Third Week Spring Quarter

On the pantry station I spend three days making hors d'oeuvres to serve on the cafeteria line with the salads.
One day the management student doesn't show up, so George assigns me and one of the second term guys to manage the pantry station. This young man has a tendancy to throw things together in a haphazard manner. For instance the lettuce he cuts up for the dining room is in such big chunks they are impossible to eat. When I point out to him that the dining room manager has asked for smaller pieces, he gets an attitude.
This is just a glimpse of what the second year management course would be for me, trying to manage young people who want to do things their own way. I would feel like a salmon swimming up stream. I'm glad I will be finished in June with a chef's certificate.
The lemon meringue pie we put together in theory practice takes us two days to complete. The filling contains 8 egg yolks and the meringue topping contains the whites from those eggs. It is better looking than it tastes because we use margerine instead of butter and have no extracts to add to the lemon juice. We make the crust by adding the shortening to the flour by hand, making it flakey and the best tasting part of the pie. A real do again project for home cooking.

Second Week Spring Term

I am enjoying the skills development class-taught at 6:30 AM by the management instructor, Larry. We are concentrating on learning to cook breakfast foods. One of the new food techniques for me is flipping fried eggs. I have struggled to make over easy eggs for years and now I know several secrets to try. We practice in class and I even purchased a teflon omlette pan to practice at home. I can use that pan to make crepes as well, which are easier to flip than fried eggs. Larry suggests we make souffles in a round casserole dish if we don't have a souffle dish on hand.
Theory practice in the kitchen is muffins one day and biscuits another day. George figures I am experienced at making muffins, so I collect the ingredients (mis en place) for a sour cream banana cake while my class works on muffins. The biscuits we bake, deep fry and steam to show the different things that can be done with the dough. Somehow we are able to accomplish our tasks with the mass of students in the kitchen.
On another day of regular kitchen duty, I am assigned to the dessert area and make some killer brownies that turn out beautifully and are delicious. The chef on CTO (cooked to order) has the best recipes but is stingy with them, so I have to ask a student manager to sneak that brownie recipe to me.
George has assigned a new student to work along side me for the first 5 weeks of this quarter.
This guy is very strange. Apparently he has a nervous twitch because he turns his head and body every few seconds as if he is looking over his shoulder. I hear he is a homeless shelter frequenter and has a pregnant wife. The story goes: when there is food to be had, he grabs his share, immediately chows down, and his pregnant wife can fend for herself. (Of course every profession has its weirdos, but perhaps culinary arts attracts more of them?)

Spring Term

We celebrated birthdays over spring break. Spent some time at the house in Ilwaco and some time socializing with friends and family in the Everett area.
When I return to class, the room is so full of new and returning students, there are no chairs left.
I am able to help cook Shepherd's Pie on the chef's station, along with preparing things for others to cook. The chef's station has a hired chef named Drew, who makes the final decision what dishes to make and serve. The management students find recipes, order supplies, and direct us with the prep.
George demos the bisquit dough we will be making in theory class next week. Rather than throw it out, he gives it to me to try deep fried elephant ears. They turn out to be very delicious, but oh so cholesterol laden and fattening!
I have another letter from the Clark College Vice Pres., stating that my straight A's for Winter Quarter 2009 made me one of only 705 students of 11,079 enrolled students to make the VP list. The Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society sent me an invitation to join as well.