Summary

It's been a few weeks since the last day I worked at The Grain House. In all honesty, in some ways I miss it, it was hard work of course, but I also got to make some friends there that taught me so much in so little time. Getting to know everyone while learning at the same time was a blast. I still have all the homework to do unfortunately... (at least this post makes 10 in my journal though!) On top of which I'm still moving things into my condo and planning my wedding which is 38 days away. For now I am still working my other job ~45 hours a week to make ends meet with the wedding and mortgage. It's very difficult to find time to really sit down and get some of this homework started, it's starting to worry me but I know it's all part of the learning process and is important to get done. Chef Leffler gave me a project to do instead of the one given in class. That at least will be more enjoyable than the alternative.

One of the great things is, all of the things I've been learning in class through the years is all coming together in the planning of this wedding. Taking things from my purchasing class when I had to plan a menu and the costing, also the decoration and setup that I had learned in my Garde Manger class.

A lot of what I learned will also make it much more affordable to eat. Knowing how to cook and do it well is most certainly a big plus over buying prepared foods that probably cost over double what it'd cost to make from scratch. It'll save tons of money to buy a whole chicken, French it myself then use the bones to make stock for soup rather than buying chicken one night, and cans of soup for lunch the next day. I'm very excited to see all of the things I've learned come together in the future of both my lifestyle and my career.

I owe it all to the teachers and fellow students that helped me along in my journey through culinary school and have lead me off onto my own to build on the skills that they had help bring about. (and of course to my family and fiance Shannah who have been very supportive and not hating me for my hectic schedule/lack of time for them)

Final Hours

Today was my last day, and I ended up getting into a disagreement with one of the Spanish workers, which made it difficult because I couldn't really explain to him WHY I was bringing his pans back from dish before they were washed. These pans were used for roasting veal bones for stock, and he had no idea what deglazing was. I ended up having to get Julio to explain to him for me in Spanish, from that point on he held a grudge against me. The up side was, he leaves around 3:00 pm so it didn't last long. Otherwise I ended up working my hardest I've ever worked there, going from one thing to another prepping as much as possible as fast as I could as the list was exceptionally long. Once the list was done, there were other things that needed prepping for pantry which doesn't have items on the list, just get them done as they're needed. Around 7:30 all prep work was done, and I got to start working on my project that Chef Leffler had assigned me the day previous. Pricing out veal stock in it's Demi Glace form. I got handed a packet of the inventory and prices and at what quantities they come in at. So, I now have that with me, I got all the basic prices required for stock down on paper, however the math part of it I have not yet tackled. I will be working on this on my days that I'd otherwise be at the restaurant working since I am now free, well from the kitchen anyway. Between that I still have planning to do as well as moving as I've stated before in previous posts. I still have one more post to go after this one, so I'll make sure to have a nice summary going or something.

T-Minus 10 Hours

I just worked the last Tuesday of my Culinary Externship at The Grain House. This also means the last day working with Jeanine, she'll be missed. In fact, today we made what was supposed to be an upgrade to our Lime Pies we made last week, however, not everything went according to plan. We started mixing everything together they same way we had did last week, we used the same mini-pie pans they use for their Grain House Pies (which is really mini pecan pies). Everything was the same but we added min leaves to the mix. (This is not where it went wrong though, the pies themselves tasted fantastic). The problem ended up being trying to get them out... for some reason, today they just wanted to stick to the edges of the little pie pans, but slid off perfectly from the disk on the bottom (opposite of what happened last week but the bottom is a lot easier to get off with a spatula since it's flat as compared to the wavy edges of the mini pie pans). This was insanely frustrating and to add insult to injury Chef Leffler happened by as we were literally cutting the pies around the edges to attempt to get them out with as little disaster as possible. What we ended up doing was cutting them rounded completely removing the edges so that it was a rounded disk. This wasn't all that bad, would have looked a LOT better had the crust popped out as it did last week, but, I learned a lot from having to work with what I had regardless of how it was (or wasn't in this matter) working. All-in-all we got them presentable enough to serve, we did very small rum-whipped cream stars on the top covering it, similar to last weeks but the stars were about 1/2 the size, and shaved lime zest over the top and accented it with a mint leaf. We dubbed them, Mojito Pies. Aside from making the pies, it was an average day at The Grain House Mirepoix and all. Though I've learned a lot from working there, I'm excited to have my externship come to an end, not that I mind the work, but I can more work on things like moving into my condo and planning my wedding.

Desert Special!

Today was the day that Professor Lynch came to visit, which I'll be honest I was really nervous and Janine didn't seem all that thrilled either. We were very much expecting much staring over shoulders and corrections or discerning nods and jotting notes on papers. However, it was the exact opposite, it was more like meeting a friend you haven't seen in some time, catching up on things and having common interests. I enjoyed showing her how the Apple Springrolls were made and even cooking one off to send home with her so that she could share it with her daughter. This was just the beginning of the day though, Janine had mentioned that we were tasked with making todays desert special. So brain storming we ran through a bunch of ideas, all of which included fruits since something summery was the requirement. We ran upstairs to take over the computer and immediately started surfing the webs for ideas and recipes. At which point not sure how it happened we thought, Key Lime Pie!... but wait... we don't have key limes... we just have Mojito Limes... So we then planned on making a Mojito Pie with Mint and Lime, and Rum Whipped Cream on top. So we printed a recipe for Key Lime Pie, and made some modifications, grabbed all the required ingredients till we notice.... we're out of mint, not in the walk in, not even on the pantry line (which there is normally a supply hidden away) So, we dubbed it Lime Pie w/ Rum Whipped Cream top and gram cracker crust. We made them all personal sized using small cake tins that had bottoms that popped up for easy removal. (I have to admit, we were worried about whether or not we'd be able to pop them out or not, so I sprayed them all liberally with "Pam"). Turns out our worries were for not, they popped out easy and some of the ones that stuck a little a spatula made quick work of them. The staff loved them too as we passed pieces around for people to try and waitresses to sell. From about 6:00 pm to 8:00pm (when I left) we had sold 5 which I was rather proud of. I also got to take one home which was nice since my Dad's favorite desert is Key Lime Pie and he had gone up too late at the brunch to get a piece before it was. We also got to pair up the Chocolate balls I was referring too in previous posts to the plate as decoration that you could not only eat but enjoy!

This was not the end of our on our own crafting, we also made a foccacia with onion, garlic, olives, and basil, topped with a small amount of olive oil for moisture. We made this more for the staff, cut some pieces up and passed it among the different people behind the line that have all taught us very much. Janine kept referring to the foccacia as her child and that I was the Dad that ran away and didn't even pay child support. Not sure how all of that story came about but

there you have it.

Sunday, June 13th

As Sundays typically go, it was a very slow and very long day. However there was a couple of things that made this Sunday a little different than the others. One, there was no Sous Chef or Chef Leffler there that day, so the environment seemed much more layed back. (Don't get me wrong, we still got tons of work done, just less pressure). The other thing was my realtor, my family, and my Fiance visited me at work and actually stayed and ordered brunch! Another nice little token was that (and I had no idea of this) but since they mentioned they were family they get 25% off of their bill. (Which was very helpful considering brunch is $27.00 a head making it instead $20.50). I got to make a Bechamel sauce which came out perfect, I even had Casey amazed, which felt really good. My hand wasn't bothering me as much that day either, maybe I had just pinched a nerve or something Wednesday and I wont have to worry about it. I'm also quite adapted to the smell of grease that now is in my car. (Not sure how I'm going to get that out, will have to attack it with fabreeze or something I guess)

Chocolate Balls! Part 2

So today I finished off the chocolate balls since they weren't all good enough quality in my opinion to serve and showed them to Chef. They passed! He said he'll use them with the special tomorrow which was exciting to hear. Otherwise it was no different than any other day. Every day at work I pretty much do the same things. Cut vegetables from around 9:30 am to 6pm then depending on how many people are working at the time I get to help out on the line. Today there were 3 people already on the line so I pretty much just got to watch. I made mirepoix in the morning, I chopped onions and herbs for the meatloaf, which is covered in bacon and quite tasty. I made Tempura batter by making a stiff peaked marang out of egg whites then folded in the yolks gently. It's getting really difficult to type about work without repeating other posts the more and more that I work. Considering there are only 5 days left, I have to post after every day of work to get my 10 posts.

On the down side I may have discovered that I have carpal tunnel syndrome. My hand kept going numb and getting the "pins and needles" sensation while I was chopping vegetables. This is the only time that this has happened but it has me worried for sure. Hopefully all I did was pinch a nerve but time will tell I suppose. On the upside, my parents will be eating brunch at the Grain House tomorrow, I hope to get the chance to go out and say hi to them during the fray, but, I don't have high hopes for that. Even though it is a routine job, it's a very busy job. I do my best to keep busy every day, along with the other prep workers we drill through the "to do" list that hangs on the wall. Since my externship ends soon, hopefully I'll get some time to actually work on some homework as well.

Till next time!

Chocolate Balls!

All the days of my externship are starting to run together. I find my self doing a lot of the same things day to day, but that's great. I'm quickly getting better at the ever day processes that bring the line together later in the day. I have a few recipes memorized at this point and learning new ones every day that I work. Today I worked with Jeff who makes most of our deserts. We made mini pecan pies that are called Grain House Pies. I also got to work with Janine a lot today, we made Apple Springrolls which are like apple cheesecake in a springroll that later gets deep fried to order on the line. We also made our own invention using the scraps left over from the trimming of a chocolate cake... This is where the title of today's post comes in. We took the scraps, crumbled them up till we had chocolate cake crumbles in a large bowl, got a few shots of Brandy and soaked dampened the cake crumbles. We then packed them into small 1/2 oz balls and froze them. Afterward we took them out, tempered some chocolate and coated them with a nice layer of it. The end result was a mix of a truffle and a munchkin, however much much more rich. (Considering there was liquor and dark chocolate involved) I have to say, it was a lot of fun making our own concoction and seeing how it'd work. It's great to know that I'm working in a profession where you're constantly learning and getting paid to do it! I'm 120 hours into my externship now with 60 hours remaining. Very exciting to know that soon I'll be off and on my way to making an actual career out of what I've spent much time learning in classrooms.

Catering!

Wednesday the 26th was very different than the other days in my externship. I spent the morning doing prep as usual not knowing that all the prep work that I was doing was for an out-door catering event that we had at the end of a bicycle race. I even ended up cooking a bunch of vegi-burgers that Chef Paul had put together. When 3 o'clock came around Chef Paul had asked that I join him on this catering event that was to start at 6. After everything was prepped and rushed together (cups, utensils, ingredients, tools, cutting boards, rolls, ect.) we were off to find the location at which we were to set everything up. However, it being a bicycle race it had turned out that a lot of the center of town's roads were closed and we couldn't find a way to get to where we wanted to be. After many calls back and forth to Chef Leffler we found the spot we were meant to setup which was in the parking lot of a bike shop. There was a long grill that they had rented sitting there waiting for us to man and serve from. Quickly with the help of a few of the other employees of the Olde Mill Inn, we got to work getting everything ready for the crowd that would come demanding burgers, dogs, chicken, vegi-burgers, and everything and anything you could barbecue. After a rushed 20 minutes everything was in it's place and I got to work cutting up pickles so that we'd have slices ready. Afterwards we sat there... the invoice did say for us to be there at 6 but it turns out that the race was over around 7:30 and that they had announcements and such afterwards so not to expect people till around 8. The upside to this was I got to learn about Chef Paul's past a lot more during our 2 hour chat as well as got to know him better as a person outside of the kitchen. I also learned that he's getting married about a week before me which was interesting to hear and that he also has not yet sent out his invitations due to how busy everything has been in his life...

Finally, 8 o'clock rolls around and people start showing up, all together of course, so frantically I began setting up plates and giving out drinks as people ordered them all the while shouting orders back to Chef Paul on what and how people wanted their food cooked. Finally, things were rolling, the fires were high, and everything was heating up. Burger after burger went out till there were no more. (though we had a lot of left over chicken and hot dogs) The favorite though, seemed to be the keg of beer we had brought along which people just began coming around and serving them selves. Everyone was having a good time and were very happy with the food and service. The burgers were the talk of the night (aside from the beer). It was a great experience and probably the most fun I've had so far during this externship. Getting to connect more with someone that has had a lot of experience in the kitchen was a great learning experience. Around 10 o'clock we started to pack everything up for the ride back to the Olde Mill Inn to unload and call it a night. We were both exhausted and eager to be home from the long humid night.

Another few days

It's been rather difficult to keep up with these posts or post anything at all with the way things have been lately. Not only am I spending about 35 hours a week on this externship but I also have my other job to maintain as well as closing on a condo that I bought in Hillsborough and planning my Wedding that's coming up in August. This sadly leaves me very little time to keep this updated or work on anything at all. Though less about me and more about the externship. The past few days have been a steep learning curve. I'm starting to move much faster on the line and am able to see what needs to be done during the prep hours a lot more now without being told. Prep time is probably still the "longest" part of my day, both literally and feels like forever, however I know it needs to get done and I'm learning valuable knife skills while doing so. Everything changes pace drastically once on the line making the hours fly by like nothing, far more enjoyable than the prep times. I started out the first day just plating a few things here and there on the line and frying a few items in the deep fry, but I'm learning more and more. I know how to plate pretty much everything on the grill/fry half of the line now, just need to get times down on the grilling in correlation to the sauté side, which I know will come with time. All and all, as said before I'm learning a lot and working hard, when I get home it's hot shower and bed so that I can get up early the next day to go back into the kitchen again.

Day 1

Day one of my externship was very new and exciting. When I first ventured into the back door of The Grain House I found my self looking around and trying to take everything in at once. This is my first day working in a professional kitchen outside of school. Right off the start Chef Paul had me French cutting chickens, (which he can do one whole chicken in under 90 seconds) Which right then and there showed me that my knife skills weren't even close to being on par. I was learning quick as I was sent from one task to another making Polenta from scratch to cutting up Mir Pox for stock. The first 7 hours of my morning was spent doing lots of cutting and prep tasks but as the time rolled around 5 I was sent up to the line to learn from the Grill station and run the deep fried foods. This was much more fast paced than that of the prep stage of my day and a whole lot more enjoyable. Time seemed to drag on during the prep stage where late evening seemed to fly by on the line. It was a very interesting first day, that of both excitement and exhaustion. I do look forward to see what else working here has in store for me.