Thanksgiving 2018 – with Vegan Options

Even though each of us recall our family traditions for thanksgiving as a food service professional I have more than one household or community to consider and perhaps I can offer both today.

In the Community I work…
With a diversity in residents it is important to receive feedback from everyone to consider what is important as the important dinner for Thanksgiving so I offer this menu…
Appetizers

Squash soups – Pumpkin Soup, Butternut Squash, Acorn and Combination Squash
About Squash Soups – the consistency and texture of a squash soup should be nearly puree, so as to keep the crushed nut-like texture without it coating your entire mouth. Soup Recipe

Entrees  and Side – Typical

Roasted Turkey – Boned and rolled – In commercial cooking we avoid stuffing a turkey and so we remove the bones and roll and tie with string to create a compliment of light and dark meats. The benefits include using some of the moisture from the dark meat to hydrate the lighter meats, but of course I have not given up my secret ingredients yet. Flavoured butter – never mind feeling guilty… use a cup of softened butter and add your favourite flavours, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, poultry seasonings, garlic. Make a dry rub with about 1 tablespoon of each use half of the mixture and add it to the butter. Now use half of the butter and add throughout the turkey before you roll and tie it, then rub the entire outside of the turkey with the rest and sprinkle the remaining rub on the outside.
Baking at 350 degrees,  differs with the weight 1/2 hour per pound in time and always to 180 degrees F at the center testing after 80% of the expected time has elapsed.  TIP Convection oven time will also be reduced so take note of what your nose is telling you. One other tip, at home I really like the oven bags to bake in, I find that more moisture is maintained as turkey is a poultry that can be VERY dry if overcooked. Once cooked let the carcass rest for about 5 minutes before removing the string and carving. It is advisable to continue to test the temperature across the carcass while resting.

Vegan Option- Mushroom Lentil Loaf  – an enjoyable holiday flavour.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 cup dry brown lentils (approx. 3 cups cooked)
  • 3 cup vegetable broth (or water for a low-sodium option)
  • 3 large carrots, shredded (approx. 1 cup)
  • 1 large yellow onion (approx. 1 and 1/2 cup)
  • 8 ounces crimini mushrooms, diced (approx. 3 cups) (the best choice and flavour)
  • 4 garlic cloves, roasted minced (approx. 2 tablespoons) (Optional)
  • 1 green bell pepper or celery, diced (approx. 3/4 cup)
  • 1 cup whole-wheat panko breadcrumbs (can also use gluten-free)
  • 1 cup flour (I like garbanzo bean flour or oat flour) you may not use all of this
  • 1/2 cup walnuts or sunflower seeds, finely chopped
  • 3/4 cup tomato paste or crushed tomatoes (save a 1/4 for the glaze if making tomato based)
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire or Sriracha
  • 2 tablespoons fresh or dried oregano, thyme, parsley
  • 1 tablespoons ground chia or flax seed + 3 tablespoons water (optional)
    Sautee in a large saucepan onions first, add garlic then mushrooms, then pepper and add lentils. Slowly add some broth to cover ingredients bring to boil and turn down to low to reduce down for a few minutes to tenderize the lentils.  Prepare in a large bowl the contents of the pan and add your nuts, seeds and crushed tomatoes, add spices and then sprinkle flour and crumbs until you feel the mixture solidify.  Prepare a loaf pan lined with parchment and place the loaf mixture into the pan. It DOES NOT need to be packed tight.  You need a good amount of moisture to ingredients to ensure the loaf is not too dry, mix together well. The finished product absorbs the broth flavour and offers a nutty texture. Through the baking process you can add broth to baste and keep it moist.
  • Glaze – two options with a honey garlic glaze, 1/4 cup honey, crushed roasted garlic (1/2 teaspoon) and add some crushed tomatoes or a Sweet cranberry glaze, simply use some cranberry sauce with a bit of honey so it holds onto the loaf.

Outside of the Turkey Stuffing – Bread sweet with apple and cranberries , 4 cups fresh and stale bread squares, add hot veg broth to bind but not clump and oil or butter, 2 – 3 mac or granny smith apples peeled and sections halved, washed in orange juice(prevents darkening) and add to mixture, 1 cup chopped of sweated(lightly fried)onions, poultry seasoning and plain pepper. The texture should be light and fluffy. Add pinches of turmeric or saffron to give the stuffing an appealing yellow colour. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees, covered and remove cover and finish for 10 minutes then fluff with wide fork.

Mashed Potatoes – 8 cups peeled yellow boiled in clear water, mash with hand or mixer, option cream and butter (vegan version should use broth to lighten). Boil covered water until a fork breaks apart. Drain water and mash.

Yams – 2 large yams peeled and sliced (1 to 2 inch sections) boiled, options to mash and add brown sugar, butter (vegan version add brown sugar and coconut oil). Boil in covered water until tender but not breaking apart.

Sweet Carrots – 3 cups of sliced carrots, boiled in clear water, (option add teaspoon of brown sugar and, or butter(Vegan adding coconut or cold pressed olive oil). Boil not entirely covered in water until tender to your liking. I like carrots to maintain an al dente crunch.

Cranberries/Sauce – 1 bag of cranberries, boil in small amount of water, add sugar to taste, puree with stick blender if you prefer a smoother sauce.

Gravy – Using a reduction of the drippings of the turkey roasting pan adding about 2 cups of water and reduce at simmer.
Prepare your roux is equal parts of flour and butter (is more stable than other greases)- 1 cup butter in pan over medium heat. Once the butter is hot enough pour in an equal amount of flour (one cup) it will slowly start to bubble continue whisking constantly(monitor heat and turn down if necessary), TIP don’t look away, the flour will brown quickly, continue until a paste forms. You want the mixture slightly brown not deep brown, with turkey it is better to make a “blonde roux.” You know your roux is done when you pinch it in your fingers and it still feels gritty or taste it will be chicory flavour.
Transfer your gravy stock from the other pan into the roux whisk into the mixture and then reduce the heat to medium low. This is where the chef comes out from deep within! Whisk, and scrape the sides and continue until the gravy consistency is smooth. Your test is to dip a spoon and turn sideways and let drip off should move smoothly with no lumps.

Desserts

Pumpkin Pie / Whipped Toppings

Whipped Cream – Using a steel or glass bowl and whisk, chill in fridge for 15 minutes, then whip 1 cup of heavy cream until light peaks form add 1/4 cup sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla.
Whipped Coconut Cream – A Vegan version uses 1 Cup of coconut milk, 3 Tablespoons of icing sugar and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Use method above.
Orange and Cranberry Coulee – I’m not sure if I am a non traditionalist at times but perhaps a vegan option doesn’t have to resemble the non-vegan pie. I suggest a cranberry and orange coulee instead adding a bit of texture and color to the topping as a thin layer on this new traditional pie.
1/2 cup of cranberry sauce, 1 mashed up peeled orange,  2 tablespoons of sugar in a small pan bring to a short boil until thickened. Chill and place a layer or drizzle onto the chilled pumpkin pie when whole or over slices when serving.

Crust – Auntie’s recipe – 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon of sugar 3/4 Teaspoon salt, 1 cup Crisco, 3 Tablespoons of cold water (Non Vegans may option 2 TBSP water and one egg), 1 teaspoon white vinegar. Blend all ingredients by hand using a pastry blade or pastry blender except a quarter cup of flour. Be careful not to overwork, the mixture should bead up as it is cut, if too loose (floury add a bit of cold water, if too pasty add a bit of flour). bring together into a small ball and flatten to about a circle the size of the bottom of your pie tin. Wrap up and chill for about 15 minutes in the refrigerator. Roll out dough onto floured surface and transfer to pie plate and press in, then using a sharp knife cut off edges outside of pie plate and using a fork press the edges for a pattern.
Pumpkin – 2 cups baked pureed pumpkin, 1/2 teaspoon each of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, 1/2 cup of brown sugar in a saucepan heat up the ingredients and bring to smooth boil, reduce heat and add 1/2 to 3/4 Cups coconut milk to thin to a thick paste consistency. Remove from heat and pour into crust.
Bake for about 1 hour or until set. Don’t let your crust get too dark.

Nutritional – Calories are off the chart here because it’s your one free day to cheat in moderation.  Whether cooking for your own home or for a large community the flavour should be consistently similar however there may be some variations due to dietary restrictions.
Remember – that salt and sugars do not only get added to a recipe but can be within the contents of ingredients whether natural or a production ingredient.  Think about spring water… that naturally contains up to 1% sodium. Fruits contain natural sugars. While we try to incorporate to the total percentage, but the end result is the proper balance to flavour. Notable production ingredients may be a soup base and even turkey stock for the sodium you added for the rub for roasting will certainly be a part of the finished gravy. I would prefer to see salting at the table after tasting everything first before just pouring it on.

Chef Pat
Bon Appetite

Food for thought for the Golden Years

I just received my Red Report and while I appreciate the excellence in developing new methods while bringing in worldwide flavours, introduced by our dearly departed Anthony Bourdain and others. The media level in food exposure is vast. With every level of the dreaded masterchef series on tv I am fed up(pun intended) for the seared scallop appetizer that is so wrong it’s sets the TV celebrity off his nut! The man is renown, and that is not in dispute, but I’d like to see him in a high production environment like a hospital or large long term care facility to deliver the goods on spec and on budget. This is my reality, and juggling all the standards of food production and bring so many other elements such as deliveries in textures according to a health requirements or restrictions. Who’s the masterchef now?

Ok, my rant is over and now I want to challenge all of you in the industry of retirement, long term care and active living facilities to share the challenges you have encountered. These facilities are here to stay and most assuredly are on the increase! This of course creates other issues such as shortages in staffing for the same. With most location(s) they are desperately short of FSW’s and PSW’s. Perhaps the candidates in the upcoming civic election will bring solutions forward to help.

Over the very hot and humid summer in Ontario we mitigated some requests to substitute within our regulations to offer a robust protein packed salad, and for hydration snacks popsicles, fruit waters and other accepted standards. We encountered many comments of appreciation as our dietary staff worked to help food services through these challenges.

Let me know your thoughts! I know this post will reach many countries and invite you to also provide some of the challenges you have encountered and what you did to remediate.

Chef Pat

HellofreshCA have the right idea

UPDATE
The concept of this program is still quite good, however others who have participated are providing some feedback. When there is a dietary need there seems to be a limited selection of menus. For the normal dietary need there are so many more options.  Unfortunately the selections are limited and repeat week over week, month over month.

It is possible that the novelty of the concept is coming to an end. Fortunately each outlet should be able to provide a more expansive rotation over 30 days and change every other rotation to include desired menus as a selection and add new recipes dropping out the less desired ones. 

In any case the diet should still be balanced if this is your primary source of supply and you should consult with a nutrition adviser or dietitian and or your doctor to ensure you are on the right track.

And for this concept having the convenience of portions should be good as a teaching technique when you do go shopping food supplies on your own. HellofreshCA still get two thumbs up from this chef.   

Proper nutrition is the most important component of retirees in the golden ages. Organizations like hellofresh.ca have the right idea of providing baskets of nutritionally good and fresh food. Delivered to you as per your requested schedule makes it convenient for you. Make sure you have your staples and adding this fresh basket will complete your food on schedule and on budget. It’s a great idea!

Bon appetite!

 

Kitchen 101 – The Required Staples for EVERY Pantry

So many ask me what are the ingredients EVERY pantry should have? For me it is quite simple

Dry staples include:
Flour, Sugar, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Salt, Pepper, Spices (Bay leaf, basil, curry, oregano, sage, poultry seasoning, seasoning salt), a few dry pastas, a few different rice types, cornmeal, cornstarch, dry legumes, beans, lentils, dry soup mixes and (miso paste). Oatmeal and other cereals. Croutons or breadcrumbs

Canned staples:
Tomatoes plum, crushed or whole, different types of beans, broth (chicken, beef, vegetable), pineapple, applesauce, tuna, salmon, a few condensed soups (tomato, mushroom),tomato paste.

Refrigerated
Condiments (mustard, ketchup, relish, pickles), hot sauces (Sriracha, tabasco, wasabi) a few favourite paste squeeze tubes (parsley, cilantro, garlic paste and chicken & beef bouillon), a few standard salad dressing for both salads and dipping, BBQ sauces as well as tortilla soft shells

Essential Oils
Extra Virgin Olive oil, canola, and a blend, vegetable spray

Other Extras
Wine (white and red), tawny port, madeira, masala, and others when I can find them

Fresh roots and others
Onions (sweet and cooking), potato, carrots, sweet potato and yams, celery, shallots, ginger root

In the freezer or fresh
Beef (steaks, tenderloin, stew and roasting), chicken (whole, boneless breast, boneless thighs, wings and some processed products like chicken tenders coated), pork (bacon, chops, roasts, shoulder, tenderloin), on special occasions lamb(roast and stewing).  Seasoned hot and mild sausages. Most bought in family sized packaged and repacked into portions. Frozen fruits and vegetables and finally a few selections of fish

Dairy
Butter, margarine, cream 35%, cream 18%, milk, yogurt (flavours and plain), hard and shredded cheeses

Of course every pantry and staple list changes as various foods are on sale or in season, but you will always have everything you need to make meals, planned or ad hoc with these ingredients

I am lucky to live in the fruit belt of southern Ontario to enjoy all the fresh fruit and vegetables available from June to November and in some cases beyond as there are Apple and Fruit businesses that store some fruit for long past the season

Lets make a recipe today… Historically we tend to build a meal around the protein, but I think you can build a meal around any one ingredient from the starch, or vegetable as well. Especially if I see something on sale or featured. Using my staples above to compliment YOU can make anything!!!

NAME :
Chicken Stuffed with Ginger Tomato Concasse with Asparagus cooked En papillote accompanied with a side of Chicken Rice Pilaf w/Cranberries.
(Variation: Mushroom Duxelles instead of Tomato Concasse)

Prep Time:
30 minutes
Cook Time:
20-30 minutes
You need parchment paper, baking sheet, small pot

I took out two chicken breasts yesterday and had them thawing in the refrigerator on the lowest shelf contained in its wrap and in a glass bowl.  I think I’d like rice and I have found a couple of fresh spears of asparagus in my fridge

Duxelles is a finely chopped (minced) mixture of mushrooms or mushroom stems, onions or shallots, and herbs such as thyme, parsley and black pepper, sautéed in butter and reduced to a paste. Duxelles can also be filled into a pocket of raw pastry and baked as a savory tart

Concasse, a French classical cooking process, “to crush or grind”, is a cooking term meaning to rough chop any ingredient, usually vegetables. This process is particularly applied to tomatoes, where tomato Concasse is a tomato that has been peeled, seeded (seeds and skins removed), and chopped to specified dimensions. Specified dimensions can be rough chop, small dice, medium dice, or large dice

Rice Pilaf – Pilaf is a dish in which rice is cooked in a seasoned broth. In some cases, the rice may attain its brown or golden colour by first being sautéed lightly in oil before the addition of broth. Cooked onion, other vegetables as well as a mix of spices may be added. Depending on the local cuisine, it may also contain protein, vegetables, pasta (vermicelli) and on occasion, dried fruits

En papillote – “in parchment”  is a method of cooking in which the food is put into a folded pouch or parcel and then baked. The parcel is typically made from folded parchment paper, but other material, such as a  paper bag or aluminum foil, may be used. The parcel holds in moisture to steam the food. The pocket is created by overlapping circles of aluminum foil and parchment paper and then folding them tightly around the food to create a seal. A papillote should be opened at the table to allow people to smell the aroma when it opens

Preparing the chicken breast I plan to stuff it with the Concasse mixture with finely chopped onion, and ginger shavings. You can cut the side and butterfly the breast or cut through the top so the Concasse stay in the pocket. I choose the later and season the breast with parsley, and black pepper

Place this on a oversized piece of parchment, place the long asparagus spears on top ad squeeze a half lemon over, an leave two slices of lemon on each. Now I fold the parchment encasing the ingredients to shape the Papillion into a half crescent right down to the contents making sure no air can escape.  Place the two portions on a flat baking sheet and bake in a pre-warmed 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Don’t forget to check the temperature of the chicken after that to ensure it is at 165 degrees in the thickest part of the flesh

I portion out a cup long grain rice and add two cups of chicken broth, an eighth of a cup of dried cranberries. Place in an oven proof pan, covered, at 350 degree for approx. 15 minutes till all moisture has been absorbed. Remove and fluff rice with a fork and serve with finely chopped parsley

Bon appetite!
Chef Pat

Seniors Care, 360 degree approach.

For the prospective of the recipient this title may seem a bit overwhelming but from a business approach this is the right formula to ensure your loved ones are receiving the best care possible.

Most facilities will outline specific services available and it is very important to understand what your loved ones needs are and what the care home provides. Most are diverse in nature and many have a respite or trial program to see if it is a good fit and is still close to home to continue family visits.

Recently I had a fantastic opportunity to work at a care residence in Hamilton and would like to share my experiences from the business side of a care residence. Over the last five years my career as a Red Seal, Diploma and Certified Chef de Cuisine it has always been my dream to work as a corporate chef at Campbell Soup and why not I grew up consuming all the wonderful flavours and wanted to add my experience toward new flavours. With a move to southern Ontario and with a few years working in a Active Living Seniors residence I had many responsibilities from food services, supervisor over laundry and housekeeping my title was Hospitality Manager, I have to say, I loved my work and the daily challenges.

If walls could talk the experiences would be colorful. I enjoyed working with three fantastic teams and I keep in touch with some of them even 7 years later. In Ontario to work in the same environment a Nutrition Manager certification is mandatory to do the same work. I went back to school. Fortunately my work experience and courses assessed allowed me to accelerate to the second year of this two year program. It was a lot of work but the reward is that it opened more doors and I had the opportunity to split my course experience at both a hospital and a care residence.  I found the hospital environment to be monstrously bureaucratic, mechanical and tertiary in nature and the people were over worked and not especially happy. On the other hand the care residence although much smaller facility split into long term care and seniors care and was located next to the community hospital. This residence was the perfect environment for my new area of work because I was working with the residents one on one to perform assessments and make necessary adjustments to dietary needs while making sure their experience would be as good or better than they already had. I was convinced this is what I need to do now to use my past experience to benefit a growing(nearly booming) industry that should still keep it personally positive to the recipients. The thing is we should have known over 50 years ago this would happen as baby boomer began to require this type of service and maybe over the last 50 years care home communities have evolved to what we know today.

Back to my most recent work at the Hamilton care residence. Once again with my past work I had the great pleasure to work with a great team of both in the kitchen and on the floors from PSW, nursing professionals as well as management. The interesting dynamic for this care residence operated by two organizations, Organization B looked after food, IT systems, with a supply of experience and management to the same. Organization A looked after resident and residence care, also supplying support, professionals and management for the same. A truly well thought out approach for each organization to bring the best they can with focus and sustainability. I worked for Organization B as a Nutrition Manager. My work involved interaction with management, other nutrition managers, dieticians, PSW’s, nursing for  feedback, the food services team and our suppliers (this is the short description). Being an experienced chef helped my communication effort with food preparation and knowing what suppliers had to ensure we provided the best product toward our established menus. It also eased the process of menu changes while keeping the authorized dietary requirements for the residents in the various categories of service for the same.

My article title with a 360 approach for this facility and any care residence you are considering for your loved one should  encompass a trial stay, dining at the facility, reviewing all the areas that will touch your loved one.

From the business side I witnessed that the 360 approach took everything into consideration to ensure each team working at the care residence had an effective communication line open. That people don’t sit in offices behind closed doors, that managers ask staff and residents questions and that any one can discuss what needs improvement, what is working and further what can we do to keep life interesting for the community.

Finally each team working at the facility cannot work in an isolated bubble. These teams must overlap to communicate concerns and improvements related by residents or from something they have witnessed.

Post Script As I continue to work in the world of residence care home I have recently joined OHHA and will be starting courses for Infection Control, Laundry & Linen and Housekeeping Methodology that will add PHH to my education list.

Patrick Howarth,
Interprovincial Red Seal Cook,
Certified Chef de Cuisine ’93
Certified Nutrition Manager ’14
Professional Healthcare Housekeeper (pending)

 

Winter Soups and Other Favorites

Happy New Year and welcome to Winter- In Canada at least! All items with # are veggie friendly.

What’s better than something warm after a long day at work in the middle of winter. Soup is one of my favorites because you can prep it all in the morning or night before, toss it into the slow cooker and head off to work.

For those who are not cooks or chefs by trade and hey, well why not for us too. There are so many root vegetables that make the soup pot complete.
Begin with the mirepoix- the very basic culinary staple in most soup starters, 1 C diced celery, 1C diced carrots and 2 C diced onions sauteed in #olive oil or butter(depending if you want veggie or vegan base). Add your  protein (you can seer beef, chicken, pork or #legumes or #tofu cubes). Place in a pot or slow cooker and add the sauteed mirepoix.  Add your favorite spices (curry, juniper berries, parsley, sage, rosemary and at least one large bay leaf), cover with enough water and wine to have a good amount of liquid over top of the solids.

Most would tell you that you can consume the soup once everything is cooked. What I often do(and this is a big secret) is add more liquid, some added flavoring for whatever protein is within. Some bouillon, a bit more wine to top up the liquid that rendered(boiled off). The liquid is now stock that is produced and you can take all the solids away, and continue to render down to concentrate the stock, keep going…. When the stock is rendered down you can now refrigerate, you will see that stock is a semi-solid form now. Place the stock into medium sized ice cube trays and you now have concentrated flavor cubes.

You just cannot buy theses little cubes of “gold” you HAVE to make them. Now lets go into another soup recipe.

Cream of Mushroom Soup serves 3-4 Sorry not vegan friendly on this recipe.
Starting with the mirepoix (2 C onion, 1 C Carrots, 1 C Celery sauteed)
1/2 liter of veggie or chicken stock(homemade or purchased)
Bring to boil and simmer for 15 minutes
Process the mirepoix to a fine mince and pour back into soup pot
1 large package of Bella, porchini or regular mushrooms, sliced and then – sauteed in butter/oil and add a pinch of seasoning salt or sweet curry powder- take half of the cooked mushrooms and puree to add to soup pot and then add the rest of the sauteed mushrooms back to the soup pot.
Add 1/2 liter(or more) of veggie or chicken stock and bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Top up with more stock or water if more liquid is needed.
Add fresh sprigs of parsley or basil and even a bay leaf.
Slowly add up to 1 cup of heavy cream 35% and allow to render in a simmer a bit longer. TIP if too thick add more stock, too thin, more cream.
Add one or two of your newly made flavor cubes and depending on the protein it may change the color of the soup slightly.
Add up to a half cup of high quality sherry or a Merlot red wine.(Definitely changes color) Simmer and serve hot in a wide flat bowl.

Finally garnish with freshly cut parsley, sage or basil and french fried onions on top of the cream soup.
Serve with toasted sliced baguette cut into pointed wedges.

Improvising additions –
Some like a bacon fresh cooked and diced
Some like potatoes – cooked and riced or small cubes

Tip – This soup can be produced in place of the mushrooms with potatoes, leeks, broccoli, chicken, Corn or (fish/oyster/clams).

September’s Horn of Plenty

All the best spices are harvested at this time of year. From dill, garlic, lemongrass, celery, peppers that are meant to be dried for use through to next spring.  As well as the root of all great soups, the mirepoix (onions, carrots and celery). Most simply sautée the mirepoix however if you want to enhanced the flavour, (CHEF TIP)roast the mirepoix and the slightly dried edges roasted offer concentrated flavour to start your soups. I also like to roast the pumpkin, butternut squashes as well. I add a good amount of butter in roasting as it is the French traditional method, however if you are vegan or vegetarian using a emulsified canola or olive oil with vegetable stock works very well also. In fact roasting is more controlled so you don’t bring the oils to their smoke point which in effect burns the mirepoix.

Roasting vegetables for your seasonal greens is a compliment to every autumn dinner. In equal portions of thick cuts of zucchini, new potatoes, red or sweet onions, carrots lightly tossed in olive oil with any of your favourite spices (garlic, dill, or Italian mix)offers delectable tastes and textures. In the last 5  minutes of the roast throw in a handful of oil tossed olives, grape or cherry tomatoes (with a splash of lemon or lime juice). You will wonder why you don’t do this every day! And if you eat dairy just before serving crumble small amounts of feta over the tray. (Are you hungry? I am… Another family favourite is the spaghetti squash. Again I cut the squash lengthwise in half and roast face up, spiced and buttered or olive oil/stock(*vf vegan friendly). Do not overlook this tender squash!!! Use the fork test because depending on the size will change the time it takes. The fork should easily pierce to the bottom with no pull back resistance. While still hot using a fork slowly at first pull at the strands and bulk up the flesh and place into the serving bowl or right onto the plate, if you are ready to plate. A final dollop of (your preference) butter, or a generous ladle of marinara sauce, fresh pepper. A side you will want to enjoy all winter. In fact in our household we enjoy this dish in place of pasta.

Meat proteins to compliment the dishes above can be as easy as a roasted chicken or parts, spiced, coated or bbq. Or perhaps a tastier chorizo sausage(farmers markets boast all sorts of sausages at this time of year) pork tenderloin or even a very thick cut steak marked and  finished to perfection.  When I was younger we often saw that meals were planned around the protein. Today I look for seasonal vegetables and compliment that with a protein.

With *vf proteins the standard go to seems to be a production product tofu, shaped into a meat form. Seriously? Why? If you are a vegetarian or vegan it seems a bit bizarre, to do this, don’t you agree? Quinoa, lentils, black beans and aramath are all excellent sources of protein. In our family quinoa is a favourite, cooked as easy as rice and you can add any spices, currents, berries or raisins or even nuts or seeds for added texture and crunch. Lentils are excellent in soups, a stirfry or stew format that can be served on the plate, in a bowl or poured over rice or potatoes. Black beans can be enjoyed in a pure form or in a mix with quinoa or aramath and formed into a shape to encourage bbq or placing on a bun as a slider.  Don’t forget protein can also be used in liquid formats in a shake, fruit drink or power drink.

In following posts, I will put together some menu plans to help those who struggle with what to make for dinner. Planning is the key!

 

Too hot in the kitchen?

Hey Chefs out there, it is certainly hot in our kitchens and we are thankful for the walkin at times. My story today is about a walk in the day of a protected environment in a war zone. There were a few days where we were notified there could be insurgents in our company. We were required to wear our identification outside our outerwear at all times and others both ID and flak jackets under our chef coats. We did gladly to be safe, those that did not comply or forgot were detained until proven to be safe. It was extremely uncomfortable, very heavy and so much more hot in the kitchen. While we were saving ourselves from bullets were were also sweating bullets. I do believe I may have lost significant weight in a day like that. It was plenty hot enough through that time. So in Canada I am thankful that I don’t have to over protect in the kitchen any longer.  In my quarters I had a few fans to keep me cooler in the off hours, but comfort definitely was an obtainable premium to opportunity by affordability. The quarters were called weather havens, eight to a unit and only 10 by 10 as I recall. I was lucky to have a corner so two sides to the elements. We had no floors (rocks covered the base) so we bought carpets to lay down, given one double plug for electricity. The inner ammeities were minimal, with a cot and a mattress but all the furniture was also minimal.  Everything I owned was in ziplock bags because the environment was terribly unusual(sand and constant dust blowing). All my electronics were most certainly ruined by the environment and so I would shop very frugally in the enivitable realization it would not last. On days off we would remain in the coolest environment possible and binge watch series (before it was fashionable to do so) Friends, Star Trek(next gen) and many others. The entertainment tent was not always amiable as they were some times in different languages and were hard to watch, so we made due with our off time… We some times would go into the markets and shop. I bought Persian rugs, things I needed, and other trinkets to bring home. Working in Canada also has its own challenges, mostly not environmental or safety challenged, more so working out a fair wage for a chef with papers. Most journeymen have unions to book the wages for the next job. As a chef we don’t have that kind of organization and often are picking through a job search for a living wage. It certainly is the contributing factor for our scattered resumes whether we reveal it or not. It is what it is, and this IS our industry. From hand to mouth we should be paid better for the trust we have, wouldn’t you agree?

Making a Cohesive Team

On the first day of your new job you meet many faces, coworkers, supervisors and managers. Having a cohesive team is important so that everyone takes on their responsibility. It is always great to work closely with another to show you a flow of work in that facility, but more often you may be on your own to figure things out.

As a manager of a kitchen I prefer to spend some time with a new hire to instil a sense of a team spirit and recognition of their part in that team. As a manager it is also my role to mentor or lead the entire team toward quality services. I also rely on supervisor or team leaders to do the same as well as report when there may be concerns or issues. In today’s work resources it is challenging for companies to have adequate back up for food service workers(FSW) every day, week etc. At times we must rely on everyone to pitch in extra time to either complete a service or prep for the next one.

It is this effort that creates the glue that makes for a great team. I have been so fortunate to be apart of so many! Whether I was joining or a part of creating a team, really is the same thing because it is out of a deep respect for each other that makes the team work together so well.

To join an existing team as a manager, I always remain as a witness to how well things are working before I make ANY changes. It is important to respect the efforts of the team and its previous management. Any issues are quickly revealed and that is when change can occur, not because I need to enact a change but because the team is ready for a change.

Large Venue Services

My wife often asked me for a story from the time of my several rotations overseas.

When we think of large venues in conventional terms we think of weddings, charitable functions, and even remote camps for the sheer size of a sitting, service with high volumes that need to be completed within a short duration.

My work overseas was for a military remote camp that would at each meal or service over 12,000 troops. This is a massive undertaking that takes many teams to master the service.

I cannot get into specifics but it is safe to say that once you work in this setting as a chef you have the background to work anywhere.

The environment was tough, and hotter than the hottest kitchen but just knowing you fed from your hand to a troopers mouth instilled a sense of pride even in my work. Regularly I would venture out with full metal jacket, helmet and protective gear, including frozen water bottles to hydrate to shop for a number of items required for a meal service.

Other challenges endured to ensure our rations were fresh, we constantly rotated the supplies but enevitably we had too much close to end dates to serve, but although constantly challenged, we constantly used our best methods to minimize food waste. (I want to address food waste in a future post, so stay tuned.)

One such rotation brought us the gift of an entire Seacan of Brie…Brie??? Really Brie? Yes it was Brie. I love Brie, it’s one of the best, it can be decadent, fresh, baked, as stuffing as topping…. Ah what else? Exactly what else, a Seacan is massive!!!! We had to become very creative as the “Brie” had a short freshness date, yes the best before was only a number of days away.

Maybe be you can look up Brie recipes and come up with enough recipes to feed 12,000 troops 3600 kilograms. Oh I’m laughing now but I have to say we enjoyed the best Brie soup, I have ever made in my life. Probably because my life depended on it. Even though this work experience happen several years ago, I am still in touch with some of the team of chefs and kitchen help that was made up from persons from all over the world.

As a side note our creation was incentive to have troops to enjoy fresh cold water that was a premium item amougst the troops. We had weather haven tents that used insulating material to keep the tents warm or cool, we had a lot to spare and so we created an insulated cooler for the frozen water we bottled on site. Troops would go out on patrols with food rations and frozen water for the day. A small effort that proved to be well received.

Once I finished the story my wife was fast asleep, good night!

Watch for more stories on this blog, from these years in my resume.