Staff Meal (file under Wa Wa Wee Wa)

Staff meals are a treat at work. If you can call what I do work. Due to the varied experience, both personal and professional of the people that I work with staff meals can be very interesting. If you read any anecdotal books about the kitchen staff meals will sometimes be referred to as “family meals.” Which is rather appropriate seeing as depending on the restaurant (perhaps not Wendy’s or the like) the people you work with are the people that you spend the most of your time. You have issues, problems, conflicts and resolutions and most importantly tomorrow is another day. (I will touch on this in another post shortly)

Staff meals are a rare treat when someone has the time or inclination to make one. Sometimes it will be curry. Sometimes some type of protein put into a pasta or a Poutine. Whatever it is staff meals usually rock.

This past week I made my second staff meal, both of which I am going to detail now. The first staff meal I did was a marinated and grilled chicken breast club sandwich with crispy pancetta, double smoked bacon, avocado spread, four year old cheddar and roasted onions. It wasn’t the best sandwich I have ever made but it was pretty damn tasty if I don’t say so myself.

The staff meal I made on October 3 was a fusilli. I did a cream sauce with sun dried tomatoes, pesto, garlic, cherry tomatoes, Parmesan and butter. Of course I used 35% cream. It was quite decadent and took about ten minutes to put together. If I don’t say so myself it was the best pasta that I have had in quite a while. In fact since J.W. made me one at the beginning of the summer.

I also have made a decision that in the new year I want to take the time once a week to make staff meal. I think it is important for a multitude of reasons. One of the reasons is to put into practice some of the things that I am learning and to get instant feedback on it. Most of the time silence is not a good thing. But if someone is eating your food and they are not speaking that in and of itself speaks volumes.

The venerable James Beard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Beard ) once said; “Food is our common ground, a universal experience.” This in and of itself is very true. But just as the universe has a chaotic sense of rules so too does food. But we all have to eat.

Are you dreaming big and inspired?

A la prochaine

SDM