GNOCCHI ROMAINE

This lesson has completely changed my perspective on Polenta, a product I have always considered blend and tasteless. This recipe, Gnocchi Romaine - gnocchi literally means lumps - is really Polenta Cake, served with a beautiful Sauce Tomate as it is usually done in Italy, as an entree. Apparently Semolina instead of Polenta can be used in the recipe. I have learned from the lectures, and from Google over the past 10-weeks, how the Roman Legion literally 'influenced' the food culture of Italy over the course of history. Many a times one will read how Roman soldiers, during their extensive military campaigns, would create recipes (using the term loosely) from local produce as they marched. Googles suggests Gnocchi carries the same etiology, in Roman times, hence Romaine. The ingredients are quite simple ie polenta boiled in milk, seasoned with salt, pepper, nutmeg then adding to it egg yolk to bind, and to give color. Next comes a generous sprinkle of grated parmesan, and of course butter - the cue for the French to enter the stage - then we can grill, pan-fry or gratinate. As you can see the final product is very presentatble, and tasty. This will definitely be on the Chez Tang menu back home.

We had a new Lecturer standing in for Chef Steve today. Chef Colm Kennedy, originally from Ireland but who has worked & lived here since 12 years ago, has altogether a different style. On the word go he declares his mission in life ' ... To cook, To eat & To look after my wife and kids. I do not want to do anything else'. How very noble, and how inspiring from someone who obviously has 'made it' in industry judging from his war-stories in Dublin and here in Sydney. His teaching approach is different, it is 'entertaining' and I mean it in a most positive way. The class was kept smiling the whole time, while learning his techniques but above all, tips from the commercial world that will come in handy down the road. Chef Colm will open a restaurant soon, in Cammeray, the town I have a soft spot for. I had a tiny bachelor pad overlooking the water back in 1981 when I was a young (very young) Management Trainee with Johnson & Johnson Australia. I was of the vintage of my LCB classmates today, but mush less gifted as they are now. 28 years have lapsed, now I am the crazy 60 year old 'Wannabe' who has to 'Re-Sit Eclairs' ... where has all the time gone?

Good luck with 'Wild Sage', Chef Colm, I will be your marketing arm in Hong Kong!

UNSUNG CONTRIBUTOR

In order to get a certificate, at any of the 3 levels, one has to pass another 'Theory' course'. The generic use of this term has caused some confusion. In Cuisine theory is focused on the Methods of Cooking, and in Patissserie it is Baking. However, both courses have incorporated what is taught in the third 'Theory' session, which we have weekly for 2-hours. I took the one with my Cuisine course ie from 630-830pm on Wednesdays. Our Lecturer is Renate Bowry who carries the novel title of Workplace Coordinator, which in a way explains what she taught us over the past 9-weeks. I really cannot summarize the syllabus in a single description as it has been all-encompassing. The following lecture units should yield a better picture.

* Follow Workplace Hygiene Procedures
* Follow Health, Safety & Security Procedures
* Develop & Update Hospitality Industry Knowledge
* Work with Colleagues & Customers
* Work in a Socially Diverse Environment

There was a separate exam on these sessions, while questions on food hygiene, health and safety also appeared in the other two Theory exams. Foreign students with language issues found this a challenge as there is quite a bit of weekly reading to absorb, and then to regurgitate in writing at the exams. There are a number of re-sits in this space.

I call Renate an 'Unsung Contributor' because it is a tough job to make these dry topics come alive. Evening sessions do not help either, after 3 hours of classes and 4 hours of literally sweating in the kitchen. One can see minds drifting off to drinks, dinners, dates, journeys home and sleep. Renate is always chirpy, and tries hard to put humor on what is otherwise dour subjects despite the dire need of their application in the workplace. I learned a lot from these sessions, even though I will never be a practitioner in the industry as my classmates would. That said, I certainly can and I will implement food safety procedures at 'Chez Tang' at home with our helpers. As much as we all moan & groan about it in class we all owe this one to her.

Good on you, Renate!

SURVIVAL OF THE NOT-SO-FIT

Day #3 of the Patisserie Assessments involved (1) prepare from scratch a Fruit Tarte or Flan and (2) using the Puff Pastry we made earlier to prepare 10 large & 5 small Vol-au-Vents. The Tarte turned out OK, using kiwi as my key color this time. It is child's play compared to the elaborate decorations from my classmates. 'Do you think a customer would buy this cake?' ... well, must you ask embarrassing questions like this? This is the 3rd time I made a flan, twice in Patisserie & once in Cuisine as a dessert. While the recipe & ingredients look simple enough but hidden underneath are techniques that one can only learn from experience. The paste, the creme, the fruits all require 'discipline' - for the lack of a better word - if one were to make a perfect tarte. I passed this one, I am sure it is a mediocre pass when I saw the parade of what others produced. The women in our group, Koreans & Mainland Chinese, are truly creative, how do they do it? The Vol-au-Vents also passed scrutiny. I was literally sweating when I took the dough out from the cool room. To describe it as 'life & death' is not an exaggeration. I am not confident with my technique in the French & English Methods but this time, they came through. The lamination, what the examiners look for, was there, 'not great, but not bad'. The last time I did this the lamination failed, and I cut them too thin, hence the pastries did not puff. To compensate I gave them more thickness (we are talking about the difference of 1-2 mm here) and while acceptable they were too large. 'Now you know what to do the 3rd time, it is all trial & error' ... Chef Michael said, indeed! There it is, I passed 2 out of 3 and await my re-sit on Eclairs next week.

I was relieved as this incredibly stressful week of 6 exams over 6 days was finally over. Passed 5 & Failed 1 .... On the way home I decided this routine of motel-school-motel had to take a spin. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon so I took a detour to visit my neighborhood, West Ryde. Would you beleive there are 3 businesses with company names prominently displayed in Chinese characters, rather than English, on Main Street West Ryde? No joke : a hair salon, a kitchen supplies shop & a vegetarian restaurant that offers daily veggie yum-cha. Andrea, you would be impressed. It was almost 3pm, I was hungry and was attracted by an unassuming Korean restuarant with a catchy name - SING SONG. For the uninitiated Song is a common Korean last name. The late CEO of Phillip Morris Korea, a wonderful business friend of mine whom I dearly miss, was Duck Song. Now .. to add a first name of SING to SONG and then name the restaurant is sheer advertising genius. I ordered a Bi-Bim-Bab to test its authenticity, it was excellent. This Korean staple rice dish managed to cleanse my sweet palate from the past 3 days with the delight of garlic & kimchi, and lots of both. I was very close to paradise with this affordable A$12 indulgence.

Welcome to main stream Australia!

WISE WORDS

I met Joe Fernandez 20 years ago, almost to the date, when he transferred to Asia from New York as Supremo of the Human Resources function at Citicorp ... the 'all things to all people money center bank' in those days. How times can change. We met on the business turf but Joe & Sally have quickly become close family friends. 'Uncle Joe' as he is affectionately called has been my mentor over the years, in professional as well as personal terms. He has the unique ability to always put things in perspective, and I always come away refreshed by his counsel. Joe turned 80, lives in Florence & San Francisco, and celebrated his big birthday with a year long party at all the locations he & Sally have lived, including Hong Kong. The highlight of this chain party was a week long trek on the Italian Alps, which I did not have the physical courage to partake.

As you can see from my last blog I was frustrated by the Eclair episode, which really is a classic 'storm in a tea cup' in hind sight. I seeked counsel from Joe, knowing how well he knows me, and knowing he follows my blog. This is his thoughtful and well worded reply.

"Going in you realized the Patisserie section is not your strong suit. It meant that you had the farthest distance to travel to reach the competence for which you are striving. You have made enormous progress that prepares you for the next step. The fact that you were with substantial and select company in not passing this phase should give you the courage for a re-sit. You alluded to the fact that you rebounded from disappointment in business and this is but another version of the same circumstance. You have already analyzed the causes, as you know, and it is only a matter of execution now. It strikes me the answer is not in the books but in your psyche. Relive all the steps you undertook in the preparation, punctuating the explicit moves you made so you can avoid any repetition of errors. I may be wrong, and I do not encourage you to take any unnecessary risks, but I surmise you will not settle for anything but the competence grade. I sit here in Florence and not at your side, but I have an unshakeble confidence in you."

Many thanks Uncle Joe!

RE-SIT

Even more scary than 'Assessment' is the word 'Re-Sit' ... plainly put, one fails the 1st round, and given a 2nd chance to, hopefully, reverse the verdict. The parade (or public execution) ground depending which side of the bench you are on, is shown on the left. Presiding today was Chef 'No-Nonsense' Olivier. Let me give you the punch line : 4 out of 14 were privileged to 're-sit' ie Jack from China, Ben from Taiwan, me ie 'Raymong' from Hong Kong - for a moment we thought it was a racist thing against the Chinese - until Yeon, my young Korean friend, joined the party. Our products are the ones on the right hand side of the photo, with the happier folks to our left. The sentencing was business-like, no ifs or buts here. In my case (1) Choux pastry was left in the oven too long, the Eclairs cracked (2) Fondant was not properly tempered, too hot, it should not be more than 37C in order to 'shine' (3) color of the piped Creme & the Fondant do not quite match, and lastly (4) I forgot to use the 'star' nozzle to make the stuffing more appealling. Chef Olivier belabored the point; 'I am not judging your Eclairs on commercial terms, but your competency to produce them'.

I failed, badly! I was up since 430am this morning worrying about this. I am sure you all had this sense of bad vibes that 'shit may happen'? It did today, big time. Who would imagine a hollow pastry filled with cream, and coated with coffee flavored sugar can yield such enormous stress? 10 Not-up-to-Standard Eclairs brought me to my knees on June 26th 2009. Eclairs .... those little cholesterol jobs that come with Cafe Latte at high tea !!!!!!!!

Having been in business for almost 40 years I learned to accept defeat and move on. I have lost tenders, assignments, contracts & presentations against competition of all shapes & forms. We take a deep breath, we take it on the chin, we call to congratulate the winner, and we huddle on how to improve the next time, I mean the 'Next Time', and not doing it a second time, like a driving test. 'Re-Sit' is therefore a totally alien concept to me. I still cannot cope with it. I wonder if taking the NYC - Not Yet Competent - grade is the more honorable thing to do. Patisserie Practical has 3 components; making puff & sweet pastries yesterday, eclairs today, and tomorrow we produce vol-au-vents & a fruit flan. If I fail again tomorrow ... I will suggest to LCB that they put me on the NYC list in Patisserie because it is a fact. I need to look at the mirror every morning and see the honest side of me.

Michael Jackson died of cardiac arrest today in LA, probably a broken man at 50. Poor soul. I have been a fan since his Jackson Five days, he is an all-time-great in my book, and his personal inadequacies has zilch to do with his sheer musical & preforming genius.

The end of an era, the passing of a Superstar, on the one hand ... and now my notorious Eclairs on the other. C'est la vie!

WELL .....

Speaking of new words and spelling, this one is very special as it has everything to do with me, for prosperity. You see, there are '2 Raymonds' in Basic Patissserie. Since 'age comes before beauty' I became 'Raymond #1'. 'Raymond #2' is from Taipei, who is already a Patissier and an extremely fast paced & creative one. I have been the beneficiary of his generous counsel whenever he comes around to my end of the kitchen, most probably wondering why someone as clumsy as I am is here in the first place. He walked up to me after we received our name badges and said ' ... how do you spell your name again?' I had no idea what he was talking about, and he showed me. Bingo! I now treasure this name tag, my plan is to will it to the first of my grandchildren who tells me he or she wants to cook, one day!

NEW WORD

I walk around the campus with a camera hanging around my neck like a tourist because there are so many photo oppportunities. I do not wish to miss any, not to mention my wonderful collection from demo classes. Here is one, apparently the latest spelling of 'DOOR' which happens to be the name of the private company Dora & I founded some years ago, when she published the 'DOORS Method' to teach very young children reading via reflex. While the LCB faculty is first class the school seems to have hiccups. I know this is afterall a school, and school have students, and students do what students do etc etc ... Given LCB's insistence on the highest standards of personal hygiene, perhaps the male toilet & changing room should be scrutinized. One only has to open the door (or DOR) and take a sniff to see what I mean ... BTW this temporary looking 'sign' has been on our changing room entrance for more than a week but rescue is nowhere in sight, the army of construction workers milling around every day notwithstanding. Help!

CONFESSION OF A MINDLESS FOOL

The Cuisine Theory exam this morning was uneventful. There were quite a few questions but no surprises if one puts in the time to study. Some classmates had a bit of a struggle with the language, 'I know the questions, I even know the aswers but I had difficulties expressing', they told me. This is a shame as they all spent so much time to prepare for this.

Then there is Raymond Tang, the biggest laughing stock in the class today. The exam was in 5 sections, each carries more or less the same points to make up a total of 100 points. My score was in the upper middle range, 79 points to be exact. On closer inspection of the paper, and to my absolute horror, I realized I have missed an entire page/section that counts for 20 points! I was speechless. To add insult to injury I am familiar with those questions and could easily have picked up another 10 if not 15 extra points to bring my grade up to the 90's. How could I possibly miss it, twice, as I did check before I handed it in. Carelessness is the only excuse, if there is one. I should be hanged for such a mistake. 'Why did you do that, Raymond' Chef Steve asked. What can I say, except to admit that I am a fool ... a careless, stupid, mindless fool and I hate myself for it.

CUISINE ASSESSMENT

2 items : Beef Consomme & Rack of Lamb in Parsley Crust, with Chateau Potatoes, Glazed Carrots & Turnips, plus French Beans. I did well in the Consomme, with a respectable 24 out of 25 across the clarity, flavor, uniformity of julienne garnish scores. I think I surprised Chef Steve, not to mention myself. Credit should go to his patient coaching and constant reinforcement on how I should approach my work flow. Chef Donovan, you should be proud of me. I followed every letter of the recipes today! The Lamb apparently did well too, not as well as the Consomme but it came out medium rare, appropriately seasoned, with well cooked vegetables. As for improvements : sauce was a tad thin, potatoes - hidden from view behind the racks - could do with more basting in the oven, parsley crust was slightly burned at the top. BTW we were taught to protect the 4 bones with aluminum foil in the cooking process, to ensure they come out clean in the presentation. I made the mistake of unwrapping them as I warmed the racks under the salamander at the last minute. Voila, brown bones, which must costed me a point or two. Lastly, beautifully fresh watercress dipped in oil & water (to give shine) were part of the garnish, to sit on top of the racks. I prepared them earlier, ready to go on the bench, and they were still there after the presentation ... completely forgotten. Work of an amateur!

We had a debrief with the Examiners, all rated chefs around Sydney. They were complimentary to what the class has done. I think they meant it, considering we all started from scratch precisely 8 weeks ago today. One of them repeated what Chef Steve told us, ' ... you can keep trying, keep experimenting but you can never be perfect as there is always something new out there you can learn'. He is right, cooking is an art, and there is no such thing as perfection in art. Even more so, this is not just a lesson about cooking, it is one about life.

This is a landmark blog @ TangCanCook, it is #100! Thank you for putting up with my rambling since April 20th 2009 ie 2 months ago almost to the day.

ASSESSMENT !!!!!!

Without question this is the most feared vocabulary on any LCB campus. Loosely translated it can mean; reality check, moment of truth or judgment day. For every course there are 2 Assessments, one for Theory & another for Practical.

Theory is a written exam that covers a wide spectrum from occupational hazards to kitchen storage on the one hand, and everything to do with cooking or baking on the other. One really has to study for it, you simplay cannot 'wing it'. If one fails Theory, you fail the course, period.

Practical is a serious proposition, played out in a professional manner. It is open book ie we can bring our recipes but we are all on our own. There is no talking, no asking questions, no peering your benchmates - just as well, we are told, in case the bloke next to you is doing the 'wrong thing'. Our Chefs will move around the kitchen to grade us on mise en place, on work flow, on bench work, on cleaniness, on timing, on techniques etc which, as discreet as they are, is still hair-raising. I just had one this morning on Cuisine which I will describe in the next blog. Marking on taste, standards, garnish & overall presentation is the job of the Chief Executive @ LCB, plus 'Guest Examiners/Chefs' from industry. Each student is given a number, even one on our back like a ballroom dance contest. Our plates are neatly paraded at the front against our number, on a snow white table cloth as the Examiners 'do their thing'. BTW we noticed every item on the plate is cut up and tasted. At the end we receive 2 sets of grades on every item presented. I felt totally naked, there is no hiding at Practical Asseesment.

The stress of taking both Courses is amplified at Assessment Week. I already had the Patisserie Theory last week. Today is Cuisine Practical, tomorrow is Cuisine Theory, Wed is another Theory Exam on non-cooking lectures eg health, safety, workplace, communication, diversity, team work etc. As long as you can name them, they will be on the syllabus. This is followed by my Archilles Heel - Patisserie Assessment - 3 consecutive days Thu/Fri/Sat - yes, 3 days, on key basic products we learned in Puff Pastry, Choux Paste & Sweet Short Paste. It is nerve wrecking, to say the least.

Family & Friends, help me ... say a prayer ... so Tang-Can-Cook this week!

FATHER'S DAY

When I was in marketing with Johnson & Johnson, many moons ago, someone told me Father's Day & Mother's Day are, in no uncertain terms, the best marketing ideas the Hallmark Card Company ever had. Their creation was purely to generate greeting card sales then, before becoming cornerstones of the western subculture. These economy prone celebrations are not going away anytime soon, judging from the brisk business in restaurants, flower shops on Mother's Day and of course, outlets that sell 'We Love You, Daddy' cards. I walked into my little sanctury at the Metro Inn last Friday and was greeted by a care package with a beautifully designed and warmly worded card, along with my favorite Japanese snacks, and a T-shirt with a hilarious message. My 3 adult daughters remembered! I am sentimental, I can never resist that surge of bonding between father & daughters. Moments like these take me right back to their early childhood, when Daddy was definitively the epicenter of their total being.

Fast forward 20 years, they are adults now. They live different lives, tackle different challenges, face different problems, and make different decisions. While Mom & Dad are on their minds we are no longer the priority, nor should we. They will always remember Father's/Mother's Day, our Birthdays & our Anniversary but as Dora observed ... what about the rest of the year? One of the first Chinese virtues we were taught in primary school or even kindergarten - 1950s! - was 'filial piety', which is at the top of Confucian virtues. While our children 'love' us, an all-pervasive description, I am not sure if they 'respect' us the way our generation respects our parents. There is no right or wrong here, the gap lies in interpretation, as a result of drastic and sometimes scary changes in family values over my life time.

Terri, Andrea & Jess ... you are the 'Pearls in Our Eyes' and we love you deeply. Take a moment and remember what Mom said 'what about the other 364 days of the year'?

It may be Sunday but I am cramming - a word that summarizes my college years well - for 6 sets of exams, starting tomorrow. Since today is 'MY DAY' perhaps I should celebrate a little. I will take a sunset walk, and smoke a Cohiba Robusto.

To all you loving Dads out there, enjoy it. Life does not get any better than Father's Day!

MY CROISSANT PRESENTATION

Yesterday was quite an exciting & busy day ... Croissants Galore! We used dough prepared from 2 days earlier as they need refrigeration to make the lamination ie pastry layers more mangeable. We made one for plain croissants, the other for croissants with fillings. The difference is in the eggs, the former without, the latter with eggs and BOTH dough have 500g butter in the recipe. Now you know why they taste so yummy! I was worried as one of my dough has 'crocodile back' ie butter fragments formed in between the layers because they were too cold when rolled. If the dough fails one might as well kiss everything else that follows goodbye. Luckily that did not happen, after I let it sit at room temperature per advice from Chef Michael. I was relieved. Hey, you may laugh but you just do not know how a single piece of badly rolled pastry dough can cause distress in a bakery, until you have one in your hands. Ask my classmates about that worried look on my face yesterday. Encouraged, I went out of my way and ended the practical session with a big tray.

Plain classic ones at the top, ham & cheese on the left, dark chocolate ones that look like Danish pastries on the right, those heavenly savories down the middle are delish, especially the oozing cheesy crusts that stick to the pan, and lastly the mini-versions with marzipan, an old style sweet almond paste filling, at the bottom. It was a fun mix and a real feast for a Saturday afternoon. To my novice-in-training palate they all tasted alright, if one does not scrutinize the lamination too closely which, we were told, the examiners will look for at Assessment in the Vol-au-Vent & Bouchees cases.

BTW the beneficiaries of this buffet (Metro staff, the Kim family who handles my laundry, my friends at the neighborhood cafe) had nothing but praises. I need their encouragement to face my destiny next week.

HISTORY OF CROISSANT

The following is transcribed from the LCB Bible ie my course notes. It is intriguing!

"According to the history books Croissant was born in Vienna, Austria in 1683 when Austrians were fighting the Turks, whose army occupied Vienna. Austrian bakers were making these pastries to resemble the emblem on the Turkish flag. Eventually the Turks were defeated and the Austrians kept the shape of the Croissants, as a sign to commemorate the victory. A century later Princess Marie Antoniette married the future King Louis of France and Croissants were introduced at the Chateau du Versailles. The pastries were well received and adopted by France. 'Boulangers Viennois' later perfected the recipe that made Croissants light & fluffy as they are today."

BRIOCHE

Yet another French classic, for breakfast this time. Patisserie this past week was decicated to the study of Brioche & Croissants (in a separate post) come from very rich dough ie heavy use of butter. The MoC involves yeast & the fermenting process, which I find fascinating . The fat content is so high the dough 'feels' oily in your hands after proving. While it is not our staple at home, my recollection is brioches in Hong Kong are a bit sweet, like so many bakery items. They are not sweet here, at all. According to the recipe eggs & butter are the key ingredients aside from flour, sugar is not. We made the 3 typical brioche presentations : Brioche Parisienne - the individual round ones at the front; Brioche Nanterre - in a loaf tin at the back with pearl sugar garnish; and Brioche Plaits - on the left. Speaking of Plaits, the difficulty ladder starts at 3 then 4, 5 & 6 like braiding. Slow in digital manipulation, I could only manage 3 plaits as shown, and watched with envy as my young friends did 6 plaits leisurely.

Chef Michael is a 'Purist' when it comes to the classics, it is wonderful to witness his total commitment to teach the traditional methods. I am 101% on his wave length as his approach mirrors my own mentoring of young consultants over the years, in exactly the same way as I was taught when I first joined the business as a 'professional greenhorn'. Like consulting, there are tons of reasons why things are done a certain way. This is how knowledge is passed on, and how experience is consolidated into further knowledge, and there really should not be 'ifs & buts' especially from those coming into the field for the first time. I am therefore surprised by how some classmates would 'do their own thing' instead. While creativity should absolultely be encouraged in both Patisserie & Cuisine, but in a Basic Course? The moment we long for in Patisserie mornings is 945am ie 'breakfast' before the class ends at 10am. We get to eat the Chef's demo creations. Brioches taste best as they come out fresh from the oven - as that beautiful bakery scent lingers - and they should be served warm, with jam and for the die hards, more butter. That said, if there is a choice, my vote will go to Croissants.

LOOK AT MY SOUFFLES!

I wrote on May 20th, after a failed attempt, that one day I will produce a 'perfect souffle'. I did not realize an oppprtunity would present itself less than 4 weeks later, on June 17th, today. I produced not 1 but 2 perfect (in my book) Souffle Chaud au Cointreau today. When I opened the oven I let out an uncontrolled WOW that attracted my classmates, who agreed with my sentiments. What tops it ... Chef John is in agreement, yes, they 'souffled', they were well cooked, they tasted right. Fearing they may deflate I immediately took this picture for the record, before the presentation - with icing sugar & cream. I want to show off the height, even though they are a whole inch shorter than what Chef John produced at the demo session. Well, they are good enough for me. So what did I do right this time? I think my days with Patissserie gave me the confidence today. Preparing the Panade ie sugar, butter & flour; mixing it with warm milk & vanilla pod; adding 3 egg yolks; whisking 4 egg whites to medium peak and; finally, folding everything in gently ... I was quite comfortable. When I poured the final product into the ramekins I saw all the air bubbles flowing through. Could this be 'it' I asked myself? I guess 'it is'. I am a happy man today, despite under-cooking my my Lamb Noisettes Choisy. I am content because as a novice, and an amateur, I can never win them all, especially not in one day.

Sitting in front of my lap-book I suddenly became philosophical, so forgive me for rambling on. My souffle story - which I claim no ownership as millions before me must have gone through the exact emotions since the souffle was invented - has led me to reflect. This little espisode in cooking has taught me another lesson in life, as follows :

* there is always another chance, as long as one is willing to try
* if one is willing to try, again & again, one will eventually get it right
* doing well this time, however, does not mean one will automatically do well the next time
* to echo Jamie Oliver ... its not life & death, its only FOOD ... go into the kitchen & have fun

We have a saying in the executuive search business, ' ... you are only as good as your last completion ...' In other words, no one should be complacent as the next assignment, if not managed, could well be one's Waterloo. Chef Steve told us just a day earlier that 'perfection in cooking does not exist'. It is an unreachable goal and this is how we all improve, by constantly shooting for perfection. As soon as we are 1-step closer, perfection is 2-steps farther to reach. I failed 4 weeks ago, made it today, and my challenges are (1) how do I maintain my performance at this level, but more importantly (2) how do I improve on what I did today?

Good night, I will sleep well tonight ... despite pressures of 2-sets of exam schedules. What am I doing to myself?

CONTREFILET DE BOEUF ROTI BOUQUETIERE

Or, simply, Roasted Sirloin with Bouquetiere Garnish. I am using Chef Vito's demo dish for the picture in order to explain the art of the garnish. I googled 'bouquetiere' but the best I managed is probably a specific, almost religious, way to prepare a collection of vegetables. From the front of the plate moving clockwise we have; cauliflowers, cripsy golden brown Chateau potatoes oven roasted in Ghee ie clarified butter originally from India that does not burn easily, green beans tossed in butter, and lastly carrots & turnips - turned, of course, how else would they be served - glazed in butter & sugar, sitting on an artichoke heart cooked a-blanc, quite a task in itself. Not unlike a lot of things we do in every lesson now, timing is everything, and the class is pushed to deliver as though we are in the real world or 'industry'. The Chef would put a time in bold print on the kitchen board, the finish bell for service. 'I am not going to grade anyone who is late'. Each of the 6 vegetables here has a slightly different MoC ie Method of Cooking, and the key is coordination. 'Think ahead, do not slice the beef unless everything is hot, and ready to go ....' which of course includes a hot plate & a hot sauce. A thermometer injected into the center of my sirloin measured 58C, almost right on the medium rare mark of 60C. I burned my hand from fumbling 2 hot pans in the oven but I did not feel a thing as the beef tasted good.

Today was passable but yesterday was another 'Waterloo', I needed vindication badly. We cooked 2 items (1) Supreme de Pintade aux Fruits des bois ie Breast of Ginea Fowl with Leek & Mushrooms and (2) Pasta a Nouilles Sauce Nicoise ie home-made pasta in tomato & basil sauce. While I managed the guinea fowl, which was delicious by the way, I completley messed up the pasta. My dough was wet, and my sauce was burned & dry. Now I cannot even say ' ... let me go into the kitchen whip up a simple tomato sauce pasta ... ' because it is on LCB's official records that Tang-CANNOT-Cook simple pastas. Want to try my roast beef instead?

OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD

You are looking at my right foot, going through a hot-cold hydrotherapy cycle I prescribed for myself, to tackle a painful tendon on my right heel that acted up this past weekend. On consultation it is the likely combination of being on my feet daily the past 7 weeks (even for a few hours) and my body posture ie tendency to lean on the right side, a known problem. How do chefs do it, most are on the feet for hours everyday? The twice daily treatment seems to alleviate symptoms ie the pain subsides almost immediately but I am sure it does not solve the problem. I must move on, I cannot miss any classes as both courses are getting into pre-assessment gear. Life is tense.

COMFORT FOODS

Hot dogs in New York, Ramen in Tokyo, Fish & Chips in London, Croissants in Paris & of course Wanton Noodles in Hong Kong .... 'Comfort Foods' .... that give you the unmistakable feeling of 'being home', especially when you are abroad. I have been away from home for 8 weeks, and despite daily exposure to fine foods I still find this picture irresistable. I am not home sick - 'Not Yet' - but without question I am overwhelmingly 'Comfort Food Sick'. I was waiting for a ride to dinner and this restaurant, Chatswood BBQ, brought me to an abrupt stop. Nothing can taste better than Char-Sui, Soy Sauce Chicken & Roast Duck on a plate of piping hot plain rice ... Corodn Bleu not withstanding. Forgive me, Chefs, I have sinned!

TARTE TATIN

We did this yesterday at Patisserie. This classic dessert, the 'upside dowm apple tart' was made famous by Maxim in Paris. The bottom of the baking dish is caramelized sugar & butter (not easy to make as it requires careful heat control) on which we put a thick layer of cooked apples, before the puff pastry crust. The caramel becomes the topping when the tart is inverted. It must therefore be served warm ... 'to the French a room temperature Tarte Tatin is not worth the pan it is baked on'. Really?

I googled the term and discovered a bit of fun history. The tarte was created by 2 sisters Carolina & Stephine Tatin at the l'Hotel Tatin in the Loire Valley back in 1888. Stephine put the tarte in the oven wrong side up one day, and here we are! The French call this dessert 'Tarte des demoiselles Tatin' ie the tarte of two unmarried women named Tatin. It was rumored the tarte became so famous Maxim sent a 'spy' to the hotel, disguised as a gardener, to 'steal' the recipe, and it has been on the menu since. I love these stories, they are as juicy as the recipes.

CONVERSATION WITH 'MAHARAJI'

It is Sunday, 'my day of rest', but without the alarm I was still up at 6am per my body clock. Not being able to sleep I turned on the TV and watched a 30 minute clip of the captioned. I am not big on Sunday morning preachers but what I heard does make sense, hence this post.

I am clueless who the Maharaji is and am therefore in awe to find that he has been lecturing in public on the macro subject of 'Peace' since he was 4 years old. Originally from India, he is now a global figure who tours the world and captures the attention of, literally, millions. The footage shown a gathering of 275,000 in India, mass humanity, with the Maharaji in an oversized single seater sofa. It is almost surreal. Why him, and what does he preach?

During the short interview, by a journalist, he casually raised several interesting themes that affect all our lives. He did it well because of the clarity of his positions, and his common-sense approach to explain them. Above all else, he is yet another 'Communicator Par Excellence' with almost his entire life spent on the art of reaching people.

* Inside every heart there is peace & goodness, one does not need to look outside, but rather look within for them.
* Go find them, they are there.
* Life is about preparing for the bad & converting the bad to good.
* This peace & contentment inside must not be disrupted, regardless of the bad, momentary circumstances from the outside.
* Per Socrates 'Knowing Yourself' is how one begins to solve one's problems. Do you?
* Never try too hard to take out the darkness in your life, try to bring in the light instead.
* Roses have thorns, many have been pricked, but no one should trade the enjoyment of their beauty for fear of being pricked, just be cautious & prepared.

To round it up I just received an email from Bill, our regional 'Supremo' at J&J when Dora and I were junior gofers in the early 80s. We made the efforts to keep up over the years and have become close friends. He sent a useful article on how aspirin can save lives in a heart attack and the last line reads :

'Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, it is about learning to dance in the rain!'

Gene Kelly a la 'Singing in the Rain' in 'An American in Paris' would turn in his grave. End of Sunday Sermon, have a good one you all ....

POACHED PEAR TART

With little doubt this has to be the highest point of my Patisserie journey on the LCB train, three weeks away from getting off. It is another enduring French Classic - we seem to do nothing but around here - and I surprised myself at the end. The preparation is a 2-day affair : poach the pears in red wine on the 1st day, and make the tart on the 2nd. An amateur, I was amazed how light green pears turn dark purple via red wine infusion overnight. The tart itself is no walk in the park. (1) first of all we make the Sweet Short Paste dough to form the crust, I must declare I received on-bench help from Chef Olivier, in case you marvel at the immaculate edges of my tart (2) we make a Dacquoise Base ie alomond meal, sugar & flour folded into medium peak egg whites, then baked (3) we prepare & pipe 2 layers of Creme Patisserie to sandwich the Dacquoise (4) we decorate with 2mm sliced pears (5) lastly we glaze it generoulsy for presentation. BTW this picture was taken before the glaze. At the demo kitchen in the morning I thought I could, at best, come up with a bad replica. I exceeded that low expectation. 'Not bad, the pear slices are of the right thickness, even and beautifully decorated ... and of course the crust is excellent'. He did not forget. Merci beaucoup, Chef Olivier!

IF SHE CAN MAKE IT ....

I was in the City with Git (a Cuisine classmate from Singapore) last Sunday for photo opportunities. This was taken at Darling Habor where sea gulls are a plenty. I was zeroing my Canon on a majestic flyer who made several trips into the fountain for a bath, a drink, and a swim. As she stepped off my tele-photo lens showed this image. A handicapped sea gull! I told myself ' .... if she is determined to make it, why can't we all?'

COOKING FRUITS

The theme for Week 7 in Patisserie is 'cooking fruits', which is all very French. I love watching Jacques Pepin playing around with cooked fruits on Asian Food Channel, this Master Chef may be getting on but he has not lost his magic. While culinary techniques in this space vary, the notable ones are; poaching, baking, plus the preparation of compotes ie fruits served in their own reduced liquid & coulis ie pureed fruits sauces. The best thing about this series is the wonderful application of colors that come from the variety of fresh fruits ... red, green, purple, yellow, blue ... you name them, patissiers work with them. It is a dream for those who get high on presentations as the sky is the limit. I poached some visually attractive Pears in Red Wine, as shown. While poached pears is a nice warm dessert for the winter (it was below 10C this morning due to a cold front) these ones are destined for a Poached Pear Tart in tomorrow's lesson. To give you a feel for this week's agenda, we have : Moulded Fruit Jelly, Berry Compote, Poached Apples with Orange Segments, Baked Apple, Orange Almond Sponge Pudding, Tarte Titan & lastly, another French classic, Creme Brulee with Fresh Fruit.

We were officially informed of the end of term assesement schedules. There will be a 1-hour Theory Assessment ie book work, plus 3 Pratical Assessments @ 3.5 hours each, over the course of 3 days. Day #1 is to prepare Puff Pastries using the French & English Methods; Day #2 is dedicated to the preparation of 10 Coffee Eclairs with coffee fondant, using Choux Paste & Creme Patisserie; and if I am still standing on Day #3 we have to deliver a 22cm Fruit Flan, plus 10 small & 5 large Vol-au-Vent.

I might as well change my address to 'HELL' the week of June 22. I have Cuisine Assessments the first half of the week, to be followed by the above in the second half. I suspect between now and June 27 sleep will be a luxury ... not that I will be studying nightly, but rather the inability to sleep from intense worries. I have not been this anxious & nervous since graduate school at Yale, and that was 34 years ago in 1975. It is scary, isn't it?

VINI @ SURREY HILLS - A MUST!

Julie & Russ took me to Vini for a special Sardinian Dinner last night. It was fabulous! Chef Andrew Cibej, an Aussie of Italian descent, has worked at top eateries including the legendary Tetsuya. He is so creative that Vini offers special regional Italian fare weekly, which is no small feat ie a new set menu every Tuesday. Apart from close research on the cuisine Andrew would have visited the region which recipes he serves. Yes, it is hard work, but imagine the fun & games that come with it. El Bulli, the #1 restaurant in the world, is only opened 6-months out of the year so its chefs can 'research' on Molecular Gastronomy in their own laboratory. I would rather do what Andrew does, invitro on-site trials vs 'foam on foam' experiments - an expression coined by my 'si-fu' Chef Donovan - behind closely guarded doors.

No restaurant would survive without an immaculate front-of-house crew. Vini has got that formula right! From the left : Andrew the Chef/Owner, Mr. Beard is the friendly Waiter; Giorgio next to me hails from Turino, he is the Sommelier, affable, extremely knowlegeble & obviously loves what he does; Mr. Hair works behind the Bar, he is a law student who will graduate soon - his Double Expresso means business. Jessie, the Waitress, is not in the picture and Russ told me this team has been together for a while. Vini has been opened for almost 3 years ' ... Andrew would just fire non customer oriented service staff until he gets it right'. Russ should know as this is where they make weekly pilgrimages. We were treated to glasses of sparkling whites, special reserves & grappa throughout the evening. We took the 2nd seating (a Tuesday practice) at 8pm, and it was way past 11pm when we left. Julie drove!

We had the Sardinian Menu (1) antipasti with crackling pork, artichoke salad, aged pecorino & Sardinian crispy bread (2) pasta lightly tossed with delicious Balmain Bugs, sweeter than lobsters or langustines (3) grilled quail on 'fregola' ie toasted wheat that looks like cous-cous but offers much more texture & character, flavored with lemon, parsley, bacon & jus from the bird ... WOW ... (4) I can only describe dessert as a deep fried ravioli with goat cheese & honey or syrup inside. Giorgio recommended a lovely Sardinian red - Grotto Russo - to match.

I still salivate as I write, in the morning, before class. Have to go - a busy day - Cote de Veau & a test on 'Hospitality'!

VINI : Enoteca Italian Wine Food - 3/118 Devonshire Street on Holt @ Surrey Hills - 9698 5131 - can walk from Central Station

TAFE

TAFE stands for Technical & Further Education which is one of the key pillars of the education ladder in Australia. In Hong Kong we have the Qualification Framework when 'life-long learning' is divided into 7 stages from kindergarten to tertiary, to postgraduate, to self-enrichment courses across the disciplines and vocations. Having served the Hong Kong Council of Academic Accreditation & Vocational Qualifications for 7 years as a Council Member, including chairmanship of its Personel & Administration Committe, I am impressed by the national network of TAFE, it obviously works for tax payers across the ages. The Le Cordon Bleu Sydney Culinary Arts Institute, as it is formally named, is in fact a part of the North Sydney TAFE campus. It sits on a prime real estate with a commanding view of neighboring towns which it serves. This will never happen in Hong Kong as our developers or 'trusted partners of our government' will get to it first. TAFE students, or rather students at large, enjoy public privileges (I did not have time to find out yet) so the ID is important to carry around. For me it is proof that I was actually here, in case memory loss takes away the better of me down the road. No Jessica, this is not a fake ID, like the one you had in Boston. I may look a bit over the hill but you can tell from that smile I enjoy being here!

THE REAL BLUE SKY ....

Apologies, I should not try to send double images anymore. Returning to the previous post I found this picture has left on its own, completely defeating the meaning of the first caption. Here it is, the real blue sky of Sydney, isn't it gorgeous? The other thing I probably should not do again is to take a nap during the day, which I did yesterday and here I am, wide awake at 430am, almost 2 hours ahead of my usual 6am alarm. My hours are so regimented these days changing what little of it will upset the system. It is Monday, a public holiday here and this old student from the countryside will 'go to town'. Have a good week!

BLUE SKIES

'The moon abroad is rounder' is an expression to depict those who think the grass is always greener in a foreign land. While this is not meant to be a factual statement I do want to offer one that is ' ... The Sydney (or for that matter Australian) skies are always bluer'. Just look at the pictures I took this morning. The one on top is the front of Metro Inn, my humble abode, on the intersection of Victoria Road at Ryde, and Bowden Street to Meadowbank. The one at the bottom is to illustrate the defintion of a blue sky. Sydney residents do not know how lucky they are to live under almost perfect weather conditions most of the year. Without question this has to be a key attraction to those who contemplate immigration. Hong Kong may be a city that works efficiently with all the hustle-bustle of a metropolis but look at our gray skies, our pollution, our foul air & our congestion. Life is fair this way, you can not have everthing.

Sydney has become a 'perferred location' for Asians, especially students. There is a much more international mix on the streets these days, compared to all the years I travelled here since 1982. The Government seems to adopt the policy to actively pursue this market. Recently there was an incident of Indian students being 'harrassed or attacked' by White Aussies which brought on quite an outcry, not only here but from the Indian Government. An editorial in the papers raised the 'key question' on what the Government should do to stem the perception of racism 'so Australia remains competitive in the higher education market'. I am told by classmates that by staying at school for 24 months without a break one can 'start the process of residency applications'. If that is not an incentive for a young man or woman who want to eventually settle in this land, what is? Take LCB for example, the hallways are innudated with foreign languages, notably Korean & Putonghua. Teachers have to remind students in class to 'speak English' because it is so easy to lapse into their mother tonuges since there is always a number of compatriots in each class. C'est la vie!

CONSOMME JULIENNE

Consomme is a classic recipe that looks simple but is in fact rather demanding when it comes to doing it right. I was in Beijing with the Derby crew for the Margaux Charity Wine Auction Dinner, as Chef Donovan's 'interpretor' when I saw it done up close, for the first time. Chef Cham took me through the steps and I told myself, I must try that, one day. That 'one day' was last week, during our soup & bisque orientation. I did it.

We start with whisking egg whites and cold Fond Blanc or White Stock, before mixing with minced beef in gloved hands, until we get this rather unappetizing slush with remnants of raw beef in it. Kaya, our Labradoodle, would kill for this plate. Next comes the finely chopped carrot, leek & celery, or Brunoise, as the French have a word for literally, everything, when it comes to cooking. Oh, I almost forgot ... we need half an onion that is to be 'colored', face down, in a grease-less pan until it turns dark brown, but not burned. All of the above will be mixed together and rest for 15 minutes. 1.6 litres of Fond Blanc is added, then bringing to just boiling point. 'Use a spatula to clean the edges before boiling, but never more than 3 times, make certain the bottom of the pan is kept clean .....' orders Chef John. Then there is the technique of placing the pan in different angles over the heat, but never on the heat, a must apparently. Now the magic! Who ever came up with this MoC ie Method of Cooking, should be awarded a Nobel in Culinary Arts. Out of nowhere that slush begins to form a shield, called a 'float' or a 'raft', at the top of the liquid. It is like the 3rd trimester of a pregnancy, the consomme is about to be born. She must not be disturbed, except rotating the pan over heat. 2 hours of simmering later we gingerly break the shield with a ladle, voila, beautiful steaming hot consomme!

This is by no means the end of the story. 'You will be assessed on (1) clarity (2) absence of oil or grease (3) flavor (4) garnish of very fine Julienne (hence the name of the dish) of leek & carrots'. Seasoning means salt - never black pepper which will spoil the clarity - and we have to strain it with double muslin cloth & double layers of kitchen paper to rid even a slightest trace of oil. We kept our heads down, with our sharpest knives, to julienne. Chef John liked the flavor, did not detect any oil, accepted the clarity, suggested even finer juliennes next time. I felt like I just won the lottery. Me, the 'wannabe' who can hardly cook, passed the Beef Consomme test!

ONE MORE ....

It is past midnight and I really ought to be in bed as I have not been sleeping well this past week. After getting up at 6am x 3 Patisserie mornings in a row, being able to sleep until the sun rises on a Sunday is luxury. Even better Monday is a public holiday to celebrate HM the Queen's 'Official Birthday' ie a 2-day weekend for me, another first. BTW if you want 2 birthdays a year your choices are (1) to be Chinese so you can celebrate on both your western & lunar birthdays or better still (2) to be the Queen of England. Anyone who knows when HM's 'Unofficial Birthday' is please enlighten, thanks.

Using the PP prepared, we did a bunch of 'derivatives' today, to use the term for mayonnaise based sauces in Cuisine. The little wings around the tray are Palmiers, also called Papillons or Pig's Ears. The baby in the middle is a Pithivier, filled with Frangipane ie almond meal mixed with creamed butter, sugar, flour plus flavors from vanilla essence & rum. It is a taste I have loved since I was a child but it took almost a life time for me to learn to make it. The Pithivier did not 'puff' well, obviously the result of my not OK detrempe.

PUFF PASTRY JOURNEY

Puff Pastry (PP) is an exam subject in 3-weeks. To me it might as well be rocket science as I struggle to deal with the dough, the butter, the roll, the lamination, the thickness etc etc I have to face the simple fact that I do not have the feel for it, at least 'Not Yet'. Managing the 'detrempe' ie French culinary term for a mixture of flour & water, or the dough, is the hardest thing. To make things complicated there are 3 ways of preparing the detrempe namely the French, English & Scottish Methods. While the end game is, to this hopeless amateur, more or less the same the devil is in the process called 'turns'. To me the very word 'turn' has been trouble, whether we 'turn' carrots, potatoes or PP dough. To make sure one is confused the 'lamination' - must be pronounced with a heavy French accent to give it due respect - a 'turn' can be either a half turn, single turn, double turn or a book turn x 6 times each. Are you still with me? If not 'no worries', our course notes say there are commercially prepared PP sold in slabs or rolls. BTW the Scottish Method is aka the Rough Method as the butter is not managed as delicately. I see iamges of Mel Gibson's fierce Scottish men at 'Brave Hearts' taking time off, 'roughly turning their puff pastries' at camp to relax from fighting the Brits. I am told - more like warned - if one can get the Choux & Puff Pastries right one should have 'no worries' on assessment week. Let me say this, nothing will stop me from worrying about this.

The picture is misleading, it has an array of PP items I produced in class but while they may look the part from a distance, at bottom they are not quite what they are. PP are supposed to 'puff' and not 'sort of puffed' which is my scene. The question chefs like to ask is, ' ... if you are the customer would you buy this product?'. I think we all know the answer. BTW the round objects at the top & left are Vol-au-Vents & Bouchees; the fish that can never swim is Salmon en Croute; and the even bigger round object is my Beef Bourguignon Pie. We spent Day 1 on preparing the dough, Day 2 to make these & Day 3 ie today on another slate of afternoon tea products.

SUNSET FROM LCB

The picture was taken yesterday evening around 5pm, from the spacious student lounge on the 6th floor at school. I was glued to the mesmerizing sunset, in slow motion, and totally removed from humanity. The sun has finally returned after a few days of rain, mist and fog. As I was filming there is a sudden surge of nostalgia because, believe it or not, 60% of my Basic Cuisine & Patisserie Courses have lapsed. In 4-weeks I will be walking through that same LCB gate which greeted me twice daily, but it could very well be for the last time. How could this be?