tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35063464355683788102024-03-14T09:38:37.677-07:00BiCoastalBitesRecipes, reviews and other food musings from San Francisco, to Washington DC, to Shanghai and beyond! I graduated from the San Francisco Cooking School in June 2014 and just generally love to cook and eat! I'm currently trying to start a small cupcake catering business. Follow me on twitter: @elektradarlingMargarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.comBlogger110125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-64923008484991290932014-12-11T18:57:00.000-08:002014-12-11T18:57:23.579-08:00Illicit Delights - Mini Boozy Cupcakes by Yours Truly <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Once upon a time I had a few amazing boozy cupcake from a place in New York City called, <a href="http://prohibitionbakery.com/" target="_blank">Prohibition Bakery</a>. This trip was the same trip I went in search of a Robicelli's cupcake for the first time, back in July-ish of 2013. The entire trip turned into a cupcake and sweets tour and I couldn't have been happier. It's true that there are plenty of great cupcake and sweets shops all over San Francisco, but I had never tasted anything quite like the Prohibition Bakery cupcake "Pretzels and Beer." The cupcake was everything it claimed to be and I was instantly in love. I immediately sampled a "Dark and Stormy" as well as a "Car Bomb." Suddenly I knew what I wanted to do, I wanted to do what these two fabulously women were doing in NYC - I wanted to bake mini boozy cupcakes.<br />
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I started by trying out some of Prohibition's cupcakes at home. Lucky for me they had shared some recipes online. Then, I got a hold of the Robicelli's cupcake book and went on my cupcake adventure (which is still in progress, derailed slightly, but still in progress as of September 23rd, 2014), and then I started coming up with my own creations. Finally I created my own cupcake base and butter cream mixture. During this whole process I started culinary school at San Francisco Cooking School. That's right, culinary school, not pastry school. I wanted to better understand food science from all aspects of food, not just dessert. I took in cupcakes every week to school for my classmates to enjoy, and after creating my own base and butter cream I decided it was time to take a leap.<br />
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I knew I didn't want a brick and mortar shop, and I liked the idea of being able to create cupcakes for people based on their flavor profiles so I looked into baking out of my house - catering style. Lucky for me California has some awesome Cottage Industry Laws that allow me to do just that - within reason. As of August 7th, 2014 I officially have Illicit Delights LLC, and am currently finishing up paperwork and permits with the city of San Francisco. <br />
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I'm two more approvals away from being legitimate and cannot wait to share my delicious creations with you!<br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-9422670876666942942014-12-09T20:22:00.003-08:002014-12-09T21:32:21.034-08:00A Comparison Between Plated and Forage (ingredient/recipe delivery services)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Forage's tagline tells you everything you need to know, "Restaurants can cook any dish in 20 minutes. We prep ingredients so you can too." I love it, and it's true. Plated's tagline is "Eating Well Made Easy," and it's mostly true. Both services have delicious recipes, and the convenience of getting exactly what you need to prepare a meal is luxurious. (I always hate having to buy a giant bottle of something just because I need 2 teaspoons.)<br />
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<i><span data-reactid=".2d.0.0.0.0.0.0.1.0.0.0.0.1.2:1"><span data-reactid=".2d.0.0.0.0.0.0.1.0.0.0.0.1.2:1.0">Thai-style Pork Salad w/ Papaya & Mint - from Plated</span></span></i></div>
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One of the main reasons I originally wanted to subscribe to an ingredient/recipe delivery box was because I wanted to be able to quickly prepare dinner after a long day in culinary school. I also wanted the option of just asking my husband, Bob, to put dinner together and know that he had everything he needed. Both Forage and Plated provide instruction cards with a picture of the final meal so you know what you're working toward. <br />
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The Plated boxes we've had were all pretty delicious, and there are definitely some recipes I've repeated, but my biggest issue is that their "easy" meals are not that easy. When I see a recipe that's listed as easy call for more than two pots, then I know that it's not really easy. I want straightforward and simple so that I know Bob can handle everything. <br />
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<span data-reactid=".2k.0.0.0.0.0.0.1.0.0.0.0.1.2:1"><span data-reactid=".2k.0.0.0.0.0.0.1.0.0.0.0.1.2:1.0"><i>Sockeye salmon w/ Farrotto and butternut squash - from Plated</i></span></span></div>
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This is where Forage comes into play. Forage is essentially your prep kitchen. In a restaurant you or the prep team work on getting things ready for service, this entails putting as much together as possible so you can put the finishing touches on or "fire" the food. (Look at me using restaurant language.) The point is you're not going to make every dish from scratch as people are ordering it.<br />
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As an example here is how a lunch we made at home would look like if Plated had sent it to us:<br />
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Prawn Tikka Masala with Cocnut Rice and Green Salad<br />
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- chop all veggies<br />
- make the tikka masala sauce<br />
- make the coconut sauce<br />
- cook rice<br />
- cook prawns<br />
- make salad dressing<br />
- assemble<br />
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Here's how we made it with Forage:<br />
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- chop veggies<br />
- cook rice with pre-made coconut sauce<br />
- cook prawns with pre-made tikka masala sauce<br />
- made salad dressing<br />
- assemble<br />
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Yes, it's only two steps shorter, but guess what, it's also two pots cleaner! <br />
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While I can appreciate that many people will want to make the tikka masala sauce themselves, I don't. I want an almost home cooked meal. I want exactly what I said before: straightforward simplicity. And so far, every meal we've made was cooked and ready to eat in 20 minutes.<br />
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<i>Pork Ramen - from Forage</i></div>
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Again, both services provide great recipes. I've just decided that if I'm going to take my time to make a more complex recipes I'll make it on my own. Forage is kind of like our healthy fast food.<br />
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Bob did point out to me that Plated does excel at preparing you for what you'll need a better than Forage. On the recipe cards Plated includes not only the ingredients list, and the steps for making the meal but they also include a list of all the tools you'll need to make the meal. Yes, you should always read a recipe all the way through at the beginning so you know what you're going to need on hand but it's still nice to have a little list. Forage does state that it assumes you have the following at home: skillet/frying pan, pot, baking sheet, and knives and a cutting board. That said, you don't really know what you'll need until your read through the entire recipe. <br />
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<i> Tikka Masala - from Forage</i></div>
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Overall, I just love Forage a bit more than Plated. I like that 20 minute prep, it seems less daunting and even if I'm tired I know it's gonna get done fast. Bob has done an awesome job with the recipes so I know he can handle anything Forage sends us. What can I say, I'm just a huge fan of Forage! (Of course, Plated is still a wonderful option.)<br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-54705792577816526002014-11-12T11:26:00.000-08:002014-11-12T11:26:03.204-08:00San Francisco Baking Institute - Fancy Cakes!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The <a href="https://www.sfbi.com/index.php" target="_blank">San Francisco Baking Institute</a>, "is a world-renowned leader in artisan bread and pastry education."(from SFBI) They specialize in artisan bread making and pastry education. They school runs a really yummy bakery in San Francisco called Thorough Bread and Pastry, and I've bought plenty of delicious treats from them. They have a professional program as well as one off classes to help amateurs and professionals expand their knowledge of the baking industry. Their school is not only a classroom/kitchen but also where many of the pastries and breads that go to their shop are made. It's a massive building, with a great kitchen set up.<br />
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I signed up to take the SFBI "<a href="https://www.sfbi.com/pastry-arts-cake-bases-creams-and-composition.html" target="_blank">Cake Bases, Creams, and Composition</a>" because I thought it would be a great way to expand my knowledge of cakes and improve my decorating skills. It's a week long class with 8 hour days. So I essentially worked a full time job of cake learning, making, and decorating. I was pumped to learn about all the different buttercreams, custards and cakes, and I was not disappointed.<br />
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The instructor for my class was Miyuki Togi, who has been working with SFBI since 2006. Miyuki started the class off in a little classroom going over the syllabus and various kinds of cake methods and buttercreams. She was really nice, and super patient. After the class did little introductions - there were sixteen of us, a full class - we headed down to the kitchen to forms teams to get our bakin' on! I was really surprised by how diverse the class was, in the sense that there were people from the professional program in the class, some people who own their own shops, as well as people like me who just wanted to learn more. There were people from all over the place in class as well! A couple of people flew down from Seattle, there were a couple of people from Mexico and a gal from Barbados! I had no idea the school was so awesome that it drew the attention of students from outside the Bay Area.<br />
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My team consisted of Amy, Deb, Heather and myself - each team had four people. Amy had taken some classes with SFBI before and was happy to be back. Deb was there for the first time and is an avid cook. Heather has a background in engineering but wants to bake, she was absolutely wonderful. Heather asked really great questions that I never would have thought of but that were good to know. <br />
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<i> My awesome team! (from the left: Me, Amy, Heather, Deb)</i></div>
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We were all stationed at our own large granite topped baking areas. Every person got a little kit with offset spatulas, a paring knife, straight spatula and a serrated knife. Each team had a little electric cook-top, and two kitchen aid mixers. The classroom was very well equipped and everything was pretty easy to find. Also, so much light! The kitchen was wonderfully bright and open. Even though we were in teams of 4 every single person made their own cake. You might work with your team, or just in sets of two to mix batter but every person ended up making their own cake. I was really surprised by this because I'm more familiar with having to split a creation at the end of class so you can share, which is sad because it destroys the beautiful food you made.<br />
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And speaking of food, omg we made so much cake! I expected a few things but I took home 8 cakes and 8 cupcakes in a week class. Other than the first day we made two cakes every day of class, and not just ho-hum cakes, beautiful finished masterpieces! I took home cakes that looked like I'd been baking fancy cakes for years. <br />
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<i>Chocolate Peanutbutter Cake and Carrot Cake</i></div>
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<i> Inakati Roll and the Black Forest Cake</i></div>
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<i> Sachertorte</i></div>
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<i>Le Fraisier</i></div>
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<i>Princess Cake</i></div>
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<i>Not my Opera Cake (I don't seem to have any picture of it, but this is very similar.)</i></div>
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As you can see, many wonderful things were made in class. The cupcakes were not photographed as they were devoured ravenously but I assure you they were delicious.</div>
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In short, I had a wonderful time at SFBI. The cake class more than met my expectations and I honestly cannot wait to take another class.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlVtqT2Ikqb2vbYrbW_iVnnXDucW4sszkcHI3TWWoj6xBlbGbPLXMXLw33zg4LKP6XlujC3a38dmyol5dV6z0pCRtjmL37o9jiDAAtfZy3h2JI-m8vS3qpFyo2wnaw7x_V55gYegGYuMI/s1600/IMG_8245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlVtqT2Ikqb2vbYrbW_iVnnXDucW4sszkcHI3TWWoj6xBlbGbPLXMXLw33zg4LKP6XlujC3a38dmyol5dV6z0pCRtjmL37o9jiDAAtfZy3h2JI-m8vS3qpFyo2wnaw7x_V55gYegGYuMI/s320/IMG_8245.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>That's a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_Stanley" target="_blank">Flat Stanly</a>, helping Heather and me make the Opera cake.</i></div>
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-40135119797472953832014-10-07T12:12:00.001-07:002014-10-07T20:19:30.001-07:00Foodily - My New Favorite Food Site<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFj7b3otjn3YKwvbOgtszU8D2irj9CiRJKPnHf1Uq0RMjxnXqHMHvVc56MHttKpjgReC2oZlcfkwlrnCX2C5yEtDsHMeP5Mj6Kev_u0uQ1yNRsdkiLYSBht49oIvSJ1ZHaSvCU6RUjWzM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-10-07+at+12.02.04+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFj7b3otjn3YKwvbOgtszU8D2irj9CiRJKPnHf1Uq0RMjxnXqHMHvVc56MHttKpjgReC2oZlcfkwlrnCX2C5yEtDsHMeP5Mj6Kev_u0uQ1yNRsdkiLYSBht49oIvSJ1ZHaSvCU6RUjWzM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-10-07+at+12.02.04+PM.png" /></a></div>
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I stumbled upon a food site the other day, which I'd never heard of but turned out to be a great resource. <a href="http://www.foodily.com/" target="_blank">Foodily</a>! It's kind of like a giant library of various cooking blogs and home cooks who share recipes. What's really great about it is that I can find everything I want in one place, and all the food bloggers I followed were already on the site. I can choose to follow the bloggers I like and get updates about new recipes they post, or I can just search the whole system based on almost any key word. There are so many options that I truly believe I could find a recipe for anything I'd like to try making.<br />
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The site has also done a really great job of directing people back to the Blogger's actual sites. You can search for recipes and view a list of ingredients for the dish you want to make, but in order to get the instructions you follow a link back to the source of the recipe. It's really smart, at least I think it's really smart. <br />
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And like any good site today you can connect your Facebook account so that if you have friends on the site you can see what they've made and recommend. I find this feature to be really helpful because if a friend of mine has liked or even disliked a recipe I have a better chance of knowing if I'll like the recipe.<br />
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I gave Foodily a shot last night and had a small dinner party. Everything I made was from recipes found on the site. We had:<br />
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<img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCftdlP4DqWU6R6dls4858vtamc88pXmxlkBZ60iH33wP3nRffFfd25TXKsoIb6oFBfQrSVvhCD0vADmtTxPv0Bdh4fzvT-M6Im58kf8f40Fvjh8pS2HPYmkANbGw3YmvuERLSNvsyPGM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-10-07+at+11.54.51+AM.png" height="213" title="Pork Belly Roast" width="320" /></div>
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Pork Belly Roast - From <a href="http://www.britishlarder.co.uk/pot-roast-pork-belly/#axzz1RsYw5OIe" target="_blank">The British Larder</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihLsIvymnGUC6c9lzKfOr_KfrtsikZtaodBQwJQREg62vEF_QXKVUOM46YR0x8hL9J3RZexc_-OaqypLl1p0slfTPFR_0swZ1jhjpCguwXVcBQTCCQbh6_Z0c5fARFXQ-Qiviv_gfaXKk/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-10-07+at+11.54.08+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihLsIvymnGUC6c9lzKfOr_KfrtsikZtaodBQwJQREg62vEF_QXKVUOM46YR0x8hL9J3RZexc_-OaqypLl1p0slfTPFR_0swZ1jhjpCguwXVcBQTCCQbh6_Z0c5fARFXQ-Qiviv_gfaXKk/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-10-07+at+11.54.08+AM.png" height="320" title="Sichuan Green Beans" width="284" /> </a> </div>
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Sichuan Green Beans - From <a href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/hot-sichuan-style-green-beans-10000000608343/" target="_blank">Sunset</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UHohYPBFDRr4QG7s3Az9pr_3Gk4OEicX9boJJNDtkCAOUAi0C6i_0v9jOMxILFALeYS_CACfeQXF5RwH58yI_hgkSP7VLn0o7-GUlNVyLSUkdZetvKxZlnGTCru1I6fjs-cGquYAX64/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-10-07+at+11.53.13+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UHohYPBFDRr4QG7s3Az9pr_3Gk4OEicX9boJJNDtkCAOUAi0C6i_0v9jOMxILFALeYS_CACfeQXF5RwH58yI_hgkSP7VLn0o7-GUlNVyLSUkdZetvKxZlnGTCru1I6fjs-cGquYAX64/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-10-07+at+11.53.13+AM.png" height="304" width="320" /></a></div>
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Tomato and Watermelon Salad with Feta - From <a href="http://steamykitchen.com/16505-tomato-and-watermelon-salad.html" target="_blank">Steamy Kitchen</a></div>
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Everything was so good that I unfortunately forgot to take pictures - these pictures are directly from the recipe pages.<br />
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And last but not least, another reason I really like Foodily is because I can save the recipes to various lists that I've made myself. If I want to make a new side dish I can look in my "side dish" list, or if I want to be fancy I can look at my "entertaining" list. Recipes can be saved to multiple lists and it's really easy to use. Foodily also has an app, which works very well - at least on my iphone - which means if I have to pop into the store I can easily pull up a recipe I was interested in and get my ingredient list.<br />
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If you want to connect to me on Foodily, or check out the stuff I'm making here's my <a href="http://www.foodily.com/my/saved-recipes?tab=lists&page=1" target="_blank">profile</a>, and if we're friends on Facebook it's even easier to find me.<br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-20904927042918908912014-09-23T17:42:00.000-07:002014-09-23T17:46:36.886-07:00My San Francisco Cooking School Externship and Graduation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So, this post may get a little ranty, you've been warned.<br />
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When I initially submitted my application to go to culinary school I made sure to be up front and tell them that I had no desire to work in a restaurant. I understood that an externship with a restaurant was required to complete the course, but I was pretty clear that I did not want to work in a kitchen. I kept an open mind through out school, and every time externships were brought up I listened. My class was told to keep our minds open, and to be flexible.<br />
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I decided to do as they said, and go with the flow, after all; these people knew me! I'd been going to school and seeing them for 16 weeks. I'd taken about 10 of their recreational classes. I felt like they were going to help place me in a great spot. I'd also been vocal about my love of baking - I took a batch of cupcakes to class with me once a week. So in my first meeting to discuss my placement we talked about the possibility of me working somewhere with a good chance to work with pastry. I made sure to let them know that I could work any day of the week, any time of the week but that I didn't want to work really long hours (I can get irate when tired.) and I didn't really want/care about making Italian food, and I didn't want froufrou. <br />
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I was surprised to say the least when I was told I'd be working with Flour + Water/<a href="http://www.centralkitchensf.com/" target="_blank">Central Kitchen</a>. Don't get me wrong, these are both great restaurants but I hadn't even considered them because Flour + Water is all Italian pastas/pizzas, and Central Kitchen has some pretty froufrou food. I stewed about it all weekend, as we'd been told on a Friday. I was angry, confused, and felt like I'd been betrayed by the school and the people who were suppose to be taking care of me and looking out for my best interests. I went in early that next Monday so I could talk about the choice. I wanted to know why they thought these restaurants would be the place for me. I was told that I was placed there because I could do whatever I wanted there. This was appealing to me, but at the same time I was sad that I wasn't going to be playing with a place known for their desserts. I talked myself into the externship and continued on with school.<br />
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On May 7th I started at Central Kitchen. No one knew I was starting that day, despite my having worked it out in advance. Even the guy in charge of me had no idea I was even starting at all. (That's always a great feeling.) I butchered 25 chickens on my first day of my externship. I butchered another 25 that Friday.<br />
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I really enjoyed everyone I worked with at Central Kitchen/Salumeria - I never made it over to Flour + Water but that was my choice. I reported to Travis Day, the resident butcher and one of the sous chefs, who is pretty fantastic and let me plan my own schedule. Pat Evans, the other Sous Chef, was always awesome and helped me with anything I needed. Together Pat and I pickled a bunch of beets and various other vegetables. I think one of my favorite things Pat said to me, which happened to be while we were pickling was, "We're just going to punch it down until it pisses out all the liquid." That statement was in regards to a batch of "Spring-chi" or a weird mash-up of kimchi if-you-will. <br />
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<i>Chicken feet! These get boiled and then added to stock. </i></div>
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<i> This is a pig heart. Every Wednesday Travis would break down a pig.</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx0sTndTj0ku0AghKakhvINbLRYDfMfaqtATWK4CTa1jJmm1MU1vZ2UECW4mwxqsv9cEFEYjgzOQevG_tuoBlyRK8ypwnCT0e-_8YH0bZ-8LvXrg2_hRNicyek_VXci1TcgLRKZPDMpxI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-09-23+at+4.54.30+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx0sTndTj0ku0AghKakhvINbLRYDfMfaqtATWK4CTa1jJmm1MU1vZ2UECW4mwxqsv9cEFEYjgzOQevG_tuoBlyRK8ypwnCT0e-_8YH0bZ-8LvXrg2_hRNicyek_VXci1TcgLRKZPDMpxI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-09-23+at+4.54.30+PM.png" height="286" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i> I got to help with Off The Grid in the Presidio!</i></div>
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Emily, Aly, Brian, Bryan, Nate, Garrett, Armando, Eric, Kevin, Chad, Freedom, Alex, Andrew, and a whole raft of other wonderful people helped me finish my externship, and make it through relatively unscathed. The people at Central Kitchen are great and were very happy to be working in such a great place. It was the people who made my externship enjoyable. It was the people who kept me going back and actually finishing my program. I respect anyone who works in the food industry, it's a labor intensive long haul; that said, I didn't need to work in a restaurant to know that. I'm glad that I went in honest and let Chef Ryan know that I was there to get the job done, and then be on my way.<br />
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I finished my 240 hours of externship in five and a half weeks and on Sunday June 29th I graduated from San Francisco Cooking School.<br />
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<i> In the beginning.</i></div>
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<i>Six months later.</i></div>
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Since the end of school I've helped with a couple of classes at the school, and have been trying to finish up my extracurricular classes. Each student is/was suppose to complete 30 hours outside of class whether it be TAing, Volunteering, or taking other "approved" classes. (This is where things get really ranty.) I have no idea how many hours I've completed, I have an idea but am still not sure if everything is done. I have a sneaking suspicion I have more hours, but honestly no one has let me know what classes I could take, or if there's a spot available.<br />
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I desperately tried to take the "<a href="https://www.sfcooking.com/hands-on-cooking-classes/summer-preserves-jams-canning-cooking-class-2#" target="_blank">Summer Preserves</a>" class, as it would really go great with my cupcake baking, but I was told that it would not count as we had pickled vegetables in class and it's the same thing. It is absolutely NOT the same thing, yes it's about preserving but pickling and canning are two completely different techniques. It was really disappointing to not be able to take a class like that as a credit. Don't worry, I took the class anyway and it was great, taught by <a href="http://kimlaidlaw.com/index.html" target="_blank">Kim Laidlaw</a>, and learned so many things. It's mostly disappointing that classmates of mine were able to take an ice cream class that counts for credit when we made ice cream on a regular basis during our program, but that I couldn't take the preserves class.<br />
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In retrospect I wish I had been more pushy before graduation to learn what was available for me in the future as a class credit option. I understand that the school is not only a school but also a business and that they need to make money, but I feel as a student that as soon as I was done with graduation I was no longer any of their concern. I don't expect hand holding, but I do respect honestly and reasonable answers.<br />
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I'm happy I went to culinary school. I had a wonderful time in class with all my classmates and the great Chef Catherine Pantsios. I was able to expand my culinary knowledge and technique, and every day was a food adventure.<br />
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Currently I'm in the final stages of setting up my own cupcake catering business. Thanks to California's Cottage Industry laws I can bake out of my home. I'll keep you posted on how things are going.<br />
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:)M<br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-68957519234575977522014-09-23T16:27:00.001-07:002014-09-23T16:27:18.357-07:00Week 15/16 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The last two weeks of school were spent preparing for our last exam/practical, and then deciding what we'd make for restaurant week. Good news, I passed the exam and practical with only a couple of small snafus here and there, mostly on the practical.<br />
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The restaurant week menu was pretty easily decided. We'd all liked many of the dishes we made in class but there were some definite hits in our minds and we came up with an easily executable and delicious menu. We had Annie Stoll, from Delfina come in and teach us about working the front of the house, or in other words waiting tables, and preparing tables. <br />
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The class was split into two teams. On the first restaurant day half of us were front of house, and the other half cooked the food and then it flipped for the second day. I worked front of house the first day, and I got to be the hostess with the mostess. The next day I was in charge of the soup appetizer, and two desserts. It was very straight forward and I managed to get everything up and ready with out a problem. I did throw a bunch of shaved chocolate on the ground, but that only slowed me down a moment.<br />
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Bob, Mary, Mary's Dad, and our friend Katie came to restaurant week the day I was cooking in the back. I wanted them to know I was touching their food. I was in charge of plating our cold soup, and two different desserts - the affogato, and a chocolate hazelnut mousse. Over all the two days of feeding people was a success.<br />
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When everything was said and done we enjoyed some well deserved pizza and drinks and then headed off in our different directions to begin our externships.<br />
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I worked for Central Kitchen/Salumeria since May 7th to June 13th (240 hours), but that's another post. </div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-28603016246335362132014-06-08T15:53:00.001-07:002014-06-08T15:53:23.041-07:00Cupcakes! Nine New Cupcakes From My Personal Cooking Challenge <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Oh man, it's been a while since I've updated you on <a href="http://www.bicoastalbites.com/2013/12/my-personal-cooking-challenge.html" target="_blank">my personal cooking challenge</a>. I've baked 9 new flavors from the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670785873/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0670785873&linkCode=as2&tag=bico06-20" target="_blank">Robicelli's Cupcake book</a>! That's 33 of 50 cupcake recipes so far, and I'm really pumped to tell you all about "El Melocoton de la Muerte" because it's definitely my favorite so far. <br />
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Let's get this show on the road!<br />
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<i> Red Wine and Peaches - Peach Cake, Mascarpone Buttercream and Peaches soaked in red wine.</i></div>
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<i>The Rue McClanahan - Peach Cake, Cheesecake Buttercream, Peach Compote</i></div>
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So, I wasn't blown away by either of these cupcakes. They were good not great. I didn't feel like the peach flavor really came through in cupcakes. The soaked peaches in red wine were pretty good on their own, and the peach compote was really nice. I added slivered almonds to The Rue McClanahan because I felt like it needed something.</div>
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<i> The Estelle Getty - Amaretto Cake, Cheesecake Buttercream, Amaretti Cookies</i></div>
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It's worth making this recipe just to have extra amaretti cookies around your house. Super delicious, and if you happen to have any gluten-free friends these cookies will delight them beyond belief. Serious, make this cupcake. I added some amaretto to the buttercream as well just because I like my cupcakes extra boozy.<br />
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<i>The North Fork - Chocolate Cabernet Cake, Blackberry Cabernet Buttercream, Blackberry Cabernet Compote</i></div>
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My husband says these are the best "fridge to mouth" cupcakes so far. In other words you can take one of these bad boys right out of the refrigerator and it tastes perfect. I typically like to let my cupcakes come to room temperature before eating them, but these were perfection whether cold or room temp. I pureed the Blackberry Cabernet Compote and added it into the cake batter, and found it was easier to use in the frosting and as a syrup in that form. <br />
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<i>Butterbrew - Vanilla Cake, Butterscotch Bourbon Buttercream, Butterscotch Bourbon Sauce (added sea salt, more bourbon)</i></div>
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YUMMMY! Did you know the difference between butterscotch and caramel is brown sugar vs white sugar? Yup, it's true. I added a bit more salt, and bourbon to the butterscotch. I also topped the final product with some extra salt. <br />
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<i>The Julia - Pear Cake, Brown Butter Buttercream, Brandy Snaps</i></div>
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This is another recipe that's worth making if only for the Brandy Snap cookies. Man, those are good. I had so much leftover that we just crumbled it up and ate it by the handful. This is a fairly refreshing cupcake, light, buttery and not too sweet. <br />
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<i>The Duckwalk - Vanilla Cake, Blueberry Port Mascarpone Buttercream</i></div>
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The blueberries from this recipe were sooooo good after being soaked/cooked in port. I actually used the remainder blueberries to make some faux butter cream for a vegan cupcake later in the week. I pureed the blueberries and whipped them in with the faux-cream. I added a bit of uncooked port to the frosting for an extra boozy finish. <br />
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<i>The Laurenzano - Fig Cake, Goat Cheese Buttercream, Fig Balsamic Gastrique and Proscuitto</i></div>
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I seriously just finished baking these bad boys an hour ago. The cake is super moist and delicate. This is definitely a more savory cupcake but still hits the spot. Forget having a cheese plate, this is the way to go for my next party. I ended up having to strain out some big clumps of fig jam from my gastrique (syrup/sauce) as the jam just wouldn't finish dissolving.<br />
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<i>El Melocoton de la Muerte - Peach-Ghost Chile Cake, Peach-Ghost Chile Compote Buttercream</i></div>
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I waited and waited for peach season just to make this cupcake! My husband and I love spice! The more spice the better. We already had ghost chiles at the house, and the ghost chile powder so we knew this recipe was going to be right up our alley. The compote is to die for! I made an extra large batch and we ended up using it as a marinade for pork chops, soooo yummy. I followed the directions to the letter on this recipe because I didn't want to burn anyone's face off. It was the perfect amount of spice. Everyone who tried it loved it! BEST CUPCAKE EVER!!!!! I'm going to make more of the compote and freeze it so I can continue to enjoy it's fiery awesomeness. <br />
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Whew, now we're all caught up! I plan on making two different kinds of cupcakes this next weekend so keep your eyes peeled for deliciousness!<br />
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:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-15354070677783951752014-05-08T20:10:00.001-07:002014-05-08T20:10:09.522-07:00Week 14 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I've made it to week 14 with all my fingers, and no burns. I'm considering myself super lucky to have not injured myself horribly during this experience. <br />
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Sacha Lauren, from <a href="http://www.winterscheese.com/" target="_blank">Winters Cheese Company</a>, visited our class and taught us how to make Ricotta, Mozzarella and Burrata cheese! We started off with Ricotta because it's really straight forward and super easy to make. Mozzarella on the other hand requires exact temperatures and pulling. You have to stretch the cheese curds to make the mozzarella smooth but you can't stretch it too much or it will become tough. Burrata is really thinly pulled mozzarella with a cheese and cream filling, you want to stretch the mozzarella so thin that you can't even tell it's a separate cheese. We enjoyed the fruits of our labor with a caprese salad for lunch. YUM!<br />
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<i> Cheese, we made that!</i></div>
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We learned about <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuile" target="_blank">tuiles</a> this week. Excuse my language but tuiles are a bitch to make. They're really thin crispy wafer things that you can mold. The trick is that you have to mold them while they're still hot. Many fingers were slightly singed and many a tuile was tossed out. I am not a fan of the tuile.<br />
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<i>Lace cookie, tuiles.</i></div>
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But don't worry because we also made Brioche! Apparently brioche is in my wheel house. The dough is super sticky and you have to throw it down on the table to knead it. Nic, my partner this week, managed to throw his down on the table with such force that some of it ended up on the front of me. We made brioche loafs, knots and various other delicious bites. We saved some of the brioche dough to make flamiche, which is like a quiche but with brioche dough. I was quite pleased when I asked Chef Plue (SF Cooking's resident - and super awesome - pastry chef instructor) if "on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being awesome and 1 be the most horrible thing she'd ever seen, how she'd rate our brioche knots," and she said, "3." I'm pleased because it wasn't a 1!<br />
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<i> Brioche knots!</i></div>
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<i> Ham and cheese flamiche!</i></div>
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And then, the day I'd been waiting for all through this course came, the day <a href="http://www.absinthe.com/press_bios_bc.php" target="_blank">Bill Corbett</a>, from the <a href="http://www.absinthegroup.com/" target="_blank">Absinthe Group</a>, came to visit! He makes some of the most amazingly delicious desserts I've ever eaten. He is a pastry God as far as I'm concerned. First we took a little field trip over to the "commissary" where all the prep for the desserts happens before being sent out to the various Absinthe Group restaurants. They have a steam convection oven! It was such a great kitchen, and the set up was great. I'd love to be able to work in a kitchen like that. After the tour of the commissary Bill came back to school with us and we made a whole bunch of different dessert components. After everything had been prepared we got to play with playing and combining flavors. It was such a great day.<br />
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<i>Plating creations!</i> <i>(None of mine are shown as I ate them all.)</i></div>
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To celebrate the end of the week we made cheese burgers and finally used the deep fryer for fries! Sadly there are no pictures of this marvelous event as we all shoved everything in our mouths so fast.<br />
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Next week we plan for restaurant week!<br />
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:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-78067648928228848832014-05-08T19:37:00.002-07:002014-05-08T19:37:35.437-07:00Week 13 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I still have all my fingers!<br />
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The end of week 12 (yes this is the week 13 post) saw us making pastry doughs. The last dough we made was puff pastry dough, or "Pâte Feuilletée." This is the fancy pastry dough that is used to make croissants and other delicious breakfast pastries. The pastry is rolled and folded, or "turned," so many times that there are 729 layers to it. If you're interested in trying to make your own puff pastry I've found <a href="http://bigbaketheory.com/2012/01/08/pate-feuilletee-puff-pastry/" target="_blank">this</a> excellent site with pictures and great descriptions on hot to put it all together. The point is, we rolled out our puff pastry dough at the end of week 12, but didn't get to do anything with it until this week.<br />
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We made Napoleons, Jalousie, and Pear Feuilletées and they were all superbly delicious.<br />
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<i>Pear Feuilletée! </i></div>
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<a href="http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/blogs/editor/2012/11/interview-with-juliana-uruburu-cheesemonger.html" target="_blank">Juliana Uruburu</a>, from<a href="http://www.rockridgemarkethall.com/pasta-shop" target="_blank"> The Pasta Shop</a>, came in for a cheese tasting! Man oh man do I love to eat cheese. We talked about how different animals milk can effect the taste of the cheese, as well as the animal's diet, the season, and where the animal lives.<br />
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<i>Cheese Tasting Deliciousness!</i></div>
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We were super lucky to have <a href="http://www.sideshowbynicoleplue.com/pages/about-us" target="_blank">Chef Nicole Plue</a> of the SFCS, teach us about chocolate tempering, and give us a chocolate tasting. We tasted over 15 different kinds of chocolate. At the end of the lesson we tempered our own chocolate and made little chocolate drops that we flavored with various items from all over the kitchen. I think the best chocolates were topped with salt.<br />
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<a href="http://www.ragazzasf.com/about-sharon-ardiana.html" target="_blank">Sharon Ardiana</a>, of <a href="http://www.ragazzasf.com/about.html" target="_blank">Ragazza</a>, came in for a special pizza making class. I aboslutely love Ragazza so this was an exceptionally fun time. We made really thin pizza and learned how to properly put it in the burn-you-face-off-hot oven. I still have some pizza dough in my fridge waiting to be used up for a delicious dinner. Sharon was definitely one of the best guest instructors we've had in class. She very obviously loves what she does and she was an engaging speaker. I think she's my chef crush.<br />
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<i>I think I ate a pizza and a half all by myself, sooooo good!</i></div>
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We finished up the week with a field trip to Oakhill Farm. We had a nice leisurely guided tour of the farm and everything that's grown. We tasted some wild plants, as well as some purposely planted plants. Chive flowers are delicious, and really cute, I'm going to have to look into growing them in my backyard. <br />
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<i>Chive Flowers</i></div>
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<i>Freshly picked carrots! We dusted them off and ate them.</i></div>
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And then, as if we hadn't had enough food we had a little potluck that Saturday night! Needless to say, it was all delicious! Jen was awesome enough to host the party and we all had a wonderful time.<br />
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<i>Party Time!</i></div>
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Stay tuned, we're nearing the end!<br />
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:)M<br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-38952239337637739072014-04-15T10:33:00.004-07:002014-04-15T10:33:38.807-07:00Week 12 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Week 12 has come and gone, and I still have all my fingers. <br />
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We've started working on pastries! We kicked off the week with more pasta and pastry dough. We made a savory tart for quiche, and a sweet tart for a dessert tart. I made an awesomely delicious quiche with caramelized onion, mushrooms and garlic with gruyere cheese, and then I came home and made another quiche! <br />
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<a href="https://www.starchefs.com/cook/chefs/bio/brandon-jew" target="_blank">Brandon Jew</a>, of <a href="http://www.baragricole.com/" target="_blank">Bar Agricole</a>, came to our class and we worked on a duck recipe. We didn't have an actual recipe, Brandon gave us direction and we filled in the blanks. We of course got to cut up ducks again. I was on the team that worked on the duck breasts and we had a really awesome spice combination that was rubbed on the duck. We then smoked the duck breasts and while that was happening we worked on quick pickling some tokio turnips. It was an interesting day to say the least. Everyone got to through in their ideas and opinions about what kind of spices we should use and the best way to combine everything.<br />
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<a href="http://www.cooktellsastory.com/about.htm" target="_blank">Sonoko Sakai</a> came to class to teach us more about umami and introduce us to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dashi" target="_blank">dashi</a>. It was a bit of a chaotic day but in the end everything we made was delicious.<br />
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The rest of the week was dedicated to menu classes where we put up a three course meal. We made one of the most amazing appetizers ever, a scallop salad with fava beans and turnips in a lovely buttery sauce. Sooo delicious. <i>(Pictures courtesy of my classmate Mandy.)</i><br />
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We used our sweet tart dough for a strawberry tart and man was it beautiful. I can't wait to see what we do with the rest of our yummy pastry doughs.<br />
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We're kind of worked into a rhythm in class, it's wonderful to be able to rely on everything to get things done. We're so much faster and more efficient than we were in the beginning.<br />
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:)M<br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-68629524842953880352014-03-30T16:25:00.001-07:002014-03-30T16:26:18.076-07:00Cupcakes: Creme Brulee, Pecan French Toast, Car Bomb, The Elvis, and The Iona<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Woah, I just realized how long it's been since I updated my cupcake adventure. I've made half the recipes in the Robicelli's cook book. Per usual, if you don't know about my personal cooking challenge you can check it out in <a href="http://www.bicoastalbites.com/2013/12/my-personal-cooking-challenge.html" target="_blank">this</a> previous post.<br />
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<i>Creme Brulee - Vanilla Cupcake, Vanilla Custard Buttercream, and Cara</i>melized Sugar</div>
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The Creme Brulee cupcakes were pretty straight forward and a total hit with my classmates. Making the various caramel topping was really easy. I didn't make any adjustments to this recipe. The only thing I'd change is breaking down the caramel more so it was smaller. </div>
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<i>Pecan French Toast- Cinnamon Cupcake, Maple Cinnamon Buttercream, with Maple Glazed Pecans</i></div>
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OMG! This was so amazingly delicious! It tastes like breakfast. I would make this cupcake again, it was a huge hit.</div>
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<i> Car Bomb - Guiness Chocolate Stout Cupcake, Baileys Buttercream, and Jameson Chocolate Ganache</i></div>
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I specifically saved this cupcake for St. Patrick's Day and it was great! The chocolate cake was really dense but still super delish and moist. I think I'd go lighter on the Jameson in the ganache next time but it was still really good.</div>
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<i> The Elvis - Banana Cupcake, Peanut Butter Buttercream, Candied Bacon</i></div>
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These are the most beautiful cupcakes I've baked so far. They came out perfectly domed on top and they were super moist. I went ahead and added more cinnamon to the cake because I'm a huge fan of cinnamon. I used my favorite <a href="http://www.bettylousinc.com/products_detail.php?id=287&ref=1" target="_blank">powdered peanut butter</a> in the frosting, and instead of using brown sugar to candy the bacon I used maple syrup. </div>
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<i>The Iona - Pear Olive Oil Cupcake, Blue Cheese Buttercream, Port Reduction, and Candied Walnuts</i><br />
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The best way to describe this cupcake is mild. The flavors are all nice and easy and blend really well. I used a really mild blue cheese, Point Reyes Bay Blue, in the frosting and that made all the difference. <br />
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I wanted to try a few other cupcakes so I made some of <a href="http://www.prohibitionbakery.com/" target="_blank">Prohibition Bakery</a>'s recipes.<br />
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<i>Irish Coffee - Coffee Cupcake with Jameson Frosting</i></div>
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I made this cupcake exactly as the recipe says. It was really delicious but I'm not a fan of powdered sugar frosting. The cake was really great. If I were to make this cupcake again I'd use my buttercream recipe and add the Jameson to that. </div>
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<i>Dark and Stormy - Ginger Cupcake with Rum Buttercream and Lime Zest</i></div>
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Absolutely delicious! I used my buttercream frosting for this cupcake instead of the powdered sugar frosting. In the future I'd add more rum to the frosting, or maybe use a different rum. I used <a href="http://www.krakenrum.com/" target="_blank">Kraken</a>, and I think it's too sweet to really taste the rum. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9m0CXnhmfy6tQXM5w5hEj81EXW2tKekD_Jvh6rmS4FWOWJB2cA5L6YK-M4Ud2H9YcyzIENKBN_3ZaycJiAtEIO0ndCHuMeFcFaXS39bCikPpzvYNpd2emzkPXnedRtDGJ805VZ2WctCI/s1600/Chocolate+Stout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9m0CXnhmfy6tQXM5w5hEj81EXW2tKekD_Jvh6rmS4FWOWJB2cA5L6YK-M4Ud2H9YcyzIENKBN_3ZaycJiAtEIO0ndCHuMeFcFaXS39bCikPpzvYNpd2emzkPXnedRtDGJ805VZ2WctCI/s1600/Chocolate+Stout.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i><a href="http://drinkdrakes.com/" target="_blank">Drake's</a> Drakonic Chocolate Stout Cupcake, Brown Butter Buttercream and Sea Salt</i></div>
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I'm pleased to say this is my first original cupcake. I used the Robicelli's stout cupcake recipe and Prohibition Bakery's stout recipe for inspiration but the final product was my doing. I specifically made this for a small Drake's event at <a href="http://www.shotwellsbar.com/" target="_blank">Shotwells Bar</a>. <br />
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So, I've now made 24 of the Robicelli cupcake recipes! YUM! Only 26 more to go!<br />
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:)M<br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-59963091572991910362014-03-30T15:24:00.001-07:002014-03-30T15:24:26.217-07:00Week 11 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We kicked off the week with BEANS! Chickpeas, pinto, red lentils, cannellini, and more. My teammate, Jules, and I got to make the Balkan Bean Salad which was definitely the best bean salad I've ever eaten. Our bean salad had cannellini beans, fire roasted peppers, red onion, kalamata olives, garlic, and sliced chorizo (that we'd previously made in class). Soooo delicious. The perfect salad to take to a BBQ. It was so delicious that I didn't get a picture before we'd eaten it all. :P <br />
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<i> Corn, bean and pumpkin stew</i></div>
<br />We also made butter and creme fraiche this week. It turns out it's much easier than you'd ever imagine. We had a butter tasting to compare textures and saltiness, and baked some delicious Irish Soda Bread and scones so we weren't just eating butter. <br />
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Fresh pasta was also on the menu this week. We made all kinds of stuffed favioli, and then the next day we made tortellini, cappelletti, tortelloni, ragu and fettuccine. I got to make pasta using the kitchen aid attachment as well as using a hand crank machine that attaches to a table. Both pasta makers have pros and cons but I think if I were going to buy a pasta maker I'd get the manual hand crank.<br />
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<i>tortellini with prosciutto and cream</i></div>
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We had an awesome day when <a href="http://www.tuesdayrecipe.com/about-tori-ritchie/" target="_blank">Tori Ritchie</a> came to our class to talk about recipe development. At the beginning of class Tori had us write down recipes for how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. We had to write down the name of the recipes, a little information about the recipe, how many people it serves, the ingredient list and the instructions. A few people read their recipes aloud and what it showed us all is that everyone has a different idea of how their perfect pb&j is made, and when writing a recipe you can't assume that anyone knows what they're doing. After that little exercise we split into teams and had to create a recipe using celery root and celery. My team made celery root chips with a sour cream, cumin and celery dip. The dip was pretty fantastic, but sadly our chips did not turn out properly because we oven baked them - and we didn't have enough time. One of the teams made the most amazing celery salsa, it was sooooo delicious, and they fried celery root chips. So delicious. <br />
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We de-boned a chicken and stuffed it with sausage - chicken ballotine. Pretty delicious, and it was awesome pulling all the bones out of the chicken and then wrapping it back up. Now I could make my own turducken if I want - which I don't. And I had brought in my first attempt at whiskey brittle, and we put it on our dessert!<br />
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<i>Chicken Ballotine</i></div>
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<i>Caramel ice cream with apple fritters and whiskey pecan brittle.</i></div>
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But the real high light of the week, at least for me, was my birthday! My classmates are seriously the bestest! They surprised me with champagne and so many wonderful baking gifties!<br />
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<i> Julia, giving me a happy birthday kiss and my awesome bag o' goodies! </i></div>
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Net week will bring about more pasta, and some excellent guest instructors so stay tuned!<br />
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:)M </div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-22946517493596493152014-03-28T20:33:00.002-07:002014-03-29T10:54:38.479-07:00Week 10 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Week 10 brought about our midterms. Good news, everyone passed, whew. We were also lucky enough to get the next day off of school, which was a really nice break. I managed to walk away from our practical exam with only a small burn on my right hand. I grabbed a pot off the stove with my towel and as I was walking back to my work station my towel slipped enough that my palm was touching the hot handle. In my mind I was thinking, "f@#k, f@#k, f@#k," as I made my way to my area - it wasn't like I could just drop the pot.<br />
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Matthew Dolan, of 25 Lusk, visited our class on Monday to teach us about Russian caviar service, blinis, oysters and sabering champagne. I was one of the lucky people who actually got to saber champagne AND there's video. Scroll down to be amazed!<br />
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<i> Russian Caviar Service - sadly I had already eaten my buckwheat blini.</i></div>
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<i>Found the cork!</i></div>
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This was also the week of RICE! That's right, get excited, there were all kinds of rice. We started off with Risotto and worked our way into: regular white rice of varying grains, brown rice, sticky rice, red rice, bamboo rice, basmati, and forbidden rice (black rice). We cooked a bunch of different rice and then we had an awesome time creating our own bread puddings and rice fritters! One of the teams was super creative and made a tarragon and ouzo rice pudding.<br />
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<i>Rice!</i></div>
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<i> Various Puddings!</i></div>
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And then, as if the week couldn't get more exciting, we also introduced GRAINS! Bulgur, quinoa, millet, kasha, barley, and farro. I gotta say, I love farro because it's got a nice texture and combines really well with other flavors. <br />
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<i>Grains!</i></div>
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Due to so much extra rice being cooked we got to experiment a bit more with re-purposing rice and each team in the class, there are typically 6 teams, got to create a new dish. My partner, Jules, was a damn genius, and we made brown rice fritters with green onion, peas and curry powder. Our fritters were soooo delicious. Another team, Mandy and Sam, made kimchi fried rice which was also phenomenal. Sadly no pictures were taken of the delicious fritters.<br />
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Overall week 10 was a little high stress but ended on a creative high note!<br />
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:)M<br />
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<i>(Thanks to Harriet and Mandy for all the lovely pictures featured in this post.)</i>
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-63890082019989577612014-03-09T21:07:00.000-07:002014-03-09T21:07:19.516-07:00Week 9 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I still have all my fingers and haven't burnt myself, at least not in class, so I'm calling week 9 a win. <br />
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Taylor Boetticher, the owner of <a href="http://www.fattedcalf.com/" target="_blank">Fatted Calf</a>, came to class to teach us a bit more about charcuterie. It was a great afternoon of meat grinding, brining, and dry rubbing. I worked on getting the pancetta in a dry brine and letting it sit. We'll get to eat that delicious pancetta in about 3 weeks. I also helped stuff and wrap basque coils. (Sausages rolled in a little pinwheel.) <br />
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<i>Basque Coil making! </i></div>
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We also had a visit from <a href="http://www.onefamilyonemeal.com/about_us" target="_blank">Amanda Haas</a>, who runs the test kitchen for Williams-Sonoma. She's helped write multiple cook books, and runs her own blog called <a href="http://www.onefamilyonemeal.com/" target="_blank">One Family, One Meal</a>. She spoke to our class about other options outside of working in a restaurant after culinary school. Much to most of my class's disappointment it's pretty hard to get a job in a test kitchen. </div>
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There were quite a few menu class days this week. A menu class is where we have to get all the parts together for a three course meal and plate everything by a certain time. I kinda like these days because you can see what's coming, and everything knows what to do for the most part.</div>
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This next week we have another practical and written exam, but we'll be starting the week off with a visit from <a href="http://www.starchefs.com/cook/chefs/bio/matthew-dolan" target="_blank">Matthew Dolan</a> from <a href="http://www.25lusk.com/" target="_blank">Twenty Five Lusk</a>. Keep your eyes peeled for awesomeness.</div>
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:)M</div>
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-40290813206023106302014-03-02T11:20:00.001-08:002014-03-02T11:33:55.077-08:00Week 8 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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We went whole, well half, hog this week! <a href="http://4505meats.com/meat-the-staff/ed6505fe829211e2ae9922000a1f9b71_6/" target="_blank">Thomas McEntee</a>, from <a href="http://4505meats.com/" target="_blank">4505 Meats</a>, came to our class to show us how to break down a pig. As with the lamb, I enjoyed it immensely. This is a Berkshire Pig, this breed of pig is known for all its awesome marbling which helps give it extra flavor. This pig was around 200lbs and we got half of it.</div>
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrVIALFspqN1KoBpytgcFNF07dy2og2YUkYvkiH8g_jHUZdxTQcFNnCULHJv8cljvr_cRlNRGTq_8oEtlFGAu0JDoySr-ySw1QWRAJXCIQRYioEwOM2DqaBBDBtTjfMNGMeyAge7bMN4k/s1600/IMG_6216.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></div>
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<i>A size comparison of the piggy, for your pleasure. Wilbur was an excellent model, he stayed still the whole time.</i></div>
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I was lucky enough to be the first one to work on the pig, I got to cut off the front quarter of the pig.</div>
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<i>As you can see, I'm quite pleased with myself.</i></div>
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We spent the entire morning breaking down the pig into various cuts that we could then cook. Some things cooked fast, while others (braises and roasts) took longer. There was pork for pretty much all this week. And if that wasn't enough, we also worked with beef! I was a little disappointed to find out we would not be breaking down a cow, or even part of a cow. I suppose a cow is way too large for us to handle and cook quickly. (The following pictures were taken by my classmate Mandy.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG-jf5pnTE7fpoMfE9_p2YRzV5tKXkvoTW9sd1lXaCk02gHxNoRI8-IfTuZtLnFQtfO7TEGchYDTx14pGGbOCjyAnc3FjtcAufyk4wFOUf0gEJnMtLY-Vxt4j9eZWY_tXFYp5lEZaRIF8/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.58.38+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG-jf5pnTE7fpoMfE9_p2YRzV5tKXkvoTW9sd1lXaCk02gHxNoRI8-IfTuZtLnFQtfO7TEGchYDTx14pGGbOCjyAnc3FjtcAufyk4wFOUf0gEJnMtLY-Vxt4j9eZWY_tXFYp5lEZaRIF8/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.58.38+AM.png" height="307" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i> <span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">Braised pork shank, sauerkraut, cider braised pork belly, and sautéed apple</span></span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7ZxMLzxK-N6TSxrjeIkvrZ35CIQyxvn_ct091XeFPMll5WvKrtF-s3k_MsWqvaooxKSJ3n9xFEDKHiyocJjW_3G8_vY53M8bKNeCDW7shQ9ZKhGWfUqXvwt2Vj9ku36nKs0Cl96MynCw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.58.55+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7ZxMLzxK-N6TSxrjeIkvrZ35CIQyxvn_ct091XeFPMll5WvKrtF-s3k_MsWqvaooxKSJ3n9xFEDKHiyocJjW_3G8_vY53M8bKNeCDW7shQ9ZKhGWfUqXvwt2Vj9ku36nKs0Cl96MynCw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.58.55+AM.png" height="256" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i> <span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">Pork shoulder braised in stout</span></span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1XpVtCsuPkD8-LRWqKstDQ7Rl60qap-dHikJGkZ9XeRQzAqV4GsIP8QwYEhsafcTwHy-cHDfBx2_6eqYzvIGRYP-fA2g9dj-CLEPihBXM0W-W9FkLIzrBbSSoVPtbxIOhLjyNzoMpDoU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.59.06+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1XpVtCsuPkD8-LRWqKstDQ7Rl60qap-dHikJGkZ9XeRQzAqV4GsIP8QwYEhsafcTwHy-cHDfBx2_6eqYzvIGRYP-fA2g9dj-CLEPihBXM0W-W9FkLIzrBbSSoVPtbxIOhLjyNzoMpDoU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.59.06+AM.png" height="283" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">Pork scallopini with a lemon butter sauce and fried capers</span></span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc22Xr9HPvZGQJn8fFZqW-YzuTTyc3gKDobAFsw6VUc1CWYTaOA5FpajF2-2dN7tfh-kfovRFY5UyzRzuNOta9ZQs1VZqolCXKJIDV2a45tBJycrlvTprtW47yPAbMEoVGReYCoWSjkBs/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.59.19+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc22Xr9HPvZGQJn8fFZqW-YzuTTyc3gKDobAFsw6VUc1CWYTaOA5FpajF2-2dN7tfh-kfovRFY5UyzRzuNOta9ZQs1VZqolCXKJIDV2a45tBJycrlvTprtW47yPAbMEoVGReYCoWSjkBs/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+10.59.19+AM.png" height="278" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i> <span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">Pork chops a la charcutiere</span></span></i></div>
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<span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">As you can see, we were not starving this week. By the end we all just wanted a salad and a nap.</span></span><br />
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<span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">We started some <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charcuterie" target="_blank">charcuterie</a> projects this week and got to play with the meat grinder as well as the sausage stuffer. My teammate Julia, and I made Rabbit <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrine_%28food%29" target="_blank">Terrine</a>. I don't know that I'm a fan of terrines mostly because I'm not a fan of cold wet meat, but I guess we'll see. Other teams made sausages - boubin blanc, and chorizo. Some teams made <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cr%C3%A9pinette" target="_blank">crepinettes</a> which are ground meat patty things rolled up in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caul_fat" target="_blank">caul fat</a>. Caul fat has the most vile scent ever. It's the fat the holds the pig's intestines together, like a little bag. The end result was delicious but the small while they're being made is horrid.</span></span><br />
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<span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">And finally, we started baking! We made muffins - orange ginger, bran, oatmeal, etc, as well as some donuts! We talked about <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten" target="_blank">gluten</a> and different kinds of flour and why some flour is better for baking bread, and some is better for pastries. We talked about how gluten effects your baking and the difference between whole wheat and white flour. I'm pretty pumped about all the baking we're going to be doing this upcoming week.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEQYNJamhdx-wM5rmnX3KJsreYo11oZZ4I_CqJTZp46IwraYD29Y8SsTcZ4JWjhJw9FiHInF6h9B2KC0tH3LKCO0P0mAibe7sifCF5NLy_3-mGFnO9OIRhdzzLEhv9YvBZ66PZE3nvdiA/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+11.05.24+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEQYNJamhdx-wM5rmnX3KJsreYo11oZZ4I_CqJTZp46IwraYD29Y8SsTcZ4JWjhJw9FiHInF6h9B2KC0tH3LKCO0P0mAibe7sifCF5NLy_3-mGFnO9OIRhdzzLEhv9YvBZ66PZE3nvdiA/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-03-02+at+11.05.24+AM.png" height="287" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption" data-gt="{"timeline_og_unit_click":"1","app_id":"124024574287414","action_type_id":"282366618453208","object_type":"instapp:photo","unit_id":"447280888645770","og_ref":"ogexp","is_intentional":"1"}">Oh yeh, this week marked the half way point! I'm half way done with the class room portion of culinary school!</span></span><br />
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-68320283159026909442014-02-23T20:21:00.001-08:002014-02-23T20:21:25.294-08:00Buffalo Chicken Cupcakes and the "El Guapo"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Holy crap, the Buffalo Chicken Cupcakes, from the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670785873/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0670785873&linkCode=as2&tag=bico06-20" target="_blank">Robicelli</a> cupcake book, turned out perfectly AND they were pretty delish. I took the cupcakes to a fun party called "Crabtacular." <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJJ7y9BGC5S1lXyaydTp2adkXxZUBBAvlfyympRA4p9rDdYc1Ag89IT3GU4Xey6twXs67ox5Ij-c8SXhXistB8E9vhM-mx68Dug8_Hzoxk6tYgVJKkR5Jym7nlXFcjHWjAKXGEEgQQP_A/s1600/IMG_6184.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJJ7y9BGC5S1lXyaydTp2adkXxZUBBAvlfyympRA4p9rDdYc1Ag89IT3GU4Xey6twXs67ox5Ij-c8SXhXistB8E9vhM-mx68Dug8_Hzoxk6tYgVJKkR5Jym7nlXFcjHWjAKXGEEgQQP_A/s1600/IMG_6184.jpg" height="400" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<i>Top view of Buffalo Chicken Cupcakes.</i></div>
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The Buffalo Cupcakes were good in an interesting/unique kind of way. It's weird to have those flavors in a chewy cupcake form. The blue cheese butter cream was pretty cool, but super greasy. The cupcakes were a huge hit at the party but I don't think I'd make them again. They weren't hard but I like my cupcakes more sweet. I did take a little liberty with the cupcake and added some ground ghost pepper. The pepper added a nice kick.</div>
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<i> Buffalo Chicken Cupcake! Carrot Celery-Root Cake, Blue Cheese Buttercream Frosting, Buttermilk Fried Chicken, and Buffalo Sauce!</i></div>
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<i>The "El Guapo" Cupcake - Sweet Corn Cake, Cilantro Lime Buttercream, topped with Popcorn!</i><br />
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"El Guapo" is a delicious and refreshing bite of awesome. It's light and fluffy and has a really nice finish. It's easy to put away a few cupcakes before noticing you've had half a dozen. Other than pureeing the corn it was a pretty easy recipe. I made everything start to finish in about two and a half hours. I added a little bit of honey to the cupcakes because I wanted the batter to be sweeter.<br />
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That's 19 recipes I've done so far, if you're keeping track! I'm running out of easy recipes so things are going to get intense soon!<br />
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:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-1913977751262423182014-02-23T16:03:00.001-08:002014-02-23T18:57:24.758-08:00Week 7 at San Francisco Cooking School or The Silence of The Lamb (singular) <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I still have all my fingers and managed not to burn myself. Hoorays! We also did something pretty amazing this week. We butchered a lamb!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib5Lm0w1s6xlfs36pmZuWSk-3pwIjGhdzjXujci1KD_6Xqv12NtgWYnyvGOSKJTgbUby5TjjY8iRSWo_FQEa7oSfjhArL2aQjUPWHVzMPjPm_G9hSnmLN-t-dshkMfFMF53n8Nytu9gOQ/s1600/IMG_6172.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib5Lm0w1s6xlfs36pmZuWSk-3pwIjGhdzjXujci1KD_6Xqv12NtgWYnyvGOSKJTgbUby5TjjY8iRSWo_FQEa7oSfjhArL2aQjUPWHVzMPjPm_G9hSnmLN-t-dshkMfFMF53n8Nytu9gOQ/s1600/IMG_6172.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i>This lamb is HUGE!</i></div>
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dave-the-Butcher/313452850163" target="_blank">Dave the Butcher</a>, of <a href="http://www.marinameats.com/" target="_blank">Marina Meats</a>, came to our class with a ready to butcher lamb. Just like with filleting fish last week I discovered that I enjoyed it much more than I ever thought I would. We used a bone saw to cut through large bones to break down the lamb into more manageable pieces. Dave had an awesome knife holster for all his knives, it was pretty badass. We spent 3 hours taking apart the lamb, and every one had a chance to do a little something.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge_281AD3acNrdnAm9SyyJums8gfqPMghcVjOjK4XgWPvISeqJl5epKVuH_REyWI7seVJi0zeVR-590XPlNnvrVRoyaMXkhJsjIAk5L3063i7yZEuBilvqnX-pF7Af81faTobkPX64Q40/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.39.04+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge_281AD3acNrdnAm9SyyJums8gfqPMghcVjOjK4XgWPvISeqJl5epKVuH_REyWI7seVJi0zeVR-590XPlNnvrVRoyaMXkhJsjIAk5L3063i7yZEuBilvqnX-pF7Af81faTobkPX64Q40/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.39.04+PM.png" height="221" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i>Meat!</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVwAgt8NGy4FzGCUB_eOIjIVDNmgHAqThiWnNVjf-Oz2DpKxm3OQAgsb-ffvBxjZ8zwHr6kY56hlakEU7-t29xRKVXXR9NXAEV6ZkkvyYf5wdJJ77BDOlbgrDwKtqSvzVP8aP5e1eQJ_Q/s1600/IMG_6170.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVwAgt8NGy4FzGCUB_eOIjIVDNmgHAqThiWnNVjf-Oz2DpKxm3OQAgsb-ffvBxjZ8zwHr6kY56hlakEU7-t29xRKVXXR9NXAEV6ZkkvyYf5wdJJ77BDOlbgrDwKtqSvzVP8aP5e1eQJ_Q/s1600/IMG_6170.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i> Dave's awesome knife holster.</i><br />
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<i>Here's a video of my classmate Jen using the bone saw to split the back end of the sheep.</i></div>
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I learned that working with sheep/lamb left my hands super soft. Sheep fat is actually called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lanolin" target="_blank">lanolin</a>, and it's a waxy substance that feels amazing on your skin. It's gross, but I kinda wanted to roll around in it. ("It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again." - Silence of the Lambs)</div>
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We also butchered rabbit, and squab. This is going to sound psycho, but I honestly really love butchering. The movements are precise and you have to be focused, it's very zen. On Friday we ate the squab - grilled, and sautèd. We also have rabbit legs browned with a dijon cream sauce, and rabbit loin wrapped around kidneys and hearts and browned. Rabbit legs have the same texture as chicken, and rabbit loins seem to have the same texture as pork. I still don't enjoy kidney. We also ate a delicious lamb shank that my team made, slow cooked in veal stock with cilantro and garlic. Everything was really delicious. We finished off the day with profiteroles - ice cream filled dessert puffs covered in chocolate. I borrowed most of the pictures on today's post from my classmate Mandy, so I can't take credit for how beautiful they are.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_s4wqnxDRaBv0JZnMccv0fJQMRePlc-i3Tfsvh3gmUh3Ry59cvAbbI9SqqQMC574l7_TyxHIwD8uicoodutQx-fKpx_Uu747-_QeLSq_t2mMokRUan_yqVQ3OFu6r-AO1XiBp_IEPYVg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.38.04+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_s4wqnxDRaBv0JZnMccv0fJQMRePlc-i3Tfsvh3gmUh3Ry59cvAbbI9SqqQMC574l7_TyxHIwD8uicoodutQx-fKpx_Uu747-_QeLSq_t2mMokRUan_yqVQ3OFu6r-AO1XiBp_IEPYVg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.38.04+PM.png" height="385" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i> Squab!</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKUG2DKBAh-I9oAl2aGDmD6HXhyR4BPkFWCNTgpFadylKHhtFKUMPlEsXznHBV9ljjiS5ICZveolrtM3G5lnXfqIBL1PApBeQgVXY5cN1LuQTzzE5cXFYM7yt6dntnsMRLBX5fhNCnS4/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.37.44+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKUG2DKBAh-I9oAl2aGDmD6HXhyR4BPkFWCNTgpFadylKHhtFKUMPlEsXznHBV9ljjiS5ICZveolrtM3G5lnXfqIBL1PApBeQgVXY5cN1LuQTzzE5cXFYM7yt6dntnsMRLBX5fhNCnS4/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.37.44+PM.png" height="353" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i>Rabbit!</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLYKymDoGz9DPF4Ju29i173_1s-cAcQAiVNdOWIoZCAiDZKAOH8V9sDtkIZQmeKNrIRFkzRZpxAA7R0e5kras3VUYkJn-i3hYIE7QAvrxotv-enbJbzCXH23hLN5ZSE5sNJvu1Cc49OIg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.37.20+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLYKymDoGz9DPF4Ju29i173_1s-cAcQAiVNdOWIoZCAiDZKAOH8V9sDtkIZQmeKNrIRFkzRZpxAA7R0e5kras3VUYkJn-i3hYIE7QAvrxotv-enbJbzCXH23hLN5ZSE5sNJvu1Cc49OIg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-23+at+3.37.20+PM.png" height="393" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i>Profiteroles!</i></div>
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I was lucky enough to TA for <a href="http://www.sideshowbynicoleplue.com/pages/about-us" target="_blank">Chef Nicole Plue</a> this past week. I was there for the 3rd night of her Pastry: Breakfast & Brunch recreational course. It was a really great experience. Nicole is so patient with her students and everything she had them bake was delicious. We had popovers, egg stuffed brioche muffins, pancakes, olive oil muffins, orange julius, and so much more. There was also a butter tasting! Did you know there's such a thing as goat milk butter, because there is and it's amazing!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2cPnj_nwAhuchI_TZmtmXNTcMzDRAYF8DV_RflmwGEwCXC5tTHejxaHKYww8KPOd0Ll6PxxhV7Gxg78JcBsxPY9p3mo3wsVIEODnnre389ON2Opetlo_caKTc7ywAZ4FOu4FsWd8DjUo/s1600/IMG_6175.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2cPnj_nwAhuchI_TZmtmXNTcMzDRAYF8DV_RflmwGEwCXC5tTHejxaHKYww8KPOd0Ll6PxxhV7Gxg78JcBsxPY9p3mo3wsVIEODnnre389ON2Opetlo_caKTc7ywAZ4FOu4FsWd8DjUo/s1600/IMG_6175.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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Butter tasting and jams.</div>
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Overall it was a fast paced and fun-filled week. Get ready for this next week because we're gonna be butchering Wilbur! (That's a piggy for those who haven't read "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte%27s_Web" target="_blank">Charlotte's Web</a>.") </div>
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And lastly, I finished the Curiosity Crawl! I believe that I am the first student to finish the crawl so I'm pretty pumped. I'll let you know what I win. </div>
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See you next week!</div>
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:)M</div>
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-6610813342819931062014-02-17T21:18:00.001-08:002014-02-17T21:18:06.486-08:00Butternut Spice Cupcakes, Carrot Cake Cupcakes, and "The Blatt" Cupcakes!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Don't worry, despite class being a little crazy with exams I was still able to bake some delish cupcakes from the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670785873/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0670785873&linkCode=as2&tag=bico06-20">Robicelli's: A Love Story, with Cupcakes: With 50 Decidedly Grown-Up Recipes</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=bico06-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0670785873" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> book. If this is the first cupcake post from me you've read, you can read all about my personal challenge <a href="http://www.bicoastalbites.com/2013/12/my-personal-cooking-challenge.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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So, the Butternut Spice were interestingly delicious. They were a bit more savory than sweet. They were really simple, the only component I had to buy online was the butternut squash seed oil. The cupcakes were fluffy and the brown sugar from the candied seeds was heavenly. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZHzHBdfbHUhPBX2_eY-WnEbGs8ftMn8H3oMqTB7A3JPUtfDVjfw6wBv9J0UMV04j_TxwScAqbuSaa_NpzsyylrvB3UXhahG_070vRpTHwKdd_JUn8bYflDFT-2DdJ1U9YrwuotKKkdt4/s1600/IMG_6050.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZHzHBdfbHUhPBX2_eY-WnEbGs8ftMn8H3oMqTB7A3JPUtfDVjfw6wBv9J0UMV04j_TxwScAqbuSaa_NpzsyylrvB3UXhahG_070vRpTHwKdd_JUn8bYflDFT-2DdJ1U9YrwuotKKkdt4/s1600/IMG_6050.jpg" height="320" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<i>Butternut Spice: butternut squash cupcake, vanilla buttercream frosting, brown sugar, roasted pumpkin seeds. </i></div>
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The carrot cake cupcakes were straight forward and super easy. I picked this cupcake for Valentine's Day because I know I could easily make and assemble the cupcakes on a Thursday night after class. I was going to spice them up, but decided not to because I wanted to try the recipe as written - it was quite delish. Check out my half-assed hearts that I piped on the cupcakes.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUa62tGKQCA6Xexc1uhJuA90FH6CnslzbbKaW_0piYNJxfxCmFHPomZb63QnVSOMu6cBpbiTqrPIgaOVH_GKGs29KUDUxbZudtCWDXjBHpxshsw8Gnd2q-6o7Stv1dmX5uWY9FMVs9qw/s1600/IMG_6087.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUa62tGKQCA6Xexc1uhJuA90FH6CnslzbbKaW_0piYNJxfxCmFHPomZb63QnVSOMu6cBpbiTqrPIgaOVH_GKGs29KUDUxbZudtCWDXjBHpxshsw8Gnd2q-6o7Stv1dmX5uWY9FMVs9qw/s1600/IMG_6087.jpg" height="320" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<i>Carrot Cake Cupcake: carrot cake cupcake, cream cheese buttercream, and roasted walnuts. </i></div>
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The "Blatt" was chosen because it also features cream cheese buttercream. I was able to just make a double batch of the frosting when I made the carrot cake cupcakes and freeze the extra frosting. (I like an easy cheat.) The cardamom cookies were interesting, and I'm not sure I actually cooked them properly, but they were yummy. I felt like they were going to be flatter and crispier, but that could be me.<i> </i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3oQ96YJdrl7njFNeFjpiJs8jt-xsOUJQJ_O0TBATvz4yc_Bs7EKC2XKO9xxCYSZj9Dh6b9FPJ1MORxsjJnVRgNbL5BFUtV_u6VqNFH6bDljNx_XDZ32EgbYcUsduegGKfUpg6e8zKO-g/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-17+at+9.05.07+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3oQ96YJdrl7njFNeFjpiJs8jt-xsOUJQJ_O0TBATvz4yc_Bs7EKC2XKO9xxCYSZj9Dh6b9FPJ1MORxsjJnVRgNbL5BFUtV_u6VqNFH6bDljNx_XDZ32EgbYcUsduegGKfUpg6e8zKO-g/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-17+at+9.05.07+PM.png" height="280" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i> The Blatt! - Vanilla cupcake, cream cheese buttercream frosting, raspberry jam and topped w/ crumbled fried cardamom cookies.</i></div>
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As of this post I have made 17 different cupcakes from the Robicelli's cupcake book. I'm pumped! And I'm super excited to tell you that I'll be taking on the Buffalo Chicken Cupcakes this weekend, so stay tuned!<br />
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:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-83292577297775063332014-02-16T17:11:00.001-08:002014-02-16T17:11:11.091-08:00Week 6 of/at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I still have all my fingers, and I've managed not to burn myself.<br />
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OMG, this week has been amazing. It's been the week of "FISH!" I fileted, gutted, dismantled and pureed fish and other fishy sea creatures this week. I loved every single minute. I mostly think I enjoyed it because unlike other animals I don't really care about fish so I don't mind ripping them apart. I fileted rock cod and petrale sole, and I was honestly pretty awesome at it. Now when I tell people, "Imma gut you like a fish," I actually know how.<br />
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I was really pumped on Thursday when we had Thai Squid Salad. I specifically request that my teammate, Jeff, and I get to make the squid salad because I really really wanted to dismantle the squid. I was pleasantly surprise when I told Chef that I wanted that recipe and she gave it to us! Did you know that squid have a spine piece called a quill? It's amazing, it's like a piece of plastic in the squid. Check out this video that shows you how to clean a squid, and imagine me doing it and loving it:<br />
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Then on Friday Jeff and I made Shrimp Quenelles, which are essentially shrimp balls. We pureed shrimp and petrale sole with egg whites, cream, butter and some spices and then poached them in salty water to create these light fluffy shrimp ball things. It was weird, but pretty delicious.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxgZh8gUPq0JBIxIOgcWAEEvFd3phrjwlKCHPqEOo7Y7Xg7Ht2eMKfwDarpvJjLesOD71Qg9peMbiagphX5FaEEKIHUbZrjdYREVM2bI_WzdvbYc7CwZvbkxiSWASBnTRneDnzPqJpfUY/s1600/photo+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxgZh8gUPq0JBIxIOgcWAEEvFd3phrjwlKCHPqEOo7Y7Xg7Ht2eMKfwDarpvJjLesOD71Qg9peMbiagphX5FaEEKIHUbZrjdYREVM2bI_WzdvbYc7CwZvbkxiSWASBnTRneDnzPqJpfUY/s1600/photo+1.JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>The sexy squid salad.</i></div>
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We cooked a whole octopus too! My classmate, Harriet, and I asked Chef Catherine if it was "Paul" the World Cup octopus, and then we got to inform Chef about the famous Paul. (If you don't know Paul, check him out <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ESGpRUMj9E">here</a>.)<br />
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<i>My classmate, Mandy, found a stowaway in the mussels we made this week! </i></div>
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I really loved fish week. While I'm not a big fish eater I really enjoyed learning about how to identify a "good" fish, as well as how to filet and cook fish and other sea creatures. We also had a great field trip to <a href="http://www.montereyfish.com/" target="_blank">Monterey Fish Company</a>. We met up at 5:30am to watch the fish being sorted so that they could be delivered or picked up. <br />
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<i>Me and some rock cod at Monterey Fish Market. </i></div>
<br />
I had my first meeting with Chef Catherine to talk about how I was doing in class and it went great. She told me she liked that I could be so loud/excited/energized but could focus as soon as I needed to. I told Bob what Chef said and he asked," Did you tell her you don't have A.D.D.?" <br />
<br />
We finished off week 6 with a visit from Courtney from <a href="http://www.bartartine.com/" target="_blank">Bar Tartine</a>. We learned all about fermentation. Jeff and I pickled Kimchi, preserved lemons, and beets. We made kimchi with cucumbers, I can hardly wait to try it out!<br />
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Next week we're going to butcher a lamb!<br />
<br />
:)M<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-53997214214254264022014-02-16T16:04:00.000-08:002014-02-16T16:04:34.003-08:00Week 5 of San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Good news, I still have all my fingers and haven't burned myself this week. <br />
<br />
Week 5 brought about my first exam! EEEEEEK! Chef Catherine took pitty on us and gave us our recipes for the practical exam in advance. We had to make a salad with supremed oranges and an orange juice vinaigrette, a root vegetable soup, a velouté sauce and sauté a chicken breast and make a tarragon pan sauce. Of course before we started making and plating all these things we had a vegetable dicing practical. How fast, accurately could we dice carrots, celery and onions. Good news folks, I don't suck at dicing. :P<br />
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In other good news, I passed the practical exam and the written exam. What I've taken away from this experience is that I almost have awesome time management, and I cannot blindly identify spices to save my life. Seriously, go open up your cupboard and grab spices and smell them with out looking at them. It's hard. Whenever I can't identify a spice I immediately think, "this is probably cumin, or maybe cardamom." It's usually neither. I can, however; identify cinnamon like nobodies business - then again, so can pretty much everyone. <br />
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Week 5 was also the week of the duck. That's right, we disjointed and cooked duck like it was going out of style. I discovered that I like my duck breast more medium done than rare, and that I still don't care for liver. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.starchefs.com/chefs/rising_stars/2007/sf/html/bio_l_jossel_.shtml" target="_blank">Laurence Jossel</a>, of Nopa, came to visit and talk about restaurant life. He was really awesome. He was an engaging speaker and he gave us a good idea of what restaurant life is like. While talking to us he also assembled a lovely fritatta with potatoes, it was delicious. <br />
<br />
I also had an opportunity to go to a demo from <a href="http://kindredtable.com/" target="_blank">Kindred Table</a>. Nicole Paizis, was a student in the first class at SF Cooking, and started Kindred Table. I joined some wonderful Junior League members, courtesy of a friend of mine, for a small get-together and cooking demo and had a chance to talk with Nicole. It was really great to see what she took away from school and how well she's doing on her own venture. Nicole made me feel like I was actually cooking in her class even though I didn't touch a single thing. She did such a great job of describing her process and how all the flavors work together that I felt like I had helped make our meal. If you're in San Francisco and you're looking for a wonderful dinner event I really encourage you to contact Nicole. The food and the demo are just amazing. <br />
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Week 5 was a little crazy and hectic. Everyone was happy when the weekend finally came about. Whew.<br />
<br />
:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-78796652744173422512014-02-02T21:41:00.001-08:002014-02-02T21:41:09.310-08:00Week 4 at San Francisco Cooking School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Week 4 went pretty smoothly. I still have all my fingers and I
didn't burn myself. My poor teammate Tracy, unfortunately burnt herself
on that same scary convection oven - it's a beast. She currently has
about a 3 inch long scab on her right wrist. It's nasty and looks
horribly painful. Hopefully it healed up nicely over the weekend.<br />
<br />
This
week brought about the revelation that I loath making stock. Yes, I
know it's straight forward, but something about it makes me fume with
rage. I can't put my finger on why, I just know that every day that
involves my team making stock I go home disgruntled. I'm working on
making stock be less unpleasant for myself.<br />
<br />
We had a couple of awesome visitors this week. First we had <a href="http://www.nopalize.com/2013/09/gonzalo-guzman-nopalito.html" target="_blank">Gonzalo Guzman</a>,
of Nopa/Nopalito, come to class and tell us about how he chose the food
for the menus, and how certain items are made. We help grind up corn
for masa which was then turned into sopas, and corn tortillas. He made a
couple of really awesome hot sauces and showed us how to pickle onions
just using lime juice. It was a really awesome demo, and we all enjoyed
awesome food at the end.<br />
<br />
And to finish up the week, on Friday <a href="http://sfchefsfoodwine.com/personalities/eugenio-jardim/" target="_blank">Eugenio Jardim</a>
taught us about wine tasting. We learned about how every wine tells a
story before you even taste it. Soon I'll be able to sound like I know
what I'm talking about. I will of course have to drink more wine. <br />
<br />
We
made a lot of vinaigrettes and mayo/aioli this week. Infused our own
oil with herbs, and just generally emulsified our food. <br />
<br />
And of course, we had a lovely plated meal day, here is my sauteed chicken with a mushroom pan sauce and veggies. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgglNWSqLNc4xNd5hzscC6XwPbPKHUbZErzf_l8d0jsTSznK2wszlLpfDd6ATKWotQw14O5w4idVz3K6pyGWaQCmHPK-Z0qqpI9pRUNNFSVhFAA6lx4JkPrZujlzgOYUfESyr9drJIodPE/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-02+at+9.29.12+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgglNWSqLNc4xNd5hzscC6XwPbPKHUbZErzf_l8d0jsTSznK2wszlLpfDd6ATKWotQw14O5w4idVz3K6pyGWaQCmHPK-Z0qqpI9pRUNNFSVhFAA6lx4JkPrZujlzgOYUfESyr9drJIodPE/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-02+at+9.29.12+PM.png" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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We have a practical exam, and a written exam this week so wish me luck!<br />
<br />
:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-43526487630391577072014-02-02T16:57:00.002-08:002014-02-02T17:01:22.204-08:00The "Apple Maple Crisp," "Maltz," and "Coquito" cupcakes.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I was a really busy girl this last week. As of today I've made three more cupcakes from the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670785873/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0670785873&linkCode=as2&tag=bico06-20" target="_blank">Robicelli's</a> cupcake book. I'm gaining headway with my <a href="http://www.bicoastalbites.com/2013/12/my-personal-cooking-challenge.html" target="_blank">personal cooking challenge</a>. I started the week off with the:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_YRv4UgC5PNTPzZGCe9hQmizPQYiHn3hJ7qX9yZy3Cc8vT09CpWiDylCbInaHChTacn8MUKdJ3_HevtMjHhS2j3fggGVHskjfcJ9Y15xWEq5gkADICopGz0l1ljxcqMZTq7W8jW54F2A/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-02+at+4.54.50+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_YRv4UgC5PNTPzZGCe9hQmizPQYiHn3hJ7qX9yZy3Cc8vT09CpWiDylCbInaHChTacn8MUKdJ3_HevtMjHhS2j3fggGVHskjfcJ9Y15xWEq5gkADICopGz0l1ljxcqMZTq7W8jW54F2A/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-02-02+at+4.54.50+PM.png" height="320" width="318" /></a></div>
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<i>Apple Maple Crisp Cupcake</i></div>
<br />
OMG, this cupcake was amazingly moist and delicious. Even though it's one of the easier recipes it was a bit time consuming because of all the components. I made my own apple butter and oatmeal crumble this cupcake. I bought 5 pounds of Pink Lady apples to make my apple butter, and to shred to put in the cupcakes. (Pink Ladies are my go-to baking apples.) I had to plan in advance on this recipe because the apple butter takes 9-12 hours. I threw in a little extra cinnamon because nobody hates that. The cupcakes turned out great, sweet but not too sweet and the apple butter was absolutely amazing. The best part is that the cupcake is "finished" with Maple syrup. Soooo delicious.<br />
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<i> The Maltz</i></div>
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Then I made "The Maltz" for our friend's "House Concert." (It's a really San Francisco thing to do. They opened up their home to a couple of musicians and had a little potluck and concert in the living room.) One of these friends really likes bourbon and bacon so The Maltz was the obvious choice as it's a chocolate coffee bourbon cupcakes with chocolate bourbon buttercream and topped with candied bacon. I added about a shot worth of extra bourbon to the frosting and instead of brown sugar I used maple syrup to candy the bacon. It was heavenly. I have noticed that all the chocolate cupcakes seem to be more dense and dry than the other cupcakes - I'll have to compare the recipes side by side to figure this out.<br />
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<i>The Coquito</i></div>
<br />
And lastly, today I made "The Coquito." It's a coconut rum cupcake with coconut lime buttercream and topped with toasted coconut. There's also a coconut milk and sweetened condensed milk "bath," for the cupcakes. After the cupcakes came out of the oven I stabbed them a couple of times with a fork and then poured the "bath" over the top of them and let it soak in - it's the perfect amount of sweet. I think I'd consider adding more rum in the future, and maybe some actual lime juice in the buttercream, but they're really good.<br />
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Overall it has been a successful cupcake week.<br />
<br />
:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-8276199352721346122014-01-26T21:38:00.000-08:002014-01-26T21:38:07.452-08:00The "Bea Arthur" Robicellis Cupcake<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So, the awesome <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670785873/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0670785873&linkCode=as2&tag=bico06-20">Robicelli's</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=bico06-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0670785873" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
cupcake book, part of my <a href="http://www.bicoastalbites.com/2013/12/my-personal-cooking-challenge.html" target="_blank">personal challenge</a>, has a whole section dedicated to the "Golden Girls" and this last week I made the "Bea Arthur." It's a chocolate espresso cupcake with cream cheese butter cream frosting and an espresso chocolate ganache. So, I of course, as usual, took liberties with this recipe. I made everything as directed except the topping. I ended up throwing some chocolate covered espresso beans in the food processor and sprinkling it on the cupcakes. I also wanted an extra coffee flavor so I upped the instant espresso in the cupcakes to about a tablespoon.<br />
<br />
I took the cupcakes to class and they were a total success. Everyone agreed that the cupcakes were perfect because they weren't too sweet, just the right amount. This is one of the easier recipes in the cook book. This next week I'll be making two different recipes, one for class and one for a party so stay tuned!<br />
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For those of you counting...that's the 10th recipe! <br />
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<i>The Bea Arthur, super delish!</i></div>
<br />
:)M</div>
Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-30368039751470970272014-01-24T20:23:00.001-08:002014-01-24T20:23:06.202-08:00Week 3 at San Francisco Cooking School!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As many of you know this was the week that I finally got burned. So, I still have all my fingers, but I can no longer say I didn't get burnt. The good news is it was the tiniest of tiny, miniscule some might say, burn. I burnt myself on a gigantic roasting pan while browning chicken bones for stock. I was a super trooper and didn't even make a noise when it happened. I kicked that pans ass by remaining calm and collected.<br />
<br />
So, what did we do this week you ask? EGGS! We played with eggs. I feel like I excelled awesomely this week with all our great recipes, mostly because I bake so much at home. We kicked off the week by poaching eggs. I'm pleased to say I can poach a mean egg. And of course we whipped up hollandaise sauce because as everyone knows you can't eat a poached egg with out a sexy egg sauce on top.<br />
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<i>Our amazing lunch on Friday. (Grilled veggies, tempura shrimp, fried scallops, garlic custard, goat cheese souffle, spinach souffle, and salmon souffle.)</i></div>
<br />
We also made custards, and souffles! I'd never made a souffle before, but it was easier than I had anticipated. We made a salmon souffle, a spinach souffle, and a goat cheese souffle. We made spinach custard, mushroom custard and garlic custard - garlic was obviously my favorite.<br />
<br />
On Thursday <a href="http://barbstuckey.com/" target="_blank">Barb Stuckey</a> came in and taught us about taste. That's right, I said taste. The whole presentation blew my mind! For instance, did you know that butter doesn't have a taste? It has a a smell that leads us to believe it's a taste. If you plug your nose and eat unsalted butter all you get is the texture of butter in your mouth, there's no actual taste! It's crazy! You can read all about the awesome things I learned in Barb's book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BQDXBQU/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00BQDXBQU&linkCode=as2&tag=bico06-20">Taste What You're Missing: The Passionate Eater's Guide to Why Good Food Tastes Good</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=bico06-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00BQDXBQU" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> I highly recommend it.<br />
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I've also made excellent headway with the Curiosity Crawl by visiting:<br />
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<i>Saigon Sandwich with Sam, Tracy and Mandy! (Thanks Jen for taking the picture!)</i></div>
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<i> Craftsman & Wolves - Eating "The Rebel Within."</i></div>
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<i>Four Barrel Coffee - Eating a "laminated" pastry. (aka chocolate croissant)</i></div>
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You'll all also be happy to know that my awesome nurse friend, Hazel, gave me great tips on keeping my hands from turning into little husks and keeping them hydrated. I now own a pair of white cotton gloves that I wear to bed. But wait, the fun doesn't end there! First I slather on really thick awesome hand cream. Next think you know I'll be wearing curlers and cold cream. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2iM8nuuS0n8XWb_NRLBuAUfippsQ4k-ClV7pjB25IxAvhNTYDEuDWSZ0zxNhGBb0tKXb-_oLzN-4ONnM188-hT8MzEcAeb39_tmtLxsn9yuBw4bfM3Kc9KVRTleFufzw-irYGQwn0JH4/s1600/IMG_5946.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2iM8nuuS0n8XWb_NRLBuAUfippsQ4k-ClV7pjB25IxAvhNTYDEuDWSZ0zxNhGBb0tKXb-_oLzN-4ONnM188-hT8MzEcAeb39_tmtLxsn9yuBw4bfM3Kc9KVRTleFufzw-irYGQwn0JH4/s1600/IMG_5946.jpg" height="400" width="397" /></a></div>
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<i> My sexy gloves.</i></div>
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It was a great week, as you can tell, but man am I happy it's the weekend!</div>
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:)M</div>
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Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3506346435568378810.post-67019096408482454082014-01-18T11:22:00.001-08:002014-01-18T11:22:29.670-08:00Week 2 of SFCooking School! <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Good news, week two is over and I still have all my fingers! (I also managed not to burn my face off.)<br />
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Week two saw my classmates and me delirious and forgetful. We've been cooking so much we can barely remember what we're cooking. We made vegetarian onion soup (made with vegetable stock, in place of chicken stock) on Monday, and when we completed it on Wednesday no one could remember when we'd made it - thank goodness we label everything.<br />
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On Tuesday Galen Garretson who owns <a href="http://towncutler.com/" target="_blank">TownCutler</a> came to class for a knife sharpening demo. We learned about wet stones and how to properly sharpen our knives so we can take better care of them. A sharp knife is a good knife! I ended up buying a stone so I can sharpen all my knives at home and take care of my knife kit for school.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyle8u5EkA_2quhTOttx5hZz_AVR0CJQ8nnNzhgehGSXFjY1XUta_H3w5jA5l0uocMOgL8ot1X6lVe9H6FEM0TfA27wyNgDR-CofpKYaCFUlLQOscJcSnzkmd2i0h9K0hymNc0BXR60L4/s1600/photo(7).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyle8u5EkA_2quhTOttx5hZz_AVR0CJQ8nnNzhgehGSXFjY1XUta_H3w5jA5l0uocMOgL8ot1X6lVe9H6FEM0TfA27wyNgDR-CofpKYaCFUlLQOscJcSnzkmd2i0h9K0hymNc0BXR60L4/s1600/photo(7).JPG" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>My awesome new sharpening and polishing stones from TownCutler.</i></div>
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My class also got an awesome surprise on Thursday. There's a friendly little competition going on with our class, the part-time culinary class, and the pastry class. The instructors are calling it the Curiosity Crawl. It's a list of restaurants in the Bay Area with specific dishes to try, as well as a list of places to visit, and a little recipe scavenger hunt. So if you see pictures on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram tagged #CuriosityCrawl you'll know I'm taking names and kicking ass! Check out the list:<br />
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<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; border-top: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; font-weight: bold; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Where</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; border-top: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; font-weight: bold; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">What</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Locanda</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Fried Artichoke</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Terzo</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Hummus</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Zuni Cafe</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Bloody Mary</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Saigon Sandwich</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Bahn Mi</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Roli Roti</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Porchetta Sandwich</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Camino</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Brunch</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Nopalita</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Carnitas</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Mission Bowl</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Burger</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Spices II</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Fried Fish in Chile Pepper</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Old Mandarin Islamic</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Onion Pancake</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Marlowe</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Brussel sprout chips</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">La Ciccia</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Octopus Stew</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">b. patisserie</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Kougin Amann</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Craftsman & Wolves</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Rebel Within</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Z & Y</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Chicken w/ Explosive Chili Pepper</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Bi-Rite</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Ice cream</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Turtle Tower</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Pho</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">4505 Meats</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Burger</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Plow</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Breakfast Potatoes</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Tacolicious</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Tuna Tostadas</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Delfina</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Spaghetti</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Golden Boy</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Pizza slice</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Primavera</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Chilaquiles</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Swan Oyster Depot</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Oysters</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Fatted Calf</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Charcuterie</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Insalata's</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Fattoush Salad</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Liguria Bakery</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Focaccia</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Shanghai Dumpling King</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Lion's Head</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Acme at the Ferry Building</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Baguette</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Four Barrel Coffee</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Laminated pastry</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">20th Century Cafe</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Honey Cake</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Mandalay</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Tea Salad</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 9px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-left: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Bake Sale Betty's</td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; border-right: 1px solid #ccc; color: black; direction: ltr; font-size: 120.0%; padding: 0px 3px 0px 3px; text-align: left; vertical-align: bottom;">Fried Chicken Sandwich</td></tr>
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We finished up the week with a plated and coursed meal. Everyone in the class made braised artichokes, sautéd chicken with a velouté sauce served with glazed carrots and chateau potatoes, and we ended with a blood orange, date, and pistachios in an orange flower, and honey syrup. My team was also tasked with putting together a veal stock. It was a hectic but fun end to the week.<br />
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I've cut so many carrots, and my hands are so dry from constantly washing them that the carrot juice has soaked into my hands. I constantly look like my hands are filthy and my nail beds are atrocious. Oh well, I wasn't going to be a hand model anyway.<br />
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:)MargaretMargarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07316466301752287917noreply@blogger.com0