Picture Progress #6

Seventeenth Week At Pathways

December 11th, 2013 -
On Monday, my whole class had to create a meal for the Advisory Committee which had about 25 people. My class and I split into groups to create this fabulous meal. Denna and I were working on making the cream of asparagus soup, along with garden swiss chard, applewood smoked bacon and golden cranberries. It was my first time making a soup and I felt very happy because after we created the soup, I remembered everything by heart about how to make it. It was also a shocker because it was also my first time trying asparagus and it was so delicious that I ended up eating four bowls total! The tricky part about making this meal is that we had only 3 1/2 hours to complete it and we managed to get it done with only six students! How impressive!

Fresh Starts Menu

Hors d'oeuvres (appetizers)
Dungeness Crab Cakes
Orange Chipotle Aioli

Soup
Cream of Asparagus Soup

Entrée (main course)
Salmon Tournedo
Tarragon Beurre Blanc, Saffron Rice Pilaf
Garden Fresh Swiss Chard
Applewood Smoked Bacon

Salad
Baby Mixed Greens
Local Artisan Cheeses, Housemade Quince
Champagne Vinaigrette

Dessert
Crème Brule

Beverages
Hibiscus Iced Tea



Yesterday was the scariest day ever in my culinary class. Tier 2 and 3 had to take the Serv Safe Manager Exam. I was nervous. The only reason why I was so nervous was because I really want to pass that test and be certified to have a Serv Safe Manager certification. There were many questions that required a lot of common sense and remembering temperatures and sanitation. During the test, I felt very confident because all of our instructors prepared us to take this written exam, and I studied really hard for it. As soon as it was over, I felt relieved and in 10 days I receive my results. I hope I scored well.

Next week will be the last week I attend Fresh Starts Culinary Academy and my graduation ceremony is on December 18th at 6:00 P.M. I learned so much from this program and I will use it in my career because the career I'd like to pursue would be in the culinary field. There is so much to learn out there and I am willing to learn much more.

Picture Progress #5

400 Bag Lunches delivered to Peer Summit (when I was at Next Key kitchen.)

 

Grilled Sandwich/Panini Station for Pantry

 

Cold Sandwich Station For Pantry

 

Grilling a Panini

 

When I made Tuna Salad from a recipe for Pantry

 

Me having fun for my first time sautéing

Picture Progress #4

Pasta Jumbalaya

 

Broccoli Cheddar Individual Quiche

Grilled Pork Scallopine with Rosemary Butter

 

Chicken Pot Pie

 

Seafood Cioppino

 

Chicken with Curried Honey-Lemon Sauce

 

Butternut Squash-Sage Risotto (Vegetarian Entrée)

 

Grilled Pork Chop Manchamantel

 

Asian Simmered Cod





Sixteenth Week At Pathways

December 4th, 2013 -
Instead of working on the line, Chef Rocky switched me to prepping food for the day and for the following day. As the prep cook, my duties are to read the menu plan for the week and know exactly what to prep. There's always a description, but sometimes there's a recipe included too. For instance, today I made peanut-cilantro sauce for the entrée for tomorrow. I followed a recipe and once it was done, I tasted it and it was delicious! Yesterday, I made one of the desserts for Jackson Café and it came out beautiful! I like the fact that I am now a prep cook because I can practice and refine my knife skills. I believe that prep is the most important step in cooking because if you mess it up, you mess up your dish and if you don't prep, who will? Before I joined Fresh Starts, I used to follow recipes, but for baking instead of cooking. What I'm currently doing is helping me because I need more assistance in following all kinds of recipes. I want to become a master in reading and executing recipes!

Fifteenth Week At Pathways

November 27th, 2013 -
I have just discovered that I am good at grilling burgers and being on the line. Every time those order tickets come in, I know exactly what to do. It's like I get an adrenaline rush and I get excited that it's my time to shine and the other line cook as well. One time there were about 10+ tickets coming in and I worked well under pressure. When the orders come in, there is not only one type of meal to be served; there are three. One is the entrée of the day, vegetarian entrée of the week and either a hamburger or cheeseburger. The regular and vegetarian entrée come with a side salad, and the hamburger or cheeseburger comes with a side of fries. The first day I started to work on the line, I was a bit confused about what to do since I had become so comfortable being in the pantry. I like working at Jackson Café because our instructor, Chef Rocky, places all of us in different stations so by the time we graduate Fresh Starts Culinary Academy, we will all know how to operate each of the stations and it gives us a taste of how it feels to be working at a restaurant or any place to eat.

Also, this week I had an interview with Doug Eng at ITK Culinary (In The Kitchen) a catering company in Sausalito and it went great! All of the great things he told me about what my experience would be if I became an intern there made me excited and I feel like it will be a great opportunity. One of the reasons why I was so excited was because I could assist prepping food for the children at the afterschool program and also on some other days of the week, there are cooking classes involving different cuisines. I loved what I heard and he loved me. I will start my internship there on January 6th. I'm ready for more knowledge after Fresh Starts!