DINNER 135: Monday, May 15, 2006

I was scheduled to have class this evening from 3:00pm until 9:30pm. I arrived to class around 2:45 to find that Chef Kinsella wasn’t there; we were having Chef Grace Yek as a substitute. Due to the normal lack of communication around there, Chef Yek was under the impression that we were going to be working with cheeses this evening, but Chef Kinsella let her know at the last moment that we were, in fact, to make the salads from the previous week’s class that was unexpectedly cancelled. (I found out it was because Chef Kinsella had food poisoning from some bad clam chowder. He’s feeling better now.)

Chef Yek had prepared a thorough lecture on cheeses, and decided to present that information to us even though it was a week premature. It was a very good lecture, quickly ranking Chef Yek as one of the best lecturers I’ve had at Cincinnati State’s Culinary program.

Once her lecture was complete, Chef Yek outlined the goals for the evening — each team was to prepare individual samples of the three salads we were assigned — and turned us loose. We worked quickly and efficiently, preparing, for instance, just ONE batch of the dressings from which all the teams dipped. This approach allowed all the teams to complete their work rapidly. Chef Yek seemed genuinely pleased with the work and products we presented. She specifically complimented my knife skills, which is a nice validation.

After scrubbing the kitchen, I stopped by Arby’s on the way home for a Crispy Chicken sandwich and a Jamocha shake. But mostly for the Jamocha shake.