Week 1 - Charlie Palmer
01/17/2014
Objectives: Research and discuss Chef Charlie Palmer, his philosophy towards food, his background, his style and presence in the culinary world. Mimic similar dishes he created to the best ability.
Menu: Scallops, Monkfish, Beet Salad, Tomato Soup
Tools: Slicer, oven, saute pans, food processor, blender, sauce pots.
Summary: First week of Art Culinaire was overall, decent in my eyes. Although it was the first week, I felt, as a class, that we all could have come together as a more cohesive kitchen staff rather than everyone doing their dishes by themselves. However, I was pleasantly surprised with how my dish turned out. This week I had the pleasure of cooking and breaking down Monkfish for the first time. I have cooked monkfish cheeks in the past, but never the filet. Although breaking down the monkfish meat was a bit taxing due to its slimy and tough exterior, it yielded a beautiful filet that I wrapped in prosciutto and seared and basted to a beautiful golden brown. The monkfish was served with a bean puree and traditional french haricot vert wrapped together tightly in blanched leek strips. All in all, the flavors were there but presentation needed work.
Personal Observations: Chef Josh has a lot of great plating, presentation and garnish ideas.
Menu: Scallops, Monkfish, Beet Salad, Tomato Soup
Tools: Slicer, oven, saute pans, food processor, blender, sauce pots.
Summary: First week of Art Culinaire was overall, decent in my eyes. Although it was the first week, I felt, as a class, that we all could have come together as a more cohesive kitchen staff rather than everyone doing their dishes by themselves. However, I was pleasantly surprised with how my dish turned out. This week I had the pleasure of cooking and breaking down Monkfish for the first time. I have cooked monkfish cheeks in the past, but never the filet. Although breaking down the monkfish meat was a bit taxing due to its slimy and tough exterior, it yielded a beautiful filet that I wrapped in prosciutto and seared and basted to a beautiful golden brown. The monkfish was served with a bean puree and traditional french haricot vert wrapped together tightly in blanched leek strips. All in all, the flavors were there but presentation needed work.
Personal Observations: Chef Josh has a lot of great plating, presentation and garnish ideas.
Week 2 - Charlie Trotter
01/24/14
Objectives: Properly execute dishes akin to Chicago-based Chef Charlie Trotter.
Menu: Pumpkin Soup, Duck Breast Salad, Poached Cod, Peppered Tuna, Orange Spiced Cake.
Summary: I was very excited for this week as I have always been a fan of Chef Trotters work not only as a chef, but as a philosopher and humanitarian. Growing up in Chicago, his name and restaurant have always been at the pinnacle of Chicago fine-dining, as well as worldwide fine dining. This week we did our best to mimic how he works with food, especially with the freshness of ingredients and how he stresses that food should not but unhealthy. I worked with some very fresh tuna this week and incorporated it with a slew of roasted mushrooms, as well as a robust demi-glace. The freshness of the seared tuna with the earthiness of the mushrooms was a match made in heaven.
Personal Objectives: The demi-glace prepared by Chef Josh was to die for.
Menu: Pumpkin Soup, Duck Breast Salad, Poached Cod, Peppered Tuna, Orange Spiced Cake.
Summary: I was very excited for this week as I have always been a fan of Chef Trotters work not only as a chef, but as a philosopher and humanitarian. Growing up in Chicago, his name and restaurant have always been at the pinnacle of Chicago fine-dining, as well as worldwide fine dining. This week we did our best to mimic how he works with food, especially with the freshness of ingredients and how he stresses that food should not but unhealthy. I worked with some very fresh tuna this week and incorporated it with a slew of roasted mushrooms, as well as a robust demi-glace. The freshness of the seared tuna with the earthiness of the mushrooms was a match made in heaven.
Personal Objectives: The demi-glace prepared by Chef Josh was to die for.
Week 3 - Alain Ducasse
01/31/2014
Objectives: Properly execute a portrayal of a menu similar to Chef Alain Ducasse's.
Menu: Tomato confit tart, Shaved Asparagus Salad, Gratineed Mussels, Squab a la Marengo, Blanquette de veau, Coffee ice cream.
Summary: This week contained the most French-based menu to date and we successfully completed it. However, I was very unhappy with my dish as it seemed to lack that punch of flavor. I was tasked with producing the "Blanquette de veau" or a simple white blanket of butter and stock over slowly cooked veal and vegetables. I must have made a mistake here or there because the meat was overcooked and the dish as a whole lacked flavor. I will be attempting this dish at home in the near future and redeeming myself.
Personal Observations: Best dish of the day was the dessert; Coffee ice cream with a light lemon meringue and hazelnut brittle. Each item played well off each other for a very cohesive and delicious finish to a meal.
Menu: Tomato confit tart, Shaved Asparagus Salad, Gratineed Mussels, Squab a la Marengo, Blanquette de veau, Coffee ice cream.
Summary: This week contained the most French-based menu to date and we successfully completed it. However, I was very unhappy with my dish as it seemed to lack that punch of flavor. I was tasked with producing the "Blanquette de veau" or a simple white blanket of butter and stock over slowly cooked veal and vegetables. I must have made a mistake here or there because the meat was overcooked and the dish as a whole lacked flavor. I will be attempting this dish at home in the near future and redeeming myself.
Personal Observations: Best dish of the day was the dessert; Coffee ice cream with a light lemon meringue and hazelnut brittle. Each item played well off each other for a very cohesive and delicious finish to a meal.
Week 4 - Marcus Samuelsson
02/7/14
Objectives: Create a menu based on the culinary creations of Chef Marcus Samuelsson.
Menu: Lamb with couscous and beet sauce, Lamb with mint chimichurri and quinoa cakes, Beet salad, Grapefruit napoleon.
Summary: This week was relatively different as we were tasked to write and produce a menu based on the ingredients we had in house. With the items found in house, I created;
-Pickled Beet Salad with Goat Cheese, Pistachios, Grapefruit and Orange
-Lamb Lollipops with Quinoa Cakes and Mint Chimichurri
Personal/Chef Observations: Beet salad had too much of a pickling spice, it overpowered the rest of the dish. Lamb dish was executed well, lamb was perfectly cooked. However, quinoa cakes were too heavy and left the dish unbalanced; mint chimichurri was very flavorful.
Menu: Lamb with couscous and beet sauce, Lamb with mint chimichurri and quinoa cakes, Beet salad, Grapefruit napoleon.
Summary: This week was relatively different as we were tasked to write and produce a menu based on the ingredients we had in house. With the items found in house, I created;
-Pickled Beet Salad with Goat Cheese, Pistachios, Grapefruit and Orange
-Lamb Lollipops with Quinoa Cakes and Mint Chimichurri
Personal/Chef Observations: Beet salad had too much of a pickling spice, it overpowered the rest of the dish. Lamb dish was executed well, lamb was perfectly cooked. However, quinoa cakes were too heavy and left the dish unbalanced; mint chimichurri was very flavorful.
Week 6 & 7 - Create/Execute Tasting Menu
02/27/14
Objectives: Create a regular and vegetarian, multi-course tasting menu using the knowledge and techniques we have gained so far in Art Culinaire.
Menu:
Prix Fix Menu:
-Bison Wellington, Portabella Duxelle, Red Wine Demi
-Serrano Wrapped Scallop, Grapefruit-Sage Vinaigrette, Vanilla, Spinach
-Lobster Risotto, Porcini, Fennel, Truffle
-Ginger-Basil Sorbet
-Crispy Skin Grouper, Brussels Sprouts, Yukon Gold Puree, Pancetta, Saffron Vin
-Lamb Two Ways; Roasted Rack with Lamb Leg Ragout, Artichoke, Chantrelles, Green Peppercorn Demi
-Foie Gras, Brioche Donut, Blackberry-Quince Compote
Vegetarian Menu:
-Chilled Avocado Soup, Plantain Crisps, Brunoise Veg
-Ginger-Glazed Salsify and Baby Carrots, Fried Tofu, Hoisin, Scallion
-Savoy Cabbage Rolls, Yukon Gold and Apple Stuffing, Piquillo Coulis
-Ginger-Basil Sorbet
-Tempura Portabella Fingers, Roasted Zucchini, Miso Vinaigrette
-Coconut Tofu Stir Fry, Quick Pickled Cucumber, Kaffir Lime, Kecap Manis
Summary: The course of these past two weeks started off daunting and seemed very difficult, but was extremely fun and I can say we all enjoyed ourselves very much. We first sat down as a group and took out quite some time to strategically develop two different menus that, on their own, would work together as one cohesive menu, each course playing off the one prior and vice versa. After menu development, a very large and detailed prep list was written out and we began prep. My main focus was on executing the Lobster Risotto and Crispy Skin Grouper. As I work with fresh seafood daily at my current job, I felt very comfortable with completing these two dishes. The bell of the ball had to be the lobster risotto as we were treated with two live lobsters to which I broke down and used the carcasses, along with aromatics and porcini mushrooms, to make an extremely flavorful stock to cook the risotto in. I also made the grouper and, although I had not worked with grouper, I felt I served it correctly and perfectly cooked. All in all, I thought we all came together and produced a bevy of incredible dishes on their own, but failed to come together as cohesive menus.
Personal Observations: I will be working towards getting more comfortable with desserts and vegetarian dishes from now on. Working on weak points is very important.
Chef's Comments: Lobster risotto had great flavor, but was too rich and needed a hit of acidity to balance. Grouper was cooked perfectly, skin was crispy, but the plating left the dish difficult to eat as the potato puree mushed everything together.
Menu:
Prix Fix Menu:
-Bison Wellington, Portabella Duxelle, Red Wine Demi
-Serrano Wrapped Scallop, Grapefruit-Sage Vinaigrette, Vanilla, Spinach
-Lobster Risotto, Porcini, Fennel, Truffle
-Ginger-Basil Sorbet
-Crispy Skin Grouper, Brussels Sprouts, Yukon Gold Puree, Pancetta, Saffron Vin
-Lamb Two Ways; Roasted Rack with Lamb Leg Ragout, Artichoke, Chantrelles, Green Peppercorn Demi
-Foie Gras, Brioche Donut, Blackberry-Quince Compote
Vegetarian Menu:
-Chilled Avocado Soup, Plantain Crisps, Brunoise Veg
-Ginger-Glazed Salsify and Baby Carrots, Fried Tofu, Hoisin, Scallion
-Savoy Cabbage Rolls, Yukon Gold and Apple Stuffing, Piquillo Coulis
-Ginger-Basil Sorbet
-Tempura Portabella Fingers, Roasted Zucchini, Miso Vinaigrette
-Coconut Tofu Stir Fry, Quick Pickled Cucumber, Kaffir Lime, Kecap Manis
Summary: The course of these past two weeks started off daunting and seemed very difficult, but was extremely fun and I can say we all enjoyed ourselves very much. We first sat down as a group and took out quite some time to strategically develop two different menus that, on their own, would work together as one cohesive menu, each course playing off the one prior and vice versa. After menu development, a very large and detailed prep list was written out and we began prep. My main focus was on executing the Lobster Risotto and Crispy Skin Grouper. As I work with fresh seafood daily at my current job, I felt very comfortable with completing these two dishes. The bell of the ball had to be the lobster risotto as we were treated with two live lobsters to which I broke down and used the carcasses, along with aromatics and porcini mushrooms, to make an extremely flavorful stock to cook the risotto in. I also made the grouper and, although I had not worked with grouper, I felt I served it correctly and perfectly cooked. All in all, I thought we all came together and produced a bevy of incredible dishes on their own, but failed to come together as cohesive menus.
Personal Observations: I will be working towards getting more comfortable with desserts and vegetarian dishes from now on. Working on weak points is very important.
Chef's Comments: Lobster risotto had great flavor, but was too rich and needed a hit of acidity to balance. Grouper was cooked perfectly, skin was crispy, but the plating left the dish difficult to eat as the potato puree mushed everything together.