Cyn-bluefrog

I wanted to add a comment on Culinary Artistry by Dorenberg and Page. I am not a professional chef, but to me, the book would be extremely invaluable as a chef in order to inspire and entice the reader to the creation of dishes. One of the many wonderful bits of information is a listing of what vegetables are at its highest peak in which season. I had been looking for a listing like that in the gardening section, the cooking section, etc. For a person who is 1) not a gardener, and 2) unable to go to the Farmer's Market everyday, I found it useful while shopping at my local grocer (vegetables and fruits in season are cheaper). I think this has probably been covered, but I am also under the naive impression that a chef should cook what s/he enjoys eating, which is the reason why an education in other countries, working with new ingredients, etc. makes the chef that much more versatile.

An update, just in case anyone was wondering how the White Asparagus and Green Garlic Soup came out. Other than the fact that I absolutely hated peeling with a passion white asparagus (they are brittle), the soup's complexity and taste made up for it. Now I'm wondering to avoid my distress, should I 1) blanch then peel the asparagus, or 2) just use plain old green asparagus instead? Does anyone have any thoughts on how it might be different, or...?

I know this topic has not been posted to in a little while, but I just got a hold of some white asparagus. I've never eaten it, nor cooked it, but I decided to get it anyway. In my search for recipes, I came across this one from StarChefs: White Asparagus and Green Garlic Soup by David Sellers. I hope it's as good as it sounds. The recipe calls for peeling the asparagus, so maybe they won't turn out like sticks. Have I said I love this bulletin board? I really really love this BBS.

Critical Path Method. Cool, I like that. I have a Master's in Industrial Psych, but I never made that connection before. Thank you so much. Info about the critical path can be found here here. They refer to it as the "P.E.R.T." method, but I think I did more like a Gantt chart. An explaination of that can be found here. I think I might try the other one in my next large meal, but only because it takes into account variances, which sometimes I cannot predict, much to my dismay.

All right, maybe this is going to sound really anal-retentive, but for large complicated meals (several courses/dishes in which timing is essential), I draw out a timeline. My friend told me it's very similar to what his project manager does to track project progress. I made a graph in 15 minute increments and put everything I needed to do and how long it would take so that everything (for the course) was done at the same time. I find it also helps me think about the recipes (or other concoctions). The only thing I forgot to add was plating time. For some dishes it was important, for others it wasn't. However, I don't do it this formally for everything because it would drive me crazy; however I do make small mental notes like, "I have to put this in the oven in 15 minutes because it will take a hour for the sauce to reduce and this will take 45 minutes."

1. I would also like to make risotto as if it were second nature. 2. I would like to try to make more Japanese food because I have been focusing a lot on French cuisine this year. 3. I would like to experiment with foie gras. 4. When I go out to eat, try to expand my eating experiences which affect my cooking experiences. 5. Buy *one* copper piece of cookware (we'll see).