24

Jun

Speed VS Accuracy

My first week at Saison in a nutshell:

  • Perfection, perfection, perfection. Nothing can ever be TOO perfect.
  • When picking leaves, flower petals, herbs, etc.: any blemishes, folds, rips, or uneven edges… THROW IT AWAY. Waste is not an issue when it comes to perfection.
  • There is a fine line between speed and accuracy. To work at Saison, you have to meet that line or else all sorts of hell will be unleashed.
  • Always keep flowers refrigerated and moist with “fish paper” misted with water (still don’t know why it’s called fish paper.. they just look like super fine paper towels).
  • Forceps are your best friend.
  • If there’s anything worse than shucking peas… it’s double-shucking them. First remove them from the large, chalky outer shell, blanch and shock them, then remove the individual peas from their skins. Just to get a pint of shelled peas, I need to double shuck a whole quart of them. Best. Job. Ever.
  • Juicing rhubarb: load juicer slowly. If you feed the juicer too fast, the pulp from the fibrous stalk will collect on one side of the spinning blade and cause intense shaking (and not a very good sound either). It’s kinda like when your washing machine is not balanced and it bounces off the walls during the spin cycle. Same concept.
  • Stinging nettles cannot be eaten raw. Leaves should be picked off and thoroughly rinsed in water and then cooked. Picking nettles should be done with gloves and is also considered a legal form of torture (according to me at least).
  • When your schedule says 8:30 am – 8 pm, don’t expect to be going home before 10.
  • Topping eggs.. another legal form of torture.
  • 65.5 hours in 5 days… only 434.5 to go.

12 years ago Short URL Comments

/////////

11

Jun

Scone, Skoon, Skon

I used to hate scones. I believed scones were served with tea to appear “fancy”, when really they were just dry, sad excuses for a pastry. I’ve never had a good scone until I “stole” this recipe, thanks to my partner-in-crime Malina (thanks!). I made these raspberry scones on Friday, accompanied by Meyer lemon marmalade, and earl grey tea for breakfast.

Scones originated from Scotland and were originally made with oats. Did you know that only Americans pronounce scone as scone (rhyming with cone)? Most of the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand pronounce it as “skon” (rhymes with con) or “skoon” (rhymes with spoon). The Scottish prefer “skon”.

Scone vs. biscuit.. What’s the difference? Scones typically use butter and cream (sometimes soured/plain milk) — giving it a more cakey crumb. Whereas biscuits use butter in combination with lard and buttermilk/plain milk — creating a flakier or airier texture than scones. Some people might argue that scones are sweet and biscuits are meant to be savory. But nowadays, where people dip bacon in chocolate and make tarragon ice cream, anything goes.

So to make the perfect scone? Well a magician with a stolen trick doesn’t reveal their secrets now do they? 😉

12 years ago Short URL Comments

/////

08

Jun

Quick Confessions:

  1. I hate the Food Network Channel
  2. Current chef role models: Alice Waters, Dieter Doppelfeld CMC, and Suzanne Goin
  3. Guiltiest pleasure: french fries
  4. Favorite food related movie: Babette’s Feast
  5. I hate celery
  6. Favorite things to make: bread and cream of mushroom soup
  7. Currently reading: The Devil in the Kitchen by Marco Pierre White
  8. Ideal breakfast: eggs over medium, extra crispy hashbrowns, sourdough toast, grape jelly & butter
  9. I will always demand green bean casserole for Thanksgiving dinner
  10. I’m ambidextrous

12 years ago Short URL Comments

//

08

Jun

“Like most great chefs, I have no doubt that Thomas Keller’s products are among the most pristine out there.  I also agree with Mr. Keller (and other giants like David Chang) that the “farm to table” ethos has bred laziness and complacency in some chef’s creative process.  But focusing solely on the aesthetics and disclaiming any other responsibility altogether is a cop-out.  He can’t singlehandedly change food policy but a philosophy of abdication fails to acknowledge that change needs leaders.  When Mr. Keller publicly shrugs off his responsibility for taking on more than just good food at his restaurants, he misses the point.  His words reverberate across the globe.  The chefs who have preached for humanity and sustainability have won victories and influenced diners far beyond their restaurants.  Chefs are at the forefront of food policy, whether they like it or not.  I hope Mr. Keller will revisit his powerful statements, because the “entire global food community” is listening.”

–  Nick Wiseman

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nick-wiseman/thomas-keller-nyt-sustainability_b_1524399.html?ref=food

12 years ago Short URL Comments

/////

08

Jun

Heart of the Artichoke

“What is an artichoke anyway? An unusual yet common vegetable that has been around for a very long time. We call it a vegetable, but actually it is the flower bud of a thistle. And I mean, really, who would ever think to eat a thistle? But there it is, and people have, for millennia.

The artichoke is ripe with metaphor and parable possibilities. Getting past the thorns to the sweet center, all of that. Not at all like reaching up and harvesting a sweet peach, eating an artichoke requires a bit of work.

For those willing to take the journey, the delicious heart is the prize at the end of the trail.”

– David Tanis, Heart of the Artichoke

12 years ago Short URL Comments

//////

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.