Les Menus for the Week of August 15, 2008

One more week after this one!

Le Menu August 12, 2008

LES MOULES MARINIERE

Yes, I actually ate mussels. The revelation? They're just a delivery device for water the boiling liquid is. In this case a Chardonnay based broth. I doubt I'd order them of my own accord but they're not nasty or anything.

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LE FILET DE "TILAPIA" AUX AMANDES

LA RATATOUILLE NICOISE

Tilapia is one of those fish that even those who don't like fish, tend to like. This sauteed variation uses a buttery lemon sauce with almonds to dress it up. Next to it? Ratatouille! I could eat this all by itself with a loaf of good French bread every day, all day! Made it the same night and hubby was delighted. I definitely want to make it again soon. No, this is not the fancy prepared version from the Disney movie but I can bet it tastes just as good as what the critic sampled!

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LA CREME BRULEE

LES CIGARETTES RUSSE

Creamy creme brulee with a little cigarette cookie on the side. Luscious! I would love to have had some melted chocolate to dip those cookies into, made some crushed pistachios too. No matter, this was delicious.

Le Menu August 13, 2008
LA SALADE DE TOMATES

LA VINAIGRETTE AU BALSAMIC

No, no picture. Nothing exciting to see here. Move along.

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LE MEDAILLON DE PORC POELE

JUS A LA SAUGE

LA POMME PONT-NEUF

A nice medallion of pork with a pan sauce using sage leaves. Sage is a wonderful compliment to pork, adding just the right savory flavor. And a little goes a long way. The fries are basically steak fries that are named after a bridge in France. If you look at the fries on their side the look like little "bridges". These are cooked the same way as the pomme frites but take longer for obvious reasons.

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LES MADELEINES

Remember how I said to check behind team mates to see what they're doing? This is one of those times where I should have but didn't. And it's possible it wasn't their fault but... The molds were prepared with shortening and powdered sugar. These cookies would have tasted great except for the flavor of SHORTENING that was pronounced on them. Ah well. I'll want to try this at home one day, I just need to price molds.

LES FRAISES AU VIN ROUGE

LA GLACE A LA VANILLE

This was pretty when it was first plated. Ice cream with a warm sauce of strawberries, simple syrup, and red wine. Understanding how food stylists would have done this dish for a photo shoot fascinates me.

Le Menu August 15, 2008 (Nothing the day before because we had a field trip)

LES FONDS D'ARTICHAUTS A LA GRECQUE

Boy you waste a lot of artichokes to make this appetizer. Delicious yes, but would be very expensive. Mushrooms were apparently the original vegetable used here but carrots and other vegetables would also work. Make a day or two ahead and prepare to get rave reviews.

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LE POULET SAUTE MARENGO

LA POMME DARPHIN

The hash brown potatoes are definitely a favorite though cutting them with the mandoline is a pain. As for the Chicken Marengo, this is a dish who's history shows what ingenuity and pressure can do for someone. Talk about a mish-mash of ingredients: chicken, shrimp or crayfish, and a over easy egg on top. WHAT?!? We skipped the seafood part, and I didn't put the egg on mine. Apparently Napoleon was delighted though and the dish became famous. To me this was an early "Iron Chef" creation.

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LE PITHIVIER

The original French King cake. Puff pastry filled with the an almond paste. This would have had a little plastic figure hidden in it much like the version served in New Orleans for Mardi Gras (where do you think they got the idea). I hated to cut this one it was so pretty. Glad I did because it was delicious!

Les Menus for the Week of August 8, 2008

Lots of exciting dishes and new discoveries this week.

Le Menu August 5, 2008

LA NOIX DE SAINT JACQUES GRILLEE
LE BEURRE BLANC AU SAFRAN

Sorry folks, I still don't like scallops. Those tiny ones battered and fried are good but the big guys just have a texture issue for me. At least the person I served like it. For me, I think they're just not cooked enough for my taste. *shrugs*

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LA POITRINE DE VOLAILLE POELEE AUX CHAMPIGNONS DE PARIS
LES POMMES RISSOLEES
LES PETITES CAROTTES

This is a lovely chicken dish with a cream mushroom sauce, glazed baby carrots and the pan seared potatoes. I really enjoyed this one. Who would have thought that I'd ever eat mushrooms and like it? I know I didn't but since we use so much of them, I've had to be brave and give them a try. And darn if I don't like them. I'm not going to lie and say I like all mushrooms or would eat them raw but at least it's a start.

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LES FRAISES AU SABAYON

Sadly I didn't get to try this one. I mean I tried the one Chef Patrice demoed but time was of the essence and I only had enough time to serve the dish. It's fruit in a caramelized meringue like sauce.

Le Menu for August 6, 2008

LA SALADE CAESAR

Yes, I made Caesar salad dressing. We used pasteurized eggs and anchovies packed in oil. It was really, really good. I doubt I'd make this much at home from scratch because I don't have much use for the anchovies... yet. I can't believe that the anchovies were actually kind of tasty. We'll see where this leads.
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L’ESCALOPE DE VEAU VIENNOISE
LE GRATIN DAUPHINOIS
LES HARICOT VERTS A L'ANGLAISE

Bread veal with an elaborate sauce and garnish. We had to peel and slice lemons, top that with a half a green olive and wrap the olive with an anchovy. The sauce (hard to see in this picture) was an interesting concoction using a hard boiled egg and herbs. But it worked! Cheesy baked potatoes and string beans. I can apparently make a mean batch of cheesy baked potatoes.

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LA SALADE DE FRUITS FRAIS
LES PALMIERS
LES BISCOTTIS

Palmiers, sometimes called Elephant Ears is another dessert that is great when you have leftover puff pastry and don't want to toss it out. I have to be careful or I'll eat far too many of those darn cookies. The biscotti was easy to make (why do they charge so much for them again?) much to my friends at Combattitude and my husband but I just can't get much into them. The fruit salad is the most elegant version I've ever seen or eaten. Perfect for when you have a mess of fruit and need to do something with it before it goes bad.

Le Menu for August 7, 2008

LES GNOCCHIS A LA ROMAINE
LA SAUCE TOMATE AU FENOUIL

OK, there are 3 types of gnocchi. The one everybody knows made from potatoes, this one made using semolina, and a third using the same Pate Au Choux from the desserts I made earlier, but boiled. This version reminds me of a lasagna-like dish using polenta. We sauteed butternut squash and placed that between the layers and then made a fennel flavored sauce. Incredible. Bryan's new favorite pasta dish and most appreciated when served to my friends at Combattitude.

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LA TRUITE SAUTEE GRENOBLOISE
LES BROCCOLIS A L’ANGLAISE
LES ENDIVES BRAISEES

This time we sauteed trout and served it with braised endives and broccoli. Unfortunately this shot isn't as nice as what I served because we about ran out of the endives and broccoli. No matter, it was tasty.

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LA TARTELETTE AU CITRON MERINGUEE

I still need to work on dealing with pie dough quickly. It tasted great but getting the dough thin enough and into the form was a PAIN IN THE BUTT! The lemon curd we made is zingy which I like. Then we did a simply meringue on top. Did you know there are 3 types of meringue? French - the kind everybody makes from egg whites and sugar, Swiss which has been warmed up a bit to melt the sugar and start to cook the egg whites a touch. Italian is egg whites mixed with sugar cooked to the soft ball stage. We're talking HOT! This is the same stuff that you mix with butter and flavorings once it's cooled down to get buttercream frosting.

Le Menu August 8, 2008

LES RAVIOLIS DE CREVETTES
LA SAUCE A LA CRÈME ET BASILIC

This is the dish that made me want to buy a pasta machine. Haven't yet but I still want one. The raviolis are filled with minced shrimp and butter then dressed with creamy sauce (similar to an Alfredo) with basil. My team mate and I made pigs of ourselves on this one.

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LES OEUFS BROUILLES PORTUGAISE
LES POMMES FRITES

No, this is not a normal plating but we needed to get the techniques in somehow. The french fries are properly cooked twice. The first blanches/cooks the inside, the second crisps up the outside. Lesson learned, don't leave french fries around or people will walk by and sneak of with them! The eggs are scrambled until you get little curds and it's still a little wet. Not the way I like them but the technique to get the texture was worth learning.

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LA MERINGUE AUX FRUITS ROUGES

Take the meringue we'd piped a few days ago, cook it at low heat until they're dried out. Layer them with berries. Drizzle with a berry coulis (sauce) and whipped cream. I'd love to see this served to some little girls having a tea party. =)

Les Menus for the Week of August 1, 2008

Still catching up! It's been one busy month!

Le Menu July 29, 2008

LE FILET DE LIMANDE
LES POMMES VAPEUR
LES HARICOT VERTS A L’ANGLAISE
LES BROCCOLIS A L’ANGLAISE

More filleting of flounder. Getting much better at that. This dish did teach me one very important lesson that will serve me in my future (school and work life)...

Always check behind team members to make sure I'm satisified with the results too. The fish was yummy, the potatoes just fine, the broccoli and string beans... NOT COOKED! The team member who made them didn't bother to taste one to make sure. They just went by how long they thought it should take! I was mortified, especially since my dish had already gone out and our table was serving a visitor as well. Ugh!

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LES ECLAIRS AU CAFE

#1 I don't like the taste of coffee.

#2 I didn't make the eclairs long enough.

#3 I filled the eclairs from the wrong side.

#4 I tried to hide it by icing over the holes.

Le Menu July 30, 2008

L’ALLUMETTE AU FROMAGE

Ignore the fact that it looks like a frog, I truly enjoy working with puff pastry. We'd made the puff pastry the afternoon before and this was the first thing we made with it. It's puff pastry filled with a layer of cheesey good Mornay sauce. I'd like to try these for appetizers at a dinner party.

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LE COQ AU VIN
LES POMMES A L’ANGLAISE

And I thought the Boeuf Bourguignon was simply good! Think of this as the same thing with chicken substituted for the beef. Yummy. I would later make this at home and I don't think Bryan could have looked more delighted!

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LA MOUSSE AU CHOCOLAT EN TULIPE

I didn't work fast enough and the tulip cookies didn't mold properly around the champagne glass to get a flute shape. Still, the cookie was good and the chocolate mousse was nice. I need to work on the mousse however. It didn't feel like I got it completely right.

Le Menu July 31, 2008

LE GASPACHO ANDALOUS

This is one sexy dish. Perfect for a Summer lunch or a start to a sultry meal. I have to agree with the person who said it reminded them of a Bloody Mary in a bowl. Just alchohol free. LOL! The garnish and little croutons we made really add that extra punch to the finish. This was made recently to share with some of my friends at Combattitude. Most finished it right then and there in the studio!


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LA COTE DE PORC POELEE
LA SAUCE CHARCUTIERE
LA POMME PUREE

A nicely cooked bone in pork chop, served with a pan sauce finished with a few slivers of cornichons (non-sweet gherkins), served with the creamiest mashed potatoes ever. We used a ricer to get the potatoes nice and smooth, heavy cream that had been reduced to make it extra rich, and of course butter. WOW!

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LE MILLE FEUILLE

I present to you, the Napolean. This improperly referred to dessert isn't French at all but Italian. The name just got confused when it came here. I don't think Mom will care as long as I make plenty of them for her.


Le Menu August 1, 2008

THAI EGG ROLLS

It helps to learn these from a person who's actually from Thailand. So good. So simple. So easy to eat too many! I've made them twice more at home and look forward to making them for a party. The do freeze very well.

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LE SAUTE DE PORC AUX HARICOTS BLANC

This is not your canned pork n' beans, no siree! Savory white beans served with an incredible pork stew on top. Why do we not eat more things like this in restaurants, I just don't know. Hearty, this will be perfect as the weather starts to turn cooler.

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LA TARTE TATIN

Upside down, caramel apple pie. The perfect dessert when you have leftover puff pastry. The fact that it can be reheated just tickles me completely! There are several stories as to how this dessert came to be. One story says it came about because the cook forgot to put the bottom crust in the pan. Another story says the apple pie fell on the floor and this was the only way to salvage it. I don't care, it's just delicious. I really need to make some puff pastry to use at home soon. I recently saw a recipe that uses pears that I'm now curious to try. Oh, and Chef Somchet has a hard time pronouncing my name so she's nicknamed me "Tarte Tatin". Close enough. =)

Les Menus for the week of July 26, 2008

This was a big week. Lots of cooking, a short oral presentation of the written report we each did on an assigned spice (I had rosemary), and my first two exams... Wheeew!

Le Menu for July 22, 2008
LE POTAGE SAINT GERMAIN

OK, ignore the weird white squiggles! This is a delicious fresh pea soup that was suppose to have swirls of sour cream in it. Unfortunately no one remembered to take the sour cream out of the refrigerator until the last moment and... Well rats! It tastes fantastic, it just looks funky.

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LE BLANQUETTE DE VEAU A L'ANCIENNE

LE RIZ PILAF

This dish consists of veal, mushrooms, pearl onions served in a creamy sauce over rice pilaf. It had lots of steps but the results were phenomenal. We served it "rustic style" which means on top of the rice rather than the rice being molded like previously. I am so proud that not only did I not overcook the veal and now make a mean rice pilaf, Chef Patrice like it too. Of course I didn't have enough salt in the sauce but getting the seasoning just right is coming. =)

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LA TARTE BOURDALOUE

This pear tart is DELICIOUS and not too hard to make. The pears need to be monitored during poaching so they don't overcook and getting the bottom crust to cook completely (the dough isn't blind-baked before filling) but that's about the worst of it. Also, apparently almond flour is expensive so it's not one to waste. I will say that it looks prettier done as a large tart with 4 or 5 pear halves but the taste is just soooooooo good!

Le Menu July 23, 2008

LE BOEUF BOURGUIGNON

LE POMMES FONDANTE

LES COUGETTES TOURNEES

After making this one, I think I'll never see beef stew in the same way again. So simple in ingredients but the results are mouth watering. The only thing missing from this plate are the zucchini. Time just didn't allow and something had to go!

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L'ILE FLOTANTE AU CARAMEL

This is one of those desserts that looks straight forward but each part requires patience and care. The sauce is called Creme Anglaise (think melted vanilla ice cream). The meringues floating on top are poached in a flavored milk. The clear lines were suppose to be caramel but again, time became a problem so the original dishes that went out from my table didn't have any. Properly made, this is a stunning dish that will make you feel like a kid again. A pampered kid, but a kid none-the-less.

Le Menu July 24, 2008

LA SALADE DE TOMATE AU BASILIC
Nothing dramatic here. A simple salad of tomatoes and onions with basil used as the flavoring for the dressing. The tomatoes came from Chef Somchet's gardens which makes it special though. =)

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LA DARNE DE SAUMON GRILLEE

LA SAUCE CHORON

LA POMMES RISSOLEES

LES BROCCOLIS A L'ANGLAISE

This time we learned how to cut salmon steaks, grill and finish in the oven. And for anyone who didn't know... SALMON HAS A TON OF BONES!!! The sauce was the most complicated thing. The base was a Hollindaise, which then turned into a Bearnaise, and finally with the addition of the tomato concassee, the Choron sauce.

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LES PROFITEROLES

LA SAUCE CHOCOLAT

Take the Pate Au Choux dough and fill it with ice cream rather than pastry cream, top with chocolate sauce and nuts and you've got Profiteroles. Oh baby! Talk about trying to eat only one!

First Round of Exams Are Complete

Theory test taken, practical test taken, recipe notebook submitted and...

MY CURRENT GRADE IS...

WAIT FOR IT....

WAIT FOR IT...

93!

Oh Yeah! Oh Yeah! Oh Yeah!

Would have been higher except for a few stupid mistakes on my practical exam (the cooking one). I'll be ready for the next one though.

For now, I breathe a bit.

P.S. I haven't forgotten to post pictures, I went to do it before this post but Blogger is not letting me at the moment. Phewee!