Cooking, eating and thinking...

First a note on the picture: It was an after thought! After eating about 12 (yes,TWELVE)crepes I thought I better take a picture for the blog...

As I type this apples are sauteing and crepes are cooking (hold on while I flip one...ok maybe cooking and typing isn't a good idea...HA!) As I was preparing my crepe batter questions started swirling around in my mind. Not just the normal questions like would duck eggs make this better and shall I add 1/2 tsp of vanilla or go for a whole tsp. But rather questions like why does crepe batter seem to work better after resting for about a half hour in the fridge. And why was the crepe batter I made last time so airy? They turned out more like fish net stockings then thin sweet little paper pancakes. Why were they airy last time and not this time or the million other times I have made them? I wonder if the high fat butter content of the raw milk I am using this time will make them taste and feel any different and if so why? But of course my thoughts don't stop there. I also sit back and wonder if someone is starting a love affair with crepes for the very first time, are they on a side street some where in Paris, and will they go home and try and recreate this very moment in their own kitchen? I know I relive Paris every time I eat crepes!

I will post the recipe I use for crepes, you can alter it making it better suited for savory crepes or adjust it for sweet crepes.

1 cup AP flour
1 tsp - 2 Tbs sugar (use less for savory dishes, and more for sweet dishes)
1/4 tsp salt (I prefer slightly more then this amount)
3 eggs
2 cups milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 Tbs melted butter

In large mixing bowl, sift dry ingredients.

In separate mixing bowl beat eggs, milk and vanilla.

Beat the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until smooth. At the end still in the melted butter.

Heat a small amount of oil in a pan and ladle approximately 1/4 cup batter into pan. Using the back of your ladle swish the batter around the pan making a nice thin layer. You will need to work fast smoothing it out. Or if you are extremely talented you can simply hold the handle of you pan and swish the batter around with a few quick tilts.

For fillings you can saute apple slices, or add nutella, nuts, banana slices and whipped cream. Also peach preserves taste heavenly in crepes. The sky is truly the limit on what to use as a filling! Enjoy!!!

Into the bleu

Today brings me great joy and excitement. I am thrilled to say that it is official, I have signed on as a new student at Le Cordon Bleu! There were many dotted lines to be signed and initials to be made. I am quit sure I didn't sign over my first born, but there was a fair amount of small print.

The school is brimming with life! Students working and toiling over projects. Staff walking this way and that. Then the smells...ahh glorious smells. Today something was roasting or smoking or perhaps the combination of both, what ever it was the smell was permeating the entire school house and making me hungrier then ever!

The class rooms are large restaurant style kitchens. The front of each class room is a giant window. Passersby can stop and watch the young chefs learning new techniques. The chef instructors wear tall hats and all eyes are fixated on them. Not a move to be missed by students eager to learn more about their passion!

I learned from my advisor that my specific Le Cordon Bleu school house was designed to look exactly like the school house in France! The school boasts its very own restaurant were students work and feed real live customers...can you even imagine?!!?

Once my paper work was completed I filled out a form stating my shoe size, coat and pant size. I will receive 5 sets of uniforms. Hats, scarves, jackets, pants, aprons and shoes. I will also receive an enormous amount of books, for which I am most thrilled! I have been having a love affair recently with books on food, in any form or fashion. We will also be receiving our "tool kits." Which house knives, scrapers, slicers, piters, tips, bags, you name it, its there. It will surely feel like Christmas (the kind I knew as a child) as I go threw all my school supplies. I hope I can remember to breathe and keep a level head about myself!

My only stress at the moment is figuring out my gi bill. It use to be simply, one choice. The Montgomery gi-bill. But now the VA has created a new gi-bill called the post 911 gi-bill. I only served 11 months post 9-11 before separating active duty (4 Honorable years served.) I am not sure if I am just over analyzing things but I do want to insure I get the most money that I am entitled to. My culinary education will not be cheap and I need to watch every cent of my gi-bill money. Ahh so if you are reading this you might be wondering how much does an education such as this cost a young stay at home mother (or anyone else for that matter?) Since the schools freely give out that information I really don't mind telling you. I am not huge on secrets as it is! Also I hope to inspire others to follow their dreams (your dream???) so here it is: $41,000 for 21 months in Culinary Arts. Of course this all gets broken down by quarters and isn't expected to be paid up front and in full.

So now what? Well I will attend a couple meetings before my official start date: an orientation and a health card meeting. I am still trying to grasp what the health card meeting is. It was explained to me that we will be watching videos on health and cleanliness in the kitchen, and even be given a hepatitis shot! Yikes, did I fell to mention to these people I don't believe in vaccinations. Opps! I guess I will take one for the team (Team Michelle-thats me!) and do what is necessary in following my dreams. I look forward to updating you every step of the way. Follow my posts starting after February 15th 2010 and see what culinary school is all about. And until then continue to follow me and see whats happening in my kitchen!

Garlic Family Soup

Click play on the video above to see this marvelous soup being made...

Recently I gave my self several gifts...cookbooks! I went on Amazon to find a Joel Robuchon cook book only to get drawn into review after review of Patricia Wells' cookbooks. In case your wondering how I stumbled onto her reviews its pretty simple she wrote a cook book called Simply French, for/with Joel Robuchon. I ended up getting four books total (all used.)So far the one I keep returning to is called At Home In Provence. I absolutely love her style of writing, its not just your average recipe style cookbook, but rather a book that takes you away with her thoughts and stories. She talks about where her ideas for recipes came from, for whom she was cooking (sometimes a plumber sometimes the mayor,) and in the end your left with the over all feeling of being right there with her as she unveils a new recipe.

French cooking is something I have very little experience with. Although I must say I do make a mean crepe! But aside from that, I have no experiences worth mentioning.
After flipping through and flipping through this book I finally decided my first go at French cooking would be Garlic Family Soup. This recipe is extremely easy and the results are very pleasing. There are two points worth mentioning-the two things I was most pleased with. The texture of this soup is spot on! Its the perfect creaminess. It doesn't slop off your spoon and it doesn't glob up either. Its just simply the perfect creaminess! Next is the after taste. As the name might imply there is no lack of flavor here, and I find that the long lingering after taste is most satisfying. A very fine dinning, gourmet flavor. Now onto the recipe, taken straight from Patricia Wells' At Home In Provence - Recipes Inspired by Her Farmhouse in France

Garlic Family Soup:

With garlic in such fine abundance year-round in the markets, the garlic family all but takes over my garden much of the year. In the fall I plant shallots and baby onions to enjoy in the springtime. And in summer I plant leeks for the fall. Chives are there for the asking year-round. It's clear that this recipe was born of the need to do something with the vegetable family! Although the final flavor is very creamy, there's not a touch of cream in the dish!

6 leeks
Sea salt to taste
3 quarts (12 cups) water
2 medium onions, peeled
6 shallots, peeled and halved lengthwise
1 head garlic, cloves peeled and halved lengthwise
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Bouquet garni: Several springs of fresh parsley and tarragon, several bay leaves and celery leaves, wrapped in the green of a leek and tied with household twine
1 1/2 ponds potatoes, peeled and cubed
fresh minced herb leaves, tarragon, chives, parsley, or chervil for garnish

1. Trim and rinse the leeks, separating the coarse, dark green portion from the white and tender, pale green portions. Chop the white and pale green portions. Set aside.

2. Prepare the leek broth: In a large stockpot, combine the dark green portion of the leeks, a pinch of sea salt, and the water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, lower the heat to moderate, and simmer for 15 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, slice the onions in half lengthwise. Place each half, cut side down, on a cutting board and cut crosswise into very thin slices.

4. In a heavy-bottom stock pot, combine the reserved portions of the leeks, onions, shallots, garlic, olive oil, bouquet garni, and salt. Sweat over moderate heat, covered, until the vegetables are soft and tender, about 10 minutes.

5. Strain the leek broth and pour it over the vegetables. Add the cubed potatoes. Cover and bring to a simmer over moderate heat. Using an immersion mixer, puree the soup directly in the stockpot. (Alternatively, pass the soup through the coarse blade of a food mill or use a blender. Return to the stock-pot.) To serve, transfer to warmed, shallow soup bowls and garnish with the fresh herbs.

6-8 servings