For an event we made some mini chicken tacos. We cut and fried mini tortilla shells and filled them with a creamy chipolte chicken salad, topped with spicy mango slaw and avocado-cilantro puree.

It is on thing to get great reviews from the customers. But when the customer is only getting three out of four tacos because the servers cannot stop snacking on them… well, I guess that is a kind of compliment, too.

^{They didn’t even have the decency to look embarrassed!}4 weeks ago

I almost never stop for lunch during the day at work. As a result, my prep person almost never stops, either. I don’t make her work through lunch. I encourage her to take a break (when I remember). She demures and just keeps working. The other day I felt guilty because I caught her furitively sneaking bites of a banana while working. So I took a couple of minutes and knocked together a quick meal for us both.

Since I was working with chicken thighs, I set a couple aside and rubbed them with salt, pepper, garlic and whole grain mustard. I grabbed some leftover asparagus from the evening before and laid them inside the thighs, along with some shredded Swiss cheese, some shredded Asiago, and a wedge of brie, and rolled them up. I seasoned with paprika and sea salt and gave it a quick sear in a skillet, then tossed it in the oven to cook through. While it cooked I boiled some rice and tossed in some diced peppers and scrounged up some pickled onions, olive tapenade and balsamic glaze. Took about 15 minutes and we had a hearty meal to sustain us through the next few hours of prep. When I brought her the plate, Dulce laughed and thanked me. She said it was very good, but she had to add some jalapenos to it. But, she puts jalapenos on everything, so… Bottom line: we both cleaned our plates.

Saturday was Mina’s birthday. She’s a member of our marketing staff and a real sweetheart. Off-handedly I said I would make a cake for her. Saturday night Erika came into the kitchen and asked me when I wanted to bring the cake up to the office. I must have had that look on my face, because she asked if I had made it. Of course not, but I told her I was working on it. Mina would be in at 9pm, she said. No problem, I said. Immediately my staff chefs and I began putting together quick cake ideas that could be ready in 1 hour. I put them to work on an expresso cake that they promptly fucked up. I was going to make them throw it out, but they promised me they could fix it. Unconvinced, I began my own cake, and the whole situation turned quickly into a chef competition “cake-off”.

For my part, I made a chocolate sponge cake that baked up in about 15 minutes, then made a Kahlua-chocolate frosting and a brandy whipped cream. I cut the sponge cake into three layers, then took a cookie cutter and cut circles into the cake layers and layered the frosting on the layers. I reassembled the layers and filled the cut circles with brandy whipped cream, then frosted the outside, finishing with dollops of whipped cream on top. While waiting for the other chefs to finish their bungled cake repair, I made some pink icing and swirled it around the plate, topped with some edible gold glitter, and for good measure set a shot glass of brandy on the side.

The other cake came out after 30 minutes, and the chefs covered it with thick chocolate ganache, layers of sliced strawberries, and more ganache. We both finished within the hour and I took the cakes up to Mina’s office. When she came in she gleedfully knocked back the shot and cut into my cake first. Her eyes rolled with decadent delight. She told me later that both cakes were completely consumed before the night was out.
1 month ago

I recently was contacted to do a dinner for a couple based on a recommendation from another client. It was the gentleman’s birthday and his wife wanted to do something with a group of friends at their home. Since they were planning to go to Spain in May I suggested a tapas-style dinner with a Spanish wine tasting class. Since he was a big fan of small batch bourbons, she asked if we could do a bourbon tasting instead. I immediately agreed, even though I had no idea how I would work it out. I built some menu choices for them to choose from, suggesting they pick five dishes. They ended up picking all nine that I suggested. I told them that would be too much food, but they said they just couldn’t decide what to eliminate. They ended up going with the menu listed below.

I got a friend of mine from work to handle the bourbon tasting. He is a bourbon fan, too, and has procured some nice bourbons for my personal use before. He got lots of information from the distributor about the different liquors he wanted to talk about, and created a nice cocktail recipe featuring one of the bourbons. He also got the distributor to give him bottles of bourbon at well cost, which was a great bargain.

Normally I would do a dinner like this myself, but I had to be at my full time job for an event. First Montessori was having a fund raising auction and I had created an artisan fresh pasta station for the event, and I really needed to be on hand to make sure it went according to plan. I have very, very few people I would trust to send on one of my personal events in my place, but I asked my chef friend Alan to go, and sent my prep princess Dulce. Alan is a good chef but he can be a little verbose at times, but I had complete confidence he could execute the event with good technique and flair, and full confidence in Dulce to support him.

The food prep was pretty easy, except for the octopus. I spent four days and 10 lbs of octopus trying to come up with a method for cooking it that would make it flavorful and tender. I tried several methods but the one I ended up using was to wash the pus and rub it with sea salt, letting it set for 30 minutes. Then I blanched it for 1 minute in boiling water to fix the color, then cooking it with wine, garlic, lemon and herbs in my pressure cooker for 15 minutes, letting it cool in the pot until all the steam had escaped (about another 15 minutes), then letting it sit overnight in the rendered juices. This produced a pulpo that was firm, yet tender and well flavored, with just the lightest taste of the sea. We sliced the arms and Alan gave them a quick sautee on site with olive oil, garlic and shallots to warm them up.

Both the birthday dinner and my Montessori pasta station were great successes. Dulce did her onsite magic and Alan threatened to steal her away to work for him and I threatened to kill him and toss him in a dumpster if he did (I’m not really worried, Dulce made it clear that she thinks Alan if funny, but she’d much rather work for me than him). The bourbon tasting was a great hit, and Daniel had to actually stay an extra 20 minutes and make several rounds of the cocktail for everyone. My follow up with the client was glowing, and she went on about how great the food was, how much they enjoyed the tasting, and how effective and professional the staff was. She even tipped them $150 (which I split evenly between Alan and Dulce).

The big deal for me was not the complexity of the menu, or even juggling the production of two events on the same night for two different clients. It was the ability to release control over a personal event and trust someone else to take it as seriously and professionally as I would. Alan did not do things exactly as I would have (based upon the photos I ordered him to take of everything), but I know he took care to present it the best he could. Partly because he is a serious professional, and partly because he appreciated the confidence I placed in him to handle this important client for me. And the client was over the moon happy with the results, which was the ultimate goal, anyway.

Tapas Dinner and Bourbon Tasting Menu

To Start Things Off:
A Unique Tasting of Small Batch Bourbons, with Tasting Notes, Histories and Details, Hosted by Mixologist Extraordinaire Daniel Scarr.
Featuring:
Evan Williams Bonded
Elijah Craig 12 year
Eagle Rare 10 year
Jailer’s Premium Tennessee Whiskey
Mellow Corn Kentucky Straight Corn Whiskey

APPETIZERS:Chorizo Pan Rustico
Medallions of grilled chorizo sausage, smoked paprika aioli and minced olive on Spanish style rustic crostini

Sauteed Shrimp Spoons
Sauteed shrimp butterflied on a seared polenta cake with saffron cream broth and diced tomatoes, served in a ceramic Asian spoon

Iberian Dates
Sweet Medjool dates stuffed with Manchego cheese and wrapped in jamon iberico and lightly seared, served with cayenne-honey mustard

MAIN ENTRÉE TAPAS DINNER:

Crispy Calamari
Fried Calamari on fennel-onion slaw with diavolo jam and whiskey cream drizzle

Lobster Taco
Succulent chunks of claw and body with tomato-jicama slaw, fresh guacamole, Spanish aioli and drizzled with blood orange vinaigrette, in a crispy corn taco shell. Served with confetti rice pilaf and fresh pea shoots

Barcelona’s Hanger Steak
Strips of marinated and grilled hanger steak with black truffle sauce and cilantro coulis

Candied Pork Belly
Orange-glazed braised pork belly medallion served atop pan-seared shredded leek and potato cake with cucumber-mint salad, drizzled with cracked black pepper vinaigrette

BBQ Beef Empanadas
Home smoked beef brisket, shredded and seasoned with spicy bbq sauce, packed in a flakey pastry shell and served with grilled tomato and zucchini salsa

Roasted Octopus Steak
Tender marinated and roasted octopus arms, sliced into small steaks with Ancho pepper sauce, mango salsa, sweet roasted plantains and chive oil

Balsamic Beef Short Ribs
Balsamic braised boneless beef short ribs atop mustard-cheese flavored stone ground grits with blanched asparagus tips and red wine reduction sauce

DESSERT:

Chocolate Caramel Bread Pudding
Morsels of rich chocolate and vanilla brioche bread baked in mini ramekins and drizzled with salted caramel sauce

Flan Tres Leche
Individual tres leche flans with white chocolate and raspberry sauce 1 month ago

I had a couple of duck breasts left over from a recent dinner party I was contracted to do. I had marinated the breasts in coca-cola and seared them and stuffed them with a blend of herbs, dried cherries and minced cashews. Two that I didn’t use I left in the marinade and put back in the cooler. A few days later I took them out, convinced I’d be throwing them away. But they smelled okay and the texture was okay. I took them out, rinsed them off, scored the skin, seasoned with salt and pepper and put them in a skillet over a low flame to render the skin and fat down. Then I seared the meat side, cooled the breasts again and retained the rendered fat from the skillet. I took the breasts home and brushed the skin with agave syrup and molasses and put them in the oven.

I boiled some toasted buckwheat, sauteed some onions, garlic and capers and mixed the finished buckwheat with it to make a pilaf. I stirred in a spoonful of basil pesto to bump up the flavor a little. I braised some brussels sprouts in vegetable stock and two spoonfuls of mango and chili pickle. I’ve been trying to use this as a condiment but the mangos (which must have been green when they went in, and still have the skins!) are too hard and overall the pickle is too spicy and sour. I sliced the very last of our garden tomatoes, sprinkling them with chardonnay vinegar and Australian sea-salt, blanched a couple of our garden carrots, and added a small bite of a buffalo blue cheese I bought at Whole Foods.

I took the rendered duck fat, some butter, and some black garlic and heated it up until the butter was melted and the garlic softened. I added some cream and let it reduce by about 1/4 then pureed it, giving it just a little salt. Then I sliced the duck, which I had cooked to medium (it had been in the fridge for over a week at this point, after all) and layed the slices over the buckwheat and topped with the sauce. I poured a small amount of 10 year-old Graham’s Tawney Port as an appertif, and enjoyed that instead of a red wine (I also had a big ol’ glass of water).

S. won’t eat duck or brussel sprouts, so she got grilled salmon and sauteed spinach.

The dinner was very good, with lots of varying textures. The duck had lost a good deal of its normal redness from being in the marinade so long, but was still flavorful, sweet, and amazingly tender. The buckwheat was soft but still had texture, and the brussels sprouts were just a little spicy, and very enjoyable. The only thing was the meal was very… brownish. Could have used a nice shot of bright green, maybe asparagus or broccoli or blanched spinach, to contrast the carrots, tomatoes and duck.

I never made a buckwheat pilaf before, so I was happy it turned out so well on the first try. I’m trying to add odd and ancient grains to my diet more often. Buckwheat is actually a fruit-seed and it is gluten free and low on the glycemic index. It is a good source of fiber, copper, manganese and magnesium. It is supposed to help with blood circulation, lower LDL cholesterol, and regulate blood pressure. Buckwheat can be eaten toasted, or the raw seeds can be sprouted and used in salads. 7 months ago

I’ve been playing around with various “ancient” grains, and last night I made a dish using freekeh, which is roasted green grains. The food-rumor says it is a Middle Eastern ingredient that goes back 5,000 years. Basically grains, typically wheat but not always, are harvested while still green, dried and the outer chaf is toasted or burned away, leaving the moister green grain roasted. It undergoes another drying process and the result is that the grain is preserved with most of its nutritional values intact. Freekeh is currently counted in the new crop of superfoods for it’s high nutritional values, high fiber, high vegetable protien (on a scale with quinoa), and a low glycemic index. It is easy to cook, just boil like farro, quinoa or buckwheat. It takes longer and about a 4:1 water ratio like other cereal grains. Because of the nature of the gluten in the green wheat grains, and the process of roasting, freekeh is better tolerated by people who have gluten allergies.

I seared some scallops I had on hand, blanched and sauteed some broccoli and chantrelle mushrooms, and made an herbed white wine sauce and put them atop the freekeh, which I had seasoned with coriander, cumin, cardamom, onion, garlic, and some soaked hemp seeds I had left over from another project. The freekeh had a relatively neutral, slightly nutty, flavor and a chewy texture that was not gummy. I liked it and will use it again in different ways. I want to make more side dishes and salads with it, and see how it works as part of a veggie burger or maybe even ground for flour. 7 months ago

Our friend Linda came over on Friday night. We haven’t seen her in a long time, and she admits she is just now begining to poke her head out after a couple of years of baby-induced isolation. We’d planned just a little get together, to let her finally see our house, to catch up, and to enjoy a nice meal. Dinner was pretty simple, and took me about two hours to put together. I did all the main work before she arrived so we could concentrate of socializing as I finished a little sauteeing. Then we were able to sit down and enjoy good food and good company.

I started with a Kabocha Squash Bisque, drizzled with Sage Oil. I like using kabocha over butternut squash for a couple of reasons. The flesh, once roasted, seem smoother and finer to me. It purees perfectly. It is also less sweet and has a richer, nuttier flavor. It takes flavors like curry and chili and melds wonderfully. I made this bisque with just a little butter, cream, coriander, cayenne, and rice wine vinegar. The sage oil was just crushed sage leaves seeped in warmed olive oil until infused.

Our next course was a miso/sake glazed ahi tuna, seared and sliced over a roll of sushi rice, with a pile of wakame seaweed salad and honey-chili avocado relish. The relish was super simple: I diced some avocado, sprinkled with a touch of salt, and drizzled a blend of honey and chili powder, then tossed. Because of its nature, honey will prevent an avocado from oxidizing the same as lemon juice, and it provides a great alternative flavor. For fun and flourish I added a rambutan(that spiny-looking thing) to each plate. The fruit was a nice palate cleanser after the dish.

After that I finished off the sushi grade grilled salmon, dusted with cumin, coriander, chili powder and garlic, and set it atop the creamed leeks, celeriac, and red onions. I usually match celeriac up with salmon these days, and generally it is pureed, as with mashed potatoes. But this time I shredded it and creamed it with the leeks and onions. The results were very pleasing. I topped the salmon with a spoonfull of heirloom tomato/dijon mustard salsa spiked with a little white balsamic vinegar.

All of that would probably have been enough, but I went one dish farther and did a red wine/balsamic braised short rib (I used a piece of chuck flap, which works excellently for braising). I sliced some king trumpet mushrooms and braised them in the beef’s liquid for about 20 minutes, then reduced and strained the braising liquid to make a sauce. I oven roasted tiny tri-color potatoes with oil, garlic, and smoked salt, and sauteed a bunch of red swiss chard. The meat came out fork tender, the potatoes were perfect, the chard provided a nice bitter bite back against the somewhat sweet sauce, and the mushrooms added a beefy complement to the short ribs. Of course the beef and sauce were very dark, as were the mushrooms and the chard. Not the best photo, but it tasted darn good, for sure.

We retired to the living room for more catching up and dessert. A simple yet flavorful Caramel Vanilla Creme Panna Cotta, with Caramelized Seckle Pear and an Amarena Cherry. I made the caramel sauce for the bottom of the dish, and let it set up in the fridge, but bein impatient I added the panna cotta too soon and it melted and combined. Still, very good. A little too stiff, however. I cut back the gelatin quantity by 1/3 from the recomended amount, because I was making the panna cotta with 36% heavy cream. It was still a bit too much, since the panna cotta was not as smooth and spoonable as I wanted. Flavors were all there, anyway. 8 months ago

One challenge I will have in the new job is letting go of some tasks and training/trusting others with doing them. I made some deeeee-licious candied popcorn the other day. It is a task that requires very little skill, but a great deal of attention. I considered handing over to one of my “exeperienced” event chefs, but they always scare me a little with their mercernary nature. They all – all – brag on their levels of skill and talent, and some are very talented. But the fact is, they are all hired guns, and they don’t all shoot straight. And Lord help ‘em if they have to innovate or substitute.

Caramel candy popcorn is easy: Pop your corn in a big kettle, caramelize some sugar, pour it over the popcorn, let it cool, break it apart. All very basic culinary steps. But you have to pay attention so that you don’t burn the popcorn (I’m amazed how many chefs cannot pop a kettle of popcorn on the stove without turning the kernels on the bottom to a charred ruin). You have to pay attention that you don’t burn your caramel sauce. Either item, once scorched, cannot have that burnt flavor teased out. You have to make sure you’ve mis en placed all your tools and gear when pouring the caramel over the popcorn, and to make sure you don’t get 320 degree sugar on your arms or hands. Oh, and you have to work quickly, something else event chefs are famous for not doing.

The batch I made came out super. I began experimenting with the next batch by adding food coloring to the sugar mix and pulling it at the hard-crack stage before pouring it over the popcorn. This gave me a range of green, orange, and lavendar-shaded candied popcorn (I have a daily discipline to act outside the box, to be creative and pursue unconventional solutions). Doing this project, I relied on both my instincts and my training/experience. I can instruct people on the techniques, what to look for and what to watch out for. I don’t know how to push that button of inspiration on others to get them to think and act outside the box. Most people are frightened at the idea of trying something that they don’t know will work. I was able to get some degree of chance-taking with my previous staff by giving them range to make mistakes and learn. They would suggest things and try things, knowing that even if it were a total cock-up, I wouldn’t flip out (as long as they could justify the process).

The guys I deal with now are endlessly telling me what they have done here, done there, done in the past, seen done by someone else. What I keep asking (and what I fail to get useable responses to) is “What have you never done? What have you thought, but not done?” I know it is possible to “share your vision” and be an inspiration to get people to think in creative ways. Steve Jobs, George Lucas, Oprah Winfrey, and many others are masters at this. It is a skill I have to train myself in first. Because the day will come where I won’t have an hour or two to knock out a batch of perfect caramel popcorn, and I will have to trust someone to prepare food with the same care and attention to detail that I have, and to go beyond what I ask and be amazingly creative.

I do make some killer caramel popcorn, though. And in colors! 8 months ago

My interview tasting went very well, with lots of rave reviews from my potential workmates and bosses about my talent and creativity. Some fair criticisms, but nothing to derail what appears to be very positive progress. Out of 10 candidates interviewed I am the only one they have invited to do a tasting. Tomorrow I have to meet with one of the owners. He is going to drill me about cost control and budgeting but my ace in the hole is that I know what he wants to ask me and I’m ready with examples, paperwork, analysis, etc…

The tasting itself was more rushed than I wanted it to be. I was doing most of the prep in my current workplace kitchen and we were getting close to being done when the county health inspector showed up. That brought the GM and Ops Manager out of the woodwork and I had to drop what I was doing and deal with this. My kitchen got a clean review without a single mark against it. And she was looking, too. She tried to catch me in several questions but I’z knowz my shit, lady. Then, of course, she went to the ice machine used and maintained by the servers and found mold along the edge of a plastic fitting. Two colors. Dammit all to hell and may every server everywhere spontaneously combust and be consumed and rid us of their useless selves. We lost 4 points over that alone, and had to empty the ice machine, sanatize and bleach it, all of which I had to direct because no one had the vaguest idea how to properly clean the equipement they use. Dammit all to hell. We lost another 4 points because we have to store our dishes and food service ware in a room that was never meant to be used for such storage but that is what we have to use because that is the only space in the building we can utilize.

Once all that madness was out of the way Dolores and I finished prepping and loaded up in my Jeep and raced 40 feet into downtown going-home traffic, where it took us 45 minutes to go 4.3 miles. I was now about 90 minutes behind schedule. We rushed and set up and I made the 7:30 start time, and Dolores and I rocked out the plates and I explained to the sales staff and owners what each dish was and how it fit into the thematic description of dishes they asked me to prepare. Afterward we had a long, positive conversation that makes me think with great certainty that I will be the chef they choose for this postion. I certainly hope so, with great anticipation.

In all the rush I took no pictures of the food. I took a picture of Dolores and the kitchen space we have to work in, which is a frightful mess. Thank God the health inspector didn’t drop in on this joint. If (when) I get the job, my first week is going to be spent deep cleaning the place and getting it up to where it needs to be in functionality and cleanliness status.

Here is the menu I prepared for them:

Balsamic Glazed Fig and Chorizo Sausage Skewers

Chicken Oaxaca, Black Bean and Mango Salsa, Cilantro Sour Cream, Spinach Tortilla Bite (a little like a pinwheel roll)

Spaghetti and Meatball with Basil Pesto and Parmesan (This was done on a skewer and was actually a meatball topped by spaghetti, marinara and pesto. They loved the concept)

Heirloom Tomato Tartare With Tomato Basil Water Vinaigrette and Caramelized Shallot and Pea Sprouts

Fried Goat Cheese Croutons, Roasted Root Veg Medley, Pine Nuts, Lemon Oregano Dressing

Firecracker Shrimp Atop Pineapple-Asparagus Salad and Phyllo Wrapped Cream Cheese Pillow

Fried Chicken and Almond Butter Pancakes with Coffee/Maple Syrup (My take on Chicken and Waffles)

Buffalo Mozzarella Burger on Toasted Brioche with Grilled Tomato, Lettuce and Herbed Aioli (So many menus claim to have buffalo mozzarella, when what they really have is regular mozzarella, I decided to make some bison burgers with mozzarella. Then they could be authentically called “buffalo mozzarella burgers.)

Coca Cola BBQ Spare Ribs on Barley Risotto with Braised Brussels Sprouts (On salesperson said brussels sprouts were her new favorite vegetable after trying mine)

Orange-Mint Ricotta Cream Dessert Shot with Candied Fig and Balsamic Raspberries

Chocolate Truffle-Stuffed Cake Pop

Peach and Pecan Crisper Tart

I’m certainly glad everything went well, even if it didn’t go perfect. If I can get the job with things going 80% right and only 20% wrong, that is a balance I can live with. 9 months ago

^{” I couldn’t shut off my email tonight without sending you both a note.}

What a wonderful party!!! A million thanks – you both were sooo great – the food and wine so amazing.

Everyone has called or texted today raving about the food and experience. Best party.

Thank you for your patience and efforts with D. and myself – it was worth every extra confirmation of detail b/c it was perfect. Thank you!!!

B.A.”

That was the email I received Sunday night after our Saturday dinner party. Clearly, the party last weekend was a great success. Every dish came off almost exactly a I planned, the plate-up and execution was smooth and easy. I had to give one of my hired servers a little grief for showing up wearing a tank top that displayed her numerous tattoos, but other than that the servers did a great job. I don’t mind tattoos, I kinda like a chick with tats, but work is work and really, talking with the host while displaying your inked bosom is not the kind of professionalism I’m going for here.

The wine tasting portion was great,too. John did an excellent job of choosing the wines and giving the background. I was able to use my work kitchen for prep which made things 100X easier than doing it out of my own kitchen. I paid two of my prep staff to help me get things ready, which eased the labor load considerably, and then I took two of them with me to the party. They did a great job and were worth every penny of the above grade pay I gave them.

I even had time to snap some food photos, albeit with my iphone. I couldn’t find the SanDisk for my wife’s camera, which works only a little better for indoor photography. Using the flash has always provided poor pictures. There’s not a lot of fine detail in the images below, but maybe you can get the idea. Last week I broke down and bought a Cannon Power Shot A4000IS which seemed from the info and the reviews to be the camera best suited to what I am trying to do from a general photography situation. I used it at Dragon Con this weekend and I’m taking it on our cruise to really work it out and learn how to use it. Hopefully I can build a portfolio of better-looking images.

They loved the dinner so much they have booked me again (with another wine sommelier) to do a repeat dinner in November. By then I want to have the adminstration and promotions end of things much more organized and ready. I’m getting The Square so I don’t have to bother with checks anymore, and I have some other ideas that are going to take time to organize, visualize, layout and print in brochure form.

For a reminder of the menu, go here9 months ago

The people I did the holiday dinner for in December have asked me to do a special dinner for the wife’s birthday, which I’m going to do this Saturday. With practically no guidelines I sent her a menu, and she called me and we reformatted the whole thing into a seven-course tapas style dinner and wine tasting for 20+ people. I have my sommelier-friend John coming to explain 5 different kinds of wines and to entertain the guests with ancedotes and stories about the wines, the vineyards, and his travels through Europe drinking wine. I’m engaging two servers from a servce I use and two of my prep ladies from my job are going to help with the kitchen cooking and plate-up. I’m far more organized this time than last (at least so far!) and last time was a great success. I’m not looking at making as much money from the event this time as I did last time, but that is okay given the opportunity to be exposed to some of their guests and to keep in contact with the hosts.

• Local Grilled Peach Tart with French Chantilly
• Savory Sage and Sundried Tomato Cheesecake Bite on Spiced Flatbread
  (Wines: Henri Giraud or Billecart-Salmon Champagne France, 2011 Spottswoode Sauvignon Blanc Napa)

• Cardamom Dusted Mango Lhassi Shooter
• Baked BBQ Pulled Pork Spring Roll with Firecracker Coleslaw and Candied Peach Bite
• Brandy Braised Stuffed Chicken Thigh with Dried Figs and Apples and Blackberry/Maple Glaze
  (Wine: 2007 Felsina Fontalloro, Tuscany)

• Champagne Poached Lobster Claw and Body on a Bed of Fresh Frisse Lettuce, Heart of Palm, Roasted Red Pepper and Mango Slaw with Tarragon Citrus Vinaigrette
  (Wine: 2007 Paul Hobbs Chardonnay, Russian River Valley)

• Chimichurri-Rubbed Flat Iron Steak, Asiago Potato Croquettes, Wilted Spinach, Roasted Red Pepper Coulis
  (Wine: 2007 Keenan Cabernet Sauvignon, Spring Mountain, Napa)

• Sesame-Seared Sashimi Salmon on a Phyllo-Wrapped Cream Cheese Pillow, Orange-Glazed Asparagus, Celeriac Puree
  (Wine: 2009 Sotor Pinot Noir, Mineral Springs, Oregon)

• Assorted Chocolate Truffle-Cake Pops

Hopefully some nice pictures the night of the dinner! 10 months ago

A friend of mine got married on Sunday. She had asked me some weeks ago if I would do the food for her reception and of course I said yes. She is a raw-vegan and she wanted her food values to be observed on her special day. I was very touched that she would choose me, even though she knows I am not primarily a raw chef. She said she knew my food would be delicious and more importantly, the food I would make would be accessible to friends and family who were not die-hard raw/vegans. The wedding would be in her parent’s backyard, and many family members were coming from Belgium for the event.

We met to breifly go over the menu details, and she was willing to bend on some dishes per her mother’s request: She wanted some simple spreads like hummus and baba ganoush, a couple of garden salads, a spicy gatzpacho, fruit salad, and a raw dessert. She asked me for something special and I said, in great, staggered, words: “I can make a platter of…raw…vegan…sushi.” At this her eyes lit up and she said she liked that idea a lot. “Have you made that before?” she asked. “Why…yes…many…many…times. It…is…awesome.” We settled on the menu and I broke it to her that somethings were not going to be strictly organic and the baba ganoush would not be raw and that not everything would come from the Morningside Farmer’s Market like she had envisioned. But it would all be nut and soy-free and vegan. Then I went of to figure out how the hell I was going to create raw vegan sushi.

Turns out, you make it a lot like you do regular sushi. I found some raw (untoasted) seaweed sheets. I shredded a bunch of vegetables including jicama, peppers, carrots, red cabbage, radish sprouts, avocado, sprite melon, and cilantro. I found some wasabi powder at the Buford Farmer’s Market and blended it with water to make wasabi paste. I bought some raw nama shoyu for anyone who wanted to dip their rolls in a sauce. I “riced” some parsnips in the food processor until I had little kernels which I tossed with rice wine vingegar and agave syrup. That gave it flavor and a bit of cling. I spread the parsnip “rice” onto the sheets of seaweed, smeared with a bit of wasabi paste, added bunches of vegetables down the middle depending upon the style of roll I was creating, sprinkled some raw sesame seeds, rolled them tightly and sliced. The rolls held together very well and were a great hit. I could not make the “inside-out” rolls like I had wanted because the parsnip did not hold together sufficiently for that. But people were eating the rolls as fast as I could make them, vegans and carnies alike.

Every dish came out very well, even the gatzpacho which I thought was going to be too spicy. I threw away the bottle of hot sauce I used because it was just too spicy to use in anything without making it too burning hot. But for many people that was their favorite part. They would come to me and say how layered the flavors were, and how delicate the play of sweet and tart and spicy. Everyone loved the hummus and baba ganoush and scraped the bowls clean with the raw chips and vegetables. They cleaned out the salads and I got lots of compliments on the raw/vegan cilantro dressing I made, and on the heirloom tomato/onion/caperberry salad. Except for the fruit, which I cut up a lot of because I thought people would pile it on during such a hot day, there were no leftovers. Everything was eaten and everyone was happy. The bride and groom told me everything was wonderful and they were delighted how smoothly the whole day had gone. One cake was a frozen, raw banana-carob pie, and the wedding cake was a nod to her Belgium roots: A traditional-style layered cake with light, whipped cream frosting, provided by her parents. Later, after the reception was winding down, her father took me aside and had me sample some of the Belgian ale he had homebrewed for the occasion. It was damned awesome ale, and he gave me lessons in the proper pouring. I was going American-style, with a finger’s breadth of foam on top. He re-poured it into the pilsner glass until easily 1/3 of the beer was foamy head. Makes me want to drag out my own homebrewing supplies and cook up a batch.

My friend looked lovely in her wedding dress, and very serene. Her mom said she had been freaking out earlier and was very stressed but when I saw her she was smiling, relaxed and happy. She’s not the kind to take “happy pills” even on her wedding day. Maybe she smoked a little sumpin-sumpin, I don’t know if raw vegans do that. But she smiled and gave me hug before going off to be betrothed… barefooted, of course, raw/vegan values intact. 10 months ago

Last Saturday we executed a sit-down 3-course dinner for 250 where I work. This was not a huge chore except for 3 things: The client decided at the last minute to change the dinner from a buffet to a sit-down; the budget was adapted but not significantly, giving us very little money to work with; it was the first large event I would oversee and in the wake of the previous chef’s reign there was a lot of concern over how it would go.

I kept the menu KISS simple with a mixed green salad with dried cranberries, candied almonds, house croutons, a slice of poppy-seed crusted goat cheese, and a home-made raspberry vinaigrette. Followed by the entree which was a spinach and roasted red pepper stuffed airline chicken breast, saffron mashed potatoes, vegetable medley, and lemon-garlic cream sauce. The menu finished with cheese cake topped with mixed berries. We also made some vegetable napoleons for anyone wanting a vegetarian alternative. Very simple, very direct, very cost effective.

I had to do a tasting for the event cooridinator who has been very reluctant to do these kinds of dinners because of the elaborate production they would become under L’s management. Too many components, too much fru-fru foods, too much staging. She didn’t like the huge production these dinners would become because she felt it allowed too much room for mistakes. Realizing this, I presented her with a simple menu and did a tasting for her, which she loved. Even though my staff had worked pretty hard during the week, I had them come in to handle the plate-up because I knew we would handle it better than brining in some temps or other staff less familiar with what I was doing. It didn’t help that we had another breakfast/lunch buffet for 250 people that same day, but we got through it and the dinner went off without a single hitch. That has been very rare at this location, to have a hitch-free event. But we did it. I was even able to cut the staff early so they could have as much of Saturday evening free as possible.

L was in the kitchen, working on another event. He’s not really supposed to be in the kitchen, having been banished from the premises, but he had prep that needed to be done. He was constantly over my shoulder, shaking his head and smirking and rolling his eyes. Despite all the praise and compliments we got from the diners and organizers, he didn’t have one good thing to say about the evening. That came as no surprise.

Monday the organizer came to me and said how well everything went and that the customer was very happy with everything, especally the food. They said they would book our facility again next year for their annual event. She was delighted and clearly relieved. She asked me to create some sit-down dinner menu options that she could sell, now that she had more confidence that we could pull it off successfully. That was a huge coup for us and a nice step forward in repairing the relationship between our company and our client.

Yes, there were somethings I was unhappy with… To safe money I bought some berries from a vendor who could deliver them quickly and cheapy. Half of them were over ripe and not suitable for putting on the plate. I ended up turning them into a sauce and blending them with the good berries to rescue the dessert, and actually improve it. I wanted BD to take a more active and leadership role in dealing with the hot food, instead he complained and wanted to play the victim when things weren’t going perfectly. He wanted to take short-cuts not because it would actually safe time but because he was afraid he’d be stuck doing some mundane task. He used way too much turmeric for the potatoes, cutting back on the saffron, when I had said use a lot of saffron in the cream and butter and a little turmeric in the water for the potatoes. I think he was just being chintzy with the saffron, whining that “a little goes a long way and they won’t appreciate it anyway”. Instead we ended up with bright yellow potatoes that definitely tasted of turmeric and not as much of saffron. Still, this is a good thing, since it allows me to identify weaknesses and problems in our team that need to be addressed, gently or forcefully.

Everyone else performed terrifically and it was by far one of the smoothest and most organized dinners we have executed since we have been there. With that I am pleased. 14 months ago

My friend Calvin invited me to participate in an “Iron Chef” style themed-menu cook-off with him over the weekend. He was a little sparse on the details except to say that there would be about 20 guests at a dinner party for one of his clients. The theme was “food and the movies” and the idea was for each of us to present a menu where each dish reflected the theme of a certain movie. I whipped up a menu and sent it over to him, certain he would send it back with budgetary restrictions, but he didn’t. He said it looked good, and that cost wasn’t really a concern with this party. The host would pay whatever was necessary to get a top-notch dinner.

I’d put in a lot of hours at work for the week and asked Calvin to pick up most of the menu food for the evening. He’d said we’d have a couple of guys to help us prep things, and I assumed we’d be working out of the clubhouse kitchen since the host lived in a country club community. Some stuff I had to pick up myself on Friday because I wanted to cook and roast it overnight. I got all the ingredients, but then life and wife intervened and I didn’t get anything done on Friday night.

I got up around 4 am Saturday and began cooking my meats and smoking sugar plums for a sauce. That and a few other things kept me busy until it was time to go to the Spartan Race in Conyers. I pulled all the meats and let them chill while I went and ran the race. The race took longer than I planned and I had to rush back home, hop in the shower, scub off the mud and blood, get dressed and pack all the food. I high-tailed it over to the address Calvin gave me and found out we were not cooking at a clubhouse, but at someone’s home. I arrived a half hour late, but got right to work. The help Calvin suggested was coming never came and I had to do everything by myself. I worked on a tiny space on the counter top and Calvin and I had to share stovetop space. I finished up the components of my four dishes just as the guests were sitting down.

Calvin and I took turns taking out our dishes and explaining the plates and their connections to the movies. Calvin did a clam linguini inspired by “The Little Mermaid”, a grits and short-rib dish via “My Cousin Vinny”, a shrimp trio on cedar plank hommage to “Forrest Gump”, and a Royale with Cheese burger with vanilla shake ala “Pulp Fiction”.

My dishes were: “From Russia With Love” which had a potato hash tower wrapped with smoked salmon and topped with salmon roe, frisee salad, vodka cream sauce and borscht vinaigrette; “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” with a saffron-poached tiger shrimp crouching over a tamarind-glazed slice of bbq’d eel on a bed of green tea tapioca pearls, honey braised carrots, smoked plum sauce and lime chili pickle; “One Upon A Time In Mexico” with chipolte roasted pork tamale, adobo salsa, “riced” jicama and stewed tomatillo; and “Spaghetti Western” with BBQ chuck roast, BBQ marinara, calico baked beans, fresh fettuccini noodles and piavi cheese.

The guests scored us on presentation, taste, and tie-in to the movie. Calvin ended up winning but I didn’t care, it was his party and his guests and it was all in fun anyway. I got reimbursed for my expenses and a nice little wad of cash for helping him out. We cooked and plated and ran food and cleaned and packed up and it was 1am before I left their house and headed home. I had to unpack and unload it was after 2am by the time I was able to go to bed.

Everyone had a great time and we got lots of compliments and handshakes and back-pats on the food and the originality of our concepts. It certainly was fun to do and I always learn something while doing these kinds of gigs(ie, you can never be too organized!). Hopefully we will get to do something fun like this in the future. 15 months ago

Breakfast today was a banana and herbal tea. For lunch and mid afternoon break I had green juice comprised of celery, cucumber, kale, parsley, carrots, lemon, ginger and apples. Drank about 3 quarts of water through the day.

In keeping with my goal to go higher in protein during at least one meal, I prepared one of my personal favorites: Steak Tartare. I’ve been off red meat almost completely for several months, but I decided this was a good way to kick off a powerful protein diet. I made a small salad of tomatoes and cucumbers with a lemon vinaigrette to start with. Then I finely chopped some garlic, parsley and red onions, mashed a little bit of anchovy I found in the very back of the fridge, bowled up some roasted tomatoes and Worchestershire sauce, sauteed some mushrooms, and daubed a little whole grain dijon mustard on a plate. From the store I bought some top round sirloin, very lean. I seasoned around 6 ounces with a little sea salt and stuck it in the freezer for about 10 minutes. I diced the very cold and firm meat into cubes and ran it through my meat grinder on a medium grind setting (I know the purists want to finely chop the meat by hand, but I went the grinding route, sue me). I formed the ground meat into a thick patty and pressed a well in the center. Into the well I laid an organic egg yolk. It made for a very pretty plate, I thought. After the salad I sprinkled the various condiments onto the patty and the yolk and used my fork to fold over the raw ground meat until everything was well combined. It tasted awesome, and pretty gourmet for workout fuel.

Not something I’d do very often. I still want to make red meat a rarity in my diet. But nothing wrong in being a little decadent in the pursuit of health and fitness. 16 months ago

Even though we were both pretty busy last week with work and school, S. and I carved out some hours on Tuesday to celebrate Valentine’s Day together. I did what I do best: cook; and she did what she does best: set the mood for romance.

While she set the stage upstairs I worked in the kitchen and in less than an hour made up a tasty ahi tuna and strawberry salad with heart of palm and zesty orange vinaigrette, her favorite honey-glazed smoked salmon with white lentils and asparagus sauteed in more orange vinaigrette with a kumquat relish on top, and chocolate-dipped strawberries paired with Rose Regale sparkling wine. Originally I was going to make creme brulees, but time escaped me.

The only thing I’d change would be using brown sugar to make the relish. It caused the bright orange kumquats to darken too much. They still tasted great, but I really wanted that splash of color to offset the green asparagus. 16 months ago

Just before Christmas, I volunteered to Hosea Feed The Hungry for the annual Holiday Dinner they do for homeless and displaced families. Staff and volunteers gave out crates and crates of wrapped gifts for the children and there were other services offers such as haircuts, clothing, and medical assistance. I worked in the kitchen, making pans and pans of vegetables, potatoes, ham and turkey. When all was said and done a few turkeys (donated by Publix) were left over. The head chef running the operation gave them away to the chefs who volunteered and I took one, not knowing what I’d do with it since we were having no family gatherings. I had in my mind to cook it up proper with stuffing and the like and deliver it, Ebenezer Scrooge-style, to some unsuspecting but completely worthy family or friends. If nothing else, it was a chance to do something experimental with some food.

But what? Roasting is passe, deep frying common… I’ve done turkey so many ways it is almost boring. But there it was, laying all plastic wrapped and ripening in my fridge, waiting for some inspiration.

Christmas Eve morning I pulled the bird out. I removed the neck and gibblets and wings tips. I broke the rest of the bird down and put the tips, neck and back in a stock pot with some vegetables, spices, wine, and water and brought to a boil, then let simmer for about four hours. The rest of the bird I layered with salt and let set in the fridge for a couple of hours. I put garlic and vegetables and spices in the slow cooker. I piled the legs, wings, and liver into the cooker and filled the pot with every ounce of oil I had in the house. I let it slow cook for about 10 hours on a low heat. I cleaned up the breasts and packed them in the smoker and layered in chips of oak and cherry wood and let it smoke over very low heat for about an hour.

Strained the stock and reduced it from about 2 gallons to one quart. Chilled and wrapped the breasts with applewood smoked bacon and put them in the fridge. I took the crock out of the slow cooker and let it cool down then covered it and put it in the fridge, too.

I worked half a day on Christmas, and S. worked a full day. When I got home I called a couple we haven’t spent a lot of time with and invited them over. It was a toss-up wether or not they would come, but they seemed pleased and excited by the invitiation. S. was not excited about the idea when she got home, but agreed to be a pleasant hostess.

Before they came over I pulled out all the turkey parts. I made a quick gravy from the stock. I warmed the confit legs and wings and pulled them out of the oil. I separated the oil and garlic from the veg and put it in containers and back in the fridge. I put the legs, wings, and bacon-wrapped breasts in the oven at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes, until the bacon was crisp and the skin of the turkey legs was golden brown. I made a butternut squash and porcini risotto from soup I had left over and steamed some broccoli florets because it was the one fresh vegetable I had on hand. I made a quick salad and a pomegranate sorbet. I was moving everything but the risotto into the warmer when our friends arrived with two bottles of wine and gifts for each of us. We felt a bit embarrassed since we had not gotten them any gifts, and S. gave me a look that said “they wouldn’t know we hadn’t gotten them gifts if you hadn’t invited them over, Ass”. Fortunately I am a man of many resources. I rounded up a gift I was going to give to someone else, but never got around to seeing and gave it to him. To her I gave a Living Social deal for an activity I figured she’d like. I got it for us, but c’est la vie, et l’amities.

I opened the wine and we sipped and talked and caught up in a kind of stilted, stumbling way. I had to finish things in the kitchen and she wanted to see what I was cooking, and to help if she could. He was content to talk with S. since they have similar work interests. I showed her how to finish the risotto with butter and parmesan cheese. I got the meats all ready while she set the table and bowled the salad. The plates were really simple since S. had not eaten all day and made it clear that getting this dinner underway was a priority. Everyone got to sample a bit of everything, which was the risotto, the breast, the confit, and the boccoli. I asked who wanted the liver and received a chorus of rejection, so I took it all myself. It wasn’t a pretty plate, and I had to snap a photo with my phone on the fly as we all sat down. He raised his wine and made a great and warm-hearted toast. We started to eat and of course everyone loved everything, even S. who generally doesn’t like turkey of any kind. Everything was good, but the liver was a little too overwhelmingly rich and I only ate about half of it. Everything else was wonderfully moist and juicy and flavorful. And as we ate the conversations picked up again and we all seemed to relax some. We all laughed and traded stories abut our jobs and family and other craziness in our lives. In these interactive hours it was easy to remember why we were all friends. After dinner we went back in the living room and I scraped up the sorbet off the pan it was on in the freezer and put it in bowls. It turned out really well, too. I wish I’d had some candied orange zest to put on top. We exchanged gifts and I was glad that our presents were not so lame and received with gratitude and appreciation. Nobody had to work the following day, so our friends stayed until midnight in pleasant conversation and occasional comfortable silence. S. finished straightening while I walked our guests out and exchanged holiday hugs and kisses. He started the car and before she got in she looked at me for a long moment, quizzically. Then she gave a little shrug and got in the car. I know what she meant: Nothing is healed, just bandaged. But it is a start, maybe. When I went in S. had already gone to bed and was either asleep or pretending to be asleep. The next day she said the evening was fun, although she’d been expecting to spend it alone with me.

Good food, good wine, good friends. What better use to put a turkey to? 17 months ago

I would love to one day! 18 months ago

For the seated dinner party I did recently, I composed a menu I thought would appeal to the host and be suitable for the occasion of his holiday party. I did a couple of back up menu options and he ended up blending two menu choices. I wasn’t a big fan of double seafood dishes, but he was paying the bill, so he got what he wanted. He stressed a couple of times how important the timing was. Last year he did a very nice dinner, that cost him more than twice as much as I was charging per person, but the dishes were so slow in coming out of the kitchen it was after 11:30pm when they got their entrees. There was an average wait of around 50 minutes between courses! He was very clear that he wanted to start around 7:30pm and for dessert to hit the table at 9:30pm. I told him that would be no problem, that the only thing we would be waiting on would be the diners, we would be doing things on their schedule, set and ready.

When guests arrived they noshed on some appetizers and sparkling prosecco to begin with. The apps were chef’s choice, and I created a trio of tasty amuse bouches:

• Roasted Apple with Caramel Sauce and Bleu Cheese Crumbles in a Phyllo Tart Shell

• Pulled Pork with Manchego Cheese and Spicy BBQ Sauce on Roasted Tortilla Chip Crisp

• Duck Confit with Fresh Thyme, Roasted Garlic and Quince Jelly

The Apple was the favorite with the ladies, and the guys liked the BBQ the best. Everyone ate the duck and all said it was good, but no one ate the quince jelly. I don’t know why.

When the apps had been devoured, the official welcome offered by the host, and everyone seated (around 7:45pm), we got right to the first course:

Roasted Butternut Squash with Root Vegetable Timbale, Topped with Seared Scallops

I did such a good job on this dish at Thanksgiving I decided to add it to this menu. I smartened up and used only one scallop per bowl, since two sea scallops was really too much. Almost all butternut squash and only a splash of cream, with a mix of sweet potato, celery root, turnip and red onion in the timbale. Tasting it in the kitchen as we reheated it for service, even I had to stop and say: “Wow”. Lots of compliments on the flavor and what we did not serve I packed up for the hostess to have the next day. My only reservation was that the soup was too thick, almost like a pudding. But it went over well.

Mixed Greens with Dried Cranberries, Golden Raisins, Burgundy-Poached Seckle Pears, Candied Pecans and Pomegranate Vinaigrette

Trying to get a nice blend of sweet and sharp, and to cleanse the palate of the soup, the salad went very well with the chardonnay the host had chosen for this course.

Grilled Salmon Filet with Blood Orange Beurre Blanc, Pink Peppercorn-Crusted Beef Filet with Bourbon-Vanilla Sauce, Kabocha Squash and Porcini Mushroom Ravioli Tossed with Browned Butter and Sage, and Roasted Baby Vegetables

A complicated dish to assemble because of the number of people who wanted different temps on their meats. We pulled it off by laying out the plates on every available surface and running around with pots and spoons. I cooked all the salmon the same degree of doneness, and it remained very moist. I chose a sashimi grade of salmon, which has more fat and flavor. The beef was teres major, which was convienient because it enabled me to cook whole pieces to the desired degree of doneness. The homemade ravioli came out the best I had ever made it, and I only lost one piece to breakage while reheating, and that was the extra piece. In my rush I forgot to properly season the vegetables, which was a stupid mistake on my part, a real amateur screw up. But on everything my portions were exactly on the money, with no extras. Sucked for the servers who were helping me, because they got to taste nothing. I apologized and I did feel a little badly for them. Once the dishes hit the table the guests switched to a pinot noir which I had recommended for the meal. It must have gone very well because I believe they went through a dozen bottles of the stuff. Plates came back to the kitchen clean, except for a few who didn’t eat their vegetables. Because of the meat temps, we should have made a seating chart so we would know who got what temp. That would have made our plate-out faster and more efficient.

We cleaned up and got reorganized and laid out the dessert plates.

Cayenne-Spiked Chocolate Truffles with Cinnamon-Ginger Dust, Almond Toffee Crunch, French Chocolate Mousse and Raspberry-Port Drizzle

So quick and easy to make that I rushed and piped the mousse too soon and it deflated a little. The dessert plates went down at exactly 9:30pm, just as the host had requested. We hit all our times perfectly and I was very pleased. They enjoyed a Graham’s 20 year old tawny port with the dessert and those plates came back scraped clean, too. We made coffee for those who requested it and proceeded to clean up and load the van. The guests stayed at the dining table, plowing through the wine, bottle after bottle, (the host had hired a limousine van service to make sure everyone got home okay), and several people came into the kitchen to compliment me and the staff. I settled up with the host while his friend, who was a bit drunk, asked for my card and said he had lots of events at his lake house on Lake Lanier that he would like me to do. Included was a pasta party for about 100 people. I promised him I could do it. I need to follow up with him on this if he doesn’t call me soon. The host tipped my two servers and my wife $50 each and said everything was terrific. We were gone and out their hair around 10:30pm. In my later analysis I discovered that my actual costs were only 2% higher than I had estimated they would be, and the discrepancy came from some paper products I forgot to account for and needed, adding coffee, and overbuying on ice. My food costs fell in at 22%, exactly where I wanted them to. From both a learning experience and a practical exercise, I was very pleased with how everything went and how all the food turned out.

I had to reshoot all the pictures of the food after the event. We took a camera but got so busy that we forgot to snap any photos.18 months ago

Perhaps it will be the long anticipated road trip …

Perhaps it will be Tarrador coming to Hawaii … 18 months ago

Without a big family to feed this year, or very many guests to entertain, I decided it would be a good opportunity to make a Thanksgiving Day dinner that wouldn’t be found just anywhere. It could contain a few traditional holiday elements, but also be a little unorthodox. I don’t know of too many fish-based Thanksgiving dinners, so that’s what I set out to do. I went to my friendly neighborhood Buford Farmer’s Market and bought everything for just under $50 on Wednesday afternoon. I was expecting the store to be packed with last minute shoppers, but it was actually very easy to get around.

Thursday morning I made a little quesadilla of crumbled queso and Honey-Baked Ham (the one must have on my wife’s dinner list) and we enjoyed that with some picante sauce and back-to-back “Fringe” episodes on Netflix. I made my way into the kitchen in the afternoon and put together our meal, just the two of us.

First up I made an escolar ceviche salad with wakami seaweed, pineapple and satsuma oranges. I’ve tasted lots of ceviche at lots of places, but I honestly believe that the ceviches I do are killer-good. The blend of citrus and acids cleansed our palates for the next course.

I whipped up a very simple but very delicious butternut squash soup with two spice-crusted seared scallops. I used turmeric in the spice and I don’t think I will do that again because it gave the scallops a yellow coloring I didn’t care for. But they tasted great.

Next course was coriander and ginger seared tuna, sliced and served with an heirloom tomato and heart of palm salad with a little crumble of Bulgarian feta. Really nice but I overcooked the tuna a little bit.

For the entree, I kept it simple and made it a crowd-pleaser (that is, what S. likes best). Smoked salmon filet, green bean casserole and mashed potatoes. The potatoes were some fingerlings I was just trying to use up, and they were good, but not fluffy. I played around with the idea of a sauce, but opted to just go with the salmon as is.

We finished up with pumpkin pie (store-bought) and some fresh whipped cream (homemade). And later, more ham. Not your everyday Thanksgiving, but we were thankful, anyway.

Same text, but more photos, can be found here for anyone interested.19 months ago

When I first encounted this goal, shared by my two very good friends, I must admit I was both flattered and a bit embarassed. I mean, I know I’m good, but for some reason I never expect other people to know I’m good.

When I made my contract recently with the client to do the sit-down dinner, one of my friends, whom I was expecting to offer congratulations and good wishes, made some rude and thoughtless remarks regarding about how I came to get the contract. I was working a gig for this friend when someone approached me and asked me personally if I would be interested in doing this dinner. I gave them my personal email, which they asked for, to pass onto the the client hosting the dinner. The client then contacted me, we worked things out, and I’m doing the dinner next Saturday.

My friend felt that since I was working the gig for her, I should have given the guy all her information and let her be contacted by the dinner client and let her get the contract. She was kind of snarky about the whole thing, wondering if I was at her events handing out my business card and poaching clients from her. I explained the situation very clearly, how the guy approached me, not her company, and all the details involved. It’s a gray area, I must admit, but it is less murky on my side of the argument. I didn’t tell her, but I thought she was being small and petty, and rather unappreciative of the numerous clients and business I have sent her way. We have kind of patched things up, but not completely. I am doing some more events for her company, and I was going to ask her help with my dinner… but screw that now.

What bothered me the most was coming away from the conversation with the distinct impression that my friend, my peer, my associate, felt that somehow I was unworthy of the job I had contracted to do. That by virtue of her owning her own business she and her staff were more qualified, talented and capable than I was. I had to finally tell myself that the reason they contacted me was because they wanted me, not my friend or her delicious, albeit it unsophisticated, food. I’m fully capable of executing this dinner in 1st class style. If that hurts her feelings, I’m sorry. But she should work harder at making herself better, not at trying to tear me down. I’ve been doing dinners like the one on Saturday for years for other employers, for other people’s praise and glory. Now the praise and the glory, and the risk and the drama, is all on me. I must admit: I like it.

And maybe by offering some entries about what kind of food I am doing here and there I will strengthen in confidence that I am good at what I do, that I can play in the sandbox with the big kids. Also a place where I can honestly assess and adress what works and what doesn’t; where I soar and where I tumble. I know the time is coming where I have to move from the realm of dreams to the manifestation of reality. Maybe this adopting this goal will help me achieve that. Along with equal measures of esteem and humility. 19 months ago

preferably with Warrior Queen. :) 20 months ago

just never got around to making it ‘official’!

I dithered over what to call it: ‘Eat a meal cooked by Tarrador’ didn’t cover it because I want to eat a meal cooked by T with T, and it’s no good being vague with intentions when putting it out to the Universe. But the wording of that seemed clunky and still not quite right.

Others had also expressed a desire to eat food that T had cooked and I had a vision of a large group of us, laughing, eating, drinking together…but I didn’t want to limit this goal to only manifesting in that way…after all, I would be delighted to be T’s only guest ;-)

So in the end I plumped for this title; I feel it gives plenty of space for not only my goal to come to fruition, but for T’s own dreams and wishes to also be made reality.

One way or another, I’m going to be marking this goal complete at some point…and then I’ll be sad that it’s over and have to open the goal all over again ;D
x 22 months ago