Serious Foodie Class in Vancouver

Daddy-A · September 27, 2005

I've discovered a love for plating food. I tried to make a twist of lemon peel for te lamb stew but it didn't work ;p

Those were lemon twists??? Maybe Chef will cover those in week 4 :laugh: :wink:

Really really good stew last night. I can't wait to try that one. Daddy-A you going to be making that recipe we made up last night? We expect some Smoked Lamb Shank by next week! I'll make the Bannock!

For the benefit of those not in the class, the recipe in question was part of an exercise Chef had us do at the end of last night. We were given a main ingredient (lamb chanks in this case) and asked to create a dish, chosing the mirepoix, braising liquid, bouquet garni, etc etc etc. Our testosterone laden group went WAY outside the box, deciding to do a Canadian-style pulled lamb sandwich, served on bannock with an apple-fennel slaw. I'm going to play with the recipe in the weeks to come and will report on eGullet in the Cooking forum. Actual cooking results will likely make it to class.

Chef Tony has got to be one of the funniest chef's I've ever met. I was almost rolling on the floor when he went into his tirade on people improperly cooking pasta!

Does that man love his job or what?? He really makes things enjoyable. What has surprised me so far as been how much free-reign we've been given so far. I like having the freedom to make mistakes in the kitchen.

I can't wait for the baguettes! My sister-in-law is the bread maker in the family. Time to give her a run her money! :raz:

A.

*Deborah* · September 27, 2005

OH, thanks for the pics, Mooshmouse! :biggrin:

Here is the first course, the apple/beet/orange/fennel/feta/arugula salad:

It was delicious!

And the lamb stew over mashed sweet potatoes with gremolata, beautifully vertical courtesy of my station-mate Amie:

Mooshmouse · September 27, 2005

Another great evening was had by all at last night's class. I swear, if our group of troublemakers gets any louder, Chef Tony will either have us out on our ear or doing penance in the dishpit. :laugh:

All my fellow eGulleter classmates are now in proud possession of the pictures that they took last night. Stay tuned for their meals; I see that Deborah's is already up. In the meantime, here's mine.

Moroccan Beet and Fennel Salad

Served with roasted beet slices, apple slices, orange slices, feta cheese, toasted walnuts, aruuuuuugula and shaved fennel. Vinaigrette dressing included orange juice, minced ginger, crushed cumin seeds and red wine vinegar.

Masala Lamb Stew with Orange Gremolata served atop Roasted Yam Mash

This was a damn fine dish. Gotta love any stew that has bacon in it. The roasted yam mash also had Middle Eastern flavours as it incorporated roasted garlic, cumin and EVOO. Of course, the rabblerousers' table was clamouring for butter in place of EVOO... and then there was Wes who demanded duck fat. :raz:

Edited September 27, 2005 by Mooshmouse (log)

*Deborah* · September 27, 2005

aruuuuuugula
... and then there was Wes who demanded duck fat.
←

Chef Tony is the best, for sure, aruuuuugula! :laugh:

Nice plating with the walnuts!!

fud · September 27, 2005

... and then there was Wes who demanded duck fat.
←

You're darn right! It is a well known fact that how good something tastes is proportional to how bad it is for you. Thus duck fat would have made the dish sublime!

Ooh I wanna see the picture of my silly lemon twists which were perfectly straight :biggrin:

Daddy-A I was thinking of naming that pulled lamb shank sandwitch "Canadian Caveman Pulled-Lambwich with Foraged Greens"

Ling · September 27, 2005

This class looks great. Too bad I was too strapped for cash to join!

So...when do you all cover desserts?

achiu · September 27, 2005

It's probably my fault for starting Wes on this duck fat thing ever since I mentioned that a certain Vancouver restaurant was using this as a secret ingredient in their mashed potatoes. Probably doesn't help that he and his GF made a roast duck recently and has lots of duck fat kicking around at home...

Alex

fud · September 27, 2005

It's probably my fault for starting Wes on this duck fat thing ever since I mentioned that a certain Vancouver restaurant was using this as a secret ingredient in their mashed potatoes. Probably doesn't help that he and his GF made a roast duck recently and has lots of duck fat kicking around at home...
Alex
←

Bing - spot on. I have a Jar full and nothing to put it in! Hey Daddy-A can we add it to the Caveman Pulled Lambwich?

:laugh:

*Deborah* · September 27, 2005

This class looks great. Too bad I was too strapped for cash to join!
So...when do you all cover desserts?
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We don't have a proper schedule, so I can't tell you. But I'm a jabbering fool with the excitement of making a baguette next week, wow! I never made bread before at all.

Hope I don't wreck it! :shock:

Mooshmouse · September 27, 2005

So...when do you all cover desserts?
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We will be covering pie doughs and basic pastry in the Serious Foodie class; however, NWCAV does offer specific Pastry, Baking and Chocolate segments as part of the Serious Amateur series. These can be taken individually and cover the following topics:

Fine Pastries with Autumn Fruits (October 18 & 19) - $180
Fine Pastries with Chocolate (October 25 & 26) - $180
Holiday Cookies (November 15 & 16) - $180
Holiday Baking (December 6 & 7) - $196
Valentine's Chocolate Workshop ("5 days of intensive chocolate ecstasy", February 6-10) - $450

If you or anyone else is interested, Marla at NWCAV would be happy to give you more specific information on each particular course. Give her a call at 604-876-7653.

Ling · September 27, 2005

What I really like about this class is how Chef Tony is letting everyone decide on which spices and vegetables to include in a dish, and how the main is served (i.e. in a sandwich, or stew, for example). I'm interested in the Fine Pastries with Chocolate class, so I went to the website and this is what the program is offering:

• pecan crusted molten chocolate cake, truffle honey

• chocolate espresso tart

• chocolate bourbon souffle

• chocolate raspberry mousse cake

• chocolate creme caramel & poached fruits

• French chocolate ice cream

I really hope I don't come across as being dismissive of the course (or overly confident in my abilities) but with the exception of ice-cream, I've done all of these desserts on my own over the years, and I wouldn't consider any of them to particularly unique or difficult. I'm quite sure that anyone with a bit of baking experience, the proper equipment and a good recipe can turn out a good chocolate espresso tart, a souffle, or a mousse cake. So my question is does the instructor for these Serious Foodie baking classes teach a lot of professional secrets that I might not know, to justify the expense of the course? (I don't make a great deal of money.) I would like to learn how to plate my desserts nicely. :smile:

Perhaps someone who's taken the Serious Foodie pastry program can chime in on this...?

Edited September 27, 2005 by Ling (log)

fud · September 27, 2005

I really hope I don't come across as being dismissive of the course (or overly confident in my abilities) but with the exception of ice-cream, I've done all of these desserts on my own over the years, and I wouldn't consider any of them to particularly unique or difficult. I'm quite sure that anyone with a bit of baking experience, the proper equipment and a good recipe can turn out a good chocolate espresso tart, a souffle, or a mousse cake. So my question is does the instructor for these Serious Foodie baking classes teach a lot of professional secrets that I might not know, to justify the expense of the course? (I don't make a great deal of money.) I would like to learn how to plate my desserts nicely.
Perhaps someone who's taken the Serious Foodie pastry program can chime in on this...?
←

Not that I've taken the pastry course but I would hazard a guess it is like anything else that revolves around education. You could probably learn everything you need by experimenting on your own and picking up a bunch of books.

I'm pretty sure I could also be in the same boat with the cooking class if I actually set aside 3.5 hours every monday experimenting with food and reading cookbooks.

But I've come to the conclusion that I am a lazy butt! And I need to have a course which I am paying for to motivate me to comit to learning and experimenting. On top of this, Chef Tony fasttracks a lot of the tricks of the trade for us (some things I've learned in the class would take a long time to find if I were to skim through books on cooking). I think the course if worthwhile because it puts you in front of someone who really know's what they are doing and you get to interact and experiment with said expertise in house. I think this is the value-add to taking a course like this one over experimenting at home.

Of course experimentation at home is a MUST in conjunction with the course to solidify what we learn.

So I bet you will learn some neat industry tricks of the trade. But I also bet you could find these tricks if you read enough pastry books :biggrin:

I guess the big questions is whether you want to have a time set aside every week for 8 weeks (or something) where you can consult with a really experiened pastry chef and perhaps try some things you might not want to try at home. In terms of learning "advanced" pastries and what-not, I don't think that's the marketted value add of the course. Chef Tony told us what he really wants us to take away from his course isn't a pile of recipes, but an increased confidence in ourselves and our cooking. A confident cook is or will soon be a good cook. When you're not afraid to add a little fennel or basil or cumin to something because you KNOW what it will do to your dish, you become a better cook. Same goes for Pastry I think (although with baking the "equations" are more strict and cannot be deviated as easily!)

Is it worth the money? I'm already more confident and it's only been 2 classes! Now I'm not guessing every step of the way. I understand what kinds of steps need to be made and more importantly, WHY. And the class is a wonderful medium to learn this stuff. Money well spent IMHO

Actually do you know who is teaching the pastry section?

Mooshmouse · September 27, 2005

Actually do you know who is teaching the pastry section?
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Chef Marco Ropke is teaching the Pastry, Baking and Chocolate Classes. Click here to access his website.

Daddy-A · September 27, 2005

I'd take the course just for the opportunity to cook on the professional equipment alone! That's some bad-ass BTU's we're playing with there! :laugh:

Our group's stewed effort. I'm really glad we learned about gremolata last night. Damn! I'm gonna have to make a mess of that stuff ... so good!

A.

Ling · September 28, 2005

But I've come to the conclusion that I am a lazy butt! And I need to have a course which I am paying for to motivate me to comit to learning and experimenting.
So I bet you will learn some neat industry tricks of the trade. But I also bet you could find these tricks if you read enough pastry books
←

:laugh: I don't think I'm a lazy butt. I bake almost everyday, and I probably spend more than 10 hours a week leafing through pastry books and surfing online, trying to learn as much as I can by reading recipes and techniques. (Actually, I bet it's more like 20 hours a week...I'm always on the computer scrolling through recipes and looking at plated desserts.) So I guess I'm putting in at least 20 hours of my own time a week (including the time I use to bake). Outside of school, work, and baking, I have, like, no life. :laugh:

I would love to be able to learn how to do the plated desserts that Chef Marco has on his website, but I'm pretty sure that's professional-level stuff and I guess we won't be covering that in the classes.

Would still love to hear from anyone who has taken the 2 day Pastry courses! :smile:

Edited September 28, 2005 by Ling (log)

Ling · September 28, 2005

Our group's stewed effort. I'm really glad we learned about gremolata last night. Damn! I'm gonna have to make a mess of that stuff ... so good!
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Yeah I love gremolata! It makes osso buco so much more interesting!

Chef Metcalf · September 28, 2005

The dishes you've created look fantastic guys.

Especially those beet salads, great colour!

Thanks for sharing. :biggrin:

fud · September 28, 2005

I don't think I'm a lazy butt. I bake almost everyday, and I probably spend more than 10 hours a week leafing through pastry books and surfing online, trying to learn as much as I can by reading recipes and techniques. (Actually, I bet it's more like 20 hours a week...I'm always on the computer scrolling through recipes and looking at plated desserts.) So I guess I'm putting in at least 20 hours of my own time a week (including the time I use to bake). Outside of school, work, and baking, I have, like, no life.
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:blink:

You are hardcore! And you love pastries! You know I figure you might not benefit much from these sorts of pastry classes then. Instead maybe take an advanced course or talk to the chef and see what he/she thinks

I'm making a salad and stew right now..slighly different from last night but I wanted to make sure I understood the principals :raz:

nwyles · September 28, 2005

The dishes you've created look fantastic guys.
Especially those beet salads, great colour!
Thanks for sharing.
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Chef Metcalf !

Nice to see you back online. Youhave been missed. I hope you had a crazy busy summer and now are coming into a more regular pace.

Cheers

Neil

butter · September 28, 2005

We don't have a proper schedule, so I can't tell you. But I'm a jabbering fool with the excitement of making a baguette next week, wow! I never made bread before at all.
Hope I don't wreck it!
←

You are going to love making baguettes. Initially when I heard in my course I was going to be making baguettes just about every morning to have with our meal I was :hmmm: , but the smell of the yeast, the kneading, the shaping...it's something I could do all day long. Absolutely relaxing and if you like surprises, you are going to be amused when you see all the hilarious shapes and sizes of everyone's baguettes. Hint: don't forget the salt and the slashing.

And, watching Chef Tony make bread puts Food Network to shame.

fud · September 28, 2005

So I made a salad consisting of

- Mixed greens

- Apple

- Pear

- Orange

- Feta

- Lime infused olive oil and Balsamic

- A little ginger and garlic

Then I made a stew with some beef I had (low quality :sad: )

So I made chopped up some stuff for the Mire Poix

- Carrots

- Onions

- Red Pepper

- Parsley

- Potato

And some spices which I roasted mmmmm

The finished product? Looks pretty good although the meat was still tough after 1.5 hours of stewing...darn tough meat!

:wub:

Ling · September 28, 2005

^I usually stew my meat (cubed probably 3/4" or so?) for 2 1/2 hrs. Is 1 1/2 hour enough? I like it the meat to just fall apart in my mouth.

Oh, and I definitely don't think I'm nearly at the level to take an advanced pastry course. Maybe after a few more years of practice. I tried making quenelles today and they looked pretty bad. Maybe I'll sign up for that 2 day course and ask Chef Marco to teach me how to do those properly.

Edited September 28, 2005 by Ling (log)

fud · September 28, 2005

Hey! I just left the rest of the meat in for another 30mins and its getting nice and tender mmm!

I'm going to stew it a bit longer then!

yeah i bet a 2 day course would be great...good way to 'taste' the course and see if it suits you!

Edited September 28, 2005 by fud (log)

*Deborah* · September 28, 2005

We don't have a proper schedule, so I can't tell you. But I'm a jabbering fool with the excitement of making a baguette next week, wow! I never made bread before at all.
Hope I don't wreck it!
←
You are going to love making baguettes. Initially when I heard in my course I was going to be making baguettes just about every morning to have with our meal I was , but the smell of the yeast, the kneading, the shaping...it's something I could do all day long. Absolutely relaxing and if you like surprises, you are going to be amused when you see all the hilarious shapes and sizes of everyone's baguettes. Hint: don't forget the salt and the slashing.
And, watching Chef Tony make bread puts Food Network to shame.
←

Hi, butter!! :smile:

Salt, slashing: check! Thanks!

taryn · September 28, 2005

I would love to be able to learn how to do the plated desserts that Chef Marco has on his website, but I'm pretty sure that's professional-level stuff and I guess we won't be covering that in the classes.
Would still love to hear from anyone who has taken the 2 day Pastry courses!
←

From the sounds of what you'd make in the course you'll probably be plating everything.

He'll also teach you how to quenelle...one handed...oooohh! I didn't enjoy pastry that much when I first started, but by the middle of the course I loved it. I'm pretty sure that Chef Marco had a lot to do with it. He has an amazing pastry background and has so much pride in his work. He's also a chocolatier, watching him do chocolate work is awe inspiring. Oh and he'll also teach you how to say strudel properly :raz:

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