There is something ingrained in my genetic code that drives me to want to cook, bake, can, store, save - all manner of foods in the Fall. It makes me wonder it, at some point in our growth, our DNA became modified to prepare for Winter by harvesting, cooking, preparing and storing sustenance. I don't think it's as simple as 'it's cooler'!
It's September, which means crisp sweet and tart apples. I'm not a fan of raw apples, but boy-oh-boy do I love a good Apple Crisp or warm fresh applesauce and apple butter. As a child, I would eat apple butter by the jar - it would drive my Grandma crazy. The smell alone can bring back fond memories of goodnatured ribbing in her kitchen.
I'm excited for the Fall root vegetables to peak - I absolutely love the fresh Butternut, Hubbard and Turnips. This year I have parsnips added to the mix. Perhaps a roasted and smoky Ratatouille is in the works?
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Culinary School Almost Destroyed My Love of Cooking
In some ways, I'm going to miss culinary school.
It's not like it's a top-notch school or anything. In fact, it's a bit underwhelming, truth be told. But - there is a magic that only happens in commercial kitchens that you can't get anywhere else, and certainly not in your own kitchen.
Some of the kids were pretty great. I'm what's considered a "non-traditional" student, which basically means I've already passed through puberty twice already. This was serious business for me; not so with some of my brethren and faculty. This drove me, quite literally, batshit crazy. I went from zero to Gordon Ramsey on a bad day in about 10 minutes. That's not like me, either, and left me feeling guiltily akin to a prima donna.
I absolutely love to cook. I love everything about it. Truth be told - I love cooking a great meal as much as I do fabulous sex, sometimes more so. It's much of the same thing - building pleasure layer by layer, until everyone is satiated and sleepy. I'm a cooking slut though - I'll cook for just about anyone, and I volunteer to do the cooking whenever possible - especially if someone else will do the dishes (I hate dishes!).
Culinary school almost killed my passion for cooking though. There's a sort of allure in the alchemy of cooking, a salacity for the uncharted and zesty that draws people like me to the stainless steel and heat of a kitchen. It's genuine magic in the truest and most modern sense. I can take these dirt-covered root vegetables and this fresh baby lamb and make a meal so succulent it literally melts on your tongue. What I can't do, is convert 1/2 cup into milliliters on the fly. (This is why we have calculators!) Surely skill, passion and drive are more important? Alas, it is not so in Culinary School. I was so stressed out about the details, I couldn't enjoy the process any longer.
I've been out of culinary classes for four months, and am just now starting to enjoy it again. I will miss some of the students and staff, and I will definitely miss the energy of being in the kitchen. Maybe one of my student friends will invite me to work with them once in a great while, just for the day.
Do they have a "Take-Your-Jaded-Middle-Aged-Non-Traditional-Student-Peer-To-Work-Day"?
Cheers!
It's not like it's a top-notch school or anything. In fact, it's a bit underwhelming, truth be told. But - there is a magic that only happens in commercial kitchens that you can't get anywhere else, and certainly not in your own kitchen.
Some of the kids were pretty great. I'm what's considered a "non-traditional" student, which basically means I've already passed through puberty twice already. This was serious business for me; not so with some of my brethren and faculty. This drove me, quite literally, batshit crazy. I went from zero to Gordon Ramsey on a bad day in about 10 minutes. That's not like me, either, and left me feeling guiltily akin to a prima donna.
I absolutely love to cook. I love everything about it. Truth be told - I love cooking a great meal as much as I do fabulous sex, sometimes more so. It's much of the same thing - building pleasure layer by layer, until everyone is satiated and sleepy. I'm a cooking slut though - I'll cook for just about anyone, and I volunteer to do the cooking whenever possible - especially if someone else will do the dishes (I hate dishes!).
Culinary school almost killed my passion for cooking though. There's a sort of allure in the alchemy of cooking, a salacity for the uncharted and zesty that draws people like me to the stainless steel and heat of a kitchen. It's genuine magic in the truest and most modern sense. I can take these dirt-covered root vegetables and this fresh baby lamb and make a meal so succulent it literally melts on your tongue. What I can't do, is convert 1/2 cup into milliliters on the fly. (This is why we have calculators!) Surely skill, passion and drive are more important? Alas, it is not so in Culinary School. I was so stressed out about the details, I couldn't enjoy the process any longer.
I've been out of culinary classes for four months, and am just now starting to enjoy it again. I will miss some of the students and staff, and I will definitely miss the energy of being in the kitchen. Maybe one of my student friends will invite me to work with them once in a great while, just for the day.
Do they have a "Take-Your-Jaded-Middle-Aged-Non-Traditional-Student-Peer-To-Work-Day"?
Cheers!
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