Guest Chef

There are some things that can be accomplished while living in a small town, that just can't be done in a big town.  Being a Guest Chef at our favorite Italian Bistro is one of these things.  My husband Joe and I have lived in the tiny town of Hutchinson Kansas for 3+ years now.  When we first arrived to this town and discovered our favorite restaurant that we frequent every Friday Night Date night (unless we are out of town), the owners learned that I was a certified Chef and have invited me several times over these past 3 years to be a guest Chef for them.

To tell the truth, I have declined this offer each time I was asked because I was just too intimidated to give it a try.  Even though I am classically trained, have my diploma, and have been cooking since the age of 6, I have never worked in a public restaurant.  I am Joe's personal Chef, and I enjoy cooking meals for others when they are ill, when we are entertaining guests in our home, or when I visit my children.  My favorite place to be is in the kitchen cooking, but I haven't felt I was qualified or experienced enough to actually cook for the general public.  Ever since earning my Chef certificate, I have been asked numerous times if I planned on opening a restaurant or working in a restaurant.  My answer is always no, because I cook for the love and passion of cooking, not to earn a living at it.  Too much stress!

After much reflection, and having been asked once again to be a guest Chef, I decided I should take on the challenge.  I feel like I finally have a 4 course menu plan that I am comfortable with, dishes that have become signature dishes for me, and why not give it a whirl.  The dinner I will be creating for this experience will be just for 40 local folks, and will be paired with a wine tasting during the meal.  It will be a mediterranean menu, having both french and italian dishes.

I am excited about this opportunity and am confident it will be a success.  I will be having a mock dinner tasting with the owners of the Bistro, their Chef/date, their Sommelier/date, and another couple who work for the owners.  Joe will serve the wine for our mock dinner, but the dinner is mostly for the Sommelier to taste so she can decide what wines to pair with this meal when we do the real thing, and for the owners to get an idea of my menu.

My menu is:

Appetizer - Bruschetta
Salad - Bleu Provence (I have another blog dedicated to this salad)
Main Course - Ragu w/penne pasta and crusty bread (I also have a blog dedicated to this ragu recipe)
Desert - Deconstructed Queen of Sheba Cake - (I also have a blog dedicated to this Queen of Sheba cake)

For the Bruschetta I plan on pan sauteing thick slices of french bread in a mixture of olive oil and butter, placing a slice of fresh mozzarella cheese on top, with grape heirloom tomatoes on top of the cheese and drizzled with olive oil, and  then sprinkled with sliced fresh basil .  I will have dabs of balsamic syrup on the plate around the bruschetta.

The Bleu Provence Salad will be a mixture of baby spring greens, fresh finely chopped herbs sprinkled on top of the greens (chives, basil, parsley, tarragon), tiny diced watermelon, and a few grape tomatoes.  The dressing will be my tarragon/shallot vinaigrette.

The Ragu main course is my now famous recipe of braised beef, veal, and pork in a rich tomato sauce, served over penne pasta, with shaved fresh parmesan cheese on top, and crusty bread for sopping up the sauce.

For the deconstructed Queen of Sheba cake, I plan on making the single layer cake and cutting out small circles with a cookie cutter.  I will then place the mini cakes on top of a layer of chocolate ganache, drizzled with more chocolate ganache over top, sprinkled with a few sliced almonds, and served with 3 fresh raspberries on the side.

Because the ragu is a heavy dish, I decided to lighten up both the appetizer and salad, and while the Queen of Sheba cake is very rich, it is also a very delicate desert.  In fact,  Joe and I both refer to this cake as chocolate cotton candy!  And because ragu is a heavy dish, my guest Chef debut will be in Jan. 2014.

I am looking forward to stepping out of my comfort zone and cooking for the general public.  These dishes are ones I prepare on a regular basis, always getting grand reviews when I prepare them... so I can't say I'm nervous or anxious, just excited.  Those who will be attending this dinner will be locals with gourmet palates... it should be a wonderful night spent doing the thing I love most.

Bleu Provence Salad

I have created a new salad, so fresh on your tongue, that you spend the entire time eating it trying to figure out the complex, yet simple taste of it.  My husband and I found this quaint French restaurant in Naples Florida called "The Bleu Provence", where I first encountered this delish salad, and have been trying to replicate ever since.  I think I have finally created a version of my own that is similar, yet unique in my own way.  I'm quite pleased with my final creation, and will be making it a lot in the future... totally owning the recipe as my own, but will continue to call it Bleu Provence Salad from it's inspiration from that restaurant.

I love re-creating dishes that I have enjoyed in other places... tweaking them with my own flavor profiles, but keeping the taste in general as close to the original, so as to get the same palate sensations when I eat them that takes me back to the place when I first discover the tasty delight.

This salad is quite simple, very fresh, and very palate teasing at the same time.  I have inquired about it's ingredients each time I visit this restaurant, and it only took 5 visits to this restaurant to finally put the pieces together in order to give it a try myself.  My family has always enjoyed eating salads with meals, and it is always nice to add a new variety to the menu.  I will include my recipe at the bottom of this blog for you to try, or to tweak as you like with you own flavor profile.

The most interesting components of this salad is the small pieces of watermelon in it, as well as the fresh minced herbs tossed throughout, and the light vinaigrette dressing which is used quite sparingly.'

I begin with a blend of baby spring greens (a mixture of baby lettuces, that can be found prepackaged in most grocery stores), rinsed and spun dry.  I arrange a handful or so of these greens in individual salad bowls.  Then I take a mix of fresh herbs (thyme, basil, chives, parsley or cilantro) and chop them into a find mince and sprinkle a pinch over top of each individual salad.  Next comes diced watermelon... (I prefer to use the personal seedless size watermelons because... A) the lack of seeds, and... B) the sweetness level is much better... but any watermelon will do).  I dice the watermelon into a small dice, and scatter over top the sprinkled on herbs.  I then place 3 grape tomatoes on top that have been sliced in half, and last but not least is the homemade salad dressing.  I made this salad for dinner tonight... just to make sure I had measurements and taste correct for this blog... and WOWZERS... it is my new all time favorite salad ever.

Below is my salad and dressing recipe... this salad will only be as good as the ingredients you use.  This is one of those times when you need to invest in a good quality olive oil, either white or red wine vinegar and a box of kosher salt (kosher salt is inexpensive and a box goes a long way... you should be using kosher salt in all your cooking instead of table salt).  Fresh herbs are a must, DO NOT substitute dried herbs, or the entire flavor profile will be altered and the delicateness of this salad will be lost completely.  You can substitute any fresh herbs with the ones I have listed to create your own flavor profile.

THYME VINAIGRETTE

1/4 cup - Wine Vinegar  - (I have used both white wine and red wine vinegar... both are equally delish, and it is totally your preference which one you use)
1/2 cup - Olive Oil - (use a good quality olive oil since it is being consumed in it's raw state versus a cooked state, where a less expensive olive oil matters less)
1 small - shallot, finely chopped
1 stem - fresh thyme
pinch - kosher salt - (if all you have is table salt, omit salt from this recipe)

Place all ingredients in a shaker container of any kind... tupperware, mason jar w/lid, or in an open bowl and whisk it.  Mix all ingredients well... set aside... right before dressing salad, this mixture may need to be re-shaken or mixed.

BLEU PROVENCE SALAD

Baby Greens Lettuce Mixture - a handful per salad, washed and dried
1 stem - Fresh Thyme
2-3 Leaves - Fresh Basil
1 stem - Fresh Italian Parsley
3-4 - Fresh Chives
3 - Grape Tomatoes per salad, sliced in half
2 Tbsp - Watermelon per salad, small dice

Finely chop all fresh herbs together.  Place a handful of greens in individual bowls, for as many as needed.  Sprinkle a pinch of fresh herb mixture over top of greens.  Add tomatoes and watermelon on top of fresh herb mixture.  Add thyme vinaigrette right before serving, or allow individuals to add their own amount of dressing to their salads.

Serve, eat and enjoy!  :  )

Grocery Snob

If you don't know me, let me explain myself... for the most part I am a simple, easy going, laid back kind of person.  I enjoy shopping at inexpensive bargain type stores, as well as name brand stores, finding the most pleasure when I find items that cost little but look expensive!  However... that being said... I am a classically trained Chef, and when it comes to grocery shopping, I must admit I am somewhat of a snob.

Back in the day when my husband and I were raising our 3 daughters, money was so tight we held our breath from payday to payday, hoping and praying nothing unexpected happened that would require any additional spending funds from our bank account.  Our girls had a new pair of shoes at the beginning of each new school year, and had a pair of shoes for church... when they out grew their shoes before the alloted time for buying a new pair... they basically had to continue squeezing their feet into the shoes they had until their toes literally popped out of the end of their shoes.  I say this because I do know how to stretch a dollar out of 10 cents, and have done so for most of my married life.  We had what we needed, and occasionally were able to get something we wanted... but mostly, we just made do with what we had, and were happy as could be to have what we needed.

That was then, and this is now.  Our daughters are all grown and doing quite well on their own.  My husband and I have become empty nesters, and blessedly my husband has continued to be successful in his career path.  So now we can pretty much afford what we want, when we want it, we are still very respectful on how, and where we spend our hard earned dollars.

I began my cooking passion as being just a plain ole "country"cook.  I've been cooking since I was 6 years old.  Whenever I was allowed to 'help' in the kitchen, I was in there, pestering my Mom, my Aunt, and/or my Grandmother to let me help stir, chop, cook, or whatever they allowed me to do... mostly being allowed to set the table and place the pickles in the crystal dish!  But Grandma always let us help make the biscuits, letting us roll them out and place the biscuits on the baking sheet, and then playing with the leftover dough until she needed the counter space to continue her meal prepping.

Now that I'm an official classically trained Chef, and know the difference that quality ingredients make to any dish being prepared, I have indeed become the grocery snob!  95% of my groceries purchased that are used for cooking purposes are all fresh ingredients.  I rarely use any frozen, prepackaged or anything pre-processed in any way.  I make my own broth/stock, spaghetti sauces, baked goods, and even creamed soups needed for recipes (such as cream of mushroom, cream of celery, etc).  Now that I know how, it is just as easy for me to make everything from scratch as it does to buy pre-packaged/processed ingredients.

I am that shopper in the fresh produce department that touch, smell, twack, and thump every item I purchase.  I rarely use dried herbs, usually growing my own.  The only dried spices I use now are those such as, nutmeg, cinnamon, chili powder, etc.  I love going down to my herb garden and snipping off fresh stems for my dinner each night.  The aroma alone is worth cutting your herbs fresh as you need them.  In the wintertime when I am not able to grow my own fresh herbs, I still use fresh herbs that are now available in most grocery stores all times of the year.  When I am selecting my meats, I examine the package from all sides, looking for fresh color, gristle and marbling... I have been known to do the sniff factor as well to check for freshness.  This kind of shopping takes a lot of time, therefore I do a big main shopping once a month and do fresh pick ups as needed.

If I am in a grocery store that carry high end quality items, I enjoy the entire shopping experience.  If I am shopping at a grocery where gourmet items are in low demand, I get quite frustrated and hate the entire experience.  I live in a small town where the grocery shopping experience can be quite frustrating for the gourmet Chef, and I have to drive 45 minutes to the next town to a larger store that offer more items I need for my kind of cooking.  However... I am DELIGHTED that our little town is opening up a new Market Place store that will satisfy all my gourmet needs.  The Grand Opening is just next week, and the entire town is beyond excited for it's opening.  My husband is in the grocery business... the new store opening is in fact one of his stores... and because of his association in the grocery business, I have mostly had wonderful stores in which to do my gourmet shopping.  When we moved to this tiny town, getting used to the limited grocery selections was something I had to get used to... but somehow I find a way to make it work until I can make the 45 minute trip to the larger store.

So... to sum it up... I must confess, through my cooking/gourmet training, I have turned into a grocery snob... but... I CAN make a "purse out of a sow's ear", so to speak, out of whatever ingredients I have on hand.  I am deeply grateful for my classical Chef training, and hope to continue taking more cooking classes in the future.  It's just one of those things that, if you know the right way to do things, you just can't go back to how you did them before, and once you taste the difference between quality ingredients over bargain ingredients, you can't go back either, unless you find yourself in the position of necessity.  Should I find myself in the position of having to hold my breath between paychecks again, I can, and will make it work.  I know how to stretch a dollar, grow my own food, how to can/freeze my home grown foods, and enjoy doing so.  I feel so very blessed to have the opportunity to continue to hone my cooking skills each and every day, and for as long as I am able, I will use the freshest of ingredients I am able to grow or purchase.

Tribute to Dad

I've had this blog written in my head since the day my Dad died on July 17th... but because I had to leave quickly to make it to his bedside before he passed, I had to leave my laptop behind and finally was able to retrieve it today.  So this blog is in honor of my Wonderful Father who left this world much too soon and is already dearly missed.  I might add... other than my cousin Nancy... he was, and always will be my biggest fan, who truly enjoyed each and every blog I've ever written.  LOVE YOU DAD!!!

My Dad was a very unique character.  He was a bastard child, raised in a family who never really accepted him as one of their own... he was just known as "Anna's boy".  He basically raised himself living on the streets, with his only nurturing coming from his beloved Grandmother Ollie.  However... out of his 3 sisters and 1 brother... he is the only one who made something of himself and was successful in life.  So to say he had a hard knocked life from the beginning is putting it mildly.  He walked away from his life and family at the age of 16 to join the Air Force National Guard... lying about his age to get in... til the day of his death his real age was always a question.  

My father was an amazing political cartoon artist with a clever wit.  His panels were published in several newspapers for over 50 years.  He drew for the Louisville Courier Journal back in the 1960's, he drew for the Air National Guard paper from the 1950's - 1980's, and he drew for the Shepherdsville Pioneer News from 1984 - til his death last month, July 2013.  I am blessed and privileged to not only have in my possession a copy of his Air National Guard "File-13" book of cartoons that was published in 1973, but it is also personalized and dedicated to me.  Like most daughters are to their father's, I was his Princess, and he always made me feel very loved and special.

To say my Dad was quirky is putting it mildly, he was a loner, preferring his own company to most others, closer to animals than he was people, but he had a heart of gold and was well liked, and well respected.  He was a creature of habit, never varying from his daily tasks, no matter how bad he felt. He and my mother divorced 35 years ago, and ever since he lived like a hermit, some thinking he was actually homeless... but he was happy with his mostly solitary life.  He had lady friends... two whom he loved and had long term relationships with, but they, and he, never wanted to re-marry.  Even tho the divorce was his fault, he loved my mother dearly til the day he died... carrying both her picture and his wedding band in his wallet the last 35 years.  I now wear their wedding bands together and therefore keep them both close to my heart and thoughts every single moment, of every single day.  I also have, and wear my Grandmother's wedding band for the same reason.  

My Dad was sick for quite sometime, but my brother and I (there are only the two of us... our younger sister died in 1961 at 22 months old) had no idea just how sick he was until the last 8 weeks of his life.  He adamantly refused to go to the doctor or receive any medical treatment of any kind.  He didn't trust doctors... thinking they would poke and prod until they found some aliment wrong.  He was a smoker from the age of 8 and was 77 when he passed away... smoking his entire life.  He believed he had emphysema, OPD, or lung cancer... but he never wanted to be told he had any of those things.  He self medicated himself for the last 2 years... how he lived in the amount of excruciating pain he had to have had is beyond all of us.  But he was as stubborn as he was determined.  He actually died of lung cancer that had spread throughout his entire body, was in his bones, his liver, his abdomen, and possibly his brain.  My brother and I found all this out after he collapsed outside of his home and received a phone call from a policeman, who called an ambulance and took him to the hospital.  Fortunately my brother arrived 2 minutes before the ambulance did and convinced Dad he HAD to go to the hospital, because up until that moment he was still refusing any medical treatment.  His last 18 hours of his life he was medicated and pain free, dying quietly and peacefully hours before hospice could begin their services.  I live out of state, and I am very blessed to have been able to make it to his bedside before he passed and held his hand the last 5 hours of his life.  He was alway afraid he would die alone, but blessedly my brother, myself, my eldest daughter (a nurse) were with him as he passed from this world to the next to finally meet my sister in heaven, who has been waiting for him for a long time.  

Dad was actually very funny.  He loved anything 'clever', whether it be a joke, a pun, or an invention.  He always presented himself as a 'sad sack' kind of character, living the "Murphy's Law" life believing... he only had bad luck if he had any luck at all, and anything that could, would go wrong.  He wasn't a handy man of any sort... believing everything could and should be fixed with duct tape and spit.  He loved junky cars... trading one junker for the next... usually trading down!  I bet he has owned over 100 junk cars in his life time.  He was an avid reader, preferring Mystery's, Crime/Detective Novel's and Westerns, and he loved solving logic problems.  

My brother and I worked as of one brain throughout his funeral planning, dealing with his estate affairs, and cleaning out his apartment.  If he thought it, I said it and vice versa.  Our most important task was to honor Dad.  He never wanted a fancy funeral and he would haunt us for sure if we would have had a  public funeral viewing.  He wanted a quiet, plain and simple military funeral.  We accomplished his wishes perfectly.  We had a private viewing for my brother, myself and our family.  He had an Honor Guard Flag presentation, a Gun Salute and Taps played for him.  It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!  We had a small gathering afterwards and I think he would be very proud of my brother and I.  Then totally unexpectedly we happened to see a news feature about his 30 year political cartoonist career on the local news.  To say the least, we were completely shocked and stunned!!  WHO KNEW!!!  He had made such an impact on the community from his political drawings published in the weekly newspaper that this news feature ran on the news for two days straight, in the morning, afternoon, and evening segments.  WOW!!!!  I am sooooooo very proud for him!  

After we saw the news feature, my brother and I went to visit the newspaper where he submitted his panels.  We were given a view of the archives of his drawings, including the very first panel he drew for them... as well as the complete story of how he started drawing for them.  He walked in one day carrying a panel with him and telling them he had drawn for newspapers in the past and wanted to be in their paper.  They hired him on the spot for $5 a panel... the publisher hung his head and said... "embarrassingly, we never gave him a raise"  So for 30 years he drew for this newspaper making only $20 a month!!!  To him, it was never about the money, it was the love of drawing that was important to him.  I know Dad had no idea how much of an impact he made on this community and how badly he is missed, but... he would be sooo proud!  While we were at the newspaper, they gave us that weeks edition that had just run that day.... his column was called "Coyle's Corner" and on the page of his column they left 1/4 of the page blank, with the caption over top reading... "In Honor of Paul Coyle".... beneath it they printed his story of 30 years with them.  Again... my brother and I were shocked and stunned at the tribute given to this very quiet, humble, and private man.  WOWZERS!!!  

Just like George Bailey in "It's A Wonderful Life".... you just never know what kind of an impact you have on people.  My Dad was a quiet, unassuming man, who made a big difference and never knew it.  I hope he is looking down from heaven and seeing for himself what a great man he really was... because he really was a GREAT MAN!  I loved him dearly every day of my life, and I will miss him dearly for the rest of my life... but I know he is, and always will be with me, in my heart and thoughts, and on my hand with his ring.  I have great comfort knowing that he, my sister, and my Grandmother are angels in heaven always watching out for me, and those they loved.   Rest In Peace Dad... you were  loved and appreciated, and are now missed deeply!  HUGS!!! Your Princess Victoria!