Humble Beginnings~From Connecticut to the Continent

I was going to call this Toto, I don’t think I’m in America any more, but that much was obvious to me when I got off the plane in Amsterdam. On my way to culinary school. At long last my dream was about to become reality. College was behind me, and while it was a valuable experience, it was time to turn my attentions to what I really desired. Cooking. In France. Paris. I was ready to be immersed in all the culinary glories the city had to offer, the people, the culture, the history, living as one in the place where it all began. But I am getting ahead of myself, or as the Talking Heads once sang ..How did I get here?

After school ended, I was spending the summer cooking at a french restaurant in Westport, CT. L’Arbelete ~ cute little place. The chef was a young guy, maybe early 30’s, named Carl. I landed the job thru college connections, and upon being interviewed, I once again landed in the pantry. For thats where women ended up back then, as the garde mange. Most male cooks considered it beneath them. Salads & desserts, sissy work. Thats just the way it was, and often still is.

But Carl was cool. He favoured jeans & black t-shirts, he swore a lot & he never came in early. His footwear of choice was a pair of Chucks. Awesome. I was in love. Though Carl had something else going for him, he could cook, really really cook. Learned his trade in France. He  had worked for the Troisgros brothers, done a stint with Paul Bocuse.. Studied pastry with Gaston Lenotre. The guy was the real deal. It was obvious to him after a few weeks that I was far more talented than his cook. So he did something completely unexpected. He put me on the line.

Ah, the glory, the responsibility. I was cooking on the line! It was finally mine, in a manner of speaking. Now, we had a sous-chef (Tony) who was worthless. He was the brother of the wife of the owner. It was the first time I had ever met someone who had no clear ability in the kitchen. I learned a lot from that situation. Untrained cooks can be dangerous, not only to them self, but to those around them. Tony was more than willing to let me come in early and light the ovens, get the bones roasting for stock, check-in the early morning fish & produce deliveries, put everything away in the walk-in. Do the days prep, starting the soup for the day, cleaning fish, butchering meat, chopping & squeezing the parsley, getting mise en place together for the stations. I didn’t care. It was food. I was the one making it. It wasn’t glorious work, but the end result would ultimately be a beautifully plated dish headed out to an expectant customer who had come simply for the sake of the experience of fine dining.

I loved it. The quiet, the solitude, the spanking clean kitchen at the start of each day before all the chaos, barking orders, banging pots, clanking silverware, swearing and yelling that heralded  yet another day in the kitchen had begun. I was in my element, for Carl left me direction and then left me alone. He knew the job would get done, as he wanted. The pleasure from searing a steak au povire, wrapping a poisson en papillote, making moules mariniere or pot au feu. Pommes dauphine, perfectly peeled & blanched asparagus nestled in a puff pastry shell & napped with a silken smooth hollandaise. Whether I was preparing blanquette d’ veau, making pork rillettes, boudin blanc, loupe en croute, quenelles for  the consomme, or homard a’l americaine, it was simply the best feeling in the world. Timing everything so it all came out together, perfectly cooked. Continuity. Structure. Organization. Always tasting, tasting, tasting. Tony didn’t care, cooking was just a paycheck to fund his drug & alcohol habit. Fine by me. Get the hell out of my way, I’m working here. Now be helpful or scram.

But my tranquility, my bliss, my sheer enjoyment in my work was about to come to a screeching halt. For one day, Carl quit. Just like that. No 2 week notice, no letter to the owner. Simply put, he said I found another job, I’m leaving. Now. I was floored, who was going to run the kitchen? Make the schedules? Do the ordering? Shit, who was going to cook?!  On his way out the door Carl pulled me aside and said, go to culinary school kid. Learn from the best. Peel potatoes for any french frog that will let you into their kitchen. Watch, listen, absorb it all. You have what it takes~ talent, a palate, passion for food. Then he handed me an envelope and walked out the door. Never saw him again. Vanished into the great culinary void.*

Well in less than 24 hours I was back in the pantry. Back to making salad nicoise, celeriac remoulade, making the compound butter for the clams casino and escargot that suddenly appeared on the menu. The land of pate & cumberland sauce, poire belle helene, mousse au chocolate. Smoked salmon & caesar salad prep for the waiters to prepare tableside. Though I did glean one recipe from there that I still love to this day, a toblerone mousse.**

I took Carl’s advice and set my sights on Europe. Paris to be exact. LaVarenne. Got accepted and was to start in the fall. There I was on a plane bound for Amsterdam armed with a hotel reservation (for 1 week), my Michelin green guide to France, travelers checks, the Larousse Gastronomique. In my goose down jacket & a north face back pack I just about screamed, yup I’m an american.

Foreign soil at last. On my way to becoming a chef. Like a rare wine waiting to be sipped & savoured. I was ready to give myself up completely to what ever needed to be done so I could be the best. Try everything. Say no to nothing! (words I would later eat). I had arrived. Now all I had to do was find my train to Paris, and memorize the french word for “where is?” ….(Ou est?)

*In the envelope Carl gave me was a letter of recommendation for culinary school, with 2 schools listed. LaVarenne and Le Cordon Bleu.

** I will post the recipe for Harry Graffs (our swiss owner) toberlone mousse.

Humble Beginnings ~ Out of the Frying Pan & Into the Fire

Originally I was going to call this where there’s smoke, there’s fire. But I have never had nor started a kitchen fire in my life. Burned some cookies maybe, but thats about the extent of it. Although I do have a few friends that when the smoke alarm goes off we joke, dinners ready. All kidding aside this is about when I landed my first kitchen.

Yup, mine. In control. Me! The big cheese, top toque. Well okay, so it was kitchen of one, but who cared! It was all mine. To set up as I saw fit, do with as I pleased. It was the summer before college and I needed a job. One to stave off boredom (and get me out of the house), secondly get me cooking again and lastly to earn money for my ever burgeoning music appetite. Having spent the past 3 years under a very talented and very strict European chef, I had more than mastered the basic rudimentary kitchen skills. I had worked and ran every single station at the Country Club, so I figured finding a job would be a snap. Wrong! Wilton was (and still is) an incredibly small town and back in the days of yore, there was not much going on. Anywhere. Taking into consideration I had no car also threw a wrench into my plans.

But luck was on my side, for on the way out-of-town there was a funky little place, and given that my father had to drive by it every day on his way to and from work, was an added bonus. “The Gourmet Nibbler” it was called. A small compact “upscale” deli with a few tables for eat in and some foot traffic. So I sauntered in, gave the owner, an affable fellow named Howard, my CC story ( with some bull shitting thrown in about management skills) and lo & behold  had a job. Howard had originally bought the “Nibbler” as everyone called, it for his wife, who wanted her very own mini Dean & Deluca, which was brand new on the culinary horizon. Six months in to the venture she lost interest.

So there was Howard with a business that had potential, just no one w/ the skills to run it. A ship without a captain, a boat with no oars. There was a meager staff for the morning commuters since the train station was within walking distance. Coffee, bagels w/ a smear, the NYTimes, not much else. My job was to increase business by offering breakfast goodies, luncheon items, some sweet treats and so-forth. No problem! Piece of cake. I cobbled together a menu of quiches, sandwiches, soups, salads  all “on the go” foods. Easily eaten on the train or at the office.

It was an instant hit. For there was nothing else like it around. In New York you had D&D, Zabars, Dino de Laurentiis “Food Show”( yes Giadas father, whichI might add failed miserably). But for the Wilton commuter, with precious little time we offered something better than greasy diner food. Which by the way was our only other competition in town. Orems Diner. Still there. Still crappy. That & the local Market, and they were always trying to steal my ideas.

In essence I was my own boss. I learned a lot about managing my time, ordering food, menu creation, sanitation, and how to deal with delinquent staff. The 2 counter people we did have, who became friends of mine, far preferred to spend their time smoking weed in the basement. I would be lying to say I never partook. I did. Just unusually at the end of the day, while waiting for my Dad to pick me up. Hey, I was only 17 and a girl had to have some fun!

I had to learn how to put together a catering menu, figure out food costing, how to recycle product so not to have waste (think soup!). It was total creative freedom and I thrived on it. Being alone, with no one telling me what to do, was a dream come true. I loved it. It also set the tone for all my future culinary employment that was to follow.

Being able to experiment with new ideas & recipes was incredible. I was limited only by time & my budget! Chilled Champagne melon soup ~ crisp spicy gazpacho ~ silky smooth lobster vichyssoise, so refreshing on a hot summer day. Cheesy 4 onion ~ white bean, sausage & escarole ~ hearty chunky chili, which was never complete w/ out a side of jalapeno-cheddar corn bread. We always ran out. Pasta salads, BLT bow tie, greek orzo w/feta, chickpeas & kalamata olives. The Bounty~a sandwich composed of turkey (oven rst of course), cool cucumber, cream cheese & red onion on 7 grain bread freshly baked by me. Chicken salad w/ apricots, grapes, red pepper, scallion, almonds & curried mayonnaise, in a whole wheat pita or over greens.

On the weekends the place was insane. Whole & mini quiches, soups by the quart, the deli case full of salads, warm fresh breads, Danish, mini gleaming jewels of tiny fruit tarts, cheesecake, old- fashioned  3 layer cakes by the slice, jumbo cookies, decadent double chocolate brownies. Eventually I added a line of imported cheeses & had a few select breads & good bagels brought in from New York. I was like a kid in a candy shop, only it was my candy shop!

Granted, not everything I made was successful. I had my fair share of mistakes. My first attempt to make  Sushi was, to say the least, priceless. I don’t think even the crows were interested. I knew nothing about seasoning the rice, bamboo mats, etc..rolling it up, was of course, no problem! This was 1980 so Japanese food was still pretty avant-guard. I tried. I failed, but I tried.

College beckoned and the summer came to and end. I tried valiantly to pass on some favoured recipes, but the young woman hired to replace me had no passion, no love, no desire. It was just another job to her. She did not share in my enthusiasm, and this girl was to head off to school in a year. That school was The CIA. What became of her I have no idea.

“The Nibbler” closed, though the building is still there on Route 7, housing a succession convenience stores. But I can’t help thinking when I drive by what valuable lessons I learned & what fun I had doing so. I went on to college, but my real love was and is food & cooking, and to that end my next journey was to culinary school. But that my humble friends is another story.

And Now A Word From Your Sponsor~ um Author

This will be brief, something I am not usually known for. I have wanted to write for quite a while now, but family circumstances have prevented me from doing so. It’s amazing how quickly the hours in a day can get away from you, when one has other obligations. Although I do have many blog ideas already laid out, finding the time to sit down and type them has thus far eluded me. Fear Not! I have decided to devote 1-2 hours every day to accomplishing this goal. My twitter habit will just have to take a backseat for now.

Next to cooking, writing makes me feel good and is a great creative outlet. While I am new to the medium, I find it highly enjoyable. Whether telling a culinary tale, being snarky or drooling over Billie Joe Armstrong or Jensen Ackles (he’s on #Supernatural for those who don’t know) its fun!  More importantly, I hope the few people who “follow” this blog do too (have fun that is). Who knows maybe someday I might even get published, but if that never happens, hey that’s okay to.

So have patience and look for more posts coming soon. Next up in my queue is to finish another theme in my “Humble Beginnings” thread. Trust me, they are 100% true. While I may not achieve the fame of Anthony Bourdain and his Kitchen Confidential book (such a fun read) I have had many of the same experiences. I just wish I had thought of it first!  Oh well, if at first you don’t succeed try, try again! Or so the saying goes.

Here’s another saying that I recently heard and deemed worthy enough to include here. The person who said it is a knowledgeable chef, albeit one with some very firm ideas on food and it’s place in our society. Culinary newbies or students should definitely give it a read. He/she also has a blog, so here is the link ~ http://www.theunknownchef.tv/ . Certainly a chef whose worth his (her?) salt in words.

“You want to challenge a palate, and it should be thought of as a crescendo of textures woven around a subtext and pronunciation of flavour”.

I couldn’t have said it better myself. For thats what I hope to achieve here, to weave a quilt of flavours and textures that will excite the mind and stimulate the senses. All while educating and elevating your journey into the culinary adventures that await each and every one of us. May each day bring you something new.

Enjoy!

Victoria

You Know You’re A Supernatural Fan When~

On rare occasions I blog about something completely un-food related. Like now. This is a test. It is only a test……beeeeeeeeeeeep. Feel free to throw your two cents in.

You know you’re a #supernatural fan when:

1) You own all the seasons on DVD.

2) You have a t-shirt that says “Got Salt”.

3) You know a ‘colt’ is not a race horse.

4) You u-tubed Jensen Ackles lip- syncing Eye of the Tiger and bookmarked it.

5) Bad Company is not a family gathering.

6) Your favourite saying is Son-of-a-Bitch!

7) You like cheesy 70’s style hotels because they have “magic fingers”.

Your dream car is a black 1967 Impala.

9) You know that being a Hunter has nothing to do with wild life.

10) You shop at the army surplus store.

11) Your cell phone ring tone is “Don’t fear the Reaper”.

12) You have read the bible.

13) You never let anyone drive your car.

14) You bought the John Winchester Diary on Amazon.

15) You call people who annoy you Chuckles or Douche-bag.

16) You want to go to Lawrence, Kansas.

17) You carry a flask and it does not contain holy water.

18) You cried when Jensen Ackles got engaged.

19) You know what “LARPING” stands for.

20) You want to be touched by an angel ~ in this case Castiel.

21) You’ve been to a Comic-Con convention.

22) You want a bacon-cheeseburger and you’re a vegetarian.

23) You own a Kansas CD.

24) You googled “Ghostfacers”.

25) You named your dog Dean (or ) Sam.

26) You have bags of salt ~ just in case.

27) Your fireplace poker is made of Iron.

28) You know how to draw a Devils Trap.

29) You own all the #Supernatural books ~ yes there really are books.

30) Highway to Hell is not morning traffic on the 405 (LA) or 1-95 (NYC).

31) You have a cassette player in your car.

32) You want Metallica played at your wedding.

33) You’ve googled “how to make a hex bag”.

34) You liked Ruby better as a blonde.

35) Thought Dean looked hot in a Tuxedo.

36) Beer with a whiskey chaser is your preferred beverage of choice.

37) Like when Sam gives the puppy dog eyes.

38) You’ve watched My Bloody Valentine ~ for Jensen.

39) You’ve watched Friday the 13th ~ for Jared.

40) You cried when Jo & Ellen died.

41) You hate Meg.

42) You love the Trickster.

43) You miss Ash and his mullet~ business in the front/party in the back.

44) You wish Bobby would take his cap off ~ or ~ smile.

45) The season 1 finale blew you away. Literally.

46) You’ve re-watched the Dean & Anna the angel sex scene ~ just to see Dean shirtless.

47) Christmas wreaths will never be the same.

48) You liked Bella ~ in an evil sort of way.

49) You loved Dean as a Corporate Executive & Sam as a computer drone.

50) You miss the genius that was Kim Manners. RIP.

Humble Beginnings ~ From Cookies to the Country Club

Okay, originally I was going to write a blog about the 12 days of Christmas. After doing a little research, I decided to toss that idea right out the window! Besides, Christmas will be here in 9 days, maybe next year. So onward I forge with yet another tale of my budding young culinary career.

Needless to say I wasn’t going to be content baking for the neighborhood boys forever, and whipping up treats for my friends after school to appease the ever-present cases of the munchies was only partially satisfying. Kitchen playtime was fine by me, but I hungered for more. New ingredients to work with, professional equipment and of course what drives everyone, deep down, the desire to get acknowledged & paid for my culinary talent.

It was also during this time period that I was elevating my reading repertoire. Betty Crocker was forsaken for Escoffier, James Beard, Elizabeth David, MFK Fischer, and the crown jewel of my collection, The Larousse Gastronomique all 1,087 pages of it. Now 15, I also managed to finagle my way into a part-time after school & weekend job at a local country club. The chef was european and an incredibly stern task master. Yet the lessons he taught me have served me well. They were some of the most valuable I have ever learned. Cleanliness, organization, taste, creativity, be true to yourself and learn from your mistakes. Be positive. Cook what you love. Do it with passion.

I started at the bottom of course, in the “pantry” also known as the cold station. Chef always called me the “garde manger”. Made me feel important and gave me a sense of pride. I was soon put in charge of making a few simple desserts on the weekends. One particularly lovely saturday chef wanted me to make cream puffs. Now pate au choux dough is not a terribly complicated process, although it was going to be the first time I would be alone in the kitchen. The line cooks were going on their afternoon break as I was coming in. Wow! The entire kitchen to myself, with the exception of the dish washer- prep, I was it.

The chef had given me the recipe, and since I was to make about 300 of these delicious little treats, the sous chef had weighed out my ingredients for me, due to the volume that was needed. I just had to make the dough. Piece of cake, I thought.

I brought my liquid & butter to a boil, added my flour & sugar & salt and cooked until dry. Into the huge crank mixer, add eggs, check to make sure the dough was the proper consistency and pipe onto parchment lined sheet pans. Bake. Cool. The day before I had made 2 mousses, one was dark chocolate and one was strawberry. I was to plate 3 per order, filled with the mousses & the last one with vanilla ice cream, some sliced strawberries, drizzle of chocolate sauce, dusting of powdered sugar and my dessert would be complete.

All went well, my cream puffs were gorgeous! Golden, crisp, puffed to perfection. Bursting with pride, the chef came in and I showed them to him. He picked one off the sheet pan, bit into it and promptly spit it out. With a very definite, Merde! The sous-chef was laughing hysterically. Chef gave me a long hard look and asked me if I had tasted my dough, no chef I replied, how about a finished one? No again. By now I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, and kind of knew what was next. Try one, he said. I did. Yuk!  Crisp~ yes, soft inside~ yes, puffed~yes. Sweet, no.  A mouthful of salt was all I could taste.

While my pate au choux were undeniably gorgeous, they were alas inedible. The sous-chef later confessed to switching the superfine sugar with salt. He did not like me ( I wouldn’t go out with him) and thought it would “teach” me a lesson. It did, just not as he intended. Was I humbled? No. Did I think he was a jerk, absolutely. Never, ever let someone else assemble your mise place for you, and always taste your sugars & salts. That is until you’re the boss and then they won’t dare mess with you for fear of losing their job.

I was saved from kitchen shame that day because a trick was played on me. Not a very nice one, but thats life. There are people who do not like to see others succeed. My advice? Move on & accept that attitude and ability count for far more in the long run.

Now about that dessert, luckily I had genoise in the freezer, plus the mousses, fruit & the sauce I had already made. A little sprinkle of grand marnier simple syrup on the cake and behold individual trifles! Because at the end of the day you & you alone are accountable for what you do. Taste, taste, taste! Just make sure to have fun too. Hey, it is only food.

Culinary Inspiration ~ Cooking with a Passion

It’s the passion that beats within the heart of every female chef, the unsung hero’s of the kitchen, the leaders of a quiet brigade. Strong and silent they rule, yet never miss a beat. While your grandmother or mother may still reign supreme on the home front, behind those swinging doors lies a completely different story. The professional kitchen has always been a male dominated domain, but thanks to a small percentage of stalwart souls that is slowly changing.

Women make up just 17% of chefs and cooks today with fewer than 25% owning their own restaurants. Why is this so? Women are cleaner, faster, quieter, more nurturing and understanding than men, yet they often get overlooked for positions of power. It’s like that saying “There’s no crying in baseball” ~ ditto for the kitchen. Makes people perceive you as weak. Same goes for having children. Oh, she won’t be able to come in if little Johnny gets a cold. Bullshit! We are just as capable, if not more, of rising to any challenge or situation.

Yet the big cheese in the white jacket and top toque is almost always a man. Thank god there are some amazing women working to change that. So here, in no particular order are some of my favourite women chefs, where they can be found & what culinary volumes they have produced. If you can’t enjoy their food first hand, at least you can try to re-create it at home. Just remember it won’t be as good as the real thing.

1) Gabriele Hamilton ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Eclectic french home country, not afraid to speak her mind and not influenced by the next ‘big’ thing. Inspiration: Her mother.

Prune:  54 Est 1st  NY, NY  212-677-6221   www.prune.com

Upcoming: Blood, Bones & Butter  release date early 2010

2) Rebecca Charles ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: The best lobster roll. No stranger to controversy. Inspiration: Swans Oyster Depot San Francisco.

Pearl Oyster Bar  18 Cornelia St. NY, NY  212-691-8211   ww.pearloysterbar.com

Cookbook: Lobster Rolls and Blueberry Pie

3) Debra Ponzek ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: American country french flavours, rose to prominence as Chef of Montrachet in New York City.

Aux Delices   1075 E. Putnam Ave  Riverside, CT.  203-698-1066 www.auxdelicesfoods.com   (there are currently 3 locations in CT)

Cookbook: French Food / American Accent

4) Alison Barshak ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Inspired by travels to many different counties, rose to prominence as Chef at Striped Bass in Philadelphia.

Alison two  424 S. Bethlehem Pike  Fort Washington, PA  215- 591-0200 www.alisontwo.com

Cookbook: Can be found in Great Women Chefs and Women of Taste

5) Jody Adams ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Italian cuisine with native new england ingredients.

Rialto  One Bennett St. Harvard Sq  Cambridge, Mass  617- 661-5050 www.rialto.com

Cookbook:  In the Hands of a Chef

6) Elizabeth Falkner ~ Pastry Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Avant garde works of  edible pastry art.

Citizen Cake   399 Grove St. San Francisco, CA  415-861-2228 www.citizencake.com

Cookbook: Demolition Desserts

7) Suzanne Goin ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Seasonally inspired classic dishes.

Lucques  8474 Melrose Ave  los Angeles, CA  323-655-6277 www.lucques.com

Cookbook: Sunday Suppers at Lucques

Nancy Silverton ~ Artisan Bread Baker/ Owner ~ Food style: Brought artisanal bread to the forefront at La Brea Bakery. Currently partnered with Mario Batali.

Osteria Mozza  6602 Melrose Ave  Los Angeles, CA  323-297-0100            www.mozza-la.com

Cookbook: Twist of the Wrist

9) Judy Rodgers ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Simple, clean brick oven cuisine.

Zuni  1658 Market St  San Francisco, CA  415-552-2522   www.zunicafe.com

Cookbook: The Zuni Cafe Cookbook

10) Gale Gand ~ Pastry Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Classic desserts reinvented for today.

Tru  676 N. St. Clair St. Chicago, Ill  312-202-0001  www.trurestaurant.com

Cookbook: Butter, Sugar, Flour, Eggs  &  Short- n- Sweet

11) Kathy Cary ~ Chef/Owner ~ Food style: Southern traditions inspired with local KY ingredients.

Lilly’s  A Kentucky Bistro  1147 Bardstown Rd  Louisville, KY  502-451-0447 www.lillyslapeche.com

Cookbook: Can be found in Great Women Chefs

12) Karen Barnaby ~ Chef ~ Food style: Fresh local seafood, got started in Ottawa, moved to Toronto before landing in Vancouver.

The Fish House in Stanley Park   8901 Stanley Park Drive  Vancouver, BC                   1-877-681-7275   www.fishhousestanleypark.com

Cookbook: Halibut The Cookbook

So here’s to Girl Power! May these intrepid ladies keep fanning the fire paving the way for a new generation of female chefs and pastry chefs.

This is not a complete listing, but just enough to whet the appetite. Rock on Ladies!

Humble Beginnings ~ From Salad to the Stove

In case anyone was wondering, I have not forsaken my so-called blog. Just been caught up in all the fun and joy that are the holidays. Time gets away from one, and before you know it January’s here. Though thats no reason to let my duties as a budding writer lapse and fall by the proverbial way side. I mention this because unlike most food blogs, mine is full of personal stories, ancedotes and what not. It does not contain (yet) flashy photos, video tutorials or food advertisements hawking yet another product. I realize that if I were to add these things, the traffic to this site would most likely increase, maybe even cause someone to sit up and take notice of my brilliant writing skills, and superior photography, but that is not why I do this.

No, I do this for one reason, pure and simple, I am in love with food. Everything about it. Sights, smells, textures, tastes, shapes. Have been ever  since I was 6 years old and my mother let me create my first “composed” salad. She had everything chopped and at the ready for me, right down to her prized wooden salad bowl from her father. Mum just told me to make it beautiful, and I did. From then on there was no stopping me. There was no “easy bake” oven in my future, no sir, not for this girl. When I was 8, I wanted and got a wonderful electric griddle. My parents figured that was safer than having me stand on a stool by the stove. It plugged in, so I could whip up my creations on top of the kitchen table. Usually pancakes were on the menu, but I dabbled in mini hamburgers too. Sliders, as they are now being hailed. Please. Been there, done that.

I also loved to cut up hot dogs and fry them on my griddle and put them on potato chips with a squirt of ketchup or mustard, depending on who the customer was (my brother or his best friend scott). Pickle chip was strictly optional. So its safe to say I was into making hors d’oeuvre at a young age. Truth be told, I just liked small food! Thought it was cute.

I particularly enjoyed making silver dollar pancakes with bacon which I would sprinkle with sugar because I liked how it got all crunchy and sweet. Candied bacon anyone? On to grilled cheese with tomato or bacon or both! Eggs followed, fried or scrambled. And the first real meal I made was egg foo young, with chopped ham, canned bean sprouts & water chestnuts. My mum had a can of those fried chinese noodles and extra soy sauce, dinner was served. By now my parents knew that my obsession with food was more than a passing fancy.

I believe they indulged me hoping it would encourage me to eat, anything. Picky eater was an understatement. Now of course if I made it, I would generally taste it, at least a bite that is. My first cookbook was the red checked Betty Crocker Picture Cook Book which I still have to this day. That was followed by The Joy of Cooking, a simply exceptional volume of recipes and reference. Everyone, and I mean everyone should have a copy of this on their kitchen shelf.

By the time I was 9 or 10, my trusty griddle was packed away and I progressed to the stove, which I adored, because it had 4 burners, thus enabling me to make more than one dish at a time. Ditto with the oven and learning to use my grandmothers Sunbeam kitchen stand mixer. I thought it was the most incredible machine ever. So my career as a young baker got its start, and I certainly had a captive audience. My brother Chris’s little league team would come over and I would ply them with brownies and chocolate chip cookies! Chris, who?

Even as a young girl I discovered food to be a wonderful way to any ones heart. That holds true today. Who doesn’t love a care package full of homemade treats lovingly crafted by hand just for them! On that note, I must bid you all adieu and go start on packing up all the goodie boxes I have lined up for family and friends this Christmas.

So indulge your children’s or a friend’s or even your own flights of fancy in the kitchen, you may not become the next Martha Stewart or Thomas Keller or a Food Network Star, but you sure can have a tasty time doing so!

Just a Quickie ~ Cognac Pumpkin Cheesecake

For all you who have been asking me for this recipe, here you are! Enjoy. Unlike many other “food bloggers” who threaten hell and damnation if you use their recipe, well they must not be professional chefs. I say this because my friends, it has all been done before! I am sure Antonin Careme or Fernand Point or Escoffier or Jim Beard all had a variation upon this and any other theme. One may think it is their own ‘original’ creation, but alas, it is simply not so. Not in origin anyway, tweaking something still does not mean you and you alone invented it. So without further ado, here you are.

Cognac Pumpkin Cheesecake ~

2 lbs cream cheese ~ philly please

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tbsp molasses

1 tsp GOOD vanilla + 1/4 cup cognac or brandy

2 eggs + 2 egg yolks

1/2 cup sour cream

1 cup canned Libbys pumpkin ( not the pie filling!)

1/4 tsp cinnamon, pinch of cloves & sprinkle of nutmeg + pinch kosher salt

Take a 10′ spring form pan ( I make mine in a 10′ deep cake pan, but trying to explain the unmolding w/out showing a video of how to do it, might be confusing). But fear not, I will get there eventually!

Spray the pan w/ vegelene or pam. Wrap pan very tightly in aluminum foil all around the bottom & sides.

Pulse a 1/2 box of Famous dark wafer cookies in cuisinart, into a bowl, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup melted butter. Press into to the bottom of the pan. Whew the hard parts over!

*You could also make a crust using Amaretti cookies.

Beat cream cheese until smooth, and LUMP free, scraping bowl frequently, mix in sugars, molasses, vanilla, cognac, eggs, yolks, sour cream, pumpkin & spices.

Pour into the prepared pan. Set into a deep hotel pan & fill w/ warm water.

Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Turn off the oven and let sit for another 20-30 minutes. Cake should be set & fairly firm! I stick the blade of a very thin paring knife thru the center, it should come out clean. Your going to cover the top, so don’t worry if you have a few cracks. I usually don’t. Let cool in the water bath. Chill overnight.

Remove foil wrapper, run a hot wet knife around the cake & unmold. I turn mine out onto a saran wrapped 10′ cardboard cake round , remove the metal pan bottom, place another cake board on the ‘crust’ and flip it over.

You can press crushed chocolate wafers into the sides or ditto w/ amaretti cookies.

You can cover the top w/fresh whipped cinnamon cream, or white chocolate buttercream or a smooth layer of chocolate ganache or a simple glaze of apricot jam & sprinkle w/ more crumbs.

There you have it! Just make sure to cut it w/ a hot wet knife for clean smooth slices. And if someone wants the recipe, well send them here! Thanks.

PS ~ to go one step further, you can serve this w/ caramel sauce or white chocolate espresso anglaise. Or my favourite! Ben & Jerry’s Ginger Snap Ice Cream, yum.

A Vegan Thanksgiving Celebration

I will try to keep this quick and to the point. A few ‘rules’ ~ vegans do not consume dairy in any form, nor meat, nor fish. This also goes for anything containing gelatin, as it is made from animal product. Some don’t do gluten, either due to celiac disease, or just wanting to avoid processed flours and refined sugars. Watch what you cook with, no butter please, though canola oil or extra virgin are fine. It really depends upon your guest and how strict they are. Just like Jewish people who keep kosher, some vegans ( my daughter is one of them) are very particular about how certain foods are stored in the refrigerator and what cooking equipment is used for whom.  I.E ~ I would never make my daughters golden sesame tofu in the same saute pan that I cook my fathers chicken in, and so forth.

Nibbles ~ to whet the appetite:

1) Bowl of  marcona almonds and a platter of finger fruits ~ quartered figs, cognac soaked dried apricots, seedless grapes, peeled clementines, nice wedges of granny smith apples dipped in a little lemon juice to prevent browning.

2) Crudite ~ take a beautiful woven basket line w/kale leaves and fill w/ quartered artichoke hearts, roasted 1/2 or whole baby bella mushrooms & cauliflower florets and mini yukon gold potatoes, tiny new carrots, stem on, radishes, steamed asparagus tips, good pitted green & kalamata olives. Bowl of red pepper hummus and maybe a basket of crunchy wheat pita triangles.

The Begining~ offer one item from each selection. Start with a soup followed by a salad. *

Soups:

Smooth tomato w/ dollop of eggplant caponata.

Curried carrot, apple & chickpea.

Chunky white bean & new red potato & escarole.

Salads:

Baby spinach, roasted beets, sliced carmelized shallots, sun dried cranberries & drizzled w/ a poppy-citrus sauce. Sprinkling of pistachio’s optional.

Romaine hearts tossed w/ a julienne of apple & carrot, miso-ginger-yuzu dressing.

Fresh Bibb lettuce, grape tomatoes, english cucumber, red onion &  lemon- dijon vinaigrette.

Sides:

Roasted root vegetables ~ parsnips, sweet potatoes, turnips, cipollini onions, red & yellow pepper, zucchini & yellow squash w/ red wine balsamic glaze.

Wild rice w/ pears, golden raisins, pecans or toasted pine nuts & scallions, cooked in a rich vegetable stock.

Main Course:**

Winter vegetable lasagna ~ bottom layer : creamless vegetable sauce, layer of phyllo dough, top w/sliced cooked butternut squash & sautéed mushrooms, sprinkled w/3 soy cheese blend, layer of sauce, top w/ layer of phyllo dough, dollops of tofu whipped w/ fresh basil & sautéed chopped spinach w/ a touch of nutmeg, sprinkle  of 3 soy cheese blend, layer of sauce, top w/ last layer of phyllo and spread w/ creamless vegetable sauce. Bake 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes. Sprinkle w/ 3 soy cheese blend just at the end.

Bread basket ~ French baguettes & small whole grain rolls.

Spreads~ Eggplant caponata & rosemary olive oil.

Dessert ~ Apple-cranberry  walnut crunchy oat topped cobbler  w/ soy whipped cream. ***

Layered silken chocolate & vanilla cheesecake, topped w/ raspberries.

Pumpkin “tofuti” whipped fluff!

Big platter of chocolate dipped stem on strawberries.

* See next post for recipes & how to make rich vegetable stock ( or the cheaters version!).

** Recipe for “creamless”  vegetable – cream sauce to follow also.

*** Omit nuts if anyone has allergies.

I will also list stores and sources to buy soy milk, silken tofu (or how to make your own), 3 soy cheese blend or it’s equivalent, soy whipped cream & soy ice cream & soy yogurt. And include detailed recipes & instructions.

A Vegans Tale ~ How it all Vegan

First, I want to thank everyone for being so patient with me for taking my sweet time getting these posts written and published. As a professional chef I have a note-book full of ideas and stories and recipes for this blog. Making the time to flesh them out and get them written is something else altogether.

This got started because of my ‘lovey”. Lauren, my daughter and a vegetarian since birth. She has never eaten meat, whole eggs, fish, poultry, not ever! As a baby she would clamp her lips shut if I so much as tried to feed her something containing meat or fish. Pasta yes, fruit yes, veggies yes. Me being a chef, I made her baby food  from scratch so that I knew she was getting what she needed, nutritionally. Lauren also had ( still does) a lactose and refined sugar intolerance, so this very quickly became the only “food” she knew. We spent many visits with pediatric allergists, and “trying” to incorporate new foods. Some did well, some did not.

Can you imagine being 5 and going to a birthday party with your own dairy free-sugar free treats, and pasta salad and veggies to munch on, while the other kids got jacked on soda, and greasy pizza. Thankfully it just didn’t appeal to her any more by then. I always explained to her friends parents about her food allergies, but sometimes one of the moms would try to make her try a grilled cheese or chicken nuggets. She politely refused. Good for her.

Once during a visit to Montreal, we had reservations at a well-known restaurant, LeExpress, got seated, ordered ~for her plain pasta~ no butter, no cheese, no problem, side of raw carrots, for me a grilled Filet Mignon w/ sautéed wild mushrooms and a gorgonzola butter sauce. No sooner did the waiter set our plates down, La started to gag. The smell of my entrée was making her sick. Doggie bags were not going to be needed, so I paid the bill and we promptly left. Back at the hotel I ordered room service~ french fries, steamed broccoli, a bowl of strawberries and grapes, watched a movie and had a great time.

As La got older it got much easier. Hummus, whole wheat pita, lentils, white beans, escarole, broccoli, new red potatoes, butternut squash, and fruits of all kinds. Mangos being a particular favourite. Asian these days is huge part of her diet, brown rice, seaweed, tofu, avocados, tofu noodles, miso soup, scallion pancakes, veggie maki rolls, carrot & cabbage & mushroom dumplings in a spinach dough (sans egg). And so much more! Desserts too!

We were recently at a friend’s house for a party and La had her ‘lunch’ bag with her. Out came brown rice w/grilled pineapple & pistachios w/ flax seed & ginger dressing (to eat warm), then sautéed sesame tofu w/ scallion brushes and peanut sauce, and a carrot-apple-raisin- chickpea salad in thai sweet chili glaze. Bag of homemade wonton crispys ( brown rice flour, water, salt). Soy strawberry yogurt w/mangos & raspberries.

More than a few foodies and chef friends of mine not only wanted  a ‘taste’ but were asking me for the recipes! So the point of this is, you can eat very well even if meat, dairy, fish, white flour & refined sugars are not part of your diet. Allergies are no laughing matter to the person who has them, believe me. Better to feel good about what you eat, and enjoy it as well.

So ~ Happy Turkey Day to all the vegans/vegetarians out there. This next ones for you. Just remember to thank Lauren too.