October 18, 2007

Today was the transportation strike in Paris. Luckily I live within walking distance from school. But most people had to walk or ride bikes or wait over an hr to take the metro! but those are the crazy people!!! Anyway, I made coffee this morning cause Manuel had to walk so I brought him some. We had 8:30 class and for the next 6 hrs (with an hr break) we made different types of croissants and stuff with croissant dough. Basically the same amount of stuff we made yesterday! WAY too much again. I still wound up taking home 3 boxes! hahaha. Liz loved it though!

Anyway, i get home and about an hr after the internet guy comes. Long story short, he tells me that MY computer doesnt work and i need a NEW wi-fi card. Well guess what Mr....im on my internet as i type so YOU WERE WRONG! meaning...I HAVE INTERNET AGAIN!!!!!!! (after 2 weeks of no internet...this is a blessing...come on...you guys know me and my computer!!) So yes I have internet again. Anyway, the guy left and i figured it out myself! he obviously fixed something but not it all. Anyway, after that liz and I went to Monoprix to do major shopping because starting monday we wont have an elevator for 5 weeks straight and we wanted to buy household products that we couldnt lug up the stairs in our carts. And then we stopped at Mcdonalds :( yes i know...shame on us cooking school students. Oh well. We then came home and sat on our internet all night. And that is where this blog ends ;) Feel free to call my skype, email, or read my blog cause i am BACK IN ACTION!!!

October 17, 2007

I woke up at 9:30 and cleaned up my room a bit because Manuel was coming over today. At 10:30ish I walked to the gym and Manuel eventually met me there. I did my nice workout (which was a hard one today) and then the two of us came home. We showered and got dressed (wow...we sound like a couple huh?!?!) and then we ate lunch. We ate the chicken salad that I made the night before and the banana bread! Yummy. Then we went to school early so I could check my email...as usual...no internet! At 3:30 we had Practical which was working together as a group. Chef would split up the dough and we would make what he told us to make. By the end of the practical we had SOOOOO many type of brioche people were taking home 8 boxes worth of stuff. I only took home 3 so liz could try some of the stuff. the rest i gave away or threw out. WAY too much food...but tasty. Here is a slide show of what went on!

October 16, 2007

I woke up at 7 for my 8:30 class. Poop. Do I really have to go through this again? Anyway, we finished learning the last of the ten recipes and I ate so much sugar I thought I was going to puke! At 11:30 we took a break and Manuel and I sat in the computer lab looking up some prices. Then at 12:30 we had another demo, but we kinda did a practical/demo where we measured some things. It was nice to not be sitting for so long. Then we got to leave at 2:30 instead of 3:30 which was great! Then after class Manuel and I went to FNAC to buy tickets to DISNEYLAND!!!! We are going for two days Oct 27 and Oct 28! I can’t wait. We are getting a hotel room and gonna go out sat nite and stuff! It’s gonna be great! YAH! After that I went to Monoprix to get some more groceries. I decided I was cooking more so that’s what I’m doing tonite. I came home and first made lunch for the week which was chicken salad! Then I made banana bread cause I had bananas left over that were bad. But I didn’t have a scale but it still came out. Then I made dinner which consisted of pasta with 4 types of mushrooms and scallops with infused garlic oil! It was DELICIOUS! Then Fernando came over to eat dinner cause he owed me some money. We then watched a short movie and he left. I read a bit and then went to bed around 11:30.

October 15, 2007

I woke up at 7:30 and went to the gym. I came home and got dressed and then went grocery shopping like mad! I hadn’t done it in so long so I bought a lot! I want to start cooking! I then came home and actually fell asleep for about and hr when I started to read my book. Then I left for class! My first professional pastry class! From 3:30 til 9 pm we learned 10 recipes. However we saved some of the plating for the next day. I won’t explain everything, but it was REALLY cool some of the things, and very tasty. However ten recipes was a lot and by the end of the night I was exhausted! I walked home and still no internet so I read a little and then crashed!

McDonalds

Yes, my blog today is entitled McDonalds. Because...I woke up today and did my laundry and then went to Mcdonalds for 3 hrs so I could blog all of this. Well I did indeed TRY and blog...but it wasn't til 7:30 pm when I was stealing internet at my house that these blogs were posted. ARGH! so i wasted 3 hrs of my day at mcdonalds trying to blog and eating crappy food. What a waste! hahaha. However, the highlight of my day was when Manuel came over for a few hrs and we chatted. I hadn't seen him in a month...so it's SOOO nice to have my best friend back here! I missed him tremendously! Anyway...the rest of the night is up in the air. For now...going to get more stuff done on my stolen internet and then read! Have a great nite folks and thanx for being patient on my long lost blog! (oh...still have no internet btw, but i should get it back this week...you gotta understand these slow french people by now!!!)

And...i forgot to post all of my pictures from Professional Cuisine...so here they are! Enjoy!!!

Giverny

I woke up at 9:30 and got dressed. Asima and her friend Tyler, who goes to school also, came over at 10:30 because Asima is going to be my new roommate in January! Madame wanted to meet her and Asima wanted to look at the house. Then we left to go to Giverny which is Monet’s Gardens. They were beautiful. Of course not every flower was in bloom, but enough for us to enjoy the beauty. I took so many pictures, so you can enjoy it too! (and if you are lucky...my dad will respond to this post and explain what each flower is...ok dad?!?! Just joking! love you!) Right when we got there we had a crepe lunch and then walked around. We left around 5:30.

I went straight home at 7 and saved Liz because tonite at our house there was a huge party for Sophie’s Dad’s 60th birthday and the England/France Rugby Match. (England won) So, as we were leaving TONS of people were coming in. We went to dinner at a nice restaurant and then went to the movie The Waitress. It was really good despite the things I heard about it. However we had to go to some random movie theatre to see it. We got home around 12:30ish. People were JUST leaving and it was still pretty noisy however I went to bed shortly after.

October 12, 2007

I woke up at 7:30 and was awake so I decided to go home. On my way I picked up a baguette. I came home and crashed from 8 to 11:45 and then got dressed for my trainer. I went to the gym from 1 to 3. Came home and ate lunch. Isn’t this so exciting for you readers?!?! Then I did a bunch of nothing till I went out to buy pastries for my dinner party. I came home and talked with Monsieur, Greg and his wife Sophie. They were just chillin in the living room, so I sat with them and we chatted. After and hr I got up and went to Sarah’s house. There Abhi was cooking traditional Indian food and shortly after Amit arrived and cooked a dish, and then I brought dessert and Sarah was just relaxing. It was a GREAT evening with amazing food! I left around 11:30. I came home and fell asleep around 12:30. I love evenings like this!!!

October 11, 2007

I was SUPPOSED to go to the gym, but I woke up still feeling yucky. So I slept in til around 9:30 and then got dressed for my stage (internship) meeting! My mtg was at 11 and I can’t say much else. But I’ll keep you posted in the next week or so. After that I used the computer at school because AGAIN I still have no internet. France sux sometimes!!! Then I had my LAST class for cuisine!!!! We learned Tapioca flavored with anis seed and dill with shrimp and granny smith apples and caviar plus a horseradish cream, a fabulous fish bouillabaisse jelly with a light rouille, and then what we made was squab roasted with broccoli couscous, squab sausage and a jus with chick peas. I expected more out of our last day…BUT I’m never disappointed. Chef said he was really impressed with my plating. He thinks I have a talent for it. YAH! He also said it was a pleasure to work with me and he think I can actually cook. Wow…I think I may have a career! according to me, I think I do too as long as I have a recipe! Anyway, as far as today’s dish, he said my squab could have been cooked 3 min longer but overall everything was great. My plating, for me, was more tapas style…well that was the look I was going for!

After class we had a ceremony…HAHAHA….ok champagne and certificate acceptance. It was fun and relaxing. When school was over I went home to drop off my stuff and Madame was home. So I wound up staying at home for longer than I thought talking to her and her husband about household issues. Eventually I went to Fernando’s where a bunch of people were. We drank beer and just chilled. As usual, it got to late so I crashed at his place around 3ish or later.

October 10, 2007

I had my alarm set for 7:45 but I quickly went back to bed :) I woke up at 10 am and still no internet. I got dressed and left the house early to go pick up pain au chocolat for my class. Then went to school to use the internet and talk to people. Then from 12:30 to 4:45 we had practical “atelier” style in which we worked as a group. Chef assigned each of us a portion of a dish to complete. Chef then combined them all and plated the dishes. In total, we made 6 dishes. 1) Tuna Sashimi with aubergine puree and sour cherry coulis with vinegar 2) Rice wraps with fresh salmon, celery and mint, with a passion fruit and basil vinaigrette 3) marinated salmon on a bed of oven roasted tomato, and couscous with condiments 4) Fregola Sarda cooked in saffron bouillon with squid, mussels, langoustine, peas and chorizo 5) pork cheeks in a casserole with diced celery root and morel mushrooms 6) Confit duck parmentier with a duck bolognaise sauce
All of the dishes were AMAZING! I wasn’t feeling well today, but the food perked me up! Just unreal! I came home after sitting with some friends and chatting and relaxed for a bit til I had to leave for dinner with Alex. Dinner was at a nice Italian restaurant which happens to be one of his favorites. We had a nice time together. I went home and got to bed around 11.

October 9, 2007

I woke up at 9:30. I got dressed and went to my gym. I did my work out and rushed home because I had to make it to my bank before 1 pm. I showered and got dressed so quick and picked up my computer hoping I could steal some internet at school. I got to the bank before 1 and then picked up some lunch and then went to school. I sat at school trying to get the internet to work, which it wouldn’t, and eventually I gave up and just typed up my Amsterdam blog and will paste it on my blog when I get internet. I did however use the internet at school. At around 3:15 I got into my outfit. Today we learned a tomato mousse with lobster and an oil of mint and vanilla, terrine of sardines, foie gras and escabeche with pistachio oil, and the dish we prepared was veal rib roast with braised stuffed lettuce and breaded polenta fries. Everything was tasty, except I thought the polenta fries were a little bland, so in pratical I infused my milk with rosemary and they were WONDERFUL! Chef complimented me. He says I’m wonderful in the kitchen. He says everything I do is perfect. I don’t think he is making my ego bigger either…he is being honest. And he tells me when something needs work, like yesterday with the salt. But overall he is very impressed…as am I. I truly think it’s the environment and the people I am working with.

After class it was raining. The ONE day I forget my umbrella, so I had to walk home in the pouring rain. By the time I got home I was DRENTCHED! It was funny. I read a little and then went to bed at 11.

October 8, 2007

I woke up at 5 am, got dressed and organized my luggage. I left the hostel at 5:45 to catch the tram back to the train station. I took the exact same train out that I did in. I left at 6:55 and arrived in Paris at 11:06. I was SO happy to be back, yet LOVED Amsterdam and can’t WAIT to go back :) Anyway, I was also happy to make it back to my house safe. When I got home I immediately unpacked and did laundry. I then showered and came to school because our internet was down and I needed to check my email. At 3:30 we had our first day of our last week in Cuisine which is 3 star cooking. We have my favorite chef this week! We learned the most amazing food! We learned sea bass on a pastry with leek cream and an avruga vinaigrette, veal sweetbreads (if you don’t know what those are- they are the glands of a lamb) in leek with morel mushrooms with baby veggies and a citrus butter sauce, and ganache, white chocolate and coffee jelly trio with coconut tuile. The food was DELICIOUS! I mean….just unreal! For practical, we made the sweetbreads and the dessert! My sweetbreads needed some more salt, but he said my plating was definitely 3 star. My dessert didn’t turn out right, but neither did Emi’s so I didn’t feel bad. I think it was the recipe.




Dzintra is in the US and now we have a new guy whose name I can’t pronounce…or remember. But he is from Greece. Anyway, we started 30 min early and finished around 8:30. After class that guy, Fernando and I along with a bunch of people from another class went for a beer. I didn’t drink because I was SOOO tired. At 10:15 Fernando walked me home to pick up some stuff. I went to bed around 11 pm.

Amsterdam 3

I woke up at 9 am. Got dressed, had breakfast, used the internet and left at 10 to go to the famous redlight district! I walked around in the daylight so I could get my bearings. I went to the erotic museum where I bought (X RATED- but not what you are thinking) I also got some suggestions from two of the workers in the porn shops as to what to do around town. After I figured it was way too early to get anything fun done in the redlight district so I left to do some souvenir shopping. Then I went to Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. I don't know why...but I did. It was lame as usual...but I still took pictures ;)

Then I walked back to my hostel and went to Vondel park where I (X-RATED). I came back to the hostel around 4. I realized I hadn’t eaten since breakfast so I waited for Summer for a while and she didn’t come back, so around 4:30 I left to go to Hard Rock Café. I had a Burger which I actually had to send back once because it was missing one of the cheeses! Then I walked back to the redlight district. From 6:45 to 8:45 I (X-RATED). At 9 pm I walked home and got a BJ….dirty people…I got a Ben and Jerry’s :) It was yummy! I talked to Summer for a bit and organized my stuff for the next morning and then went to bed at 11.

Amsterdam 2

I woke up at 8:30, got dressed and went downstairs for my free, CRAPPY, breakfast. I stayed down in the lobby til around 10 am. I then went to the Rijks museum and then the Van Gogh. They took me a short time, as museums are not the most fun for me. But I enjoy them for the time being. I then asked where I could get Harley Davidson gear and I was sent to this bike shop, so I went there. They sold nothing and told me the ONLY place I could get it would be a 20 euro taxi ride there and then the same back. I decided against that idea. I walked to the Waterpleinloo market. There I also grabbed something to eat. After that I went to the main shopping street. I happened to run across some great thrift stores where I made an awesome purchase (and I bargained with the guy) of a silk mcdonalds vest! It’s so cool! Then I had some free time so I (X RATED). I then walked to this restaurant called Pasta e Basta where the servers and hosts sing and serve you. The first course is antipasto and is buffet and you can eat as much as you want. Then you chose a pasta dish out of 8. Then dessert. I also had wine and coffee. I had to sit at the bar because they were completely full. The guy serving me asked “is it good?” and I replied “I came here for the singing” He laughed and said “ok, I got you…I won’t ask any futher” It was funny! I also met one of the wait staff who I could tell was really young but she has potential to be good. She was 17 and was about to take her exams to go to college. I gave her some song suggestions and my info to stay intouch. She also wanted to know where I went to school. I think I made her day because she told her boss and she was so excited. Overall the singing was ok. Some of the people were unreal! Others I could have done without…and the food…I definitely could have done without ;) I then went to Boom Chicago. I had met the bartender the night before, Ian, so I sat and ordered a drink. We chatted and then Summer, the girl from my hostel, met me there. We got seated and met this nice guy John who was also by himself. Anyway, the best part of my trip is about to be explained. The show started and they had a picture montage of the performers in the show. There was a picture and the name of Julie Nichols who was the piano player. I thought, there can’t be more than one in the world. So I looked over and low and behold, it was THE Julie Nichols who I went to HS with. SOOOOO random!!! I wrote a note and gave it to the waitress to give to her. She gave it to her, and she was so confused. Julie looks in the audience and I waved and she got very excited. I enjoyed the show very much! After the show Summer left and I stayed and waited for Julie. It was SOOO exciting. We sat, drank, chatted, and I met the rest of the cast. Oh and we also watched the cubs lose :( Anyway, it was SOOOO good to catch up. Around 4 am, I decided to leave. We parted ways, but that was DEFINITELY the highlight of my trip!

Amsterdam 1

I woke up at 4:45 am, finished getting ready and then left my house and waited at the metro station for about 15 minutes. I then took the metro to the train station. I got to the station early around 6:15 am. I met two very nice girls who were also traveling. One of them actually went to Northwestern. While they were in Paris they happened to have stayed with a girl whose boyfriend attends LCB and is in the basic class. SO weird! The train left at 6:55 and I slept the ENTIRE way. I happened to hear once that we were delayed for a bit and we were cause I arrived in Amsterdam around 11:25 am instead of 11:06. I went straight to my hostel and set down my stuff. I left right away to go start touring. The closest thing to my hostel was the Heineken Experience. I was all for it, except for the fact that I hadn’t eaten ALL day and they give you 3 beers in the tour :) It was fun though. I met some really nice people including two couples from England. One of the couples actually gave me their info and said if I happened to be near Birmingham I should give them a ring! How nice. After I left I went to get something to eat. I then proceeded to walk to Anne Frank's house. Thinking about it even makes me sad. It was an experience I’ll never forget. Then I did some shopping for friends. Eventually I went to dinner at a restaurant a friend from school recommended called Envy. You can see the pictures of the food I ate. I chose the tasting menu, as usual. It was actually very cheap for all the food I got. I won’t bore you, but if anyone cares to know what I ate, just email me. However I will tell you I ate horse meat, which was delicious! After dinner I watched the kitchen for a while because it was in the middle of the dining room. I then spoke to the chefs. We chatted. On my walk home I stopped off at Boom Chicago to buy tickets for the next night. Back at my hostel, which is HUGE…600 beds in the hostel total and 20 beds alone in my room….I met a girl named Summer from Oregon. We chatted a bit and eventually I got into bed. After a few exchanges of texts with Sara, I fell asleep around 11:45.