September 1st!! Where did the time go?!
For breakfast this morning, I did a fruit platter and baked two quiches (with sliced asparagus, diced ham, sauteed shallots and a mix of Gruyere and Grana cheeses). Everyone said they like it and Kim W. (who did Baking and Pastry her first rotation and who has also been cooking her whole life) said it was exquisite! How nice is that? Many of the students in the other class thanked me for making breakfast. That was quite nice of them! After lectures were done, I made dough for tomorrow's breakfast of Almond-Cream Cheese Tea Ring. The dough is done, the filling is done, the icing is done. I just need to put it together tomorrow morning first thing, let it rise and then bake it. Whew! I cut up my fruit platter for tomorrow (I couldn't believe Chef Lexie let me do it early, but I appreciate it!). And I went thru the walk-in for a "everything but the kitchen sink" frittata to serve as well.
Our lecture on Southwest France waited while we finished making croissant dough with Chef Lexie. We rolled out the detrempe we mixed up yesterday into a rectangular shape, laid our buerrage over it, first in the center, folded over one third of the dough on it, than laid the other half of the butter on top of that and then folded over the top of the rectangle, until we had a package or paton. Then we turned and rolled it out twice more, then put it in the walk-in to rest and for the butter to become cold again. We turned the dough four more times before we went home for the day.
Then came our lecture on Southwest France. The south-western corner of France embraces the old Pyrenean states of the Basque country and Bearn, plus the tiny Bigorre and Foix; Gascony, based on the Landes and Armagnac; Perigord, with Quercy and the Agenaise on it southern borders; and the Bordelais. Historically, this region was at the heart of the Angenvin Empire of Henry II of England and it was only with the end of the Hundred Years Way in 1453 that the English released their hold on France.
The best wine to come out of these regions comes from the Loire Valley using Chenin, Savignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Gamay and Pinot Noir grapes. East of Bordeaux, on either bank of the Dordogne River, are grouped the vineyards of Bergerac, Pecharmant, Montravel, Cotes de Saussignac and Montbazillac. Red wines are made from the same grape varieties as in Bordeaux, Cabernet, Merlot and Malbec. Semillion, sauvingnon Blanc and Muscadelle are used for white wines, which range from dry to very sweet but are mostly half and half.
The southwest is the land of the goose. Goose fat is the cooking medium, rather than butter or oil and the characteristic confits of goose-and also duck, turkey and pork-are made in all the provinces. Perigord has a reputation for its foie gras and so, more recently has the Landes. Indeed, there is a wide range of charcuterie throughout the region. Bayonne ham is used in many Basque dishes, although sweet peppers, tomatoes, garlic and onions are also very typical.
The pride of Gascony is Armagnac, France's second greatest brandy. The first, of course, being Cognac!
Lunch today was based on this region. The first course was Duck Breast and Wild Mushroom Salad, very well done by GardeMo. Our entree was Pan Fried Trout with Bacon and Basque Rice. Chef Dale said Americans think they came up with cornmeal breading but it was really the French! Dessert was made by Corey and Collin. They made Napoleon. It was VERY good! They did a nice job! Corey sat next to me and asked me, "Is it me, or are our meals getting better?" I had to laugh (he's our resident 19 year old) we are getting better as we near the end of our training so I guess our meals are getting better! All the chefs have complimented us by saying some of the best food they have ever seen at Cook Street has come from our class. What a nice thing to say!
After I got home from school, I made Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins for Carl. He reminded me I needed to do laundry and pack tomorrow (thanks dad, lol). I am going to Reno for Labor Day weekend, just when he will have a full house! Oh, well, we all need a little time off.
Time to study some more and get some reading done. Night all!
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