(photo from Johnson & Wales University website)
Last weekend, I started my weekend Chef’s Choice classes at Johnson & Wales University up in Providence. Initially I had signed up for three courses, with the first course being their Pro Series French Cuisine. The class advertized itself as being geared towards home chefs who had already tightened up their basic skills, and were looking for a challenge and an opportunity to learn some new technique. The regular Chef’s Choice courses run for approximately 3 hours, but since we were working with some slightly more advanced techniques, our course ran for 4 hours. Upon getting on to the Johnson & Wales campus, I was immediately impressed with the facilities and how pristine the area felt. It took us a while to find the building where the class was being held (no signage on the grounds near where parking was suggested, but finally made a call to the helpline and they were able to direct us), but we were wowed by the brand new facility once we found it. Weekend classes are held in the Center for Culinary Excellence building, a striking new glassed in structure with outstanding professional-grade kitchens. We found our classroom (Kyle was originally signed up to be in the Pro Series Baking & Rolls course, but enrollment was too low, so he switched over to the French course) and were greeted by their friendly student volunteers and our instructor. While waiting for the rest of the class, we read over the handouts, which went through the menu we would be preparing for the day (more on that later!).
Class started with a warm welcome from our instructor, who began a dialogue with us about the general concept and flavor profile of French cooking. He discussed how traditional French cooking is often times considered difficult and time consuming, when in reality it is really more about taking the time to insure that all ingredients are handled properly so as to bring out their best flavors. Although he conceded that it was commonly time consuming, the trick was to have all of your components prepared before you begin to make the process efficient, and form of setup known in the professional culinary world as mise-en-place (I was relieved when he called on me to define what mise-en-place, and I was correct). After our initial introduction, he divided the class in half and we selected one of two menus. The other team’s menu included Beef Consume, Lobster Thermador served with Haricot Verts Almondine, Duchess Potatoes and a trio of Crème Brules. Our menu featured Oyster Rockefeller, Beef Wellington (!!!), Pommes Anna, Stuffed Provencial Tomatoes and Chocolate Soufflé.
Each group was provided with speed trays packed with beautiful, fresh ingredients broken down by recipe to help with prep. We divvied out the prep work within our groups and set to work. Since the class size was small, we each were able to work with a student volunteer or assistant instructor in a one on one setting to gain new skills and suggestions for better prep. The students were very new (classes started a month prior) and enthusiastic, willing to offer up help at any time. At various points throughout the class, the lead instructor would invite us to gather around one of the prep station while he instructed one of the participants on a certain form of knife work or prep, allowing us to practice hands on. I really appreciated his teaching style, where he would show you once and encourage you to perfect the skill with the rest of the prep work. Throughout the afternoon, he would call out the time, giving us recommendations about how far along we should be in our work, what dishes should be ready to fire, and how close we were to service. It was a great way to keep yourself in check, and much like what I remember from my days in restaurant kitchens, although the pace was much more relaxed, with more room for error.
In general, Kyle and I got pretty high marks for our kitchen skills, and our instructor seemed happy to pretty much turn us loose on our menu. He seemed pleased with our ability to crank out two dozen shucked oysters (see previous post on our love of oysters!), and general ability to make our way around the kitchen. Like any heads chef, he was continually moving around the kitchen, tasting our dishes, recommending adjustments and commending good execution. We began to button up our prep work and started moving towards assembling our soufflé, and I did all I could to avoid the speed tray containing the ingredients. I’m pretty sure that our instructor saw this, and sensing my fear, pointed me directly towards my greatest fear. Well, alright then. Kyle and the other student in our group busied themselves assembling the Wellingtons, and I set to work organizing my mise-en-place for the much feared Chocolate Soufflé. Some time back in the Regan Administration, my mother had showed me the proper technique for separating egg yolks and whites (separated yolks in one container, whites in another, and separating over a third container so as to not contaminate the pure egg whites- there’s nothing worse than being on your last egg and watching a sneak yolk jump the shell and ruin ten perfectly good whites!), so while I worked through my eggs, the instructor called the other students over to observed, and explained why this technique is crucial in making a proper soufflé, as the fat from the yolks are the mortal enemy of a successful meringue. Ok, so I’m off on the right start at least!
Through his confident guidance and relative hands off approach, I worked my way through the well paced instructions, tempering my chocolate & yolk mixture, dusting my soufflé cups, whipping the whites to stiff peaks and gently folding the two components together. The tray hit the hot oven, the door sealed shut, and I crossed my fingers. When the time was right, the soufflés were removed and- Sweet Mother Mercy- they rose! They actually looked like soufflés, with little caps and everything! Wow. We all clamored for spoons and grabbed up the little cups, dipping into their tops. Although the flavor was spot on, they had been in the oven just a few minutes too long, and had lost their creamy interior (a fault that the instructor took upon himself for mis-timing, although I think I definitely had fault in as well!), but the concept was still on.
Once our dishes were plated, we all sat down as a class to sample our hours of hard work, and in all honesty- there wasn’t one dish that disappointed! The Lobster Thermador was luxurious and creamy and paired beautifully with the haricot verts and potatoes, which were baked into lovely piped circles. The Wellington was perfectly seared (good job honey!) and wrapped in indulgent duxelles with buttery pastry. The rice stuffed tomatoes had a rich and meaty flavor from their demi-glace topping, and the Oysters Rockefeller certainly didn’t go to waste- I think Ky had 6 or 8 alone! The other groups Lemon Crème Brule was a smashing success- the perfect carmelized sugar top, with a richly smooth custard, and the lemon was a perfect addition. Everything was so well done, it was incredible to think a group of foodies who had never met could put together such a great meal, and we didn’t even have to eat for the rest of the day!
Overall, I give our first experience with the Chef’s Choice courses at Johnson & Wales very high marks. Our instructor was very knowledgeable, the teaching kitchen was wonderful to work in, and our student volunteers were enthusiastic and happy to help. Not only did we receive excellent hands on training for executing an elegant and classic French menu, we enjoyed the fruits of our labor, and were able to take our booklet of notes & recipes home to use again. As they say, the proof is in the pudding! I am already looking forward to my next two Saturday classes, and can’t wait to pick up new skills, and share them with friends & family!
Class schedule & available dates for Johnson & Wales Chef’s Choice Classes can be found on their website.
No comments:
Post a Comment