Review

Today our class was a review and prep for our mid-term practicum for tomorrow. We started by reviewing the 15 weeks of Food Basics and Baking. Our baking chef just went through the techniques we will need to know for tomorrow, but our Food Basics chef went over more of a review for the written exam we will have on Saturday. Once they were done, we were free to use the kitchen to make something we never had or to review the methods by actually doing again. I made lemon curd, which was super good and super easy and I made pate brisee (pie dough). I helped make a peanut butter buttercream and poached an egg. I didn't stick around too long because I feel like I have a handle on most of the recipes/techniques.

The way tomorrow will work is that we will come in and there will be cards waiting for us. Half will be a savory dish and half will be baking. We pick a card and then have to write the method in which we will cook the dish. The cards will simply have the name of the dish and the ingredients(with the amounts). Once the proctor has reviewed our written method, we will begin cooking. There are 2 judges in a 'hidden' room that will taste the food. We will need to bring them one dish at a time, so the proctors need to be in tune with us and our cooking time so they can space them properly. Generally, if you are making a cake, it may get pushed down the line for something a little more urgent, like a souflee. Once you dish is done and judged you can leave. The bad part about this is that I will get out early no matter what dish I have, but I have to stick around because I still have my seminar that night. The good news is that it's the beginning of the wine seminar...so, if I do really bad, I can just drink a lot of wine and forget about it!!! I am hoping to get a savory dish since that is where my confidence is, but there are a couple of baking dishes I can pull off, like a genoise with a buttercream or pate a choux. If I pull semi/full puff pasty or danish, I am screwed. So, here's hoping for the best!!!