Playing With Protein

First, an update on the weekend's Amuse-Bouche competition: well, I didn't win. But my compatriot, Andrea, did -- so big hugs and kudos to her.

I think she was very surprised to have won. I worked at the table alongside hers, and she seemed rushed and unsettled during the two hours we had to cook. The blender blades weren't very sharp, so her parsley oil did not turn the vivid green she had hoped for. Most significantly, she received Spanish Valencia rice (used for paella) instead of the arborio she'd requested, and she fretted as she stirred her risotto, determining that she just didn't have enough time to begin again. "It is what it is," she said, resigned, but she gave a big cheer for the Valencia once she was announced the winner. Here's her entry, marsala risotto on sautéed wild mushrooms, with a parmesan crisp: For the record, I prepared a pear-tuna tartlet with a lemon-pepper goat cheese filling.I was really pleased with my results, and it was a lot of fun. It's especially nice to know that some of the school administrators know our names. They always seem to be engaged with the "problem children."

Two of the other entries were based on duck confit, one on a parsley root chip and the other in baked wontons. The final entry was an over-the-top "deviled egg," quail eggs stuffed with crab salad and topped with tobiko caviar and a bit of gold leaf.

This morning, we started our final class at CCA, Advanced Garde Manger. Chef Al, our instructor, seems to love both his work, and teaching. The pace is delightfully different than Restaurant Production. Much of our work is the result of many days of effort, and the big action is not "Fire, one salmon!" from the expeditor, but carrying out a platter filled with beautifully arranged food to the restaurant buffet tables.

Early on, Andrea and I agreed to work together on several 2-person projects we'll have to accomplish during the next three weeks. That already gives me a good feeling about how the class will progress, because I'm working with a winner, don't ya know. The class is divided into three teams: seafood, meat, and charcuterie, and we'll spend a week working with each product. Andrea and I are working with Derrick (another great team member) and a girl as yet unknown to us, Flor. She's a question mark, though: she asked Andrea how many ounces were in a quarter-cup. Silvia and Sam are supposedly in our class but not present today, and either of them would be welcomed.

Each day when we come into class, Chef Al has written the list of daily activities on the board for each group. Today, the seafood team did the following: scaled and filleted four salmon; filleted twenty trout, one sturgeon, and one monkfish; cleaned 5 pounds of scallops and 5 pounds of shrimp; cooked 2 crabs and 2 lobsters; brined the sturgeon, trout, and monkfish; brined a quart of oysters; prepared 3 different cures for salmon; and made food dye from fresh carrots, beets, spinach, and saffron.

And, distressingly, we have to do our own dishes.