I Lost My Job & Now I'm Making Ice Cream

I had a surprise today. It was amazing. My wonderful boyfriend had met Dominique Crenn - an amazing chef in San Francisco and owner of L’Atelier Crenn. He asked her to give me some words of wisdom while I am studying French Cuisine at George Brown College. Her Culinary artistry is breathtaking. I can’t wait til she shows me the world. I need some of her inspiration! (She also gave my boyfriend her card and told me to email her any questions) —- again, amazing! AND she’s the first female chef in the US to be awarded two Michelin stars. Double AMAZING.

Random bucket list - Meet Dominique Crenn and work in her restaurant no matter how difficult it is.

“Remember success is a constant journey. It’s not about perfection, it’s about evolution.” - Dominique Crenn (Tedtalk) …amen sister!

For my celebratory snack after my exam I made an arugula salad with sliced Italian pear, Hirtenkäse cheese with olive oil and toasted pine nuts. It was awesome. 

Then I made an amuse bouche: Toasted egg brioche, with a thin layer of foie gras, topped off with a mixture of mango, Italian parsley, tomatoes and leeks and drizzled with lemon juice. Garnished with toasted pine nuts, parsley and fried garlic. 

Everyone liked it in the house, so yay! I always get nervous when people taste my food. ah yah! 

This week in school I learned how to make a proper consommé. Apparently our teachers say that a chef is judged by two things - their consommé and their omelette.



Things I have learned this week: 

Brunoise: A dice cut that is 1/16th on all sides. Tiny, yes I know. 

How to debone a lamb shoulder 

All lamb from New Zealand is halal - holla! 

molecular gastronomy 

featherless chickens

Rafting - for the consommé (you will see it in the video; it’s a raft of egg whites, meat and vegetables) 

Blond roux - white flour, mixed with butter and mirepoix 

I apologize, I have to keep this post short because I have an exam to study for. Wish me luck! Especially since I bombed the poultry quiz last week in butchery. Meat theory is a tough subject, let me tell you. 

As promised, here is my culinary school journey. Week One was tough. I learned different chopping styles. I learned how to butcher a whole chicken ( you will see that at one point in the video, I made a wrong turn and became lost) I made a chicken stock with the bones left over and then created a chicken vegetable soup.

Quick things to know about cooking:

Mise-en-place translates to everything in place. Basically your station should be clean and organized with your mise-en-place (you know those cute little bowls with ingredients in it - that’s it!)

Vegetable Cuts:
Batonet - sticks
Paysanne - peasant style
Carré - dice
Mirepoix - rough cut of vegetables ** usually consists of carrots, leeks, celery and onion
Tomato concassé - blanched, peeled and de-seeded, then diced.

Do you like truffles?
Do you like brownies?
Would you like a brownie truffle hybrid?

BROWNIE TRUFFLE RECIPE
1 Brownie mix
1 cup of coco powder

Make the brownie mix and follow instructions on the back of the box. Let brownies cool. Once cooled down, take the brownie and squish them into balls. drop brownie balls into coco powder and coat without regret.

It’s so easy that guys can make it for girls they want to sleep with and all it takes is half an hour and a tin can from the dollar store and gift wrap. And then, well…you’re welcome. You will win over crafting points for your ingenuity - and I won’t tell a soul.

Also, this is great for the non sweet tooth - the sweetness of the brownie is balanced with the coco powder. The best part of it is the texture, sometimes chocolate truffles can be too rich. With brownie truffles, it’s denser than cake pops and not disgusting sweet from all that icing sugar.

Do I hear a win-win situation?

PECAN PIE RECIPE

‘Tis the time of the year again and pecan pie is ready to shine in the spotlight. But what about those people who like pie but think it’s too sweet? Fear not, my like minded friends - I have a recipe for a less sweetened pecan pie for the holidays. It’s common knowledge that Asians grow up eating less sugar in our candies and desserts, so when it comes to good old American desserts - we can’t easily adapt. So here is my asian-ized version of the fabulous rich brown pecan to the pie.

2 cups of chopped pecans
2 cups of milk
4 eggs
1/3 sugar
1/4 butter
2 tbs of maple syrup
2 cinnamon sticks cut into 4 pieces
1 tsp nutmeg
1 cap of vanilla essence
possibly cornstarch

Heat milk, vanilla, cinnamon sticks and sugar in saucer, while putting the eggs in a separate bowl and whisking them. Once milk has heated up but not quite boiling ladle a spoonful of milk into the bowl. Whisk quickly, do it twice, Once the milk and egg mixture is properly mixed, pour it back into the pot. Stir well. Take out the cinnamon sticks. Add the butter and maple syrup. Once mixed, add the nutmeg and a dash of salt. If it’s too runny, add corn starch to thicken it up.

And there you have it! A new version of Pecan Pie for the non sweet tooth.