Hoi uit Nederlands! (Hi from the Netherlands!)

Dear Flour Bloom readers,


I'm safely in Holland and officially settled into my place.   I knew I would have many Aha moments and Ahhhhh... moments throughout my journey.   Here are just a few that have made my first week quite exciting and memorable:

     Aha moment #1:  Dealing with cash.  I went to the supermarket the other day and made sure that I had enough cash with me for my purchase.  Somehow a 2 Euro coin fell into the deep abyss within my purse causing me to not have enough cash for a purchase.  I asked if the store took credit cards.  Nope, of course they'd only take their store card.   Unlike in America you can't tell the cashier to just take something off your transaction.  Believe, I tried and she gave me a strange look. Instead she insisted that I go to the ATM across from her register.  I did and the lady behind me was not pleased with the situation.  I didn't understand the words she said, but I don't need to know Dutch to pick up that she was definitely annoyed by me. 

   Aha moment #2:  Remembering where I put my keys...  Sounds simple right?  Even though I thought that I had placed my keys in my purse; I didn't.  I learned of my mistake after a 16 mile bike ride and with a couple bags of groceries.  When I went to pull my keys out of my purse I realized they were not there.  After dumping out all the contents into my lap I felt not a wave of panic, but I'd like to describe it as a tsunami of panic throughout my body.  Thankfully another guest had found my keys, placed them in a lockbox, and happened to be walking outside just minutes after I made my desperate call to the B&B innkeeper.   

   Aha moment #3: Detoxing from the iPhone BEFORE traveling abroad.  It has been a long time since I had to locate an address without using a navigation system or my iPhone.  I had forgotten what it was like to be lost and not really be able to ask for directions.  Not only did I get lost on my leisurely bike ride to Haarlem, but I got lost again trying to find the bakery.   To make matters more stressful, having another bike rider approach me asking for directions (in Dutch) while I'm also lost didn't make me feel any better.  I'm realizing I really need to invest in a map and possibly a compass.  Yet, knowing myself very well, I'm not so sure having either of those would really help me that much.  

     I'm usually an optimistic person.  So on one hand I've had several aha moments that I can't help but laugh at and on the other hand I've had a fair share of what I like to call ahhhhh... moments.  I define these as moments where I've felt a deep feeling of peace in spite of being in a completely unfamiliar place.

  I've never lived in a town with church bells, but I HEART the sound of church bells.  The one in the center of town rings on the hour and every half.  There is something old world and romantic about hearing them throughout the day.   Unlike in the US where cities are built along a grid, many of the towns and cities in Europe are built around around a church.  Ever since I read Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth, I have had a fascination with old churches and my love for them continues.  

     My first morning in town I woke up right at sunrise and could hear the faint sound of the ocean. I truly believe, nothing...Nothing compares to living next to the beach.  I decided to toss on my running shoes and jog to the shore.  In less than 5 minutes, I couldn't believe I was looking at the North Sea and that England was on the other side.  Listening to the sea gulls caw along with the sounds of the waves hitting the shore was peaceful and a very familiar sound.  The fresh ocean air reminded of how much I missed living in Charleston.    

   On my first day in town, my friend Marit took me to the bakery.  I took one step into Tummers and completely melted. There's no doubt, bakeries simply melt me.  Everything behind the counter was perfect, beautiful, and looked delicious!   With just one look I was in love and the feeling I experienced undoubtedly confirmed I was in the right place.  

     In spite of my somewhat rocky aha moments (which I know won't be my last during this trip), the realization that a goal has become my reality is the best ahhhh moment I've had.  I know that today's achieved goal is bringing me one step closer to fulfilling my dreams.  In this first week, I have truly affirmed that I'm definitely traveling down the sweet road that last year I had hoped to be on.  

Steve Jobs said during the Stanford Commencement speech, "Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.  They already know what you truly want to become..."  So that's what I'm doing the next few months.  I hope that you continue to follow me along this journey because I know it's going to get sweeter.


Love & Hugs,
Evangeline

Packing for Holland

With just four more days of school remaining, I have started to make a list of items that I will undoubtedly need during my externship.  So far, this is what I've got:  uniforms, European plug adapter, guide book, Macbook and of course my camera (if I can ever figure out where I put that thing).  Trying to pack for three months is proving to be a daunting task.   As I was packing I came across the following question in the book, Ever Wonder: ask questions & live by the answers: 

 "What do you pack to pursue a dream and what do you leave behind?" 

I found the question quite appropriate for this moment in my life.  With only being able to travel with two pieces of luggage I knew that I had to be mindful of what I packed. As I pondered how I would answer the question,  I realized that I  honestly had no intentions of packing "fear" into my suitcase.  The fear of failure, the fear of mistakes, the fear of the unknown...none of those fears are coming along on this trip.   Besides, there is no room in my suitcase for them.  

Instead, I have decided to bring along a lot of optimism, perseverance, confidence, just a tad bit of risk, and most certainly the vision of living my dream.  

So I'm curious to know, what do you pack to pursue a dream?   

Piece of Cake? Not quite...

I approached this final class with both excitement and apprehension.  My apprehension primarily stemmed from my inexperience with cake decorating.  While a few of my classmates have taken the Wilton Cake Decorating course that's offered by Michaels, my experience is limited to the cakes that I've made in school.   As a result, I feared having to decorate a cake next to them would not only be intimidating but down right embarrassing.  


With each class, I seem to learn more and more about myself.  What I know for sure after spending the last five weeks is that 1.)  I need a large dosage of patience when working on the various components of a celebration cake and 2.) I am way too tough on myself.   I have found myself on several occasions feeling frustrated that my intentions don't match my skill level.  While some of my classmates seem to effortlessly sculpt 3D figurines out of marzipan or pipe borders like a pro, I felt awkward, amateurish and simply frustrated that decorating a cake could be so challenging.  However, as I reflect on how far I have come, I'm glad that I experienced those feelings because they served as a reminder that I still have a lot to learn and need a lot of practice.  Neither of which are bad things to have.    


Although I'm learning a few new things, I am mostly being graded on techniques that I learned in previous classes.  The chef is grading each cake based on the consistency of my piping, levelness of cake, and if all the decorative requirements are met.  On average, we spend about 2-4 days for each of our cakes. In spite of feeling like a fish out of water, I have managed to produce several cakes that make me proud to share.

One of my favorite cakes turned out to be the children's birthday cake.   I was extremely excited to incorporate a technique I learned from an Austrian Pastry Chef [who allowed me to trail him for a week].    To give the island a little more pop of color, I dusted it with a little powder sugar and used a chef's torch to brûlée the sugar.  

Surprisingly, my second favorite cake turned out to be the sculpted pumpkin.  To create this cake I baked the pound cake on a full sheet pan and used 8" cake rings to cut  the layers. Each layer is filled with about 1/8" of Italian Butter cream. For the covering, Chef had us make modeling chocolate instead of using fondant.  For those unfamiliar with modeling chocolate, the texture is very similar to a tootsie roll.  It's very pliable and the best part it's a lot more palpable than fondant.  


The main reason that I adore this cake so much is that I carved, decorated, and cut each of the leaves all by hand.  The only guide or template that I used was a photograph.  I was pretty  content as I  decorated this cake and extremely pleased that my pumpkin looked great in the class "pumpkin patch photo."  However, the best feeling was when I took the cake to a party later that evening and people didn't think it was a cake.  Some people thought that there was a REAL pumpkin on the table and a couple thought it was a decorative ceramic pumpkin!  I have to admit, hearing all the conversation centered around the cake made me grin ear-to-ear.  Not just because people were complimenting me, but because the cake seemed to make people excited & happy.  That moment I reaffirmed that I LOVED seeing people get excited over food.  Not only did I love making that cake; I loved that other people appreciated my passion and hard work that was put into it.  

Be sure to  {click here}  to see more the pictures.  By the way, if you haven't added us to your Facebook Pages, dont forget to click "Like".  In just a couple weeks I'll begin my journey in The Netherlands.  I'd love to connect with Flour Bloom fans and share my European experience!

Positive Mental Attitude

Time has certainly flown by and another class is complete.   Those of you who frequent Flour Bloom probably noticed that there were not as many posts during the advanced patissierie class.  My days were jam packed with preparing to run the 2011 San Francisco Marathon.    I did not have many opportunities to pull together any new blog posts, but hopefully you had a chance to try out roasting a chicken and enjoyed the photos posted on our Flour Bloom Facebook Page. 

Last week I started my centerpieces & celebration cakes class.  During the next several weeks I will be focusing on improving my baking techniques and learning how to work with fondant, gum paste, and pastillage to make flowers & molded decorations.  These decorations will be applied to the baby shower, sweet 16 birthday & wedding cakes that we will be making.  Additionally, I will be making a sculpted pumpkin cake and ending this class with a sculpted purse cake.  Undoubtedly this class will test what I have learned over the past 7 months, as well as my patience and confidence.  

Typically I fret over things I cannot control. It is not out of the norm for me to feel a bit anxious about this class.  I tend to burn a lot of energy  worrying on almost every aspect in life except when it comes to running.  Recently a friend of mine sent me this quote which I found to be inspiring and helps me to overcome being such a worry wort.  

“All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become.” –Buddha

As a long time runner, I am a big proponent of positive thinking, which I also refer as PMA (positive mental attitude). All throughout high school I participated in cross country and track.  Nothing was more exciting to me than the challenge of training for a race.  All the hard work definitely prepared my body to endure a hilly and strenuous 5K or a mad 1600M sprint around the track.  However, if my mind was not in balance and filled with PMA it could easily tell my body to quit and give up.  Of all the many pep talks before a race, the one thing that lingers most is this one piece of advice:  

 before any race, imagine it...visually see the hills, the challenges, the excitement of rounding the corner near the end and then successfully crossing that finish line.  If your mind believes that it can accomplish it, your body will easily follow through.   

Interestingly, one of the reasons I chose to run the SF Marathon was because I literally dreamed that I ran the race.  I thought to myself,  if the mental aspect of a race is the hardest part then actually running the 26.2 miles will be a breeze!  I'd be lying if I said the race was easy.  It definitely was difficult, but not once did my mind tell me to quit or allow the pain that my legs felt get in the way of finishing the race.  I had already done it in my mind.  I was determined to get my body to do the same.  I truly believe that my positive thinking led me to run this much more difficult race 30 minutes faster than my previous marathon time.  

Although this blog is about food, its is also about the journey.  When I started school again, I felt like I was at the starting line of a race.  I had those jitters, a moment where I thought I was crazy for doing this and some excitement of doing something I had always wanted to try.  Now that I'm reaching the last stretch of school I'm ready to throw out the remaining negative jitters, apply a little more PMA to this class and cross that "finish line" knowing that I did my best.  I have already started visualizing the cakes that I plan to make and imagining the great sense of accomplishment I will feel during these 6 weeks.  

Positively the Best Granola. Ever.

We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  I truly believe it and one way to start the day with some PMA is to definitely start the day with a cup of coffee & a light breakfast.  One of my go-to breakfast items is homemade granola, greek yogurt & honey.


I haven't shared a recipe in awhile so I've decided to post what I feel is honestly the best granola I have ever had.  I'm definitely a granola snob and seldom come across one that I like.  I found this recipe from my Bon Appetit Cookbook, but have slightly adapted it. 


I tend to mix up the dried fruits depending on what I have in my pantry, but typically utilize dried cherries.  I just found some dried strawberries from Ikeda's Market in Auburn, CA and am looking forward to trying those out in my next batch.   

Dried-Cherry Granola--yields 7.5 cups

2 1/2 cups     Old fashioned oats

1 cup              Unsweetened large-shred coconut (approx. 1/2" wide)  I use Bob Red Mill's Brand

1 cup              Coarsely chopped pecans

1/2 cup          Pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)

3/4 tsp          Saigon cinnamon

1 cup packed  Dark brown sugar

1/4 cup            Water

3 T                    Vegetable or canola oil

2/3 cup          Dried cherries (I always use the brand Mariani Premium Dried Cherries)

1/2 cup          Dried apricots (additional dried fruit is optional)

Preheat oven to 325 F.  Either grease large sheet pan or I prefer to utilize a sheet pan lined with a SilPat.   Combine first five ingredients in a large bowl.  Stir to combine.  


Add brown sugar, water and oil to a medium pot.  Heat until mixture reaches a boil.  Remove from heat and pour over dried ingredients.  Using a fork, stir granola mixture until all ingredients are well combined.  Spread out evenly on a baking sheet.  


Bake for 15 minutes, remove & stir mixture with a spatula.  Return it to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes.  Next, add the cranberries and then bake for about 10 minutes longer or until oats are a golden brown.  The more that the mixture is stirred you will have less granola chunks.  I prefer my granola to resemble cereal.


Once cooled, store it in an air tight container.  I usually add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of granola to 6 oz of Fage 0% Greek Yogurt and drizzle it with either local honey or Savannah Bee Company's Tupelo Honey (one of my favorites).  

Rotisserie Chicken-done your way, right away!

Nothing compares to a home roasted chicken!  If you haven't done this before, now is the time. I have included several techniques from Thomas Kellers Ad hoc and Bouchon cookbooks to give you a few options. 


First, when shopping for a whole chicken, look for one between 2-4 lbs. This is a perfect size for 2-4 people with leftovers.  You have a couple of options when roasting the chicken.  You can prepare it the same day or prep it in advance. 

Let stand room temperature between 30 min-2 hours (or until the chicken is room temp). Rinse it inside and out and dry thoroughly with paper towels. The drier it is the less steam it will produce, resulting in a crispy exterior. Stuff it with whole peeled garlic or herbs of choice and truss it. 

Trussing doesn’t have to be perfect. Some variations leave the wings flopped away from the body and the other pulls it close. I prefer keeping them close, but not required, since Thomas Keller shows it the first way.  Either way the point is to get your chicken (mainly breast and drumsticks) pulled close together to avoid drying it out. You’ll notice an immediate difference in its presentation once you tie it. Once it is trussed, generously sprinkle kosher salt and pepper over it. Don’t be shy!


 Here are some step-by-step photos to help you truss the chicken:

You'll need twine to truss the chicken.  Most kitchen stores carry it.
This spool was purchased at Sur La Table.

  

Variation 1:  Tuck the wings and place twine below wings

Variation 2:  Tuck the wings, but place twine underneath.  (Wilson preferred method)

Bring twine forward and tie knot at the breast.  This will cause it to plump.

Once the knot is secure, wrap twine beneath drumsticks. 

Next, tie another knot to secure the drumsticks. 

Once the knots are secure cut the excess twine.  The chicken is either ready
to be roasted or can be refrigerated uncovered for 1-2 days to dry out the skin.

Once the chicken is trussed, place it in a roasting pan or on a bed of your favorite vegetables (red potatoes, leeks, yellow onions, carrots, turnips, rutabagas, etc.) tossed in canola oil/salt/pepper. I prefer these two methods (pan or veggies) as this prevents grease splatter and seasons your vegetables wonderfully. 


Chef Keller recommends roasting in a cast iron pan.   I tried this one and it caused an oily disaster inside the oven.  Maybe I didn’t dry the chicken enough, but it was so messy that I'm not willing to try it again.  I'd only suggest using a cast iron pan if you prep a day or two prior and have left the chicken uncovered in your refrigerator to dry the exterior and give you that crunchy skin you’ve always dreamed of.  If you choose to do this, wait to season liberally with salt and pepper right before roasting. 

Cooking variations found throughout Thomas Keller's cookbooks:

4 lbs—475F for 25 min, then reduce to 400F for an additional 45 min

2-3 lbs—450F for 50-60 min

2-2.5 lbs—475F for 40 min

Tips: Check the temperature of the chicken after 30 minutes and then every 5-10 minutes or so between the leg and thigh. Should read 155F-160F and juices run clear.

I’ve found the times listed above to be more then enough. Last week we roasted a 4lb chicken and after 50 minutes the chicken read 193F.  I almost freaked out but stopped when we cut our first piece. It was still incredibly juicy!

Most importantly, wait at least 15 min after you remove the chicken from the oven to cut it. This gives the meat enough time to soak up all its juices, otherwise, it will end up all over your carving board.

If you make this once you’ll never go back to grocery store rotisseries. It’s fresh, simple, and delicious!  Enjoy!

-Kurtis

Putting the "right brain" to work

Last week I started my 4th class at Le Cordon Bleu:  Advanced Pattisserie (aka Plated Desserts).  I will be honest.  I do not proclaim to be the most creative person.  In fact, if I had to describe myself, "creative" probably would not land on a list of top 100 descriptions of Evangeline.   The best way to describe me would be to use an acronym:   OCD...optimistic, conscientious & dedicated.  You might think the acronym represents something else.  That too, I'll claim as a pretty accurate description of me; especially considering that lately the most stressful thing in my life right now is coming up with creative ways to plate my desserts.  (I know that last sentence probably makes you want to slap me.)  To say that I obsessed last week over plating ideas is truly an understatement.  

I am perplexed that when confronted with a dessert and a plate I lock up.  My brain freezes and I encounter what I'm dubbing as "platers block." For some strange reason I can't seem to find inspiration to pull the items together to create an "expensive" looking dessert.  In spite of my love for eating desserts, passion for baking, and zeal for photographing them I am learning that plating requires the use of a whole different part of my brain. Literally.  

I decided to take a few online tests to see if my gut feeling was right.  Sure enough, the first test I took rated that I was 58% left brained.  Thinking that maybe I was one of those "middle" brained people I decided I needed to take a second test.  This time the test consisted of 18 questions in which I unknowingly selected all the "left" brain responses .  If I averaged those scores it would make me about 78% left brained.  To be honest, I believe it!  

According to my new instructor, each of us will begin to develop our own style for plating desserts over time.   I find it interesting that the Chef believes that each of us has the capability of being creative.   What he said  reminded me of a quote by Michaelango,

“In every block of marble I see a statue as plain as though it stood before me, shaped and perfect in attitude and action. I have only to hew away the rough walls that imprison the lovely apparition to reveal it to the other eyes as mine see it.”

  Michelangelo started with something as simple as marble, but he knew that inside was a beautiful sculpture just waiting to be revealed.  In some way, I feel like I can relate to this quote.  I'm looking forward to chipping away the rigid pieces of my brain and unleashing my creative mind.  I know that deep inside there is some creativity within me.  I do have at least 22% of my "right" brain functioning.  I  just hope that this class lets me reveal it for others to see. 


For now, here are just a few of the desserts I've plated & presented to the Chef:

Creme Brulee

My first plated dessert of the term:  Creme Brulee served with
tuile cookie, caramel lattice & chocolate sauce

Creme Caramel with Blueberry Coulis & Candied Orange Peel

Here's what I presented to the Chef...I was not happy so when I got home...

I served Kurtis this version.  I liked this one MUCH better

Cheesecakes

Plain Cheesecake rolled in graham crackers drizzled with chocolate sauce

Plain Cheesecake rolled in graham crackers topped with blueberry coulis
& served with toasted graham cracker crumbles.

Introducing the Adventures of Kurtis & Thomas: Vol 1.

Kurtis at the first Starbucks in Pikes Market, Seattle

Welcome to a new blog column on flourbloom.com authored by me, Kurtis. Several weeks ago I had an urge to stop "throwing together" dinner. I had grown tired of over cooking chicken in a saute pan in order to get the inside done while Evangeline battled the smoke detector.  Or quickly slapping the vegetables in the microwave worrying which "side of the bag goes up," and then scrounging through the pantry looking for a decent starch.  We deserve more effort put into our meals. Something that high-fives your mouth and says great job today! Sometimes when I wanted to spice up dinner and surprise my wife, I'd drive to the grocery store and get one of those rotisserie chickens off the heated shelves in the deli department. It still had the "fresh" sticker on it so it must be true, right? "Wow, she's going to love this!" I'd think as I walked to the checkout line with a giant grin. 

Unfortunately, neither of us ever have! To date, I am 0 for 3 on getting a "delicious" rotisserie chicken. Each time it has been excessively dry and bland, probably from sitting out all day. I started to wonder, do famous chefs ever eat like this?  Would you ever see Thomas Keller walking out of a grocery store with a silly smile and a dry chicken in tow on his way to surprise his family?  

I'll be honest, most of the time I eat dinner just to get to the dessert. But eating a "blah" dinner and a phenomenal dessert from Evangeline's baking and pastry classes just didn't seem to match.  It didn't take too long to realize that dinner and dessert should both be appealing; not just one great moment but two! Like any restaurant experience it has to start right and end even better. A lot of times this requires a $100 meal out, but I had to find a way to do this myself to avoid going broke trying to satisfy our taste buds. That's when I started noticing our cookbooks and endless shelves of food magazines. I thumbed through Thomas Keller's French Laundry, Bouchon, and Ad hoc cookbooks and realized, like Julie and Julia, I could learn from his recipes and techniques.  (For the record, my wife forced me to watch that movie.) I found myself immediately inspired to read and do more. While a couple can spend upwards of $1,000 for a single evening at French Laundry, I could use the similar ingredients and basic techniques found within his cookbooks to make extraordinary meals. Why go searching random material online when I could learn from a proven legend? So begins the adventures of Kurtis and Thomas. Since I've started, it has drastically opened my eyes to a world that before I had just rushed by and never took the time to learn how to prepare restaurant quality food at home.  

A fun note, Anthony Bourdain, a well traversed chef himself, labeled French Laundry as one of the top 13 places to eat before you die.  Currently we are 1 for 13 on this list.  His #13 place, "Oklahoma Joes Barbecue" in Kansas City was in the back of a BP gas station. Naturally, we drove passed it,  but once we found it we realized how it earned its reputation. Best BBQ ever!  With such a diverse group of restaurants like these two, who knows, maybe our kitchen will become #14!

My portion of this blog will be tested and trusted material that I've learned among many different sources (cookbooks, magazines, television, friends, etc.) that can help you in your own kitchen. It will also be things that you may have cooked for 30+ years and didn't realize it could be made better (i.e. roasted or pan seared chicken, scrambled eggs).  Or even just a fun recipe, technique, or essential kitchen tool I find that you shouldn't live without. While Evangeline continues to expand your knowledge on cakes and pastries, my portion will lean more on the savory/culinary side. I'm hoping I can spark a desire in each of you to craft fresh and delicious food (don't just believe the sticker) and to prepare your meals with excitement and confidence rather than the same boredom and carelessness exerted during a mundane chore. Save that for the toilets!