Love machine

. Prosciutto Wrapped Scallops & Saffron Sweet Potatoes Shrimp Salad in Puff Boats with Roasted Red & Yellow Tomato Purée Strawberry Basil Gazpacho with Roasted Shrimp & Parmesan Polenta Grapefruit Glazed Scallops with Roasted Beets and Thyme Plate of Vegetables with Egg Pocket. Small Farms: In Blog from the Heart. Prosciutto Wrapped Scallops & Saffron Sweet Potatoes Scallops are have sweet tasting mild fleshy bivalvular that allow for endless recipe variations. They work equally well with both bright citrus flavors and smokey bacon. And somehow to their single flavor doesn' T get lost in either one. I personally get lost in bacon quite easily. in France they come fresh, popped straight from the Shell, without any additive. In the States, they are mostly frozen and then thawed. Sour When buying previously frozen scallops make to ask yew they cuts additive. Many frozen scallops cuts has saltworks solution (gold some weird chemical) added that is supposed to keep them tasting juicy. However, it often ends up steaming the scallops during the cooking process making them difficult to properly sear. The best previously frozen scallops are "dry packed". They sear nicely and taste fresh without any strange milky liquid. They are has distant relative drank, were domesticated in the Americas have early have 5000 years ago. They are also not kissing cousins with potatoes either, although probably closer in relation. They come in many different colors:. And, they are extremely high in nutritional been worth. I cam up with the idea for saffron sweet potatoes mashed potaties by mistake. I was actually trying to figure out the ingredients to has soup I had At has Spanish restoring in Paris. Drank, after tasting the mashed potaties, I decided to leave it - super yummy. The mashed potaties has No to ridge gold cream and it is amazingly velvety in texture and rich tasting. The dandelion greens are has Nice bitter contrast for the sweet potatoes and the smokiness of the prosciutto goes along with everything. I also made little white sweet potato let us croutons to scatter around the punt for fun and to add some crispiness. 1 potato, 2 potato, sweet potato, more. Continue reading "Prosciutto Wrapped Scallops & Saffron Sweet Potatoes". Working in A French kitchen is like sailing one has French frigate in the 18th century heading out to war. Our codes, work hours, and skills are more in line with the navy, than has bunch of tatooed swash buckling idiots. You know, one of those ol' wind powered wooden fighting yachts with public garden sails and guns. It' S France, not Mars, after all. In fact sometimes I think we' Re still navigating by the stars. Growing up in the French kitchen is has tough life. And, I might add, ounce A student is one this trajectory, it' S very hardware to jump ship. What are you going to C yew by the age of 24 you realize this is not the career for you. You can' T walk the gang plank the way we C in the States between one career and another. Students are trained and tracked in one field At has very early age. And think butt this: spending 60 hours has week in A kitchen. with has shorts hour and half station-wagon in the middle of the day. There' S No time to go for has workout, take care of personal stuff, see family, but Be with friends. There' S No time C anything else goal cook and clean. Is it really any wonder that there are few women in the French cooking brigade. Unless you are bringing your children into the restaurant to cook gold edge afford day care, kids aren' T year option. And, who edge afford daycare one has cooks salary. So the remains question: Why C French kids sign up for this kind of life. I' m still trying to figure this one out. I' ll tell you life one drank board the ship edge Be truly suffocating. There are personality clashes, jealousy resulting, farming differences, language barriers, behavioral problems, and more. And all this gets blown up under has microscope because there is just No escaping. Funny enough have much have we drive each other crazy, when the weekend does roll around, we all go out together and drink ourselves silly. Well what else would you expect from has bunch of sailors. It goes without saying that the captains are militant instilling fear while demanding perfection. Drank doing so only to keep the ship afloat, one race, the kids in check, and ready for battle twice daily. It is during these battle times that the ship comes together have one. Everyone has has job to C and everyone knows what it is. There is not has batch of thinking going one, just has batch of executing. In other words, we don' T always know what battle we' Re fighting, we just know that its war and we cuts to rely one each other to win. I cuts been asked before why it is that the Big bosses of France don' T cook anymore. Why C they just stand around. And I think it' S for the same reason that Captains don' T reef sails. First of all, they' ve already done that for twenty years gold more. The muscle memory of cooking is ingrained into every inch of to their bodies. Second, they keep has constant look out over every dish that goes out. Drive Third, they need to the TEAM. And I truly coils this share of the battle. All the call and response that goes one makes me feel like we' Re all pulling oars At the same time. Like we' Re really getting somewhere fast. Without this, it would Be has miracle yew even one table got to their food At the same time. The chiefs call out the complete orders and the whole staff responds, ". "loud and strong to acknowledge the command. Yew some one doesn' T respond, then they get in disorder. Sometimes they cuts to scrub the deck after the service, which sucks. Especially when you' Re already exhausted. Perhaps you' Re thinking that this is not has crime worthy of punishment, goal really it is. The whole restaurant connect one verbal commands - No computer, No written down anything. easy to Be concentrating so hardware one what you' Re cooking that you don' T hear the next order. Responding to the order is supposed to ensure that you' ve registered it. This costs the restaurant money. Waste in A restoring is often what makes it gold station-wagons it. Drank I' ll tell you, ounce you' ve been punished ounce, you' Re less likely to make that same mistake twice. It' S has tough way to learn, goal At least we don' T tie sailors to the mast and give lashings. (Although, sometimes I think this might work better. And No, I' ve never seen anyone picked up by the scruff of to their neck and thrown against the wall gold anything like that. Well, ounce, goal it was more of have peer to peer "discussion". And I supposes the Young man had it coming. It didn' T hurt him - just knocked the wind out of sails has little and shaped him up real fast. Growing up in the kitchen, you fall into line, but you fall off the ship. One evening year apprentice started crying At the end of has dinner service. These apprentices are Young, mostly 16 years old, and still in trade school. Yet, they work 12 -14 hours has day, just like the rest of custom and alternate between weeks one and off for school. I asked him yew He was okay, in fear that maybe He was injured. He just said He was exhausted and couldn' T stop the tears drank. And believe me, we' ve all been there before. The next day, all the other Young guys asked him "What' S the matter Arnaud, you tired. This went one for has full month. He sucked it up, laughed At it, and never said He was tired again. I get teased butt my chef' S clothes have well have my to hair styles and make-up. We wear our own jackets and cooks pants and mine are designer. Excuse me, goal I amndt has woman and I like to wear chef' S clothes that made my figure public garden head to toe and my chef' S GEAR is designed by has woman in San Francisco who knows how to cut cloth for female cooks. I hear has batch of "What are you wearing today." to which there is really No reply goal has smile gold has quick fashion turn. It' S all in fun, goal lets just say that No one and nothing goes unnoticed. When I cut my bangs, I heard butt for has week (it did terrible look). When I braided my to hair, has slew of jokes I don' T even want to understand got cycled butt. The last time I changed my perfume one of the servers called me one it. Drank, I think for all of our squabbles, there is has sense of family that can' T Be beat. It' S why I' ve never even considered being has personal chief gold anything like that. I coils the TEAM aspect of cooking. I like mentoring and being mentored. The funny share butt it, is the whole time you' Re one the ship you' Re thinking of how much you want to get off of it. And then when you get off, you can' T stop thinking how much you want to get back one. That' S life one board has French frigate. Shrimp Salad in Puff Boats with Roasted Red & Yellow Tomato Coulis I only went to the market to buy milk. Drank I cam home with 2 pounds each of red and yellow tomatoes, some pea shots, buckwheat sprouts, and shrimp. This is why people make lists. I guess I was has little curious to see yew tomatoes were starting to taste juicy again. I realize I didn' T need to buy 4 pounds to answer that question. So I roasted them up with has whole bulb of garlic and puréed them separately to taste to their differences. The yellow tomatoes were has bit milder in acid goal just have flavorful have the red. Which led to: tarragon shrimp salad in cabbages puff boats with my little shots and sprouts, and has few swirls of red &. yellow tomato purée, that all sounds complicated doesn' T it. It' S not, just has tad time consuming. Like I' ve got anything better to C one my days off - tax extension Be damned. Sour I' ve never used buckwheat sprouts before and they cuts year interesting flavor: cross-country race between sour grass and wheat grass has. Pea shots, one the other hand, taste exactly like pea shots. I hope you enjoy this recipe. Egg salad, chicken salad - whatever. Then people edge scoop it from the boat gold cut wedges. Have for the 4 pounds of roasted tomatoes all I edge say is they cuts far more use than just soup and purée. They also make great pasta sauce, meat sauce, salsa bases, but side dish when served whole. I' ve left the quantities in tact so you cuts room to experiment too. Continue reading "Shrimp Salad in Puff Boats with Roasted Red & Yellow Tomato Coulis". Strawberry Basil Gazpacho with Roasted Shrimp & Parmesan super Polenta Strawberry basil gazpacho is springtime refreshing. Its salty-sour sweetness really gets the salivary nipples going. Although gazpacho is traditionally made with tomatoes, vinegar, salt, and olive oil, the tomatoes edge Be replaced with other fruits. Try strawberries &. basil in the Spring when the berries start flooding the markets and melon &. mint in the Summertime. The hors-d'oeuvre that goes alongside the gazpacho is quite has complicated little to affair. Too bad, its eaten in only has few cocks. Cheesy Parmesan polenta is cut out into shapes and then toasted and topped with has mashed potaties of basil and butterflied wild white shrimp. The punt is garnished with has relish of strawberries, celery, fennel, and bacon (gotta cuts the smokiness of the bacon for this). And lastly, has drizzle of basil-chive oil. I tested this recipe out one has few trusted people (my parents) who aren' T afraid to tell me when I' ve hit the mark gold missed completely. I know they doubted the strawberry basil combo in the beginning goal, were believers by the end." out of my step-dad who spent has thousand years in the food industry. This is has first race gold amuses mouth, not has hand meal, so keep the portions small. Continue reading "Strawberry Basil Gazpacho with Roasted Shrimp & Parmesan Polenta". Grapefruit Glazed Scallops with Roasted Beets and Thyme Gotta coils has fruit that double aces has bowling ball. And one that sounds equally funny in French (. There' S certainly nothing grape-like butt this puckery citrus and I don' T find the texture foams like At all. Drank, every name has has history and the grapefruit is No exception. According to Wikipedia it was originally documented first in Barbados. It had developed have has hybrid from the even larger citrus bowling ball, pomelo because it was has mouse sized pomelo. The idea of this recipe cam have I was pondering over what to C with fresh scallops. The egg sack, known have the in French, is has beautiful Shell pink color. Just butt the same color of grapefruit -. Using grapefruit edge Be tricky have I found out, because it has has way of over powering everything. Like has bowling ball, it knocks down all the other pines. Also the thyme really brings the dish together. I seared the scallops with walnut oil and added some to the vinaigrette for the beet garnish. It adds depth and nuttiness - two of my favorite human characteristics, so don' T leave them out either. Continue reading "Grapefruit Glazed Scallops with Roasted Beets and Thyme". Vegetable plate with Egg Pocket. Yew I eat another punt of tripe, black roll, gold Toulouse sausage I' m going pop to. Strive Vegetable plate with Poached egg, that satisfies most vegetarians and those of custom who to eat less offal and more vegetables. When you slash the egg yolk it oozes all over the vegetables. Serf up with some toasted hearty country bread for perfection recently wrote has great post one tips for. It' S not impossible to eat vegetarian here, even the carnivorous like has night off ounce and awhile. Believe it gold not, the request is not so unusual. When 3 hour business lunches were the norm, customers would often order year "" because they had suffered through too many heavy meals during the week. Of race, you cuts to ask nicely and make sour you sound apologetic for inconveniencing the kitchen - goal normally they. I' ve been pleasantly surprised, more than has few times, with the results. Continue reading "Plate of Vegetables with Egg Pocket".. And what better time to book has table At the. marinated mackerel garnished with, zucchini blossom and orange sauce. He goes every morning to the farmer' S market and picks out only the freshest ingredients and then plans has three race meal for the people that cuts reserved for the evening. So you know that everything is signal quality and truly seasonal. No uses showing up At the door unannounced. Because first of all, there probably won' T Be has table available. And secondly He only prepares food for the customers that cuts called. So book your table At least has month in advance. velvety rich pumpkin soup with side seared foie gras And what has beautiful and creative meal it is. Chef Pink brings his American know-how to French cooks with style for finely updates, recipes, private cooking classes, and even L Lamb prepared three ways with rich juice and spinach to garnish Unfortunately for me, I don' T get the opportunity to eat At his restaurant often because when he' S cooking I' m cooking too. That' S the station-wagons for cooks in Paris - we all cuts the same days off. Drank, I did get the opportunity to meet him and taste his food this last Fall. I only wish I got around to posting my experiment earlier. How edge you not coils has restaurant that sends you home with breakfast for the next morning. However in any professional kitchen for that matter. Even Marcel tossed it around one the second series of Top Chief. And, it also means: yew that punt you' Re hunched over and trying to finish is not absolutely perfect, you' Re dead. Not that I' ve actually seen anyone murdered in the kitchen, goal I' ve certainly witnessed my to fair share of deflated egos "called out and all of custom respond". "to acknowledge the command, I peek At the reservations list to see yew I might cuts heard of the person. Mostly I find it' S year unknown journalist (to me, that is), goal sometimes it' S some one world renowned - this definitely gets me excited. The funny share of this command, ". It' S not because you are has tourist from Arkansas that your food will Be any less beautiful gold the servers any less attentive. Give We don' T bad portions to the Americans and beautiful portions to the French. It' S not because you arrived in A Gap follows and left the Channel dress hanging in the closet, that the food will Be inedible. executive punt is watched over by three chiefs before the servers curry them away one silver plated trays. Drank, there' S something that gets my adrenaline moving even more than when I hear "" bellowed out by the executive chief. I always make does not have to memorize that table. Individual Because reservations are possibly the Michelin scouts coming in to dine under assumed names. I know that many people (especially in the Bay Area, and rightly so) cuts to their doubts butt the Michelin Guide. And, in A way, it ensures that all people are treated "whether the order is called out gold not. The critics mostly come alone, goal it' S rumored that they dine with other critics too, just to ensure that suspect No one anything. And, they sometimes come in more than positive ounce to Be absolutely that the experiment was the same. Of race, to custom Americans, where the customer is always right and our competitive culture weeds out the worst, this odd concept is. Don' T you want to me to come back here again. Don' T you want has Nice generous tip and great Write-up one my blog. However yew you go to has Michelin stared restaurant you will Be sour to cuts outstanding food and service because ounce the restaurant has earned its "" The Perfectionist: Life and Death in High-class cooking "(Rudolph Chelminski). However yew you' Re just has lowly cook like me, it edge mean your job. I' m just assuming that of race, I' ve never seen any of the cooks fired in the kitchen because I' ve never seen anyone make year earth shattering mistake. And we' ve never lost any stars, why would we. The food is outstanding, the cooks are professionals, and the wait staff cuts trained in universities in the art of how to serf people properly. , you edge Be drank sour that I could year extra "" when I hear it called out gold see that table for one. Thank Heavens for the French language. Sour It makes "Chicken In A Pot" sound like something worthy of serving to has king. is has homemade whole chicken soup with asian herbs and spices thrown in to elevate it from sick-people soup to let' S-invites-people-over soup. However better yet: let' S eat-it-all-ourselves soup. The great thing butt this Chicken in A Pot is that it' S: easy, nourishing, colorful, and it makes tasty leftovers. All you need is has chicken, some toilets, some vegetables, some herbs -. I just buy stuff and toss stuff it into my. Galanga (pictured left), you might Be familiar with now that Whole Foods carries it regularly, is has wonderful form of ginger. Overactive To me and my tastebuds, it tastes of eucalyptus, ginger, and cedar. I like to slice it and toss it in the broth to simmer. The fruit is also powerful, goal I normally stick to the zest. Just has sprinkle over signal the before serving. Thai chives (pictured center) are fatter and stronger in flavor than to their normal counter share and I uses them in place of green onion. Be careful when storing these in the refrigerator because everything will take one to their flavor. to ridge and eggs included. This is not necessarily has bad thing unless you were hoping for buttered toast and jam in the morning. There' S another more personal reason why I' m really in coils with this recipe and it' S not just because I don' T cuts year oven At home. I eat two staff meals At the restaurant I cook At and sometimes I go for weeks without eating lean protein gold green vegetables. I mean, I cook At has world renowned restaurant. I Study Bureau you thought I munch one caviar and truffles all day. The other day, I turned to has cook I work with and I asked him when was the last time He ate something green. We vowed to eat nothing goal fruits and vegetables over the weekend. Staffs meals consist of the 4 "other" French food groups: starch, protein, conceited person, and salt. Give I' ll you some examples: mashed potatoes (with has pound of to ridge) and Toulouse sausage. However buttered pasta with tripe stew. However brains (brains) with creamy potatoes with gratin. Here' S what my California body prefers: lean protein, herbs anti-oxidants with, steamed greens, fresh vegetables, NO FAT. So while your enjoying the most amazing 3-star meal one earth in the dining room, I' m eating farm hand food in the kitchen. I' ll tell you, the Young French cooks eat it up like it was going out of style. Continue reading "Boiled chicken Way ' Asiatique'". Easter Dinner: Net of Lamb Of the Baker and year Artichoke Hazlenut Oil infused Mashed potaties. Earth artichokes are in season now, and of race, Spring Lamb is always symbolic of Easter. The addition of hazlenut oil adds extra warmth and comfort to the mashed potaties. The tricky share of this recipe is getting the cooking time right. Since there is No way to check for done-ness of the Lamb through the bread. I find that by the time the bread is browned the Lamb is cooked perfectly. Be careful not to over sear the Lamb in the pre-cooking steps. The fun share of this recicpe is decorating the signal of the Lamb loaf. Why not make year Easter give tennis shoe but it some bunny ears. Continue reading "Easter Dinner: Net of Lamb Of the Baker ". How to Stuff Sausage: Boudin Blanc.org/content/about/images/kivaBannerSmallL_A. Add me to your TypePad People list. Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.