Big News! Food First!

I've been really busy the past few weeks trying to finalize and figure out what Im doing in the fall regarding Culinary school. Plans have changed, but things are becoming clear and I got some great news this past week. First, I'll write about some of the food cooked this past month.

Croquetas made with Panga:
I came across a recipe for crab croquettes in a new book I recently purchased and currently reading; Izakaya. Izakayas are pubs/casual fare restaurants in Japan and the book gives a great history and describes various of the author's favorite Izakayas in Tokyo. I thought it was pretty strange to find a recipe for croquettes in an authentic Japanese cookbook, but I guess it shows how the world is a small place and it never hurts to learn about other cultures because this recipe was fantastic. I adapted the recipe to make more and use Panga instead of crab. I found the keys to the recipe being a bechamel base, and using Panko crumbs for the breading (fresh/day old baguette -> blender = Panko).

Before I post the next dish, I would like to let everyone know that the vegetable garden has been completed. It has been filled with a LOT of tomato and Pepper plants of all varieties, mixed in with them are some Leeks, Eggplants, Spinach, Cucumber, tons of lettuce, and summer squash. oh and Cilantro and Basil.

Next up was some brown rice, some fresh habas (I think theyre fava beans in english) recently picked (amazing this time of year, dont even need to peel them because they are so tender, thanks to the neighbor for bringing us some) and an omelette with freshly picked spinach from wherelse but the "huerto" (vegetable garden out back).

I was flipping through a cookbook I bought a while back from Iker Erauzkin called Sabores de ayer cocina de hoy (Flavors from the past, today's kitchen) and I came across one of those recipes you just can't wait to cook, roasted pork ribs (costillas de cerdo). They were set in the oven with tomatoes, onions, garlic, thyme, rosemary, and some salt and pepper at around 130 degrees celsius for about 6 hours. When they were done I separated the meat and veggies & pan juices. I quickly seared the meat and took it out of the pan, replacing them with the veggies and juices. When it reached a simmer I added about a cup of white wine and let it reduce a bit. Passed it through a blender and chinois to create a really smooth and absolutely amazing sauce. The meat, however, was still a bit tough, I'm not too sure why, turned it over every 30 minutes, but maybe I should have covered it longer to prevent more moisture from escaping.

To finish out the food section of this post, some experiments. The first is a Transparency of Manchego Cheese made with olive oil pudding from the Alinea cookbook by Grant Achatz. The pudding was actually fairly straight forward and has a great combination of sweet and salty with a not too overpowering olive oil flavor. Obviously as prepared in the restaurant the dish has many more elements and garnishes, I wanted to get the main gist of it and laid down a layer of the olive oil pudding topped with some pimientos de piquillo, chorizo, and covered with some slivers of Manchego cheese and placed in the oven (broiler setting) for a couple minutes until it melted just enough to melt a bit and take the shape of the elements underneath.

Finally, I wanted to experiment with a dish I had at Gresca, a creative and fantastic restaurant in Barcelona, which I had the opportunity to dine at the beginning of February. One of my favorite dishes was a pillowy souffle of egg whites with a hidden yolk center served over a light and slightly creamy brunoise of vegetables. I wanted to try and recreate the souffle by whipping up some egg whites and placing in a freezer zip-loc bag in a bath of 70 degree Celsius water for 40 minutes. I'm not sure if I need to cook it for that long. but it seemed pretty close to the original.


UPDATES:
I am no longer going to be attending the 11 month program at the Hofmann school in Barcelona, as much as I loved the school and the city, I've spent the last few weeks thinking a lot about what was best for my future. Several weeks ago, I had lunch with my family at the restaurant, Senzone, in Granada which we all really enjoyed and was one of my favorite dining experiences during my time here. The next day I had a conversation with the chef of this restaurant, which has probably had a profound and long lasting effect on the rest of my life, he offered me to do "practicas" (stage, internship) at his restaurant after I told him how much I enjoyed eating there and that I was looking for an opportunity to learn and work in a restaurant. This offer created a chain reaction, because to be able to do my practicas at the restaurant I needed a contract in which the culinary school covers my health insurance for the period I am working. After my conversation I immediately called the Hofmann school in Barcelona and they told me that they do not give out these contracts for any of their academic programs!! All of a sudden I began doubting my plans for moving to Barcelona and attending their program. The culinary school in Sevilla had been recommended by many people to me, but their 3 year program seemed like too much of an investment at 24 years old, especially when there is a legion of great young chefs out there, who have accomplished a lot more by my age, and I felt that I needed to play catch up. However, the seed of doubt had been planted and I needed to seriously consider that maybe this 3 year culinary investment might be worth it, so I went to Sevilla and spoke to the Director of the school who the chef in Granada recommended I speak to, as he is also an alumni of the school. After reviewing everything, and this time waiting a couple weeks before I made up my mind I have decided that this is the best course. 12 out of the 36 months of the culinary program are dedicated to externships, and many more towards working at the restaurant which belongs to the school. It makes a lot of sense, I gain a much stronger foundation and I have access to the school's many connections for attaining an externship in a caliber of restaurant that might take me much longer to work/stage for if I only attended an 11 month program with only 6 hours a week of class. I really think this is the right decision, and I have officially registered for the upcoming program beginning in october! Luckily, the chef I spoke to in Granada maintained in contact with me throughout the process and offered me once more to begin a stage for the summer. I immediately said yes, and I hopefully will be starting next week if all the paperwork is finalized in the next few days!!!!