Lessons 91-100: The End in Sight
One hundred fifty-eight days ago I stepped into kitchen 601 at ICE and learned how to hold a chef’s knife for the first time. This morning, I ma
Archive for the Life as a Culinary Student Category
Lesson 110: Graduation & Farewell
[caption id="attachment_2095" align="aligncenter" width="550" caption=" "][/caption] And so it ends. Sealed with the crowning of a toque, a farew
Lessons 81-90: From Poaching to Plating
I’ll be the first one to admit it. I’ve never met a dessert I didn’t like. From cream puffs and crepes to marshmallows and macaroons, if the
Lessons 71-80: Pastry and Patience
If I’ve learned one thing so far about pastry and baking, it’s patience. I have to admit that I was anxiously awaiting the start to Module
Lessons 60-70: Trying to Contain Myself …
In the last three weeks I have been able to cross off two major items on my never-ending culinary bucket list: learn how to make homemade pasta an
Lessons 55-59: Normandy, Alsace, Provence and Beyond …
Butter. Duck Fat. Pork fat. Olive oil. Pick your weapon. This week was a whirlwind tour of classic French cuisine. Our palettes travelled from
Lessons 50-54: Food as Art
I lay a golden slice of Pommes Anna in the upper right third of the plate. Then seven sautéed yellow beans find their place parallel to the potat
Lessons 43-49: France, Italy & China, here we come!
First and foremost, I promised an update as to how my Christmas culinary debut went. The good news? We didn’t end up at The Mandarin Palace. The
Lessons 38-42: Now we’re cookin’
My classmates and I joke that with each module we should be given a new uniform, one size larger than the previous. That way, by Module 5, we’ll
Lessons 33-37: ‘Tis the time to tournée
It seems like every week now marks a turning point in my transformation from self-taught home-cook to budding culinary professional. We’ve offic
