Level 5 Menu Project

In Level 5, a big part of our grade comes from a menu project in which we have to plan a 4 course menu for 8, choose a theme, write up the recipes, photograph the finished dishes, pair at least one course with wine, and write a brief essay on one main ingredient. I chose to do a seasonal menu because that is how I cook at home, but I added honey to each dish in honor of my late grandfather, who was a beekeeper. My uncle carries on the tradition of beekeeping today and I used his honey in each recipe. I'm really happy with each of the dishes, although I think the panna cotta is my favorite and it got rave reviews from the test kitchen team (which included Mike, and some random friends who stopped by).



Arugula Salad with Roasted Beets, Purple Haze Chevre, & Blood Orange Vinaigrette
Serves 8

5 oz. arugula
4 medium beets (about 1 pound)
1 4 oz. disc of Cypress Grove Purple Haze Chevre
2 blood oranges
1 small shallot, ciseler
1 tablespoon honey
4 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for roasting beets
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
Salt & pepper


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash beets well. Wrap individually in foil and place on a sheet pan. Cook for 45 minutes to an hour until a thin-bladed knife pierces each with little resistance. Remove from oven and cool. When cool, peel and cut into quarters, set aside.
2. Peler a vif & supreme 1 blood orange, reserving any extra juice. Zest and juice the other orange. Combine the reserved juice, zest, honey, shallot, and vinegar. Slowly add the olive oil, whisking until emulsified. Adjust the seasoning and add salt and pepper.
3. Divide the chevre into 8 pieces, forming a quenelle of each. Set aside.
4. Wash arugula and toss with the dressing, just to coat. Place a small pile of arugula in the center of each plate. Place on one side two beet sections, a quenelle, and 2 blood orange segments. Serve immediately.



Seared Sea Scallops with Honey Mustard Glaze, Brussels Sprouts, and Pancetta
Serves 8


2 pounds dry sea scallops (about 3 per person), tendons removed
Salt and pepper
¼ cup of honey
¼ cup of Dijon mustard
Butter for the pan
1 ½ pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed
8 oz. thick cut pancetta, cut into one inch jardinière


1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the Brussels sprouts. Add sprouts and cook on medium-high heat for about 10 minutes, just until tender. Drain and refresh in cold water. Cut in halves or quarters depending on size. Set aside.
2. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat. Add a teaspoon of butter and continue to heat until melted. Add pancetta and cook until fat has rendered and pancetta is just crispy. Turn off heat and leave pan on range.
3. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. Combine the honey and mustard in a small bowl. Brush the scallops lightly with the mixture. Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add a tablespoon of butter to the hot pan. When the foaming subsides, as half the scallops to the pan, being careful not to crowd them. Cook until well browned, about 3 minutes. Turn scallops over and cook just until the all but the middle of the scallop is opaque. Transfer to a warm plate and cover. Repeat the process with the remaining scallops.
4. Heat pan with pancetta over medium heat. To the empty scallop pan, add the remaining honey & mustard mixture and cook over low heat for about a minute until heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Add Brussels sprouts to pan with pancetta and cook over medium heat just until hot, about 3 minutes.
6. To serve, place 3 scallops on each plate. Divide the Brussels sprout mixture evenly among the plates, scattering around the scallops. Drizzle with pan juices. Serve immediately.


Honey Balsamic Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Parsnip Puree and Watercress
Serves 8

3 pounds pork tenderloin
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
Salt and pepper
1 ½ pounds parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons cream
White pepper
5 oz. watercress, cleaned and divided in half
Olive oil
Aged balsamic vinegar for drizzling


1. Adjust oven rack close to heat source. Preheat broiler. Season the pork with salt and pepper. Combine the honey and balsamic and coat the pork evenly with the mixture.
2. Bring a small pot of water to a boil and blanch half of the watercress. Refresh in cold water and drain. Blend the watercress and about 3 tablespoons of olive oil together in a blender. Season with salt. Place oil in a squeeze bottle and set aside.
3. Place pork on a sheet pan and broil for about 15 minutes, turning to brown all sides, until the internal temperature is no higher than 145 degrees. Brush the meat with any additional glaze, once or twice while cooking.
4. Meanwhile, place a steamer basket over a pot filled with about 2 inches of salted water. Place the parsnips in the basket, cover and cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes or until they can easily be pierced with a thin-bladed knife. Drain.
5. Toss the remaining watercress with olive oil and salt.
6. Remove the meat from the oven and let rest for about 10 minutes. Puree the parsnips in a food processor along with the cream and butter. Season to taste with salt and white pepper. Slice the pork in ½ inch thick slices on the bias.
7. To serve, divide the parsnip puree evenly and place a small amount in the center of the plate. Place 3 or 4 slices of the pork (depending on size) in a fan on top of the puree. Top with watercress and dot the plate with watercress oil and drizzle with aged balsamic vinegar. Serve immediately.




Orange Blossom Scented Panna Cotta with Honey & Tangerine
Serves 8


1 cup whole milk
2 ¾ teaspoons unflavored gelatin
3 cups heavy cream
1 piece vanilla bean, 2 inches long, cut in half lengthwise, seeds scraped
6 tablespoons sugar
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon orange blossom water
Honey for drizzling, about 8 tablespoons
2 tangerines, peler a vif and cut in supremes

1. Pour the milk into a medium saucepan; sprinkle the surface evenly with the gelatin and let stand 10 minutes to hydrate the gelatin. Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with ice and water. Add the vanilla seeds and pod, along with the orange blossom water into the cream, set aside. Set eight 4 ounce ramekins on a sheet pan.
2. Heat the milk and gelatin mixture over high heat, stirring constantly, until the gelatin is dissolved and the mixture registers 135 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 90 seconds. Off the heat, add the sugar and salt, stir until dissolved, about 1 minute.
3. Stirring constantly, slowly pour the cream with the vanilla into the saucepan of milk, then transfer the mixture to a medium bowl and set the bowl over the ice-water bath. Stir frequently until the mixture thickens to the consistency of eggnog and registers 50 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 10 minutes. Strain the mixture into a large measuring cup or pitcher, then divide it evenly among the ramekins. Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap, making sure that the plastic does not mar the surface of the cream; refrigerate until just set (the mixture should wobble when shaken gently), about 4 hours.
4. To serve, pour 1 cup boiling water into a small, wide-mouthed bowl, dip a ramekin filled with panna cotta into the water, count to three, and lift the ramekin out of the water. With a moistened finger, lightly press the periphery of the panna cotta to loosen the edges. Dip the ramekin back into the hot water for another three count. Invert the ramekin over your palm and loosen the panna cotta by cupping your fingers between the panna cotta and the edge of the ramekin. Gently lower the panna cotta onto a serving plate. Drizzle with honey and top with two tangerine supremes. Serve immediately.

Getting the Crazy Out & Other Appetizers

Garde Manger (sounds like guard mon-jay), which is the appetizer station, is where I have spent the last 4 class sessions, which have been scattered over a few weeks thanks to the abundance of holiday weekends recently. Before I get into the nitty-gritty of what Garde Manger entails, I have to confess something. I have been avoiding posting anything on here lately because I have been overcome with football related depression and I spent the last week feeling like I got dumped. I moped, I didn't get out of bed for a full day. I ate junk food. It wasn't pretty. And to top it off, I've gotten flack for writing about football from some of my friends, so I didn't even feel like this was a safe place to come and cry about it. (Side note: when one day I have a blog devoted entirely to one topic, for example: food, which I will, and I stray from food to football, then feel free to chastise me. Until then, you're stuck with the unfocused thoughts that run through my head.) I finally shook it off and realized two things: 1. It's just football and 2. It really wasn't about football at all.

For the past few months, I've been in a cycle of panic and then determination, anxiety then focus, self doubt then fear, then a search for temporary distraction. Yes, I know, it's the life everyone dreams of. A lot of times the distraction I found that calmed the anxiousness was football. Something to focus on that wasn't my impending graduation and career doing...doing WHAT?! WHAT AM I GOING TO DO NEXT?! You see, having moved 3,000 miles away, dumped a truckload of money into school, and uprooted my husband from the life he was quite fond of, has created this intense personal pressure to make something HUGE of what we are doing. And as I continue to learn, to work (for free) and to meet people and make connections, I still don't have a dream job waiting for me. I don't think even I expected me to have the perfect job lined up with 3 months to go before graduation, but for some reason that has not quieted my internal panic alarm. It all came to a head this weekend in a really unbecoming blubbery moment the likes of which never seem to scare Mike away. He listened to me wail about my fears and inadequacies and then said "I wish you believed in yourself as much as I do". Which then caused the "poor me" tears to turn into "I'm so lucky to have him" tears. After career services talked me off the ledge yesterday and assured me that I am doing everything I need to be doing and moving in the right direction, I think I can safely write about it without alarming anyone about my mental state. Or maybe that ship has sailed.

Regardless of popular opinion on my emotional stability, it was what I needed to regroup and refocus on what's ahead. Mike's second gem of wisdom was "You should be excited about having all of this possibility in front of you...you can do ANYTHING you want!". Seriously? What is wrong with me? I came storming in here ready to conquer the city and 9 months later I am sniffling in the kitchen over some made up obstacle? Probably a good idea to never follow me into battle if the situation somehow calls for it. Although I'm sure once I have the troops totally distracted with karaoke and fantasy football and pretending like the war around us isn't actually happening, Mike will step in quietly, pull me together and let me lead everyone to victory as he steps back into the shadows. So, that weird analogy is actually a foreshadowing of when I am wildly successful, you must know Mike is always behind me helping me get there. (Cue Bette Midler: You were the wind beneath my wiiiiiings).

Well that confession took up most of the allotted blog time I've scheduled between working on my menu project for school, doing taxes, and updating the resume. So I'll give you a quick synopsis of my time on the Garde Manger station. 1. Chef Karen was super snippy with me and I did not like it one bit. ONE BIT. 2. There are 3 too many people in our group of 5 to ever feel particularly busy. We only serve 3 things in Garde Manger: a sweet potato gnocchi with rabbit ragu, a warm potato and goat cheese salad, and a digestive salad served between the savory and sweet portions of the meal to cleanse the palate. This could be handled by 2 or 3 people and would make me infinitely more confident in my abilities to hack it in an actual restaurant kitchen. 3. Between the waiting around for orders to come in and doing something irritating to Chef Karen like hold a pan incorrectly, it hasn't been my favorite station thus far. It also could have been my attitude lately. We'll see if regrouped Emily has a better time in pastry. Menu project recipes and photos to come shortly...

Just Drizzle It With Balsamic

Real people are eating my food. It may seem like an odd statement to make so I guess I should clarify, but people are actually paying MONEY to eat food that I cooked. Now granted, they have no idea that I cooked it and they are really paying to eat food that they assume will be delicious based on the reputation of the French Culinary Institute, but these are small details! A real person with a credit card is savoring food that I (along with a swarm of other students) am preparing. It's kind of a fun milestone even if it's essentially the equivalent of training wheels or a booster seat when it comes to working in a restaurant.

I spent my first week at L'Ecole, the school's restaurant kitchen, cooking on the Entremetier station, which covers the daily special (one for each day of the week chosen by a lead chef-instructor) and the vegetarian plate, which is one of few opportunities we have to be creative. I am kicking myself for not photographing our dishes because they came out better than I could have imagined thanks to my stellar team and our very capable instructor, Chef Jason. My team is comprised of A La Greque & Evil Cheese, who you may remember from this post, Michael Phelps, who was a partner I mentioned in this post, but we now just call her JB, and then another pal, who I will call Farmer Chef for her tendency toward all things local, seasonal, and organic.

We make a great team. We've turned out some pretty great veg plates: a roasted root vegetable baklava, a brilliantly colored vegetable pave, which is sort of a veg lasagna but imagine thinly sliced potato in place of the pasta, and a parmesan flan with braised leeks and roasted mushrooms. One thing I've learned from Chef Jason: when in doubt, drizzle the plate with aged balsamic and garnish with baby arugula. It's like an instant upgrade of flavor, color, and finesse. We move on to Garde Manger tomorrow, which literally translated means keeper of the food, but in the practical sense means the cooks who prep the apps and salads. I'm looking forward to each of the stations and am excited to be catching the two busiest (poissonier and saucier) at the tail end of this level.

Aside from real deal cooking, we also have a big menu project due this level. We have to create a minimum of 4 courses for a minimum of 8 people, with at least one wine pairing, some sort of theme, an essay on one key ingredient, recipes included along with costing, and photographs of each plate. I'm about 35% done with the project. I've made and photographed most of the dishes, but I have all the writing, math, and making it look like a pretty package ahead of me. My theme/ingredient is honey. My late grandfather was a beekeeper and my uncle has since taken over the family trade. They make some delicious artisanal honey and A La Grecque pointed out how meaningful it would be to write about something with a family connection, genius that she is. So I'll be posting the finished product once it is...well...finished.

Aside from school, there's not a whole lot going on here. It warmed up to the 30's today and I was thrilled to be able to walk the city without tucking my chin to my chest. It was a sunny day, blue sky and not so cold that it hurt. HOW IS THIS MAKING ME HAPPY? It's almost bittersweet. It's like getting used to the brutal cold means I am getting comfortable here and it makes California feel even further away. And ya know what? I miss it. I really do. I miss my friends. I miss 75 degree winter days. I miss good tacos. I miss the beach. I miss the mild air and the gentle breezes. I miss the cost of living. (I know, who knew?) But in an ironic twist, if I were sitting at this very table on the opposite side of the country, my list would be just as long. I would be missing my daily walks through this city that inspire me in a way that sitting in traffic just can't, I would miss my friends here, I would miss our explorations of new corners, blocks and neighborhoods. I'd miss Washington Square people watching, Murray's cheese, the Union Square greenmarket, the Empire State Building greeting me each morning, the freaks, weirdos, and crazies that make every day interesting...okay, so there's a really solid list. A list that can overcome frigid temperatures and obscene rent. For how long? Well...isn't that the question...for now I'll make the most of my days and dream of being bi-coastal at night. That should be enough to get me through the winter. That and some baguettes and good butter I stole from school. I just need to throw some aged balsamic and arugula on it and I could call it an appetizer and charge $12 for it. I might make it here after all...

Twenty Ten: A New Year & A New 30

Remember me? I know it's been a while but what can I say? I got caught up in the holiday hubbub and now that the confetti has finally settled, I've got a lot to share. So I am going to kick off 2010 with a special 30 things I've learned, done or seen in the last 30 days of 2009 as well as a few things I am hoping to do see, learn, or in some cases, never again repeat in 2010.

1. The holidays in New York City were inspiring. Walking to work or school with the Rat Pack singing me Christmas tunes via iPod allowed me to look at the crowds, grinches, and scrooges through rose colored glasses. My Christmas cheer level was at an all time high this year.



Salvation Army Rock Stars

2. I did 99% of my shopping online and I think that was about 80% of the reason my Christmas cheer cup was overflowing. No fighting crowds, no standing in long lines, no buying gifts that aren't exactly perfect but you just need to get the hell out of the store. Just me, a cup of eggnog, and my laptop. (Contented sighing).

3. We had our first snowstorm in New York on Saturday the 19th. We got close to a foot of snow and it coated the city in powder and temporarily hid the grime and garbage. It was lovely. Here's a pic of Mike and I walking home from a holiday party in the Village.



Note: This photo was taken just a short while after I slipped and landed so hard on my bum that I couldn't sleep on that cheek for 3 nights.

4. Speaking of holiday parties...my class threw one at a Korean restaurant in the East Village on blizzard night and I am confident we as a group will never be allowed back. I haven't seen such madness since my last San Diego State frat party. It was like letting a group of caged animals loose. I feel a mixture of shame and amusement just thinking about. Mom, you'll be pleased to know that I did not do any of the following: break a chair, break glasses, lose my dinner, or get carried out unconscious. I did acquire a bruise the size of my face on the previously mentioned cheek, but I maintain that had more to do with the snow than the Soju we were served.

5. We spent Christmas in Buffalo with Mike's extended family, although I feel like I am equally a part of the family after our three years living there. They are a great bunch of people best described as very loving wise asses.

6. Mike's aunt made her traditional Christmas Eve feast for us which consists of a mountain of jumbo shrimp cocktail, beef tenderloin, lobster tail, twice baked potatoes and peppermint cheesecake. This in addition to the 4,000 plates of cookies and sweets she put out for us and following the couples massage she booked for us upon arrival. Needless to say, we were spoiled!

7. We spent Christmas night at our good friends, Trisha and Mike's home on Lake Ontario watching the Chargers - Titans game. We showed up in full Charger gear (complete with my new lightning bolt earrings that Santa put in my stocking) and they were very good sports. Mike #2 yelled at the TV right along with us and Trisha cued up the San Diego Super Chargers song and drinks every time the Bolts scored, which was often.

8. We had a chance while in Buffalo to reunite with my all my old co-workers and their significant others (well in one case, two of them have become significant others) for wings at the Anchor Bar and drinks at our favorite bar on Allen St. It's kind of smelly but it's our favorite because it has a photo booth and we probably spent $20 trying to cram ourselves in there. Good times.

9. We made a Sunday trip up to Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada for wine tasting and lunch at one of our favorite wineries, Vineland. It's been several years since we have been up there and I was even more impressed with the quality of the wines. Especially when you consider the bone chilling cold and wind, it's amazing what they are able to produce.



Note to Elaine: You will notice the lovely scarf I am sporting in this picture. Thank you so much for the gift and encouraging words, they are very much appreciated.

10. We were welcomed back from Buffalo with bone-chilling, face-numbing winds. The wind just seems to scream down the streets and smack your cheeks leaving them red and stinging. Yaaaay...

11. It was 76 in San Diego yesterday. Yaaaay...

12. Winter just began. Yaaaay...(crying quietly)

13. We spent New Years Eve on Long Island with some good friends continuing our tradition of a multi-course tasting menu paired with wines and beers. It was awesome as usual, although it did make me miss our San Diego friends who have shared the tradition with us previously.

14. The Chargers are going to make my head explode. They are playing so well that it's hard not to look at where they may go, especially considering that they fell to 2-3 after a Week 5 loss to Denver that looked nearly impossible to bounce back from. I was ready to break up with them and was grateful for the bye week and some time apart to evaluate our relationship. Now here they are, teetering on the brink of greatness and getting ready to deliver the biggest gift a fan could ever hope for or to lay a playoff egg and punch me in the gut again. So exciting, yet excruciating. Inhale. Hold. Exhale.

15. I've mentioned before that school is flying by, but today begins the final phase of my education. I will spend Levels 5 & 6 cooking at L'Ecole, the school's highly regarded restaurant. I'm excited and ready to get some experience cooking for real people. We rotate our way through 5 stations over 6 weeks Garde Manger (appetizers, salads, soups), Poissonier (fish), Saucier (meats), Patissiere (Pastry), and Entremetier (Daily Special and Vegetarian Entree). I start on Entremetier tonight and am grouped with 4 others on this same station. I'm sure I will have more to report on my newest endeavor. Stay tuned.

16. While Level 3 was intense and focused on whipping us into shape in regards to timing, organization and cleanliness, Level 4 felt like something of a vacation. There were several nights when are prep work and cooking was complete and we took on extra projects making cookies or curing meats for fun. There were also nights where we spent a good portion of the time goofing off and trying not to get caught. In short, going from Level 3 to Level 5 would have made more sense. We were focused and disciplined and now it feels like I have to ready my head, sharpen my knives and put the pressure back on.

17. Level 4 made my pants tighter. We had more down time than any other level and therefore more time to eat and plenty of leftover food to take home. I'm almost looking forward to the lack of time to eat in the restaurant kitchen so I can zip up my jeans without laying down.

18. I've been trying to walk instead of taking the subway whenever I can to combat the Level 4 side effects. This wind chill though makes it pretty unappealing. I hate that the forecast includes words like "bitter", "bone chilling", and "17 but feels like 3".

19. I know I said in this post that I would try to only write positive things about winter in order to not allow myself get in funk, but it's haaaaard. Wah.



The best way to look at Winter

20. Okay, I just realized that since I have to get through at least another 3 months of this weather, I better find a silver lining quick. Hmmm...it's nice to not be soaked in sweat when I'm walking around. Now it just happens as soon as you walk indoors in 13 layers.

21. That wasn't very successful. Okay here is actually a silver lining. Mike got me one of those faux fur lined wool hats with the ear flaps and chin strap for Christmas. It's like wearing Uggs on your head. Toasty warm, but not very attractive. I love it.

22. Looking ahead to 2010, I do have a few hopes, wishes, and plans for the new year and decade for that matter. First is that two sweet little babies continue to grow and become healthier. Let's hope that when they turn 1 in April that we will be there to give them hugs and kisses and celebrate their being cancer free.

23. With two-thirds of my education under my belt, let's hope that the my career path and next step come into clearer focus. My plan is to work in a restaurant kitchen here in New York for at least a year before we decide what and/or where is next. Not knowing what the future holds is both exhilarating and anxiety inducing, but I know that whatever it is, I have the best possible companion for the journey.

24. Speaking of companions, Mike's zest for beer is gaining steam, if that is possible. He brewed his 3rd batch in November and it is finally ready to drink. He calls it 3rd Street Stout, named for our location. He brewed an Oatmeal Stout and then divided it into 3 batches. He left one as is, added Gorilla coffee (a Brooklyn coffee roaster) to the second, and to the third he added coffee that he had steeped in bourbon. They are all very good, my favorite being the regular Oatmeal Stout, although if I am in the mood for an eye opener, the bourbon coffee stout definitely has a caffeinated kick.

25. I'm looking forward to the next batch, which I get to pick the style and I am leaning towards some sort of Belgian Ale. You never know, someday you may just find us with a brewpub of our own.



Inside the Brewery, aka our kitchen

26. Another wish for the New Year is for square footage. We'll see once I am finished with school and have a job if we can afford a larger apartment, but something tells me making $11 an hour as a line cook is going to inflate our income only enough to find open spaces on a weekend getaway to Connecticut. Sigh.

27. As far as plans for 2010, we'll be doing some traveling in celebration of milestones. There will be births: a new niece and beginnings and additions to our friends families. There will be birthdays: two little fighters with something big to celebrate. There will be weddings: summer in San Diego, yes please!
And there will be house warmings: a Paris apartment, don't mind if I do.

28. The other travel plans I'm banking on is to win one of the 14 contests I entered to win tickets to the Super Bowl, which of course the Chargers will play in and win. Oprah told me if I visualize it and make a collage about it and stare at it, it will happen. She was right about all those books, so she better be right about this.

29. Another very important plan for 2010 is to get my hair cut and colored. My BFF Donna used to do my hair in San Diego and she was out here in August and that was my last cut and color. I don't think I will find anyone who compares to her and I have been putting it off. It turns out that I have a startling number of grey hairs that went previously unnoticed under the constant coloring. I can't put this off any longer...

30. In all seriousness though, I am looking forward to another years worth of memories, lessons, challenges, and triumphs. Happy New Year!

Nothing Interesting Happens In This Blog

I've been lacking inspiration lately. There are times when I sit down with my laptop and tap my thoughts right onto the keyboard and the page magically fills with a cohesive account of my experiences. And then there are times when I sit down and stare at the blank screen willing it to be filled with something readable. On those days, I am usually tempted to create a complaint filled blog that virtually whines when you read it. If I were to peck on the keys on one of those days the result would be organized something like this:

Introduction: Poor me doesn't have enough money to live in this fantastic city.

Body: I'm tired from being so busy with work and school and friends. Nothing new, exciting, or glamorous happened to me in class or on the weekend.

Closing: Waaaaaah.

So I sat down today determined to continue my weekly updates with a clever, engaging little tale of life in the Big Apple. But I got nothin'. And I realized that the reason for this is that our life here has become pretty routine. Now that our steady stream of visitors has dried up, we actually have time on our hands to do chores, do Christmas shopping, write Christmas cards, and catch up on Tivo. So the thoughts that are running through my head involve football, bills, and "The Situation" on the Jersey Shore.

(Side note: If you have not watched this trainwreck of a show on MTV (Jersey Shore), you are missing out on the opportunity to be assaulted both verbally and visually and to have your sense of decency ripped to shreds. The premise is much like the Real World, but in this case 8 Italian-American twenty-somethings move in together for the summer on the Jersey Shore. I am sure there are young adults of similar ethnic makeup that don't spend all of their time either A) in a tanning bed, B) applying hair product, C) punching someone in the face at a bar or D)calling themselves classy while wearing booty shorts and a top that can only be described as a cloth necklace, but MTV failed to find one to put on the show. Oh and "The Situation" is a nickname that a cast member gave himself because his six-pack abs are such a situation. You couldn't make this stuff up.)

So as you can see, life is pretty boring. But boring in a nice, calm way. We put up a Christmas tree last weekend while the first snow fell outside and promptly melted. (It is flat on one side which is good for two reasons: it fits snug up against the window and it was cheap because it's deformed.) We pulled off wins with our fantasy teams. We ate meat loaf last night. I mean, seriously, I got nothin'. So I won't bore you with any more details of our leftovers and chores, but just know we are happily plugging along, getting ready for the holidays and in the full throes of Charger playoff anticipation. I will now return to HBO on Demand and a meatloaf sandwich. Have a great weekend!

30 Days: The Wistful Holiday Edition

This most recent 30 days ticked away without me even realizing another month had gone by. And I may have prematurely declared the honeymoon over. With the holiday season in full swing, there aren't many places I'd rather be filled with cheer in than New York City. Well, there are a few (Mom), but if I can't be home at least I can walk on over to Rockefeller Center and see the Christmas tree I've only ever seen on television. So in honor of our most recent month in New York and in the spirit of one of my favorite times of year, here is the holiday edition of thirty things I've discovered, experienced, observed or would like to share.

1. The crisp fall air is invigorating. We've had our coldest stretch of weather this season (in the 40's) and it's just perfect for walking around this magnificent city. Cold enough to make your cheeks rosy, but not so much that it bites.
2. Walking to work is the perfect way to start my day. I put holiday tunes on my ipod and head past the arch in Washington Square that is now occupied by a giant Christmas tree. It's impossible not to be in a good mood.
3. If you are a park, plaza, department store, building with a large lobby, or a bank in Manhattan, it is illegal to not have a giant Christmas tree.
4. The Salvation Army bell ringers here are not the downtrodden bell ringers I am accustomed to outside of the grocery store or mall in the 'burbs. The quartet (yes, there were 4!) outside of Grand Central had an acoustic guitar, were fully miked, and singing (and ringing) Feliz Navidad. Brilliant.
5. There are so many things that I've seen on TV (like the Rockefeller tree lighting or the Macy's Thanksgiving parade) that I've thought "I have to do that at least once while I live here". There's a part of me that thinks it is a necessary New York experience and that I'd be a fool to pass it up. It turns out that most of these events require a serious time investment to even get in a position to have a sliver of a view and involve an epic battle with a crowd of irritable people all jockeying for position for this one moment in time that is supposed to be a fond memory for lifetime. My decision is that I will keep the 12 hours of my life I would have spent waiting and watch it on TV...again.
6. We toured the window displays at Macy's and Saks last weekend as well as the holiday train display at Grand Central. It made me realize that the thing I love most about this time of year is being able to grab onto a little piece of that sense of wonder and magic that I had as a child.
7. I play holiday music constantly from the day after Thanksgiving until Christmas Day. I don't get tired of it and it makes me realize what a freaking sap I am.
8. I took great care in decorating our apartment as I wanted it to reflect who we are and our own personal style. I don't like kitsch, country crafts or clutter, yet for some reason at this time of year, I find it perfectly acceptable to hang a Santa Claus doll on our bathroom doorknob that plays Jingle Bells when you wind him up.
9. I think I might be dangerously close to wearing a light up reindeer sweater.
10. Given that we have no chimney to hang our stockings by with care, I've hung them above our TV on a shelving unit framing a second Santa doll whose legs dangle off the ledge of the shelf rather adorably.
11. I might be wearing a headband with mistletoe attached.
12. My favorite Christmas albums are Christmas with the Rat Pack, John Legend's NBC Special, The Carpenters, and some Old Navy jazzy compilation that I picked up probably more than a decade ago since I've known it longer than I've known Mike.
13. I knew our apartment was not big enough for a Christmas tree, but it is just now sinking in how much I will miss having a tree. I love sitting with all the lights off but the ones on the tree with a favorite CD playing and a cup of hot schnocolate. This year, I'm afraid, will be my first without a Christmas tree EVER.
14. I just decided that it would be a complete travesty to not have a tree. I will be buying the 2 footer that I saw at the Union Square Greenmarket and balancing it on an ottoman if I have to, lights, ornaments, and all. Tiny apartment, I am putting my foot down!
15. Oh and if you don't know what hot schnocolate is, it's hot chocolate with a splash of peppermint schnapps. Love it.
16. I also love egg nog. I will be picking some up tomorrow.
17. As we all know, real estate in Manhattan is worth more than gold, so you don't see vast parking lots outside of a big box retail store with an area sectioned off for Christmas trees. So just where do you find a Christmas tree in Manhattan?
18. It turns out that Christmas tree lots are much like those Spirit Halloween stores that seem to pop up everywhere in unused retail space that you never actually noticed was unused until you considered buying a sexy devil costume. The Korean deli sells Christmas trees, CVS sells Christmas trees, some guy set up shop on what looks like an island in the middle of 7th Avenue...basically they get in where they fit in.
19. Having lived far from home in years past and now doing it again, I realize that so much of making Christmas feel like the Christmas you know is recreating the familiar in a new setting. How could I possibly have considered not cramming a tree in here?
20. (Visualizing getting poked in the eye by an errant branch and breaking my nose on a manger scene.)
21. (Shaking it off and recommitting.)
22. This year we are making a triumphant return to Buffalo for Christmas, where we spent three memorable holidays seasons. The first was the most difficult, but Mike's Aunt Maureen and Uncle Ron helped us establish new traditions during our time there and I am soooooo looking forward to the butter poached lobster tail and filet mignon that follow the mountain of shrimp cocktail and directly precede the parade of butter cookies, cakes, candies and Niagara Ice Wine.
23. (Realizing I must make a point to buy gifts for the cats and pretending it's normal).
24. Although we have our new traditions, I will miss the ones I have with my family back in California. The one I will miss the most? My sister and I recounting the sleepless Christmas Eves where we spent hours drawing maps that would guide us to our stockings at the allowed time of 6:00 am. We lived in a ranch house in the shape of a T, so we were either severely directionally challenged or inherited our father's compulsion for always having a gameplan.
25. I'll miss the twinkle in my mom's eye that tells me how happy she is to have the family all together, however briefly.
26. I'll miss my dad's carefully orchestrated feast from pancakes to clam dip to turkey to pie. I probably won't miss the DVD of their photos from a second Alaskan cruise set to music...
27. I'll miss examining every ornament on the tree and each accompanying memory that it invokes.
28. I'll miss watching my beautiful nieces and nephew giddily opening their presents from Santa and watching the faces of my family as we all share in their glee.
29. (Shaking off the melancholy and returning to the present).
30. Clearly, I love the holidays. They remind me of a time filled with magic, excitement, sharing, and love. I love that this time of year has the power to soften the edges of the harsh reality of life with its bills and work weeks and depressing evening news. I love that it makes you nicer to the important people in your life and to the people you don't know at all. I love twinkle lights, the smell of pine and spice, greeting cards from old friends, holiday parties, and Christmas Vacation (both the movie and the time off). I know I'm oozing Christmas sap here and I know not everyone shares my warm fuzzy feeling for this time of year, but I hope that each and everyone of you recaptures some of the magic that December has to offer. If not, I will personally burn you a copy of Christmas with the Rat Pack and send you the makings of hot schnocolate. Cheers!

Big Grateful Bellyache

I have spent the last 4 days in a perpetual state of gluttony. I vacillate between a kind of euphoria that comes from savoring the bounty of rich foods spread out before me and a state of discomfort and shame for not putting my fork down sooner. Mike and I set out on a walk today motivated by the prospect of getting some air in our lungs and our blood pumping, as well as taking in some of the quintessential New York holiday sights. Before I continue, let me explain how we arrived at the moment when we knew it was time to close the fridge and put on our walking shoes (or knee high suede flat boots, in my case).

I'm now in the throes of Level 4 at FCI, which means we spend two week rotations in Buffet, Family Meal, and Production. Family Meal involves preparing the nightly dinner for the entire school based on a loosely followed, oft interpreted menu, while Production, as the name implies, produces food product (stocks, carefully butchered meats, etc.) to be used in the adjacent restaurant kitchen. Buffet is the most creative, offering students a chance to plan a themed buffet menu to be served to the school's chefs and lucky students on the final night of the two week rotation. My groups theme was a fall harvest menu and the final night landed on Thanksgiving Eve. There were two camps in class in terms of this twist of calendar fate: one that bemoaned the bounty of food on the eve of one of the biggest eating days of the year and the other, glass half full types, that celebrated the opportunity to do a little training (and stomach stretching) for the main event. I fell in between the two camps due to my natural tendency to both complain and look on the bright side depending on who I am talking to.

Our buffet was a success featuring nearly 30 items that ranged from housemade sausage and pates to an array of roasted and braised meats (the favorite being the braised pork cheeks), and also included a variety of autumnal side dishes and desserts (roasted brussel sprouts with bacon and pumpkin chocolate bread pudding, anyone?). Below is a photo of my buffet group and Chef Tim, a favorite chef-instructor known for his hilarious stories about private cheffing for some of Manhattan & Hollywood's elite.



The buffet produced a lot of satisfied customers and an unexpected quantity of leftovers. Being that I cannot stand to see good food go to waste (and that FCI is forbidden by law from donating food to homeless shelters because they are a teaching institution), I singlehandedly tried to rescue much of the food that was destined for the compost bin. I packed container after container of potato and cauliflower puree, corn pudding, turkey roulade, poached pears in red wine, country pate...the list goes on and on. When I volunteered to take home the cornucopia of gourds, pinecones and leaves, my classmates took their usual teasing of my food hoarding ways to new levels.

"SERIOUSLY?! It's a leaf! You can find them on the ground!"

"Can someone get her a box? There is no way she can carry all that home."

"I hope you have a big fridge..."

The last comment actually made me take pause and realize that my fridge was currently filled with the makings of a Thanksgiving feast for 12 even though we were only having 2 others over. What can I say? I have a thing for abundant turkey leftovers. In addition to the remnants I had pilfered from the buffet, the Family Meal group had offered me a pork roast and pork loin that I could not refuse. Oh...and some squab pastrami, the novelty of which I would not pass up. I managed to cart everything home in an oversize cardboard box, armed with a plan to Tetris my fridge into a state of maximum food capacity.

I made it work with some repackaging and tossing of rarely used condiments. By 1am I was tucked in bed with visions of my holiday table dancing in my head. Most people think that given my obsession with food and my enrollment in a prestigious culinary institute that I would put out a spread ready to be photographed by Gourmet (RIP). That assumption could not be further from the truth. While I experiment with exotic flavor combinations at home and I am being trained to plate classically fussy food at school, the sanctity of Thanksgiving tradition is something I don't mess with. My parents are fantastic cooks and there is a rich history of savoring long meals with an over abundance of food in my family. I cannot turn my back on the flavors that make Thanksgiving feel like Thanksgiving to me. I may occasionally be tempted by a chestnut puree or an Indian spiced turkey, but I would so miss the sausage stuffing and simple pan gravy that transport me back to Thanksgivings past.

So while I try to spend the next week walking off the creamy mashed potatoes and kick off the season of giving, I will leave you with a post Thanksgiving list of what I am most thankful for. For Mike for being so wonderfully supportive, hilarious, loving and fun and for being the one I get to come home to every day. For my family for instilling in me the value of the shared meal. For my friends for sharing meals and laughter with me. And for TUMS for mildly masking the pain and discomfort I am currently experiencing. Happy Holidays!