May The Stars Light Your Way
Not too long ago, I switched from my beloved HTC Touch Pro 2 (which runs Windows Mobile) device to a Motorola Droid X (which runs Android) device. I never thought I’d give up my Touch Pro 2, but after a very short adjustment phase, I…
Recently, The Iron Horse Inn started offering Sunday brunch, from 10a-3p (reservations encouraged but not required). Wendy and I stopped by last Sunday and really enjoyed the selections from Chef Jackson Rouse and crew. They have a varied brunch menu, including a quiche of the…
Thank you all for being such a persistent bunch! Several of you asked for more information about the examination I took last Saturday, my menu, and some particulars. I am flattered by the interest.
Here you go…
My menu:
Sauce Veloute (Chicken Stock)
Sauce Espagnole (Brown Beef Stock)
Consommé Brunoise (Brown Chicken Stock)
Sole & Shrimp in the Grenobloise Style
Pan-Roasted Chicken Breast, Rosemary Farce,
Potato Puree,
Sautéed French Green Beans with Pepper Confetti,
Rosemary Supreme Sauce
Some details:
On Saturday, April 16, 2011, I took the practical examination for the Certified Chef de Cuisine through the American Culinary Federation. The practical examination is the last step in a lengthy journey to that certification – a journey that includes educational experience, work experience, courses in Nutrition, Sanitation, and Supervision, and a paper exam (I got a 90%!) — and was the one part I didn’t pass on my first attempt in February 2010.
After much reflection, refactoring of my original menu (which was too complex for this test), and lots of practice, I appeared for the practical exam this past Saturday.
Three hours of cooking, every moment (literally) of which was observed by at least one of the three judges. They watch everything — your knife skills, your sanitation, your efficiency, your utility of ingredients (just enough of each ingredient, don’t waste, store properly), your timing, the number of trips you make to the cooler, how often (and how well) you wash your hands & sanitize your station, how you handle the butchery, how you deal with dirty dishes, what you throw away, what you re-use, etc…
And that’s before they tasted a mouthful of the food I prepared!
Fortunately, I did well — I passed the exam and received praise for the quality of my butchery work on both the chicken and the fish. They really liked my potato puree — the judges commented that it was the best they’d had in a long time, and one of them asked for the recipe (he asked before I knew I passed, so I said, "I’d be willing to tell you, maybe, in a few minutes" (hinting that if I passed, I’d tell). He understood what I meant and jokingly said, "Oh no! The bribing happens BEFORE the results are announced!"). One of the other judges said he was going to change his menu for a competition he has coming up, changing it to include my potato puree.
They were also very complimentary about my sauces and my overall organization (I generated a lengthy “order of the day” document, complete with checkboxes, from which to work). I got dinged for my pile of dirty dishes and one sanitation infraction.
The judges liked the dishes I prepared… In addition to the required Sauce Espagnole, Sauce Veloute, and Consommé (I did Consommé Brunoise), I prepared a Sole appetizer with Shrimp, Lemon Juice, Buerre Noisette (brown butter), Parsley, and Capers, which I topped with a Supreme of Lemon. They felt the fish was very well cooked, but that the acidity of the dish was higher than it should have been, with the lemon juice, capers, and raw lemon contributing.
My chicken dish was Pan-Roasted Airline Breast of Chicken with a Rosemary Farce under the skin, a Rosemary Supreme Sauce, Potato Puree, and French Green Beans with Red & Yellow Pepper Brunoise. The judges complimented the caramelization of the chicken skin, the degree of doneness on the chicken, and the butchery of the chicken. They thought the farce was a little grainy (it might have been that it was overworked, or it could have used a bit more cream), and it had started to separate (one of the judges told me that farce separation is one of the most common problems in certification practicals).
They complimented my seasoning on all my dishes except the green beans, which I accidentally under seasoned (well, I didn’t technically under season them, I just seasoned them at the wrong point in the cooking process, which caused the seasoning to be washed off).
I left feeling very proud of this accomplishment!
I passed my American Culinary Federation Certified Chef de Cuisine (CCC) examination in an intense 3-hour practical examination today (after previously completing a paper exam and three 8-hour refresher courses)! Tonight, Wendy and I celebrate! (And today is Achilles’ 3rd birthday, so happy birthday to…
In the late days of February 2011, the lack of a cat, specifically a Siamese cat, weighed on Wendy and me enough that Wendy started casting about for a Siamese. Not to take the place of Akhenaten, which can never happen, but to bring their…
On Sunday, February 6, 2011, right around 10:33pm, our dear sweet old Bean dog took her last breath in this world.
Bean had battled spleen cancer in August 2010 and beat it (with spleen removal and chemotherapy). However, not long after that, Wendy found a mass on Bean’s liver which turned out to be cancer.
Bean battled valiantly through several months of chemotherapy under the care of the wonderful Dr. Cheryl Harris. Bean rallied for a bit, but soon began losing her once-considerable appetite. The weight began to fall off Bean very quickly. Each night, we’d offer Bean a variety of eating options, from cat food to Arby’s sandwiches to cookies to Fritos – anything she wanted to eat she got. For the last few days, Bean didn’t want to eat anything at all. The cancer had grown so large that it had compressed her stomach to the point that her appetite was non-existent. Our girl was starving to death, so we had to make the difficult decision on Sunday February 6, 2011. Bean passed away in our family room, in her favorite bed, surrounded by dogs, cats, and her people.
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Wendy met Bean when she came into the hospital to be adopted several years ago. Something about Bean’s gentle demeanor, sweet soulful dark eyes, and long eyelashes touched Wendy’s heart, so Wendy asked me to come visit Bean. Before I entered the large run where Bean was waiting, I was warned that Bean didn’t like men. Well, not that she didn’t like them, she’d just never been around them so was unused to them. Unworried, I went into the run and sat on the floor across from Bean, with a couple dog treats in my hand and just waited. Within about 10 minutes, Bean’s legendary appetite beat out her sense of caution and she slowly approached me and took the cookies from me. Deciding then that I wasn’t all bad, she plopped her butt down on my crossed legs and looked at me expecting more cookies. I did not disappoint her!
When Bean came home to live with us, there was exactly one male she liked (that would be me). During parties, she was most content to stay upstairs, away from any boys. Wendy once threw a party for one of those home-based business things (maybe it was Avon or Candlelight; I cannot recall) which was attended only by females. Bean was literally the center of attention in that environment – she came downstairs and hung out with the ladies all evening!
The first time Dolly (our first dog) met Bean, we could see Dolly fall head-over-heels in love with Bean. Dolly was very happy to gain a canine friend! The two of them were inseparable for the rest of Bean’s life.
Over the years, Bean’s comfort around males grew until it stopped being an issue. Bean was then able to share her loving spirit with everyone, male or female.
Once Bean started to get sick with the liver cancer, she felt comfortable laying in a dog bed in the family room. The bed was large enough – barely – that Bean and Buster (the wiener dog) could both wedge themselves in. Today, Buster is laying alone in that dog bed, but he’s kindly left room for Beanie.
-=*=-
So far in 2011, we’ve lost 20% of our furry family, by losing Bean and Akhenaten. Merrick, Oliver, Chuck, and Buster are all geriatric animals, so the next couple of years may be full of loss for us.
Even though Bean lived a long and happy life before she got so sick, it was still very difficult to see my sweet girl finish her time with us.
Wendy & I put Akhenaten to sleep on Tuesday, January 18, 2011 around 9:30p. He went peacefully at home, surrounded by his family, human and animal. We are extremely sad to lose this wonderful cat. He left tiny paw prints on our hearts.