldn't add gelatin to people and alter their flavor, texture, and their lives, we should let them be what their first teacher taught them to be. I feel that from the point of being back with my family and seeing the beauty of the ground and the products that come from it put me back in touch with my life. But, more than that it reminded me of things I'd forgotten and taught me things I hadn't learned. Taught me things about a gourmet lifestyle, and what that means.
The definition of "Gourmet" is, of a kind or higher standard suitable for a gourmet, but the origins of that word are French, and meant "Wine Taster". So this tells me that it is someone with a trained or more defined pallet. Not the idea of current day gourmet, or culinary alchemy, if this be the case shouldn't gourmet be a person's own idea of that standard? A standard set by one's own pallet instead of someone else telling them what that standard should be. Well I've decided to create my own standard, and live my by my own pallet rather than what the "Standard" is rumored to be.
My new definition of gourmet is simple and yet complex, it's obvious and yet you have to look for it to understand it's meaning. Most of all you have to live it to learn it. To define my standard of gourmet I will simply put it as, "Real". Real as in life, real as in what that first teacher's purpose to care for and guide that young seedling. It's more than the good times of life, it is what has to be done. It's a standard set by an individual and their experiences of life and where they come from. If like me you grew up blessed with a close family that came together over meals and grew closer to each other through food then thank your higher power, and I'll thank mine. But, if you were not blessed like me then I'll tie everything together for you now. As a family we prepared the land for planting, we planted, we cared for, and we harvested our fruits. Then as a family we preserved these products to sustain our lives. Finally as a family we prepared and consumed these products. We were the teachers and the caregivers of these lives. We worked together, grew together, and we learned together. That is what has set my standard for "Gourmet".
Why should a person who has never been to the beginning and lived through the up-bringing of the life of their product set the standard of how I should prepare my product? They have no reason to. I have a reason to define my gourmet food, and I define my food as "real". Gourmet should be your life teaching combined with your second stage teaching. It should be that fresh, doing what it takes to survive, combined with the ability to bring back a childhood memory. My new goal for gourmet food is to bring to life every possible sense with every bite from every dish. My food will reflect my life, which will reflect my first caregiver and the wisdom passed on to the next generation, with the teachings of my new ideas and my new life. Food is the bases of survival and the perfect creation of someone who has given their life to providing for others. How does this tie life, food, past, present, and future together? I think that Thomas Aloysius Dorgan said it best, "Life is like eating artichokes; you have got to go through so much to get so little."
Life is about the struggles and the things that make a person real. If a person never had issues and never had to struggle in any manner would they be human? I dare to say they would not be, and if there is a person who lives a life without difficulties and struggles I for one would like to meet this person, because I dare say their life is incomplete and they are not happy because they've never lived. Recently I've decided I'd like to redefine my personal meaning of living; living is the struggle, living is the challenge, and living is becoming a real person. The journey of life isn't supposed to be roses and Foie Gras, it's supposed to be fading flowers and half spoiled tomatoes.
"Ponder well on this point: the pleasant hours of our life are all connected by a more or less tangible link, with some memory of the table." ~ Charles Pierre Monselet
Thank you to my teachers and the people who defined what my gourmet lifestyle is going to be! I love you dearly!
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