3 Weeks In

     I can't believe week 3 of Culinary Arts is done, and I'm on to week 4! What a great first couple of weeks.  All the instructors are passionate about what they do and are excited to teach.  My fellow students and I, as eager as we were to get in to the kitchen and start chopping, had to wait a few days though.  The first day was an orientation to the campus and the course, finding out what we needed for our journey.  Which ended up in a trip to Chef's Edge here in Kelowna.  That was fun!  A few hundred dollars later, I now have a pretty swanky set of knives and gadgets to get me through the next 10 months.  The next couple of days in class consisted of a knife demo, lots of theory and a couple of assignments.  Homework?  Already?  What?  

     Finally, on day 4, we get into the lab kitchen and start making our stocks.  So, out come those fancy new knives, and I start chopping away.  I sure found out how sharp those knives are, I cut myself in the first 20 minutes.  I was so embarrassed!  I didn't want to be the first one cut, so I hid it for a few minutes, hoping I wasn't cut that bad.  Unfortunately, I was bleeding, so with my tale between my legs and ego sliced, off to my instructor I went to claim the first band-aid.  To my surprise, my kitchen partner had also cut herself and was also trying to hide it.  Neither one of us knew what the other had done until we both ran up to our instructor. When we realized what happened, we all (including our instructor) burst out laughing!  Off to a great start!

My excellent Hollandaise sauce!

     The last couple of weeks we ended up in the classroom for the first couple of hours every day, and then into the kitchen to practice what we learned.  The second week of class was soups and sauces.  It was such a fun week!  We made chicken noodle soup and cream of mushroom (delicious!)  We then moved on to the "mother sauces" like bechamel and hollandaise.  Hollandaise is surprisingly not that difficult.  Just takes a lot of whisking.  My instructor loved my hollandaise!  Not too shabby for a first try!

Creamed Leeks

     We then moved on to vegetables and starches.  Have you ever had creamed leeks?  They are seriously delicious and so simple!  We also made pasta and a cream sauce.  Then on to meat!  Learning all the cuts of beef and pork.  In the kitchen we learned how to shallow fry some breaded pork, seared a steak and made a pan sauce.  The next day was poultry, learning how to cut up a whole chicken, and then braising the thighs and drumsticks in a demi-glace we made the week before...wow!  Then we pan-fried a chicken breast, mine was perfect!  Then on to seafood and fish, making Salmon en Papillote, which is salmon, baked in a parchment bag, with white wine and veggies.  So simple, and absolutely delicious!  I will post that recipe soon!

Salmon en Papillote

     I've learned so much already in these 3 weeks, it's hard to narrow down what to share with you all.  So, I thought I would share a tip on cutting onions.  It's an easy technique to learn and will save you time (and tears) in the kitchen.  

• The first thing you do, is cut the stem/end off of each end of the onion. 
• Then stand the onion up on one end (you've now created a stable base) and cut the onion in half, from core to stem

• Next, make small cuts starting back from the core about 1 cm, cutting down and back through the onion.  Make sure you don't cut the onion in slices.  By not cutting all the way through on the core end, this holds everything together.

• Now, turn your knife so that the blade is parallel with your cutting board, and make slices through the onion, stopping before you slice all the way through.  Making about 3 slices this way, moving up the onion.

• Now, slice away!  As you slice, the onion will come off the blade perfectly diced.  Once you get close to the core, stop.  And viola!  You have a diced onion!  If you want a finer dice, simply make your cuts closer together.  Or use this technique, and then chop them finer once they are diced.

This technique does take a bit of practice, but it definitely saves you time.  And when these little guys make you cry, speedy dicing is excellent!

I hope this tip helps!  Stay tuned for an incredibly easy and delicious tomato sauce and Salmon en Papillote!

Thanks everyone! :)

~Vicki

Zoo Jam!

Zoo Jam, AKA Zucchini Jam.  I know it sounds a little strange and you might be wondering how the heck zucchini ended up in jam.  But trust me, it's delicious!  And if you like marmalade, then you will love this stuff!  My Mom used to make this jam all the time as I was growing up, using the giant zucchinis from our garden.  Every time I taste this jam now, I'm transported back to my childhood, sitting in our tiny little house.  For me, there's nothing better than zoo jam on toast!

Let's make some jam!  The full recipe will be at the bottom of the post for you.

Before you get started with the jam, you are going to need to sterilize your jars and lids.  This recipe makes about 10 cups of jam, so make sure you have enough jars ready.  To sterilize the jars, place them in a large pot, cover with water, making sure the water comes above the jars by about an inch.  And then boil the living day lights out of them!  Just kidding!  Once the pot comes to a boil, 10 minutes at the boil will be good.  Then, using tongs or the fancy canning utensil thing (that I don't have), carefully take the jars and lids out and set them on a clean towel, upside down to dry.  Please be careful, they are going to be hot!  I don't have a canning pot, so I used my biggest soup pot.  It wasn't big enough to do all the jars and lids at once, so I did two batches.  Just make sure you don't re-use the water or crowd your pot.  You don't want the jars banging into each other or they could crack or break.

For the jam, you're going to need 6 cups of grated zucchini.  I peel it, my mom doesn't.  So it's up to you.  If you want the green bits of skin in your jam, go for it!  I've had it both ways, and it doesn't effect the taste at all,  just the look.  Once it's grated, the zoo can go in the pot.  A great trick I learned, was 

to put the zoo in the pot in one cup piles.  That way, you don't lose count of how many cups you have.  Once you have six piles, you're good to go!

Once all the zoo is in the pot, bring it to the boil over medium heat and let it simmer for about 6 minutes.  This

will bring all the water out of the zoo.  After 6 minutes, you can add 5 cups of white sugar (this used to be 6, we reduced it last year.  It could even be reduced again I'm sure...next batch!), 1 cup of crushed pineapple (the juice is ok too) and 1/2 cup of lemon juice.  Give this a good stir and bring it back to the boil.  Let this mixture simmer for another 8 minutes.  Then, add 1 double package (or 2 small packages) of peach Jell-O.  Stir this all together and take the pot off of the heat.  

Make sure the jars are dry and ladle the jam into them.  If you have a funnel with a wide spout, it will definitely make the job easier.  The jam does tend to get stuck in regular sized funnels, so I use a ladle. Which can create a bit of a mess if you're not careful.  Before you put the lids on, give the jars a wipe with a paper towel so they're not sticky.  Then on with the lids!  Tighten them hand tight, and voila!  Zoo Jam!

The jam will have a thinner than expected consistency, until it goes in the fridge.  The gelatin in the Jell-O will set the jam once it's cold.  As long as your jars seal, the jam is safe on the shelf.  Pop it in the fridge the day before you want to use it, and it will be nice and thick.  It's delicious on toast with peanut butter or butter, on scones or muffins.  You could even use it as a sweet component in a vinaigrette.  

I hope you enjoy the jam as much as I do.  And if you decrease the sugar any more, let me know how it turns out!

Happy jamming!

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 6 Cups of peeled or unpeeled zoo
• 5 cups of sugar
• 1 cup crushed pineapple
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 double package of Peach Jell-O powder (or 2 small packages)

1. Place the zoo in a large pot and bring to a boil over medium heat.  Simmer for 6 minutes.
2. Add sugar, pineapple and lemon juice and stir.  Return to the boil and simmer for an additional 8 minutes.
3. Stir in the Jell-O powder and remove from the heat.
4. Ladle into jars and seal.
5. Refrigerate the day before opening to set the jam.

*Yields approximately 10 cups of jam.

My Mom's original recipe :)