Last year a friend of my mom's decided that it was time for my sister to learn some domestic stuff. The ultimate goal was to get her to clean toilets, but in the process my sister Mara was supposed to also help cooks meals. Mara took to the cooking part, the toilet part not so much. Fast forward a year and my mom is doing her weekly "what do you want to eat" question time. Pretty much my mom asks everyone what they want to eat and when no one answers she finds someone who she creates an obligation to come up with meals. This week it was my turn. "Well it's your last week at home, so what do you want?" Last week it was my turn too; at least I know the job will be shifted once I leave. Anyway Mara said get salmon because I have TONS of recipes for salmon as she trots down the stairs all ready to print one out for us to see.
The recipe was a cedar plank salmon with lime juice and Worcestershire sauce and all kinds of other stuff. My mom and I were quite skeptical asking her where she was planning on finding cedar planks. "Well you just leave that out. Haven't you ever experimented before?" It might have been the tone in which she said it, or maybe the very adult mature stance she took; but my mom and I just died laughing. If you don't have cedar planks, just leave that out.
In some ways Mara is very right. I get rather frustrated with people who buy every single ingredient in a recipe and drive themselves crazy spending way more money that should be spent on one meal just because the recipe calls for it, or not trying something new because they lack one ingredient. If a recipe calls for squeezing lemons over fish and limes are on sale that week, then try the limes. Who knows you might find something you really like in the process.
In the beginning of the summer Mrs. Obama's White House garden was causing quite a bit of buzz. I figured a garden was a garden, but after reading an article about this garden I am intrigued and would like to visit. Some of the seedlings used for the Obama garden were actually from Monticello. It turns out Thomas Jefferson was a big gardener. According to what I read he actually told the people who traveled that they should bring seeds back with them.
The Obama garden was a success. Supposedly the produce was used for dinners at the White House and some was even sent to local soup kitchens. My sister made dinner(thankfully not the cedar plankless salmon) tonight. I must say it was delicious. I'm not a big proponent of a woman's place being in a kitchen and cleaning a house, but I do think it's important that everyone learns how to cook. Who knows maybe one day my sister will have to cook a lot; I doubt she'll be following my steps into a kitchen, in fact I can assure you that I would persuade her and her perfectly gelled hair against such a course of career.
I hope you had a good first day of the week and last day of August and that it was possibly spiced up with a little bit of cedar planks.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
There's no crying in the kitchen...
well except when onions are involved. Today was just one of those days for me, you know the kind of day where if someone blinks at you wrong you might just burst into tears or punch them in the nose; I never really know which one will happen when I'm going through one of those days.
To be fair I should start at the beginning of my day, when I woke up. I looked at myself in the mirror and thought something looked funny (or funnier) than usual. Upon closer examination I noticed that my right eye was swollen(I think it was my right eye, but I'm really bad with lefts and rights and they say that whole thing is flipped in a mirror which really still baffles the whole which side process.), so I went and told my mom. She told me to put cold compresses on it and left for church with my sister. I knew I had to go to work, so I started getting myself ready, putting my mascara and eyeliner on only half of my face, because it just seemed like the right thing to do when the other eye was aggravated(two face eat your heart out).
My swelling went down and Visine fixed the fact that my eye looked blood shot. My mom decided before she left that it was allergies, which didn't really explain the splitting headache behind my eye, but it was time for work so that was the end of thinking about that.
Of course days that start with swollen eyes hardly ever continue at a good pace. Work just felt fuzzy to me. I began to think that the consequences of taking the allergy pill might have been worth the risk. At the end of the night I was feeling very ready to go home and I saw that the banquet chef had a pile of onions on his table. I knew I wasn't done till he was so I asked him what he wanted done with the onions and started dicing them. Within seconds tears were streaming down my face. Crying normally makes me feel better; it sends all of the feelings right out of your head. Crying because of onions never makes me feel better, in fact it's rather unsatisfactory.
As I was crying(or pretend crying, because onion crying can't be counted as real crying...it's more like natural eye washing) I began wondering why onions make you cry. I've heard all of the explanations about the chemicals in an onion, blah blah blah, but really does anyone other than me think it's silly that cutting an onion sends tears streaming down your face?
I don't really know of anyone who enjoys onion tears. Everyone I have ever met has a new way to keep from crying when cutting onions, lighting a candle or washing the onion. I think the silliest one I ever heard was cut it under cold running water. That one didn't sound very safe to me, but to each his own I guess. I think the best method to keep from crying when cutting an onion is to just avoid onions. Of course that isn't an option when you work in the banquet side of a kitchen and most things involve the need for onions. You could be like the one line cook who would cry and cry and wash her hands and then her face and then smoke and then cry some more till five years later the onions were cut or someone else just decided to cut the onions themselves because it was taking so long, but no one really liked her so that probably isn't the best of options.
I have to cut onions. Onions make me cry. I am normally against crying at work, but like I said I excuse onion tears because they're fake. I guess life is kind of like(no, Shrek, not an onion)the awful day I just had. You feel deformed, a vegetable(or person) you hate but have to deal with makes you cry, and then you go home and take an pill(allergy pill or for days without swollen eyes advil), hoping the next day is a little bit better. We all have our onions. I guess it's just a matter of turning them into hotdog toppings before they really get to you.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
To be fair I should start at the beginning of my day, when I woke up. I looked at myself in the mirror and thought something looked funny (or funnier) than usual. Upon closer examination I noticed that my right eye was swollen(I think it was my right eye, but I'm really bad with lefts and rights and they say that whole thing is flipped in a mirror which really still baffles the whole which side process.), so I went and told my mom. She told me to put cold compresses on it and left for church with my sister. I knew I had to go to work, so I started getting myself ready, putting my mascara and eyeliner on only half of my face, because it just seemed like the right thing to do when the other eye was aggravated(two face eat your heart out).
My swelling went down and Visine fixed the fact that my eye looked blood shot. My mom decided before she left that it was allergies, which didn't really explain the splitting headache behind my eye, but it was time for work so that was the end of thinking about that.
Of course days that start with swollen eyes hardly ever continue at a good pace. Work just felt fuzzy to me. I began to think that the consequences of taking the allergy pill might have been worth the risk. At the end of the night I was feeling very ready to go home and I saw that the banquet chef had a pile of onions on his table. I knew I wasn't done till he was so I asked him what he wanted done with the onions and started dicing them. Within seconds tears were streaming down my face. Crying normally makes me feel better; it sends all of the feelings right out of your head. Crying because of onions never makes me feel better, in fact it's rather unsatisfactory.
As I was crying(or pretend crying, because onion crying can't be counted as real crying...it's more like natural eye washing) I began wondering why onions make you cry. I've heard all of the explanations about the chemicals in an onion, blah blah blah, but really does anyone other than me think it's silly that cutting an onion sends tears streaming down your face?
I don't really know of anyone who enjoys onion tears. Everyone I have ever met has a new way to keep from crying when cutting onions, lighting a candle or washing the onion. I think the silliest one I ever heard was cut it under cold running water. That one didn't sound very safe to me, but to each his own I guess. I think the best method to keep from crying when cutting an onion is to just avoid onions. Of course that isn't an option when you work in the banquet side of a kitchen and most things involve the need for onions. You could be like the one line cook who would cry and cry and wash her hands and then her face and then smoke and then cry some more till five years later the onions were cut or someone else just decided to cut the onions themselves because it was taking so long, but no one really liked her so that probably isn't the best of options.
I have to cut onions. Onions make me cry. I am normally against crying at work, but like I said I excuse onion tears because they're fake. I guess life is kind of like(no, Shrek, not an onion)the awful day I just had. You feel deformed, a vegetable(or person) you hate but have to deal with makes you cry, and then you go home and take an pill(allergy pill or for days without swollen eyes advil), hoping the next day is a little bit better. We all have our onions. I guess it's just a matter of turning them into hotdog toppings before they really get to you.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Friday, August 28, 2009
Hell's Kitchen Debate
Matt and I have decided that it was about time for a joint blog. Matt, being a HUGE Hell's Kitchen fan, thought it might be interesting to pit my views of a real kitchen atmosphere against his knowledge of the TV world of Hell's kitchen. Hopefully we'll both come out of this alive and maybe we'll even learn something about the drama of television. Here we go!!!
Matt: I love Gordon Ramsey. He's awesome; he yells and throws things and when people screw up it's so entertaining. but honestly all these "cooks" can hardly cook there lots of undercooked meat and Van on the blue team actually left the plastic on the fish on more than one occasion last week.....HE SEASONED THE PLASTIC!!!
Emily: I can't say someone screwing up is ever entertaining in a kitchen unless it's someone you don't like and even then it means more work for you, so kind of a lose lose. I have thankfully never had a chef who screamed and threw things, but there are many who do. There would have definitely been 3 or 4 people who would have said something if someone left plastic on fish; the prep time in a kitchen is a lot longer than on TV I think.
Matt: But I love when gordon gets mad about that because they even take off the plastic at mcdonald's I mean come on what is that? And having meat not cook in the center and serving raw shrimp come on these people really expect to be an executive chef.
Emily: Wow I think I would be very frustrated watching them; no wonder Gordon yells so much. If line cook made that mistake they would not only be reamed out for not paying attention, but they'd also be given a hard time about it for the rest of their life at that kitchen. What I want to know is are these people exec chefs already like Top Chef has become or are these all amateurs.
Matt: YOUVE NEVER WATCHED HELLS KITCHEN?!?!?!?!
Emily: (I probably should have done some research before being pitted against a huge fan) Everyone in Hell's Kitchen has some sort of culinary background and for the record I'm really bad at following any show unless it's Saturday and I have nothing to do and there's a 9 hour marathon on Bravo.
Matt: When Gordon throws plates into the trash and screams at them and calls them fat cows. So much drama!......love it
Emily: I really have said on more than one occasion that if cameras followed around a kitchen staff(especially a kitchen that has intern housing) it would be the biggest drama filled reality TV show anyone has ever seen. Most of this would be because of the outside drama many cooks bring into work, not because of drama of work. If a bunch of line cooks screwed up as much as they do on Hell's Kitchen I would hope the exec chef would fire them all and look for more experienced cooks who can handle the pressures of service.
Matt: If they screw up really bad he shuts down the kitchen completely whether people are served or not.
Emily: This would definitely never happen. But then again in a real kitchen you're working with the same menu every night most of the time. It's a routine that you can get used to. Someone who can't get used to a routine of a kitchen belongs in another industry.
Obviously TV adds drama that probably doesn't exist in real life. There is plenty of drama in a kitchen, but a real kitchen doesn't have the time constraints or stress of being on national TV for everyone to see every mistake you make. I'm sure Ramsey's screaming is the least of their embarrassment. I normally catch the first episode of Hell's Kitchen and I love watching the "chefs" come in cocky and sure of themselves. Working a kitchen has a good way of knocking you down a few notches, well for some people at least. Thankfully when most of us cook at home and burn something we are our hardest critics and we don't have a Gordon Ramsey screaming down our necks.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily & Matt
Matt: I love Gordon Ramsey. He's awesome; he yells and throws things and when people screw up it's so entertaining. but honestly all these "cooks" can hardly cook there lots of undercooked meat and Van on the blue team actually left the plastic on the fish on more than one occasion last week.....HE SEASONED THE PLASTIC!!!
Emily: I can't say someone screwing up is ever entertaining in a kitchen unless it's someone you don't like and even then it means more work for you, so kind of a lose lose. I have thankfully never had a chef who screamed and threw things, but there are many who do. There would have definitely been 3 or 4 people who would have said something if someone left plastic on fish; the prep time in a kitchen is a lot longer than on TV I think.
Matt: But I love when gordon gets mad about that because they even take off the plastic at mcdonald's I mean come on what is that? And having meat not cook in the center and serving raw shrimp come on these people really expect to be an executive chef.
Emily: Wow I think I would be very frustrated watching them; no wonder Gordon yells so much. If line cook made that mistake they would not only be reamed out for not paying attention, but they'd also be given a hard time about it for the rest of their life at that kitchen. What I want to know is are these people exec chefs already like Top Chef has become or are these all amateurs.
Matt: YOUVE NEVER WATCHED HELLS KITCHEN?!?!?!?!
Emily: (I probably should have done some research before being pitted against a huge fan) Everyone in Hell's Kitchen has some sort of culinary background and for the record I'm really bad at following any show unless it's Saturday and I have nothing to do and there's a 9 hour marathon on Bravo.
Matt: When Gordon throws plates into the trash and screams at them and calls them fat cows. So much drama!......love it
Emily: I really have said on more than one occasion that if cameras followed around a kitchen staff(especially a kitchen that has intern housing) it would be the biggest drama filled reality TV show anyone has ever seen. Most of this would be because of the outside drama many cooks bring into work, not because of drama of work. If a bunch of line cooks screwed up as much as they do on Hell's Kitchen I would hope the exec chef would fire them all and look for more experienced cooks who can handle the pressures of service.
Matt: If they screw up really bad he shuts down the kitchen completely whether people are served or not.
Emily: This would definitely never happen. But then again in a real kitchen you're working with the same menu every night most of the time. It's a routine that you can get used to. Someone who can't get used to a routine of a kitchen belongs in another industry.
Obviously TV adds drama that probably doesn't exist in real life. There is plenty of drama in a kitchen, but a real kitchen doesn't have the time constraints or stress of being on national TV for everyone to see every mistake you make. I'm sure Ramsey's screaming is the least of their embarrassment. I normally catch the first episode of Hell's Kitchen and I love watching the "chefs" come in cocky and sure of themselves. Working a kitchen has a good way of knocking you down a few notches, well for some people at least. Thankfully when most of us cook at home and burn something we are our hardest critics and we don't have a Gordon Ramsey screaming down our necks.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily & Matt
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Can I hear a yum
These beauties are just arriving from my mom's garden and I could not help but show them with you. We've made salsa, bruschetta, and just sliced tomato salad. I am going to be so sad when the summer produce is no longer on my porch steps.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
An executive chef sexist?
Today I was snooping around the Washington Post's website when I found a chat about Mike Isabella on Top Chef and his comment about how he didn't think a woman should be able to shuck clams as fast as he could. People were in an uproar and wondering if the Post's food critic would actually go to a restaurant where the chef was making sexist comments on cable TV.
The whole debate made me laugh. While the kitchen climate has become slightly more accepting of females, it is still one of those industries where a woman really needs to hold her own if she wants even the least bit of respect(And by respect I mean being treated like the guys. If you want to be treated like a lady, maybe a secretary job is more appropriate for you.)
A woman from Baltimore, MD said in this Washington Post debate that as a woman she could not justify going to an establishment that supports a sexist chef. My advice to her, don't eat out. Please don't misunderstand me I have worked in many kitchens with executive chefs, sous chefs, and line cooks that have treated me with the utmost respect. In Maine, Chef Lou guarded me and the pastry chef like we were his own daughters. Unfortunately many women have made it harder for those of us who really want to work in the kitchen. I'm talking about the women who call for help every time they can't do something instead of climbing on shelves(and possibly killing yourself in the process) to try to reach a jar of pickles. The women who whine and complain and constantly share their private lives to anyone within hearing distance also ruins a woman's reputation in a kitchen. "Typical woman always talking. We don't care." That comment may sound sexist to you, but really if you're going to be a stereotypical female than please work in the job of a stereotypical female. It would save everyone a lot of aggravation.
I feel like I just totally justified all of the sexism in a kitchen, so let me step back and say as a female there are times working in a kitchen can be very lonely. At times there are one or two other women in the kitchen, so to a certain extent you'll band together with the other women, but you also have to learn to fit in with the men. I really will have to work when I go back to school in two weeks at being a girl again. I try copious amounts of pink, but sometimes that doesn't even work. I'm sure I will need plenty of chocolate to get my sweetness level up high enough to be in contact with non kitchen people, and I will try my hardest to refrain from witty remarks about bodily functions and anatomical objects.
There really are some chefs who are just jerks out there. Unfortunately they are normally the most brilliant of chefs. Brilliant and crazy normally go hand in hand. I guess you just really have to ask yourself, why am I going out to eat? If it's for amazing food that could possibly change your life, then stop worrying whether the chef is sexist or rude to his staff. And one other thing, why in the world were these people in an uproar about this comment made by Isabella and not Michael Chiarello asking other executive chefs to call him chef just to feed his already swollen ego. You'll never take the ego out of the kitchen or probably even a little bit of sexism.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
The whole debate made me laugh. While the kitchen climate has become slightly more accepting of females, it is still one of those industries where a woman really needs to hold her own if she wants even the least bit of respect(And by respect I mean being treated like the guys. If you want to be treated like a lady, maybe a secretary job is more appropriate for you.)
A woman from Baltimore, MD said in this Washington Post debate that as a woman she could not justify going to an establishment that supports a sexist chef. My advice to her, don't eat out. Please don't misunderstand me I have worked in many kitchens with executive chefs, sous chefs, and line cooks that have treated me with the utmost respect. In Maine, Chef Lou guarded me and the pastry chef like we were his own daughters. Unfortunately many women have made it harder for those of us who really want to work in the kitchen. I'm talking about the women who call for help every time they can't do something instead of climbing on shelves(and possibly killing yourself in the process) to try to reach a jar of pickles. The women who whine and complain and constantly share their private lives to anyone within hearing distance also ruins a woman's reputation in a kitchen. "Typical woman always talking. We don't care." That comment may sound sexist to you, but really if you're going to be a stereotypical female than please work in the job of a stereotypical female. It would save everyone a lot of aggravation.
I feel like I just totally justified all of the sexism in a kitchen, so let me step back and say as a female there are times working in a kitchen can be very lonely. At times there are one or two other women in the kitchen, so to a certain extent you'll band together with the other women, but you also have to learn to fit in with the men. I really will have to work when I go back to school in two weeks at being a girl again. I try copious amounts of pink, but sometimes that doesn't even work. I'm sure I will need plenty of chocolate to get my sweetness level up high enough to be in contact with non kitchen people, and I will try my hardest to refrain from witty remarks about bodily functions and anatomical objects.
There really are some chefs who are just jerks out there. Unfortunately they are normally the most brilliant of chefs. Brilliant and crazy normally go hand in hand. I guess you just really have to ask yourself, why am I going out to eat? If it's for amazing food that could possibly change your life, then stop worrying whether the chef is sexist or rude to his staff. And one other thing, why in the world were these people in an uproar about this comment made by Isabella and not Michael Chiarello asking other executive chefs to call him chef just to feed his already swollen ego. You'll never take the ego out of the kitchen or probably even a little bit of sexism.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Maybe you should have paid for some gun aiming classes
I really could not miss sharing this story with you. A man in Washington had a possum problem; I guess the possum was eating his chickens(if you raise chickens it's either for eggs or for chicken meat, but either way I don't think you'd want a possum eating them). All I can say is that must have been one large possum, but anyway he heard a noise from the chickens and decided that it was time for the possum to meet its maker. I kind of picture this 61 year old man like a little kid playing cowboys and indians and he just got a brand new gun to play with. He grabs his .22 caliber pistol and walks out, he sees the possum, and *drum roll please* shoots his leg. Somehow he fired the gun before he was supposed to and it ended up shooting his thigh.
One of my roommates is from Washington state and she is much more of a lover than a fighter. I don't know if you could classify most people in Washington state to be like her, but I am guessing this man might have been more of a lover than a fighter(which would explain his lack of gun prowess). If I were him I wouldn't have told the paper about the incident. I would have lied, so they didn't take my gun away from endangerment of self. My own gunning(totally not a word) abilities are limited to shooting tin cans when I was little with my dad's guns, but I do know that shooting yourself is kind of embarrassing.
Speaking of roommates I am getting ready to move back to school and getting my recipes ready so I can eat good food fast when I'm tired and overworked from school. It really isn't that hard to come up with meals, but once I'm in the thick of it I can be like the man trying to shoot the possum. I have the best of intentions and I end up shooting myself in the leg by skipping a meal and eating a ton of snacks before bed. It normally ends in tears and frustration.
This year I'm trying to be proactive about this problem by thinking of meals and how to avoid this frustration now. Maybe I'll actually get through the year without shooting myself in the leg, then again maybe not.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
One of my roommates is from Washington state and she is much more of a lover than a fighter. I don't know if you could classify most people in Washington state to be like her, but I am guessing this man might have been more of a lover than a fighter(which would explain his lack of gun prowess). If I were him I wouldn't have told the paper about the incident. I would have lied, so they didn't take my gun away from endangerment of self. My own gunning(totally not a word) abilities are limited to shooting tin cans when I was little with my dad's guns, but I do know that shooting yourself is kind of embarrassing.
Speaking of roommates I am getting ready to move back to school and getting my recipes ready so I can eat good food fast when I'm tired and overworked from school. It really isn't that hard to come up with meals, but once I'm in the thick of it I can be like the man trying to shoot the possum. I have the best of intentions and I end up shooting myself in the leg by skipping a meal and eating a ton of snacks before bed. It normally ends in tears and frustration.
This year I'm trying to be proactive about this problem by thinking of meals and how to avoid this frustration now. Maybe I'll actually get through the year without shooting myself in the leg, then again maybe not.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Can I have the pizza with the most bread?
I can't make this stuff up. Tonight I was sitting at Pizza Hut with a few friends and some of their friends. I was sitting across from this blond girl that appeared to be terribly stupid. I say she appeared to be terribly stupid because while we were looking through the menu she saw the thing in the menu about a 15% gratuity added to tables of 8 or more. She goes, "wow that is so nice of them to give us a discount." Like I said I can't make this stuff up.
When we were ordering pizza this girl goes "Well what kind of pizza is that? I don't like the thick kind that's too greasy." There are very few people that actually like thin crust pizza. The very stupid people, like this girl, and the health conscious people who are into suffering for their heart's sake.
As you know I am a fan of bread. I can recall more than one instance that, when I was little and heard that people in prison got bread and water, I thought well that's not so bad; I would happily live off of bread and water. Give me a baguette and I will be one happy girl. When it comes to pizza Sicilian pizza has enough dough for my tastes. I don't mind slightly less dough, but really I think the bread is the best part; so I'd rather not eat my pizza on a cracker thin crust.
I suppose there are some people who are popular and pretty who have convinced themselves that greasy pan pizza does not taste that good, because it's messy or fattening. I can't say I have ever been in that crowd. I would rather have a red candy apple face than play it clean and drink a mocha latte with the cool crowd. If the food tastes good it's worth getting messy for. Now I understand that there are times when health really should come first, but enjoying a little treat of greasy pizza probably won't kill you.
As I was eating the pizza tonight I couldn't help but think of all of the fresh tomatoes sitting on our counter at home. One of my favorite treats made with fresh tomatoes is a homemade bruschetta. The Italian word literally means to roast over coals. I am not sure how that translates into the bruschetta I know and love. To make my bruschetta I buy a French baguette or make one if I have some extra time. I cut it in half the long way and put it under the broiler in the oven. If your grill is already going just place it on the grill for a few minutes. The goal is to slightly toast the bread while still leaving the middle soft.
Before you mess with the bread get the tomatoes ready. Cut the tomatoes into pieces on the smaller side(probably a medium to small dice). Mince some fresh garlic(a good brushetta leaves your breath horrid all day no matter how much you brush your teeth, but it is so worth it). Julienne, or cut smallish some basil. All of these things, minus the garlic, are growing happily in my mom's garden right now, so make sure if you buy them at the store that they look fresh and are even possibly local. You can add some peppers or onions or pretty much whatever else you want or like to this mixture. I like keeping it simple, but bruschetta is sort of like pizza; you really can't go wrong if it tastes good. Add some olive oil, salt, and pepper to the tomatoes, garlic, and basil. You can also add some balsamic vinegar, but I'm not a big fan of balsamic so I normally leave that flavor out.
Add some olive oil to the slightly toasted bread and pour/scoop the tomato mixture onto the bread. You can top it with a little bit of fresh Parmesan or mozzarella. I like to stick the bruschetta back under the broiler once everything is on it, but right now with the tomatoes and all of the ingredients at their freshest, you could just eat it with the tomato mixture cool and fresh. Try not to eat the whole thing and remember to buy a nice thick loaf French because the bread is such an important part.
If you are fond of thin crusted pizza, I apologize for making your choices sound foolish. It is not that I am completely against thin crust pizza; it is just that given the choice I would go for the bread every time. I'm a dough hoe what can I say.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
When we were ordering pizza this girl goes "Well what kind of pizza is that? I don't like the thick kind that's too greasy." There are very few people that actually like thin crust pizza. The very stupid people, like this girl, and the health conscious people who are into suffering for their heart's sake.
As you know I am a fan of bread. I can recall more than one instance that, when I was little and heard that people in prison got bread and water, I thought well that's not so bad; I would happily live off of bread and water. Give me a baguette and I will be one happy girl. When it comes to pizza Sicilian pizza has enough dough for my tastes. I don't mind slightly less dough, but really I think the bread is the best part; so I'd rather not eat my pizza on a cracker thin crust.
I suppose there are some people who are popular and pretty who have convinced themselves that greasy pan pizza does not taste that good, because it's messy or fattening. I can't say I have ever been in that crowd. I would rather have a red candy apple face than play it clean and drink a mocha latte with the cool crowd. If the food tastes good it's worth getting messy for. Now I understand that there are times when health really should come first, but enjoying a little treat of greasy pizza probably won't kill you.
As I was eating the pizza tonight I couldn't help but think of all of the fresh tomatoes sitting on our counter at home. One of my favorite treats made with fresh tomatoes is a homemade bruschetta. The Italian word literally means to roast over coals. I am not sure how that translates into the bruschetta I know and love. To make my bruschetta I buy a French baguette or make one if I have some extra time. I cut it in half the long way and put it under the broiler in the oven. If your grill is already going just place it on the grill for a few minutes. The goal is to slightly toast the bread while still leaving the middle soft.
Before you mess with the bread get the tomatoes ready. Cut the tomatoes into pieces on the smaller side(probably a medium to small dice). Mince some fresh garlic(a good brushetta leaves your breath horrid all day no matter how much you brush your teeth, but it is so worth it). Julienne, or cut smallish some basil. All of these things, minus the garlic, are growing happily in my mom's garden right now, so make sure if you buy them at the store that they look fresh and are even possibly local. You can add some peppers or onions or pretty much whatever else you want or like to this mixture. I like keeping it simple, but bruschetta is sort of like pizza; you really can't go wrong if it tastes good. Add some olive oil, salt, and pepper to the tomatoes, garlic, and basil. You can also add some balsamic vinegar, but I'm not a big fan of balsamic so I normally leave that flavor out.
Add some olive oil to the slightly toasted bread and pour/scoop the tomato mixture onto the bread. You can top it with a little bit of fresh Parmesan or mozzarella. I like to stick the bruschetta back under the broiler once everything is on it, but right now with the tomatoes and all of the ingredients at their freshest, you could just eat it with the tomato mixture cool and fresh. Try not to eat the whole thing and remember to buy a nice thick loaf French because the bread is such an important part.
If you are fond of thin crusted pizza, I apologize for making your choices sound foolish. It is not that I am completely against thin crust pizza; it is just that given the choice I would go for the bread every time. I'm a dough hoe what can I say.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Monday, August 24, 2009
Bloggers are the new food critics and other things I learn from reading Business Week
Ok so maybe I lied I really didn't learn anything else from Business Week, but they did have a whole article about how bloggers really are changing the construct of the food criticdom(a word I totally just made up, so please don't try to look it up and call me out on it). I kind of hope that bloggers will change some things.
When I worked in Maine a food critic came in, announced himself as a critic and the whole kitchen was in an uproar. The salad he got was 2x bigger than our normal salads and had the perfect amount of toppings. For dessert we had to select the perfect piece of pie. I asked myself and the other cold line cook "Shouldn't be treating every customer as if they are a food critic? They are paying for this food too." The first change I hope bloggers make is to be anonymous enough that they can honestly critique the food. Every plate should go out worthy of a food critic; the restaurants that know and follow this have a loyal customer base.
Blogging is also has a more personal feel to it. If something tastes like garbage I will tell you GARBAGE!!! A food critic might use some flowery words to describe the food and how awful it is, leaving the general public wondering if the charred taste of bacon was a good thing or a bad thing. There is also more of an opinion base. Sometimes my mom and I agree with my Titi Stella when she likes a movie; most of the time we don't. How do you know if that food critic is your Titi Stella with not very similar tastes to you? A wide base of bloggers will leave you with more opinions to choose from, if they all say garbage!!! then I think you know that the place is not worth your time.
I can bet that all of the bloggers would be buzzing if there was a town where it the weather was food falling from the sky. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs has been adapted from the children's book written by Judi Barrett and illustrated by Ron Barrett into a 3D movie. I know it sounds silly, but how could you not want to go see a movie about food falling from the sky. I've seen the commercial for it and it looks fabulous. I wonder if food criticdom can become a part of movie criticdome; I think anything's possible with a blog.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
When I worked in Maine a food critic came in, announced himself as a critic and the whole kitchen was in an uproar. The salad he got was 2x bigger than our normal salads and had the perfect amount of toppings. For dessert we had to select the perfect piece of pie. I asked myself and the other cold line cook "Shouldn't be treating every customer as if they are a food critic? They are paying for this food too." The first change I hope bloggers make is to be anonymous enough that they can honestly critique the food. Every plate should go out worthy of a food critic; the restaurants that know and follow this have a loyal customer base.
Blogging is also has a more personal feel to it. If something tastes like garbage I will tell you GARBAGE!!! A food critic might use some flowery words to describe the food and how awful it is, leaving the general public wondering if the charred taste of bacon was a good thing or a bad thing. There is also more of an opinion base. Sometimes my mom and I agree with my Titi Stella when she likes a movie; most of the time we don't. How do you know if that food critic is your Titi Stella with not very similar tastes to you? A wide base of bloggers will leave you with more opinions to choose from, if they all say garbage!!! then I think you know that the place is not worth your time.
I can bet that all of the bloggers would be buzzing if there was a town where it the weather was food falling from the sky. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs has been adapted from the children's book written by Judi Barrett and illustrated by Ron Barrett into a 3D movie. I know it sounds silly, but how could you not want to go see a movie about food falling from the sky. I've seen the commercial for it and it looks fabulous. I wonder if food criticdom can become a part of movie criticdome; I think anything's possible with a blog.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Sunday, August 23, 2009
The ants come marching one by one hurrah hurrah...
This morning I woke up to an "eeeew" in the kitchen. That's normally not a good sign. Ever since we got a brand of puppy chow that had a "breathable" bag; somehow the breathable weave attracted a steady stream of sugar ants(I think they call them sugar ants, because they're the pretty tiny ants). We dealt with that problem, but for some reason the ants just weren't going away. Last night my mom's family came over, and we had chocolate zucchini cupcakes left over. My mom wrapped them and put them on the counter; well when she woke up this morning the cupcakes were COVERED in sugar ants. I guess the few ants that were scurrying around had smelled the food and decided it was time to have an ant party. Unfortunately for them they went out with the cupcakes in the trash, which I still find slightly unfair because they get to eat the cupcakes and I doubt their life is very long anyway; if you're going to go out, you might as well go out eating dessert.
I tried to do a little research to find out about these ants and pretty much it seems like all anyone cares about is how to get rid of them. Bugs like good food just as much as I do. My great grandfather used to pick fruit off of the ground and start cutting away the buggy parts. "If the bugs don't like it, it's probably not good." I don't know how many times he told us that. The tiny bit of apple he saved didn't really seem worth all of the work, but it sure did taste good(if you could get past the bug part).
After our bug dilemma this morning, I got dressed to go out with my family and I actually put my dress on inside out and wore it that way all morning long. I think it was just one of those days. The ants ate our dessert and I proved that I can't dress myself. A day like that deserves a little treat at the end of it, so me and my mom went out to buy Snicker's ice cream.
If I were to ever write an ode to a premade ice cream bar, the first bar I would write one for would be Snicker's ice cream bars. Please tell me that you've had one, because they truly are heaven in bar form. Peanuts, caramel, peanut butter ice cream all wrapped in a chocolate shell; it really is a beautiful thing.
In cake news the mother of the bride wants to try other vanilla cakes. The bride-to-be and the groom-to-be loved the cake, so I'm going to have to try to see if I can find another recipe that has a little less crumb(a pound cake has almost no crumb, while a typical white cake has a lot of crumb), but that the groom-to-be and bride-to-be like as much as the moist vanilla cake I made for them at the tasting. It is quite a challenge, but I think I'm up for it. I will keep you posted with recipes and the end result. Hopefully my mom's spraying of the floor and corner of the kitchen with bug spray got rid of all of the ants so we won't have to worry about sharing the cake.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
I tried to do a little research to find out about these ants and pretty much it seems like all anyone cares about is how to get rid of them. Bugs like good food just as much as I do. My great grandfather used to pick fruit off of the ground and start cutting away the buggy parts. "If the bugs don't like it, it's probably not good." I don't know how many times he told us that. The tiny bit of apple he saved didn't really seem worth all of the work, but it sure did taste good(if you could get past the bug part).
After our bug dilemma this morning, I got dressed to go out with my family and I actually put my dress on inside out and wore it that way all morning long. I think it was just one of those days. The ants ate our dessert and I proved that I can't dress myself. A day like that deserves a little treat at the end of it, so me and my mom went out to buy Snicker's ice cream.
If I were to ever write an ode to a premade ice cream bar, the first bar I would write one for would be Snicker's ice cream bars. Please tell me that you've had one, because they truly are heaven in bar form. Peanuts, caramel, peanut butter ice cream all wrapped in a chocolate shell; it really is a beautiful thing.
In cake news the mother of the bride wants to try other vanilla cakes. The bride-to-be and the groom-to-be loved the cake, so I'm going to have to try to see if I can find another recipe that has a little less crumb(a pound cake has almost no crumb, while a typical white cake has a lot of crumb), but that the groom-to-be and bride-to-be like as much as the moist vanilla cake I made for them at the tasting. It is quite a challenge, but I think I'm up for it. I will keep you posted with recipes and the end result. Hopefully my mom's spraying of the floor and corner of the kitchen with bug spray got rid of all of the ants so we won't have to worry about sharing the cake.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Friday, August 21, 2009
To pickle or not to pickle that is the question
In the many months I've worked with Rob I have learned as well as tasted many new things. Tonight Rob was prepping his special and I smelled the smell that I will always remind me of Rob, vinegar. I'm not sure he'd appreciate that vinegar is the smell that I associate with him, but Rob really does like to pickle things and his pickling procedures normally have an eye-tearing vinegar smell to them. My first experience with Rob's fondness of pickling was when he asked me to make the pickled coleslaw that went with the menu. I couldn't smell anything not resembling vinegar for a good couple of hours. In all fairness to Rob and his recipes the pickled foods do tend to, as Rob says to me all of the time, "taste better than they smell." The pickled slaw is fabulous and the pickled thing he was making today I'm sure tasted good with the Tuna special; I've never eaten something bad that Rob has made.
Observing Rob and his pickling reminded me of the many differences between pastry people and savory people. In order to be a chef one must be slightly insane, a workaholic, have countless vices, and either a perfectionist or a speed demon with, of course, an insatiable love of food. Once someone has all of these qualities they then break off into one or two categories.
The first and my own personal category is the pastry category. Pastry people like order. We like formulas and recipes and we like to know that every time we make the pate a choux it will turn out just like the last time. This love of order does not mean pastry people are not creative. One of the reasons I went into pastry was because of the artistic side of pastries. It took a wonderful pastry chef who started in the savory side to get me to loosen up a little bit and think of flavors and ingredients before I think of recipes and formulas, but I still have that love and need for order.
Pastry people are also not afraid of getting a little floury. I never thought that this was a quality until I started working at the country club. They joke with me all of the time about my messes. An apron covered in flour and marionberry mix covering my arms is my happy place. There really is little place for OCD in pastry; you can be a perfectionist with your actual dessert, but the process will probably get a little messy.
Savory people think in terms of flavors. Should I use strong seasoning for a delicate fish? I love listening to Rob and Chef talk about specials like it was just obvious that the tuna would go with a leek salad. Formulas and recipes are out the door in cooking. There are standard procedures like for making vinaigrette or for properly cooking chicken, but the ingredients that make that chicken the most amazing dish you've ever tasted are as countless as the chef's creativity.
Savory people can fix most anything pretty much at any point in the cooking process. If there isn't enough salt, in a soup all they have to do is add salt. If the sauce is too thick, they can thin it out before they need it. The only thing that they really can't fix is if too much of something was added. "You can always put more in, but you can't take it out." I can not even begin to tell you how many times I have heard that; it is really true. Anyone who has had a meal that was overly salty can attest to that.
Most of the time pastry and savory people live in beautiful harmony where only minor arguments about procedure break out during slow days. Pastries have to be made by people who like order and formulas. Savory, or like I like to call it, the real food needs to be made by people with creativity and a passion for flavors. Add a little bit of crazy and a lot of energy and you have a really talented chef,whichever side they're on.
I'm still not a fan of pickling everything, but like Chef said tonight "why pickle, why not?" Rob will probably continue to love pickling things, and I, I will continue to be a dough hoe, what can I say I just love knowing following written rules of how to make something still can result in a delicious chocolate cake.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Observing Rob and his pickling reminded me of the many differences between pastry people and savory people. In order to be a chef one must be slightly insane, a workaholic, have countless vices, and either a perfectionist or a speed demon with, of course, an insatiable love of food. Once someone has all of these qualities they then break off into one or two categories.
The first and my own personal category is the pastry category. Pastry people like order. We like formulas and recipes and we like to know that every time we make the pate a choux it will turn out just like the last time. This love of order does not mean pastry people are not creative. One of the reasons I went into pastry was because of the artistic side of pastries. It took a wonderful pastry chef who started in the savory side to get me to loosen up a little bit and think of flavors and ingredients before I think of recipes and formulas, but I still have that love and need for order.
Pastry people are also not afraid of getting a little floury. I never thought that this was a quality until I started working at the country club. They joke with me all of the time about my messes. An apron covered in flour and marionberry mix covering my arms is my happy place. There really is little place for OCD in pastry; you can be a perfectionist with your actual dessert, but the process will probably get a little messy.
Savory people think in terms of flavors. Should I use strong seasoning for a delicate fish? I love listening to Rob and Chef talk about specials like it was just obvious that the tuna would go with a leek salad. Formulas and recipes are out the door in cooking. There are standard procedures like for making vinaigrette or for properly cooking chicken, but the ingredients that make that chicken the most amazing dish you've ever tasted are as countless as the chef's creativity.
Savory people can fix most anything pretty much at any point in the cooking process. If there isn't enough salt, in a soup all they have to do is add salt. If the sauce is too thick, they can thin it out before they need it. The only thing that they really can't fix is if too much of something was added. "You can always put more in, but you can't take it out." I can not even begin to tell you how many times I have heard that; it is really true. Anyone who has had a meal that was overly salty can attest to that.
Most of the time pastry and savory people live in beautiful harmony where only minor arguments about procedure break out during slow days. Pastries have to be made by people who like order and formulas. Savory, or like I like to call it, the real food needs to be made by people with creativity and a passion for flavors. Add a little bit of crazy and a lot of energy and you have a really talented chef,whichever side they're on.
I'm still not a fan of pickling everything, but like Chef said tonight "why pickle, why not?" Rob will probably continue to love pickling things, and I, I will continue to be a dough hoe, what can I say I just love knowing following written rules of how to make something still can result in a delicious chocolate cake.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Thursday, August 20, 2009
A bulimic food critic tells all
Frank Bruni is possibly one of the most hated men in the NYC food scene, or was for the last 5 years. Bruni became the NY Times food critic over five years ago with no experience in food; his only experience was that he had a love/hate relationship with food and he could write. The thing I find odd is that his hate relationship led him to bulimia and countless diets. Restaurant critic is not really the job for someone with a problem with eating; but, according to Bruni, he looked at it as a way to deal with his eating problems. It also makes a great book. Born Round is his new book that's out about his trouble with diets and food and the journey of being a food critic.
I guess in a society where everyone is talking about Oprah "falling off the wagon" and whether starlets are too skinny for their own good a book about a bulimic food critic should not be surprising. I just think it's all a tad bit nauseating. Please don't assume that I am downplaying the seriousness of bulimia here, but I have to wonder why so many people feel the need to make their eating issues and weight such a public issue. Call me old fashioned, but I think some things just are better left unsaid. Maintain a little dignity as you are stepping down from your job as food critic; don't write a book about how fat you were and how you suffered from bulimia.
There is something about food critics that make the kitchen staff cringe. In some ways we need them to keep people coming in, but it's still really hard not to have a little resentment for someone who just eats the food and then gets to pick it apart. When I told people what I wanted to do with my career and how I was thinking that I wanted another degree so I could be a food writer, I can not tell you how many times I was asked,"oh you want to be a food critic." While I could with little problem eat my way through countless menus and write about them I knew my food writing journey would probably be a little broader than that. Plus doesn't anyone know one of the main rules of food critiquing: You can't let people know you're identity.
Speaking of things that nauseate me. Tonight I was standing in Weis, because I was buying my mom some bread. I was in desperate need of some chocolate and just wanted a plain old Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar. I didn't think it was too much to ask, but as I started looking in the aisles for a plain candy bar, possibly the best candy bar. 10 aisles and no milk chocolate bar; I had to buy a milk chocolate bar with almonds. I know you are reading this and saying, Emily I could really care less, but I really was upset about it. If I were Mr. Hershey I would want the best candy bar ever to be in every check-out aisle, so I'm assuming this epic fail was the grocery store's fault. Oh Weis why do you do me dirty on a night when I just needed some chocolate?
I did eat a chocolate bar with almonds and then when I got home my mom had made bread and butter pickles, so my night was looking up. We have had a bumper crop of cucumbers; we can't eat them fast enough, so my mom decided it was pickle time. Today was bread and butter day. These pickles are so easy to make. If you need to go out and buy some cucumbers and some jars and I promise you Vlasic will never be food enough for you again.
Quick Pickles:
4 quarts unpeeled, thinly sliced cucumbers(slice about 1/4 inch thick - or cut into strips like regular pickles)
6 medium onions thinly sliced
2 greed peppers, chopped (or in strips)
1/3 cup of non-iodized salt
Crushed ice
5 cups of granulated sugar
1 and 1/2 tsp. tumeric
1 and 1/2 tsp.celery see
2 tbsp. mustard seed
3 cups cider vinegar
Mix cucumbers, onions, and green peppers; add salt. Cover with ice; mix well. Let stand for 3 hours; drain well. Combine the remaining ingredients, and pour them over cucumber mixture. Heat the mixture till it boils. Pack into sterilized jars and seal.
The pickles taste good right away, but the longer they sit the better they get. As long as you seal them in a jar they can be kept out of the refrigerator till they are open. I hope you are enjoying all of the bountiful harvest the end of summer brings.
Happy eating!!!
Emily
I guess in a society where everyone is talking about Oprah "falling off the wagon" and whether starlets are too skinny for their own good a book about a bulimic food critic should not be surprising. I just think it's all a tad bit nauseating. Please don't assume that I am downplaying the seriousness of bulimia here, but I have to wonder why so many people feel the need to make their eating issues and weight such a public issue. Call me old fashioned, but I think some things just are better left unsaid. Maintain a little dignity as you are stepping down from your job as food critic; don't write a book about how fat you were and how you suffered from bulimia.
There is something about food critics that make the kitchen staff cringe. In some ways we need them to keep people coming in, but it's still really hard not to have a little resentment for someone who just eats the food and then gets to pick it apart. When I told people what I wanted to do with my career and how I was thinking that I wanted another degree so I could be a food writer, I can not tell you how many times I was asked,"oh you want to be a food critic." While I could with little problem eat my way through countless menus and write about them I knew my food writing journey would probably be a little broader than that. Plus doesn't anyone know one of the main rules of food critiquing: You can't let people know you're identity.
Speaking of things that nauseate me. Tonight I was standing in Weis, because I was buying my mom some bread. I was in desperate need of some chocolate and just wanted a plain old Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar. I didn't think it was too much to ask, but as I started looking in the aisles for a plain candy bar, possibly the best candy bar. 10 aisles and no milk chocolate bar; I had to buy a milk chocolate bar with almonds. I know you are reading this and saying, Emily I could really care less, but I really was upset about it. If I were Mr. Hershey I would want the best candy bar ever to be in every check-out aisle, so I'm assuming this epic fail was the grocery store's fault. Oh Weis why do you do me dirty on a night when I just needed some chocolate?
I did eat a chocolate bar with almonds and then when I got home my mom had made bread and butter pickles, so my night was looking up. We have had a bumper crop of cucumbers; we can't eat them fast enough, so my mom decided it was pickle time. Today was bread and butter day. These pickles are so easy to make. If you need to go out and buy some cucumbers and some jars and I promise you Vlasic will never be food enough for you again.
Quick Pickles:
4 quarts unpeeled, thinly sliced cucumbers(slice about 1/4 inch thick - or cut into strips like regular pickles)
6 medium onions thinly sliced
2 greed peppers, chopped (or in strips)
1/3 cup of non-iodized salt
Crushed ice
5 cups of granulated sugar
1 and 1/2 tsp. tumeric
1 and 1/2 tsp.celery see
2 tbsp. mustard seed
3 cups cider vinegar
Mix cucumbers, onions, and green peppers; add salt. Cover with ice; mix well. Let stand for 3 hours; drain well. Combine the remaining ingredients, and pour them over cucumber mixture. Heat the mixture till it boils. Pack into sterilized jars and seal.
The pickles taste good right away, but the longer they sit the better they get. As long as you seal them in a jar they can be kept out of the refrigerator till they are open. I hope you are enjoying all of the bountiful harvest the end of summer brings.
Happy eating!!!
Emily
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
A rack of lamb?
Foodies everywhere ought to be buzzing and watching Top Chef Las Vegas. Padma is back with the whole gang and it looks like the addicting Top Chef has officially returned. The chefs look talented and creative. The food is making my mouth water. I'm hooked, but were we really expecting anything less.
Nestle cookie dough is also officially back on the shelves of grocery stores everywhere after the E.Coli hiatus. The new and improved cookie dough has a warning label and a blue stamp making it clear which cookie dough is the new stuff and which is the old stuff. It's safe to say the dough is still not completely safe to eat...ummm duh! If the cookie dough was completely safe to eat and was also able to bake into a nice cookie, there would be some kind of strange chemical in the mix that would probably kill you in the long term.
I do love cookie dough no matter how bad it is for me. I actually think there is something about the fact that I could get sick from it. It also might be that my mom never let us eat cookie dough and when I was little I would sneak under the table with a piece of cookie dough and eat it hoping my mom didn't see. She might have still seen it, but she never said a word. Now that I am an adult and can eat all of the cookie dough I want I feel empowered eating it; well that and it tastes pretty good.
Just because Nestle premade cookie dough is back on the market doesn't mean that you need to buy it. It takes only a few minutes to mix up a batch of cookie dough, and it'll taste a lot better. I love cookie dough because you really can do anything with it. There are certain ingredients you need: butter, flour, sugar-white and brown, eggs, and baking soda. Then there are some ingredients that you can add: chocolate chips, cocoa powder, almonds, cinnamon, pistachios, and white chocolate. I can promise you that whatever you create does not come in a tube from the Nestle company.
Over all my favorite part of Top Chef tonight was the chef who decided that his vice was going to be plastic surgery since they were in Las Vegas. He made a "rack" of lamb and sauce from two nice "jugs" of coconut. Seriously where do they find these people? The cooking industry is never short of wonderful characters who can creatively cook something unforgetable. If there was ever a job I would want to take away from Gail Simmons, it would be judging Top Chef; for now I will just imagine the flavors, lack of flavors, and over flavors while watching the show.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Nestle cookie dough is also officially back on the shelves of grocery stores everywhere after the E.Coli hiatus. The new and improved cookie dough has a warning label and a blue stamp making it clear which cookie dough is the new stuff and which is the old stuff. It's safe to say the dough is still not completely safe to eat...ummm duh! If the cookie dough was completely safe to eat and was also able to bake into a nice cookie, there would be some kind of strange chemical in the mix that would probably kill you in the long term.
I do love cookie dough no matter how bad it is for me. I actually think there is something about the fact that I could get sick from it. It also might be that my mom never let us eat cookie dough and when I was little I would sneak under the table with a piece of cookie dough and eat it hoping my mom didn't see. She might have still seen it, but she never said a word. Now that I am an adult and can eat all of the cookie dough I want I feel empowered eating it; well that and it tastes pretty good.
Just because Nestle premade cookie dough is back on the market doesn't mean that you need to buy it. It takes only a few minutes to mix up a batch of cookie dough, and it'll taste a lot better. I love cookie dough because you really can do anything with it. There are certain ingredients you need: butter, flour, sugar-white and brown, eggs, and baking soda. Then there are some ingredients that you can add: chocolate chips, cocoa powder, almonds, cinnamon, pistachios, and white chocolate. I can promise you that whatever you create does not come in a tube from the Nestle company.
Over all my favorite part of Top Chef tonight was the chef who decided that his vice was going to be plastic surgery since they were in Las Vegas. He made a "rack" of lamb and sauce from two nice "jugs" of coconut. Seriously where do they find these people? The cooking industry is never short of wonderful characters who can creatively cook something unforgetable. If there was ever a job I would want to take away from Gail Simmons, it would be judging Top Chef; for now I will just imagine the flavors, lack of flavors, and over flavors while watching the show.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
"Lose the Blubber: Go Vegetarian"
PETA has put out a new set of adds that have caused quite a buzz. The whole ad says "Save the Whales Lose the Blubber: Go Vegetarian;" it's pathetically accompanied by a fat woman's back in a polka dot bikini. Can being vegetarian cause you to lose all that excess weight that you might be carrying? Eating right with any diet choice might be able to help you to lose weight.
I have a lot of vegetarian friends, who I love very much, but I think they would even agree with me that this ad has a confusing message. Exercising, making healthy food choices, and watching portions has a lot more to do with losing the blubber than not eating meat. Unfortunately eating meat is looked at as going hand in hand with eating greasy hamburgers and large steaks. Not every meatatarian is bad at making food choices.
Yesterday I was at the beach and there were plenty of people who could have lost the blubber. Unfortunately in swimsuits all the blubber is hanging out, which is probably why PETA picked the pictures of the woman in a swimsuit. Oh PETA you know so well how to push our buttons.
I of course did not make wise food choices while at the beach. Come on it's the beach; who eats salad at the beach? Salads at the beach just sound sandy to me. Instead I ate a slice of pizza that left much to be desired. It was good; I think I was just too hot for food. I know I know me not being into food seems like a silly thing, but sometimes the heat just gets to you and all your stomach wants is ice cream or a candy apple.
I chose the latter after eating some of the satisfactory pizza. It seems I had forgotten how hard it is to eat a candy apple. The candy stuck to my teeth like it was its job and I had so much trouble figuring out whether I wanted a sticky chin or a sticky nose. Unfortunately I had so much trouble that I ended up with both. If you had no idea what I'm talking about try biting into an apple. Either your nose will bump it or your chin. Now add sticky candy on that apple and you either have a red sticky nose or a red sticky chin. My sister took a picture. It was a scary realization that it doesn't matter how old I am when I'm attacking sugar I still end up with it all over my face.
It probably took me close to an hour to eat the apple. It was giving me lots of troubles as you can see from my twitpic. It was still totally worth it. I don't think I ever go to the beach without a candy apple experience. I decided while my mouth and chin and nose were red that this fall when I go apple picking in New Hampshire with Matt we're going to have to make some caramel apples. I'm sure that will be just as messy of an experience.
It's hot this week in PA and there is no sign of cooler weather in sight. I hope you are managing to stay cool. The beach water in New Jersey is kind of smelly, but you can't beat 77 degrees.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Monday, August 17, 2009
Cakes, fans, and some much awaited corn pie
The cakes tasting went wonderful. My friend loved the cakes and they decided on exactly what they wanted. I had a little snaffoo with my vanilla cake. I think I added baking soda instead of baking powder. If you want to know what happens when you make that mistake imagine an awful sour aftertaste and you'll know what it's like. Thankfully I tasted the cake a good while before they came, so I had time to fix the situation.
Matt and I have been working on a facebook fan site for the blog and it's finally live. I am so thankful for all of the hard work Matt put into it. You can link to the blog posts, check out my twitter, enjoy some of my pictures, and have a way to write to me and send me topic ideas and even post recipes.
We also did a few things to revamp the blog. I am always talking about eating in-season fruits and veggies. On the side of the blog you can now see what should be in season in your area. This way you can eat better food. Of course you aren't going to always eat in-season food, but knowing what's in season might be kind of fun and make fruits and veggies easier to incorporate into your diet. Our logo is all new too. Matt messed with my pictures and some lettering and came up with quite a masterpiece. I hope you like it as much as I do.
I am not normally a fan of change, but these changes all seem to be helpful in making the blog prettier and more helpful. If you have any suggestions please let me know. I'll talk to my technical person ahem Matt and get him to get right on it.
Without a doubt corn is in season right now. I know I have been promising this recipe and I'm finally delivering. Here is my mom's corn pie recipe. It will change your life.
For the crust use my 3-2-1 recipe and only cut it in half because you will need a full top and bottom.
3 cups of flour
2 cups butter/shortening/ fat
1 cup water
For the filling:
12 ears of corn - cut the corn off the cob
Hard boil 6 eggs - that's ten minutes
Procedure:
Sprinkle 2 tablespoons flour, 2 tablespoon of sugar on top of the crust in the pie plate.
Cut eggs into small pieces. Mix corn and eggs. Pour into pie plate. Salt and pepper(to taste). Pour milk in till it's 3/4 of the way up the crust (or Mt. Crustette as my sister calls it). Cover with a top crust. Poke holes in the crust. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour. Corn pie tends to be messy, so be sure to place a sheet pan underneath the pie. If you want you can add sausage or meat to the pie; the Mennonite farmers always do to the pies they sell. We always preferred just corn and eggs (My mom told us they were marshmallows when we were little and we ate them up.). I hope you are enjoying some of the fresh produce that is all over the roadside stands in Pennsylvania.
Tomorrow I am going to the Jersey shore. It's my mom, sister, and my yearly pilgrimage. I'm hoping for some vinegar French fries and maybe some good ice cream.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Matt and I have been working on a facebook fan site for the blog and it's finally live. I am so thankful for all of the hard work Matt put into it. You can link to the blog posts, check out my twitter, enjoy some of my pictures, and have a way to write to me and send me topic ideas and even post recipes.
We also did a few things to revamp the blog. I am always talking about eating in-season fruits and veggies. On the side of the blog you can now see what should be in season in your area. This way you can eat better food. Of course you aren't going to always eat in-season food, but knowing what's in season might be kind of fun and make fruits and veggies easier to incorporate into your diet. Our logo is all new too. Matt messed with my pictures and some lettering and came up with quite a masterpiece. I hope you like it as much as I do.
I am not normally a fan of change, but these changes all seem to be helpful in making the blog prettier and more helpful. If you have any suggestions please let me know. I'll talk to my technical person ahem Matt and get him to get right on it.
Without a doubt corn is in season right now. I know I have been promising this recipe and I'm finally delivering. Here is my mom's corn pie recipe. It will change your life.
For the crust use my 3-2-1 recipe and only cut it in half because you will need a full top and bottom.
3 cups of flour
2 cups butter/shortening/ fat
1 cup water
For the filling:
12 ears of corn - cut the corn off the cob
Hard boil 6 eggs - that's ten minutes
Procedure:
Sprinkle 2 tablespoons flour, 2 tablespoon of sugar on top of the crust in the pie plate.
Cut eggs into small pieces. Mix corn and eggs. Pour into pie plate. Salt and pepper(to taste). Pour milk in till it's 3/4 of the way up the crust (or Mt. Crustette as my sister calls it). Cover with a top crust. Poke holes in the crust. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour. Corn pie tends to be messy, so be sure to place a sheet pan underneath the pie. If you want you can add sausage or meat to the pie; the Mennonite farmers always do to the pies they sell. We always preferred just corn and eggs (My mom told us they were marshmallows when we were little and we ate them up.). I hope you are enjoying some of the fresh produce that is all over the roadside stands in Pennsylvania.
Tomorrow I am going to the Jersey shore. It's my mom, sister, and my yearly pilgrimage. I'm hoping for some vinegar French fries and maybe some good ice cream.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Sunday, August 16, 2009
That flavor will turn your mouth blue, but it's so worth it
Lies, all lies! Tonight I went to an ice cream place with my sister. My mom thinks I don't get out enough or something, so she said I should go. I learned something about myself tonight while eating a bright blue ice cream that was "flavored" cotton candy: I find nothing more disappointing than bad ice cream. Now don't think I am an ice cream snob. I buy store brand ice cream all of the time, and it tastes like I expect it to taste. I have also had excellent ice cream. When I was in Bar Harbor, Maine there was a tiny ice cream shop that made all of their own ice creams and sorbets. Champagne apricot, strawberry basil, and coffee were just a few of the flavors that I fell in love with whenever I treated myself to a scoop of ice cream.
Back to the ice cream place in PA. I ordered the bright blue cotton candy with the hopes that it would shock me with flavor the way it shocked me with color. On the contrary the color was far more illustrious than the flavor would ever be. My first bite might have had a hint of cotton candy, or I might have just hoped the flavor into my mouth. It was bland, kind of tasted like milky ice. The headache I got from eating it instead of dinner made me wish I had followed my gut and gone to Wendys instead. So if you are ever in Coopersburg, PA and are thinking of enjoying some ice cream refrain from pulling into The Inside Scoop. It's not worth the price or bad ice cream.
This must just have been a bad weekend for trying new things for my boyfriend and I. Matt wanted a hamburger really bad yesterday. Matt and I both have a healthy love of fast food. I know some people who turn up their noses when I say that, but you know what every now and then I need a good greasy burger with fries and a soda. I knew Matt's burger craving would lead him to McDonalds so I asked him if he would be willing to try something new for me. He was completely up for the challenge. I had been curious about their new angus burger ever since I had heard about it from a line cook at work. He was impressed, so I had high hopes(I'm beginning to doubt my high hopes as I write this).
The burger looked impressive as you can see. Matt picked the bacon cheese burger, which is actually the first bacon burger McDonalds ever put on their menu. (The actual Angus burger collection were the first new burgers McDs had put on their menu since 2001.) The label bragged 1/3 lb. Angus beef patty, American cheese, bacon, pickles, red onion, ketchup, and mustard. It rounded out at 790 calories 39 grams of fat. It sounds good so far right?
The final word on the burger and I quote," It tasted like Burger King. Next time I'd just go to Burger King." The taste test obviously didn't quite match up. Matt felt the burger was kind of dry, more like a grilled Burger King hamburger. I am not sure how this happened, because McDonalds doesn't grill their burgers. Maybe it was the Angus, but I am not a real meat expert so I'm going to have to leave this mystery to the experts.
Epic fail of a food weekend for Matt and me. I hope you all had better luck. Tomorrow is my cake testing. The bride-to-be actually informed me tonight that she doesn't really like cake and her fiance is the one excited. I don't even think something that sad deserves a comment. So with that and my bad ice cream headache I am going to call it a night.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Friday, August 14, 2009
It's a love story baby just say yes
I tend to despise Taylor Swift, but I am full of contradictions lately. A good friend presented me with an impossible task and with the support of the saint I call a boyfriend and my family, I believe I will take on the challenge. This Valentine's Day instead of going out to a fancy place to eat or spending a quiet night in with my valentine, I will be driving 5.5 hours to PA with my Valentine (we hardly survive a car ride without a good knock down blow out fight, so we have that to look forward to)and spending most of the night making sure the cakes are done enough so that the next day I will be able to complete a masterpiece of a cake for my friend and her 200 guests.
This week I will be doing a cake tasting, so hopefully everything goes well. I am actually really excited about my mission impossible and the many adventures that will most likely go along with it.
In other news the French have done it again. There was a study done in Paris that found that eating chocolate can cut chances of recurring heart disease after a heart attack. Now we're not talking about wimpy chocolate here; the study found the best results were found when the person ate chocolate two or more times a week. Of course the article went on to warn about the dangers of overeating chocolate and being fat...blah blah blah. The important thing is that chocolate is good for you; I've been telling people this for a while now, but obviously we have some proof. Eat your chocolate and be healthy!
I'm afraid because of working longer today I haven't gotten the chance to sit down with my mom and get the recipe for corn pie. I have a little more time tomorrow so hopefully it'll be on here then. In the mean time my puppy is fast asleep on my couch with me and I am happily enjoying watching Monk(happily because I made some cookies when I got home and cookies always put me in a happy place).
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
This week I will be doing a cake tasting, so hopefully everything goes well. I am actually really excited about my mission impossible and the many adventures that will most likely go along with it.
In other news the French have done it again. There was a study done in Paris that found that eating chocolate can cut chances of recurring heart disease after a heart attack. Now we're not talking about wimpy chocolate here; the study found the best results were found when the person ate chocolate two or more times a week. Of course the article went on to warn about the dangers of overeating chocolate and being fat...blah blah blah. The important thing is that chocolate is good for you; I've been telling people this for a while now, but obviously we have some proof. Eat your chocolate and be healthy!
I'm afraid because of working longer today I haven't gotten the chance to sit down with my mom and get the recipe for corn pie. I have a little more time tomorrow so hopefully it'll be on here then. In the mean time my puppy is fast asleep on my couch with me and I am happily enjoying watching Monk(happily because I made some cookies when I got home and cookies always put me in a happy place).
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Thursday, August 13, 2009
The more intelligent like brussel sprouts?
I'm not so sure about this, but a study in Spain said that liking or disliking brussel sprouts may be an evolutionary thing. Supposedly there is a certain bitter taste in brussel sprouts that some people can taste and other people can't. The problem, the "neanderthals" they were studying had the ability to taste and some didn't. If you ask me this sounds like an inconclusive study. I suppose finding out that if you like brussel sprouts you are more advanced might be groundbreaking. Then again it really isn't. People have different taste buds. They like different things. That's what makes us individuals. And if you eat brussel sprouts simply because you think it makes you more intelligent, you are probably rather insecure. I'll eat a brussel sprout if it's cooked well, with brown butter, and is well seasoned; other wise I'll join the neanderthal group that would prefer to not eat brussel sprouts.
Speaking of neanderthals, the head of a county health department in Florida was forced to resign over a sign that insinuated that doughnuts were bad for you(umm duh). Dr. Jason Newsom had been fighting American obesity through snarky roadside signs for a while. Commenting on french fries, hamburgers, and sweet tea seemed to be acceptable, until Dr. Newsom put up the sign that read "America Dies on Dunkin." Supposedly a few high up officials in the town ran or had stock in doughnut shops and were not amused. Did they really think people didn't know that doughnuts are bad for you? On second thought nevermind, I agree, most American's probably are that stupid.
They can shut up Newsom, but they can't shut everyone up. "DOUGHNUTS ARE FRIED DOUGH AND ARE BAD FOR YOU!!!!" The fact that I know this does not mean that I don't enjoy a doughnut every now and then. The key to everything is moderation. I'm sure the good doctor would agree with me.
I'm not really sure if Rob, the sous chef, likes doughnuts; but I have finally figured out his taste in dessert. Rob like desserts that taste like regular food. This may sound a tad bit odd to my fellow dough hoes, but really he has made me a believer. Sunday he made a curry ice cream(literally there was an after heat in your mouth). With the curry ice cream he made an apple cake and he plated it with one of my coconut tuilles, some caramel sauce, and some toasted coconut. I have eaten many Indian dishes, but none have made me as excited at this dessert. It was both surprising and oddly delicious(I say oddly only because after hearing the description I skeptical).
Savory and sweet is like ying and yang to me. I can't eat a candy bar without grabbing some chips to enjoy with it. The only way I can enjoy a fluffer nutter sandwich is with a bag of salt and vinegar chips. Rob takes this concept and morphs it into something I can't say I have ever experienced done well until I started working at the country club. If you don't like buttered popcorn Jelly Bellys, then you should probably pass, but you will never know if you don't give it a shot.
Tomorrow is one of my favorite vegetarian's birthday. In honor of it I will be posting the corn pie recipe. (I'm afraid this is not a recipe for my favorite vegan as it has milk and eggs in it.) For those of you intelligent folks out there be sure to pretend to enjoy your brussel sprouts and remember no hating on the folks at Dunkin Donuts, they don't seem to like it much.
Happy Eating!!!
Speaking of neanderthals, the head of a county health department in Florida was forced to resign over a sign that insinuated that doughnuts were bad for you(umm duh). Dr. Jason Newsom had been fighting American obesity through snarky roadside signs for a while. Commenting on french fries, hamburgers, and sweet tea seemed to be acceptable, until Dr. Newsom put up the sign that read "America Dies on Dunkin." Supposedly a few high up officials in the town ran or had stock in doughnut shops and were not amused. Did they really think people didn't know that doughnuts are bad for you? On second thought nevermind, I agree, most American's probably are that stupid.
They can shut up Newsom, but they can't shut everyone up. "DOUGHNUTS ARE FRIED DOUGH AND ARE BAD FOR YOU!!!!" The fact that I know this does not mean that I don't enjoy a doughnut every now and then. The key to everything is moderation. I'm sure the good doctor would agree with me.
I'm not really sure if Rob, the sous chef, likes doughnuts; but I have finally figured out his taste in dessert. Rob like desserts that taste like regular food. This may sound a tad bit odd to my fellow dough hoes, but really he has made me a believer. Sunday he made a curry ice cream(literally there was an after heat in your mouth). With the curry ice cream he made an apple cake and he plated it with one of my coconut tuilles, some caramel sauce, and some toasted coconut. I have eaten many Indian dishes, but none have made me as excited at this dessert. It was both surprising and oddly delicious(I say oddly only because after hearing the description I skeptical).
Savory and sweet is like ying and yang to me. I can't eat a candy bar without grabbing some chips to enjoy with it. The only way I can enjoy a fluffer nutter sandwich is with a bag of salt and vinegar chips. Rob takes this concept and morphs it into something I can't say I have ever experienced done well until I started working at the country club. If you don't like buttered popcorn Jelly Bellys, then you should probably pass, but you will never know if you don't give it a shot.
Tomorrow is one of my favorite vegetarian's birthday. In honor of it I will be posting the corn pie recipe. (I'm afraid this is not a recipe for my favorite vegan as it has milk and eggs in it.) For those of you intelligent folks out there be sure to pretend to enjoy your brussel sprouts and remember no hating on the folks at Dunkin Donuts, they don't seem to like it much.
Happy Eating!!!
I am certifiably insane
It's official, and I thought you should be the first to know. I am actually considering doing this cake for a friend despite the fact that her wedding will be on Valentine's Day now and I will be driving down with my boyfriend to PA after whatever class I have on Thursday to start a marathon cake adventure I don't even know I can accomplish(the whole thing will have to be complete by Friday at an undisclosed hour).
Yes this whole thing sounds crazy, but I do have a few tricks up my sleeve and I will hopefully be able to accomplish it. My ever supportive boyfriend is not doing what he should be doing and saying "NO;" instead he is enthusiastically yessing the whole idea.
A few things have to fall into place before I can send a "yes" email to my friend. First of all I need to find some freezer space. Frozen cake frosts better and if I'm making enough cake for 200 people I am going to need more freezer space than I have at my parent's house. Second I need a big dose of courage. I may talk big, but I'm a big wimp at heart and this whole thing is a bit more than slightly scary.
I have not officially said yes, so maybe I'm not completely crazy yet. By tomorrow at this time a decision will have to be made. I promise you all will be the first to know. Cake for 200 plus people in 1 and a half days. Yes I must be crazy, but think the stories when/if I actually accomplish it.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Yes this whole thing sounds crazy, but I do have a few tricks up my sleeve and I will hopefully be able to accomplish it. My ever supportive boyfriend is not doing what he should be doing and saying "NO;" instead he is enthusiastically yessing the whole idea.
A few things have to fall into place before I can send a "yes" email to my friend. First of all I need to find some freezer space. Frozen cake frosts better and if I'm making enough cake for 200 people I am going to need more freezer space than I have at my parent's house. Second I need a big dose of courage. I may talk big, but I'm a big wimp at heart and this whole thing is a bit more than slightly scary.
I have not officially said yes, so maybe I'm not completely crazy yet. By tomorrow at this time a decision will have to be made. I promise you all will be the first to know. Cake for 200 plus people in 1 and a half days. Yes I must be crazy, but think the stories when/if I actually accomplish it.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Is the crockpot going to burn my countertop?
There are some people in this large world that we live in who love to cook and know how to cook and can mix this spice or that and create something so fantastic that everyone they know begs for their recipes. On the other end of the world there are people who cook because pasta every night gets old. My boyfriends fits in the second category; and his endeavors, since trying to eat pasta for 3 months and finding out that is just doesn't taste as good the 90th time around, have been actually quite honorable.
Yesterday as you can see in the picture he made ribs and mashed potatoes in the his brand new crockpot. Much to my surprise all my boyfriend wanted this year for his birthday was a crockpot. I was never informed of this, but thankfully his mom either was informed or just knew that he desperately wanted a crockpot. He has been anxiously waiting for the right moment to try it out. Yesterday's record heat and his lack of air conditioning gave him the perfect reason to not use his stove.
I guess the crockpot came with recipes, and he decided on ribs. After that decision was made I kept getting phone calls asking about bbq sauce and how much ribs and what color they will turn. Recipes only tell you so much and it can be kind of tricky to cut down a recipe. We always add a little water to the bbq sauce to thin it out and to stretch it out(the recipe of course didn't have that piece of information in it). Many people tell my boyfriend that he's lucky to be dating a cook, but my pastry degree was not really helpful; if I were to run a hotline it would be about creme brulees that have bubbles on top or pastry cream this is lumpy not about how to cook ribs. Thankfully I've helped my mom do ribs many times so I know how to answer most of his questions.
Towards the end of the whole process(I actually assumed he'd be eating soon since I knew the ribs were in), I get an im asking me if crockpots can burn counter tops. I have an incurable case of sarcasm so I responded "Yes if you light a match to it." I then get "ok brb I'm going to put it on the stove." My poor boyfriend did not get my sarcasm at all and was so busy worrying about his counter tops burning; he truly was in a tizzy. I had to laugh. Cooking can be quite relaxing, but when you spend some extra money on ribs and are hoping for a good meal the stress level just seems to rise.
Movies, cookbooks, and TV shows inundate us with the idea that anyone can cook. I do wholeheartedly agree with this concept, but I also know what it is like to do something new for the first time. My boyfriend was so proud when his ribs and mashed potatoes came out that he snapped this lovely picture for us, to display his new cooking abilities. I have also been on the other end of trying something new where the whole thing is a flop. Those moments are hardly picture worthy and tend to make me want to quit cooking altogether.
Cooking is a journey full of high points and low points. The key is to be learning every step of the way. If everything always works out the first time you try it, I hate you. Ok maybe hate is a harsh word, but coming from the perspective of an imperfect cook that has made many mistakes I can say I've not learned nearly as much from my successes as I have from my failures. So here's to the successful ribs that I am hoping we can recreate when I'm in Providence and to the daily flops that teach us we aren't perfect and still have a lot to learn.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Here comes the bride and cake AGAIN
You can ask anyone who knows me well I hardly ever learn my lesson the first time. I blame this and many other quirky qualities on my mother. My dad has practiced with her over and over how to say the word no, but somehow she only seems to know how to say it when "she's up to here(hand goes over head)in paperwork and can't possibly do one more thing(like drop my sister off at her friends)." My sister also can never say no and I believe somehow no was erased from her vocabulary because she doesn't understand it either. I normally have a more balanced sense of the word no and try to frequently use it and practice it, but every now and then genetics kicks in and I just can't bring myself to use the word.
Sunday night a friend of mine stopped me and asked me if I would make her wedding cake. Well I guess her exact words were "I don't know anything about cakes." She's doing a night wedding with just dessert and her wedding colors are black, white, and red. It sounds like a dream to me, dessert, twinkling lights, and a beautiful wedding in her parents backyard. I wasn't one of those girls who planned out their wedding when they were five, but just hearing about her plans made me wish I was five and could plan my wedding(at 21 with a steady boyfriend planning your wedding is a tad bit creepy, 5 was a much better age for such things).
My friend handed me a picture of a cake they wanted and instantly I knew I could do one better. I was already scheming about this cake. She wanted it to be square, which is just so classy. It was going to be covered in white fondant with black ribbon and a bow around each layer and to top it all off red roses on the corners to add a punch of color. To add a little extra finesse I was going to do some filigree work on the sides of the cakes. All of this was just so much fun to imagine and talk with her about; then we got to the icky details.
She wanted no more than 200 people. Well that wasn't terribly icky, just a little bit scary because they were only serving cake so it wasn't a typical cake for 200 people it was a extra large cake for 200 people. This was going to take some work. Also their original date was June 19th, but they wanted to bump it up. June 19th sounded like a perfect day to me. It might be a little bit warm, so everyone would be happy sitting outside and the lightning bugs might even be out which to me would make this outdoor wedding even more magical.
Unfortunately moving it up meant I might not be home from school, so imagine me flying home on a Thursday night spending all day Friday and Saturday doing these cakes(which will be too large to fit in my parent's fridge unless we don't eat for a few days), and then flying back to school Sunday. I'm guessing this will be around finals week, but that is just a guess. I still don't know the exact day of the wedding but I am kneeling by my bedside every night and praying that it will be after Emerson lets out, so that I won't have to go through a stressful weekend whirlwind.
The other details about the cake are that she wants one layer to be vanilla, one to be chocolate, and one to be strawberry. I'm not really sure about strawberry as I have never seen a strawberry cake that has not come from a box, but stranger things have happened maybe I will fall in love with strawberry cakes. Her fiance is allergic to chocolate, so I am going to have to be careful regarding production. I do need to just take a moment and say that this poor man should be met with sad glances anytime anyone meets him. To be allergic to the best thing on earth is truly a tragedy.
You may be reading all of this and screaming at your computer. "Emily I remember the last cake. You were a mess. You said you hated cakes." Yes I did, but remember we are blaming this on my mother. I have a feeling 5 years from now my boyfriend will be doing no seminars with me just like my dad does for my mom. Actually I think he's already done them once or twice. I think I'll start yes anonymous. "Hi my name is Emily and I have used the word no twice this week."
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Sunday night a friend of mine stopped me and asked me if I would make her wedding cake. Well I guess her exact words were "I don't know anything about cakes." She's doing a night wedding with just dessert and her wedding colors are black, white, and red. It sounds like a dream to me, dessert, twinkling lights, and a beautiful wedding in her parents backyard. I wasn't one of those girls who planned out their wedding when they were five, but just hearing about her plans made me wish I was five and could plan my wedding(at 21 with a steady boyfriend planning your wedding is a tad bit creepy, 5 was a much better age for such things).
My friend handed me a picture of a cake they wanted and instantly I knew I could do one better. I was already scheming about this cake. She wanted it to be square, which is just so classy. It was going to be covered in white fondant with black ribbon and a bow around each layer and to top it all off red roses on the corners to add a punch of color. To add a little extra finesse I was going to do some filigree work on the sides of the cakes. All of this was just so much fun to imagine and talk with her about; then we got to the icky details.
She wanted no more than 200 people. Well that wasn't terribly icky, just a little bit scary because they were only serving cake so it wasn't a typical cake for 200 people it was a extra large cake for 200 people. This was going to take some work. Also their original date was June 19th, but they wanted to bump it up. June 19th sounded like a perfect day to me. It might be a little bit warm, so everyone would be happy sitting outside and the lightning bugs might even be out which to me would make this outdoor wedding even more magical.
Unfortunately moving it up meant I might not be home from school, so imagine me flying home on a Thursday night spending all day Friday and Saturday doing these cakes(which will be too large to fit in my parent's fridge unless we don't eat for a few days), and then flying back to school Sunday. I'm guessing this will be around finals week, but that is just a guess. I still don't know the exact day of the wedding but I am kneeling by my bedside every night and praying that it will be after Emerson lets out, so that I won't have to go through a stressful weekend whirlwind.
The other details about the cake are that she wants one layer to be vanilla, one to be chocolate, and one to be strawberry. I'm not really sure about strawberry as I have never seen a strawberry cake that has not come from a box, but stranger things have happened maybe I will fall in love with strawberry cakes. Her fiance is allergic to chocolate, so I am going to have to be careful regarding production. I do need to just take a moment and say that this poor man should be met with sad glances anytime anyone meets him. To be allergic to the best thing on earth is truly a tragedy.
You may be reading all of this and screaming at your computer. "Emily I remember the last cake. You were a mess. You said you hated cakes." Yes I did, but remember we are blaming this on my mother. I have a feeling 5 years from now my boyfriend will be doing no seminars with me just like my dad does for my mom. Actually I think he's already done them once or twice. I think I'll start yes anonymous. "Hi my name is Emily and I have used the word no twice this week."
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Monday, August 10, 2009
Bon Apetit!
Tonight I grabbed my mom and sister and told them that we were going to see Julie and Julia. I am still floating on air. There are certain movies that you leave the theaters and feel like you just want to go do something; this was one of those movies. Maybe it was just because I am a baby blogger and a trained chef and I could relate to both of the main characters. Maybe it was because I love Amy Adams and Meryl Streep is a goddess. I don't know what the reason, but if I were a movie critique I would give this movie 5 thumbs up. I would probably have to borrow a few thumbs to do it, but it would happen.
Amy Adams' character of Julie was struggling to do something that would make her life feel more fulfilling. I couldn't help but relate with the feeling of trudging through life and doing things just to get by. I started this blog only because every newspaper in the area told me I did not have enough news experience to get their internships, but that I was uniquely qualified for an internship in their food section(only they didn't offer internships in their food sections). The beauty of Julie's blog was that she had a goal and a mission and A DEADLINE. She also had a supportive husband, which reminded me of my own supportive boyfriend who gets excited about every blog posts and always encourages my new goals.
Meryl Streep's character of Julia Childs was just so human. She made me want to move to Paris and fall in love with French food. At one point in the movie her husband asks her what she wants to do and she says that she loves to eat and that she's good at it. You had me at hello Julia, you had me at hello. The movie takes you through Julia's struggle of learning how to cook and the writing of her cookbook. The struggles she faced were just inspiring, there really is no other word. How does a tall bumbling American woman become an expert on French cooking? She wanted something and she didn't quit.
Cooking is so relaxing to me. Julie said in the movie that this was because cooking was something she could count on to always work. I don't know if that's why I like cooking, but I do know there is nothing like coming home from a bad day and making a batch of chocolate chip cookies.
I don't know where this blog is going to take me. Unlike Julie I don't really have a goal, but I do know that I am enjoying the adventure so far. I hope you are too, whoever you are out there.
I am also starting a new wedding cake project, so stay tuned for cake news. It's going to have to feed 200+ people and I'm going to have to do a tasting in the next couple of weeks. I already warned my boyfriend so he's ready for me to be a little stressed out, poor guy.
Happy Eating or as Julia would say Bon Apetit!!!
Emily
Amy Adams' character of Julie was struggling to do something that would make her life feel more fulfilling. I couldn't help but relate with the feeling of trudging through life and doing things just to get by. I started this blog only because every newspaper in the area told me I did not have enough news experience to get their internships, but that I was uniquely qualified for an internship in their food section(only they didn't offer internships in their food sections). The beauty of Julie's blog was that she had a goal and a mission and A DEADLINE. She also had a supportive husband, which reminded me of my own supportive boyfriend who gets excited about every blog posts and always encourages my new goals.
Meryl Streep's character of Julia Childs was just so human. She made me want to move to Paris and fall in love with French food. At one point in the movie her husband asks her what she wants to do and she says that she loves to eat and that she's good at it. You had me at hello Julia, you had me at hello. The movie takes you through Julia's struggle of learning how to cook and the writing of her cookbook. The struggles she faced were just inspiring, there really is no other word. How does a tall bumbling American woman become an expert on French cooking? She wanted something and she didn't quit.
Cooking is so relaxing to me. Julie said in the movie that this was because cooking was something she could count on to always work. I don't know if that's why I like cooking, but I do know there is nothing like coming home from a bad day and making a batch of chocolate chip cookies.
I don't know where this blog is going to take me. Unlike Julie I don't really have a goal, but I do know that I am enjoying the adventure so far. I hope you are too, whoever you are out there.
I am also starting a new wedding cake project, so stay tuned for cake news. It's going to have to feed 200+ people and I'm going to have to do a tasting in the next couple of weeks. I already warned my boyfriend so he's ready for me to be a little stressed out, poor guy.
Happy Eating or as Julia would say Bon Apetit!!!
Emily
Saturday, August 8, 2009
"I'm not interested in food"
What kind of strange person would make a comment like this? Oh just the head of advertising for the United Kingdom Grocery Chain Morrison's. I became pretty good friends with a marketing major at Emerson and I know he wasn't completely 100% passionate about every company his professors threw at him, but through his work and ideas you really could see him starting to get passionate about it. It would be pretty hard to represent a grocery store when you aren't interested in food. It's kind of like taking a job as the head of sales for Tyson and being a vegetarian.
In other grocery store news Whole Foods exec sold stocks and made 1.4 million dollars in a bad economy. This is of course after it was projected that the yuppy grocery store would lose a tremendous amount of money because of the economic hit to its clientele. I suppose no one really knows what's going on anymore.
In other much more interesting news all of this summer's rain has produced possibly the best tasting corn ever reported in the history of Emily eating corn. That may not sound that long to you, but one of my mom's friends got some of the corn too and her parents(who I think it would be pretty honest to say are MUCH older than me) said they had never tasted corn that sweet and fresh.
This morning I spent the majority of my time husking my mom's 150 ears. She always buys a lot, flash cooks them, and then we cut the kernels off so we can freeze the corn and eat it in the middle of winter. We actually experimented a little bit this year, and grated some corn for corn fritters. There are quite a few moments in life when I am seriously sad for anyone who is not PA Dutch and has never tried corn fritters.
Because of the excellence of this corn the corn fritters were like candy that melted in your mouth. I know that you might have never tried a corn fritter, but think of a pancake made of corn. Potato pancakes get corny.
We doubled this recipe to feed our family as a side.
2 Large perfect ears of corn
1 tablespoon flour
1 egg seperated
pinch of salt
oil for frying
Grate the corn. We have a fancy (or not so fancy) grater that my great grandmother had, but if you use your cheese grater just watch your knuckles. Add the corn, flour, egg yolk, and salt in a bowl. Beat the egg white till it's nice and stiff. Fold in the egg white. We fried them on a griddle, but just a frying pan with oil works too.
Be adventurous and remember food doesn't ask you to be interested in it, but you spend a lot of your time making and eating it so you might as well enjoy it.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
In other grocery store news Whole Foods exec sold stocks and made 1.4 million dollars in a bad economy. This is of course after it was projected that the yuppy grocery store would lose a tremendous amount of money because of the economic hit to its clientele. I suppose no one really knows what's going on anymore.
In other much more interesting news all of this summer's rain has produced possibly the best tasting corn ever reported in the history of Emily eating corn. That may not sound that long to you, but one of my mom's friends got some of the corn too and her parents(who I think it would be pretty honest to say are MUCH older than me) said they had never tasted corn that sweet and fresh.
This morning I spent the majority of my time husking my mom's 150 ears. She always buys a lot, flash cooks them, and then we cut the kernels off so we can freeze the corn and eat it in the middle of winter. We actually experimented a little bit this year, and grated some corn for corn fritters. There are quite a few moments in life when I am seriously sad for anyone who is not PA Dutch and has never tried corn fritters.
Because of the excellence of this corn the corn fritters were like candy that melted in your mouth. I know that you might have never tried a corn fritter, but think of a pancake made of corn. Potato pancakes get corny.
We doubled this recipe to feed our family as a side.
2 Large perfect ears of corn
1 tablespoon flour
1 egg seperated
pinch of salt
oil for frying
Grate the corn. We have a fancy (or not so fancy) grater that my great grandmother had, but if you use your cheese grater just watch your knuckles. Add the corn, flour, egg yolk, and salt in a bowl. Beat the egg white till it's nice and stiff. Fold in the egg white. We fried them on a griddle, but just a frying pan with oil works too.
Be adventurous and remember food doesn't ask you to be interested in it, but you spend a lot of your time making and eating it so you might as well enjoy it.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Friday, August 7, 2009
A more expensive burger when everyone is losing their job...brilliant!
Sometimes companies have really good ideas. When the Mars company decided to give away chocolate to 250,000 people every Friday, I cheered. I mean what do people in a poor economy need? free chocolate, of course!!!
Unfortunately for every good idea there is a bad idea. McDonalds made an Angus burger with an Angus worthy price tag of $3.99 for just the burger. Now I don't know about you but I don't go to McDs for quality food; I go when I need cheap food. If the food were good and cheap that would be a perk, but that's why I go to Wendys which is a little higher on the fast food chain in my eyes. Even Wendys is jumping on the expensive burger train unfortunately. Yesterday the Wendys execs announced that they will be launching a "premium bacon cheeseburger." When the president of Wendys was questioned about the silliness of offering expensive burgers during a recession he claimed that value was not "defined by $1 price points." I wonder how much this guys makes.
Tonight I was prepping by myself in the back of the kitchen. On nights like these I have a lot of time to think. I wish I would have had this fast food news to consider. I was busy considering what makes someone an important chef. While picking the basil leaves off the plants, my aunts, mom and I were bantering about everything and my Titi Stella brought up Julia Childs. She had just been watching on the old episodes on tv and was laughing at what a horrid cook Julia was.
I believe it was a yule log my Titi was watching Julia make. She said that she had the log and the icing and was about to frost it. Julia went to frost the yule log and half of the cake came up with the frosting. Julia went "oops" and started patting the icing back on the cake. I now know why Julia Childs holds a special place in my heart. Just ask Rob (you remember the sous chef at the country club I work at), I tend to mess things up every now and then. He tends to be the one to help me fix them which is why I say to ask him. I mean if someone like Julia can go down in food history why can't I.
So back to me thinking. There are many famous chefs. Some are famous because they are excellent cooks, some are jerks, some are fun to watch, and a few others just seem normal enough that they make you believe you can cook. I feel like Julia Childs was one of these chefs. She wasn't perfect, but she liked to cook.
My mom and I have a date on Monday to go see Julie and Julia the new movie about Julia Childs and a blogger of all things. I am actually quite excited about this. I will let you all know how amazing it is. Maybe you should stop spending your money on the premium burgers at McDonalds this week so you can save up and go see the movie to. I have a feeling it will be worth it, and your arteries will thank you.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Unfortunately for every good idea there is a bad idea. McDonalds made an Angus burger with an Angus worthy price tag of $3.99 for just the burger. Now I don't know about you but I don't go to McDs for quality food; I go when I need cheap food. If the food were good and cheap that would be a perk, but that's why I go to Wendys which is a little higher on the fast food chain in my eyes. Even Wendys is jumping on the expensive burger train unfortunately. Yesterday the Wendys execs announced that they will be launching a "premium bacon cheeseburger." When the president of Wendys was questioned about the silliness of offering expensive burgers during a recession he claimed that value was not "defined by $1 price points." I wonder how much this guys makes.
Tonight I was prepping by myself in the back of the kitchen. On nights like these I have a lot of time to think. I wish I would have had this fast food news to consider. I was busy considering what makes someone an important chef. While picking the basil leaves off the plants, my aunts, mom and I were bantering about everything and my Titi Stella brought up Julia Childs. She had just been watching on the old episodes on tv and was laughing at what a horrid cook Julia was.
I believe it was a yule log my Titi was watching Julia make. She said that she had the log and the icing and was about to frost it. Julia went to frost the yule log and half of the cake came up with the frosting. Julia went "oops" and started patting the icing back on the cake. I now know why Julia Childs holds a special place in my heart. Just ask Rob (you remember the sous chef at the country club I work at), I tend to mess things up every now and then. He tends to be the one to help me fix them which is why I say to ask him. I mean if someone like Julia can go down in food history why can't I.
So back to me thinking. There are many famous chefs. Some are famous because they are excellent cooks, some are jerks, some are fun to watch, and a few others just seem normal enough that they make you believe you can cook. I feel like Julia Childs was one of these chefs. She wasn't perfect, but she liked to cook.
My mom and I have a date on Monday to go see Julie and Julia the new movie about Julia Childs and a blogger of all things. I am actually quite excited about this. I will let you all know how amazing it is. Maybe you should stop spending your money on the premium burgers at McDonalds this week so you can save up and go see the movie to. I have a feeling it will be worth it, and your arteries will thank you.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Thursday, August 6, 2009
a fresh taste of summer all winter long
*To be sung to Mary Had a Little Lamb*
Emily grew some basil, basil, basil,
Emily grew some basil and called the Titi's (Aunt in Spanish) oer,
They brought over the oil cheese garlic and pine nuts, oil cheese garlic and pine nuts, oil cheese garlic and pine nuts,
They brought over the oil cheese garlic and pine nuts and we all made some pesto
*Bows*
If pesto had a fan club, I would be the head of it. In fact I might just make a fan club right now. If you care to join you know where to find me - I'll be by the green stuff. For those of you who are completely confused by all of this nonsense pesto is a green sauce made of basil, parsley, garlic, olive oil, Parmesan and Romano cheese, and salt. We put it all in the food processor, but you could just grind up everything by hand if you wanted to be really old school and buy a mortar and pestal.
Pesto can be eaten on pasta (angel hair is my personal favorite); it can also be eaten on fish or as a pizza sauce. The possibilities are endless and the freshness of all of the ingredients just scream summer to me. Tomorrow my dad's two sisters are coming over and we're going to pick my mom's five giant basil plants clean, make, and freeze enough pesto to last us the winter months of nothing fresh and green.
In other food news Nathan Heller of Slate Magazine decided to take on the age old question of who makes a better cup-o-joe. Heller and some of his colleagues blind taste tested McDonald's Coffee, Dunkin Donut's Coffee, and Starbucks Coffee.
Starbucks was rated the worst. Yes Starbucks failed when compared to McDonalds, so save your 5 bucks and the snotty crowd in the morning. All of the blind tasters what I(a coffee hater from way back) knew all along. Starbucks is bitter. End of story.
McDonald's cappuccino was decided by Heller and his crew as the best cappuccino. I guess the golden arches still know how to do a thing or two. Over all Dunkin won the blind taste test. My personal New England tendencies make me want to get up and cheer for the home team.
All of this blind taste testing has made me want to do one of my own. I'm much more of a tea gal, so I'm thinking it's going to have to be a tea taste test. If you have any favorite black teas let me know and maybe we'll make it part of the test. For now I need to get going and finish cleaning up the kitchen; pesto starts at 10 tomorrow morning.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Emily grew some basil, basil, basil,
Emily grew some basil and called the Titi's (Aunt in Spanish) oer,
They brought over the oil cheese garlic and pine nuts, oil cheese garlic and pine nuts, oil cheese garlic and pine nuts,
They brought over the oil cheese garlic and pine nuts and we all made some pesto
*Bows*
If pesto had a fan club, I would be the head of it. In fact I might just make a fan club right now. If you care to join you know where to find me - I'll be by the green stuff. For those of you who are completely confused by all of this nonsense pesto is a green sauce made of basil, parsley, garlic, olive oil, Parmesan and Romano cheese, and salt. We put it all in the food processor, but you could just grind up everything by hand if you wanted to be really old school and buy a mortar and pestal.
Pesto can be eaten on pasta (angel hair is my personal favorite); it can also be eaten on fish or as a pizza sauce. The possibilities are endless and the freshness of all of the ingredients just scream summer to me. Tomorrow my dad's two sisters are coming over and we're going to pick my mom's five giant basil plants clean, make, and freeze enough pesto to last us the winter months of nothing fresh and green.
In other food news Nathan Heller of Slate Magazine decided to take on the age old question of who makes a better cup-o-joe. Heller and some of his colleagues blind taste tested McDonald's Coffee, Dunkin Donut's Coffee, and Starbucks Coffee.
Starbucks was rated the worst. Yes Starbucks failed when compared to McDonalds, so save your 5 bucks and the snotty crowd in the morning. All of the blind tasters what I(a coffee hater from way back) knew all along. Starbucks is bitter. End of story.
McDonald's cappuccino was decided by Heller and his crew as the best cappuccino. I guess the golden arches still know how to do a thing or two. Over all Dunkin won the blind taste test. My personal New England tendencies make me want to get up and cheer for the home team.
All of this blind taste testing has made me want to do one of my own. I'm much more of a tea gal, so I'm thinking it's going to have to be a tea taste test. If you have any favorite black teas let me know and maybe we'll make it part of the test. For now I need to get going and finish cleaning up the kitchen; pesto starts at 10 tomorrow morning.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Dear Soapy People
Over the years I have worked with a lot of dish washers. Most of them have been very special characters that did there job well and managed to joke and make it look like it was easy. There have been a few however that have the cockiness of a well trained sous chef; there truly is nothing worse than a cocky dishwasher, because I never met a cocky dishwasher that actually did their job well. In honor of these people who fail at scrubbing pots I have constructed a letter. For those of you who have never ran into a dishwasher, other than the machine in your kitchen, imagine your machine telling you that it won't wash a dish you put in because it's tired and you'll probably know what it's like to work with one of these problem people. We can all learn from these people who stand in the back and make sure the kitchen runs smoothly and clean. The character traits that make a good worker don't change from industry to industry.
Dear Soapy People,
Your job is an important key to a kitchen, but it is not the most important. Without the food there would be no dirty dishes, pots, or pans; so without a doubt a cook is always above you and should be respected.
Sucking up to chefs is really unattractive. Do your job well and you shouldn't have to spend all of that time schmoozing. In case you just haven't figured it out yet the chefs tell you that you are doing a good job and thank you for things because they know you have the worst job in the kitchen and (if you're good) they're praying you don't have high ambitions and want to move up in the world of the kitchen, because it is always hard to replace a good dish washer.
The kitchen is a team. You may be the groundskeepers who cleans up after the game, but you are still a part of the team. If you aren't a team player you are worthless. As shocking as this sounds taking dishes back and helping the team is not done as a favor; it is your job to do what you can to help the team. This is true on the flip side; unfortunately bad dishwashers tend to need a lot of help and tend to not help. This makes you a very weak link.
Helping when someone important is watching and can pat you on the back doesn't count. The quiet efficient workers are the ones that the team would fall apart without. Reminding people how long you have been working at one place doesn't make you a stronger link either. If you've been a dishwasher at one restaurant for 5 years then you should be able to handle a night with one dishwasher down, without needing the cooks to bail you out.
My first job required me to wash all of my own dishes. I know what you do; I've done it. It really is a thankless job, so don't expect a thank you or fish for one. You cleaned the pot; good job that's what you are paid for. In this economy you are lucky to even have a job.
I know this may sound a little harsh and, if you can read, you are probably either fuming or saying that you don't do that and you are the best dishwasher ever. A good dishwasher would never say they are the best; they would be washing dishes right now.
I know I said your job was thankless, but a good dishwasher is worth more than 5 line cooks. Thank you for faithfully and without complaint cleaning off the food that people didn't want. Please don't let the bad dishwashers drag you down and tell you that you aren't appreciated, because you are and the kitchen wouldn't work without you.
***This note is dedicated to a dishwasher who lived in the intern house with me, stole my underwear from my room, got caught, and then proceeded to think the whole kitchen would fall apart if he was not there to scrub pots. On last report this dishwasher is not working there and the kitchen is still functioning. It is also dedicated to a man who called me lazy (underwear can be replaced, but insulting my work ethic is something that will never be forgiven). May both of these dishwashers live long lives as dishwashers, because according to them that is what they are best at. ***
The news is full of stories about how to not get fired, how to get a job, and how to be an indispensable worker. My advice for dishwashers and everyone, work hard even when no one is watching. The economy makes no promises, but it has worked for me so far.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
Dear Soapy People,
Your job is an important key to a kitchen, but it is not the most important. Without the food there would be no dirty dishes, pots, or pans; so without a doubt a cook is always above you and should be respected.
Sucking up to chefs is really unattractive. Do your job well and you shouldn't have to spend all of that time schmoozing. In case you just haven't figured it out yet the chefs tell you that you are doing a good job and thank you for things because they know you have the worst job in the kitchen and (if you're good) they're praying you don't have high ambitions and want to move up in the world of the kitchen, because it is always hard to replace a good dish washer.
The kitchen is a team. You may be the groundskeepers who cleans up after the game, but you are still a part of the team. If you aren't a team player you are worthless. As shocking as this sounds taking dishes back and helping the team is not done as a favor; it is your job to do what you can to help the team. This is true on the flip side; unfortunately bad dishwashers tend to need a lot of help and tend to not help. This makes you a very weak link.
Helping when someone important is watching and can pat you on the back doesn't count. The quiet efficient workers are the ones that the team would fall apart without. Reminding people how long you have been working at one place doesn't make you a stronger link either. If you've been a dishwasher at one restaurant for 5 years then you should be able to handle a night with one dishwasher down, without needing the cooks to bail you out.
My first job required me to wash all of my own dishes. I know what you do; I've done it. It really is a thankless job, so don't expect a thank you or fish for one. You cleaned the pot; good job that's what you are paid for. In this economy you are lucky to even have a job.
I know this may sound a little harsh and, if you can read, you are probably either fuming or saying that you don't do that and you are the best dishwasher ever. A good dishwasher would never say they are the best; they would be washing dishes right now.
I know I said your job was thankless, but a good dishwasher is worth more than 5 line cooks. Thank you for faithfully and without complaint cleaning off the food that people didn't want. Please don't let the bad dishwashers drag you down and tell you that you aren't appreciated, because you are and the kitchen wouldn't work without you.
***This note is dedicated to a dishwasher who lived in the intern house with me, stole my underwear from my room, got caught, and then proceeded to think the whole kitchen would fall apart if he was not there to scrub pots. On last report this dishwasher is not working there and the kitchen is still functioning. It is also dedicated to a man who called me lazy (underwear can be replaced, but insulting my work ethic is something that will never be forgiven). May both of these dishwashers live long lives as dishwashers, because according to them that is what they are best at. ***
The news is full of stories about how to not get fired, how to get a job, and how to be an indispensable worker. My advice for dishwashers and everyone, work hard even when no one is watching. The economy makes no promises, but it has worked for me so far.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
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