Study, Study, Study (file under Great Weekend to Study)

As I am writing this flurry of posts I am struck by all the books that I read this weekend. Each of which inspired me in a different and important way. I finished “A Return to Cooking” which I have to tell you is a brilliant book whether you are in the industry or not. It touches you on multiple levels and shows what true creativity can come together to produce.

I also cruised through a book called “Culinary Artistry” by Andrew Dorenburg and Karen Page. This book was absolutely amazing and oh the quotes that I pulled from it.

One of my favorites is from Alice Waters; “Being a good cook has to do with having a point of view.” How true is that? I know what my point of view is. I just have yet to figure out how to bring it to fruition.

Culinary Artistry was my starting point for my ideal food pairings and really aided me in so many ways. I do think that anyone who is serious about the culinary world should read this book. It touches on ingredients, techniques, menu development and so much more.

One feature of the book that I really enjoyed was that the writers asked a lot of big name Chefs a question about a Desert Island. Basically the question was; “If you could bring only 10 ingredients with you to a Desert Island what would they be?” Then as a follow up they asked; “And if you were limited to 3 cooking methods what would they be.”

As it stands here is my answer;

1. Garlic
2. Onions
3. Truffle
4. Rabbits (One Male and One Female)
5. Chicken and a Hen
6. Cows
7. Goats
8. Herbs to plant
9. Olive Oil
10. Grapes

1. Grilling
2. Sautéing
3. Braising

I am quite certain that answer will change as time goes on. But as it stands that would be my answer. By the way, for the proteins I chose those ones because they can mate. It would keep me in food forever and as for the grapes… Where does wine come from?

I also read a thoroughly disappointing book and I can’t quite say why. Perhaps because it seemed so obvious to me. It was called; “Working the Plate” and was written by Christopher Styler. Ironic name huh? At any rate I am guessing that due to my experiences at Reservation this book was not really all that helpful.

I read two books on Sauces which I will bring up in another post. One extremely informative and the other written for what I can only call Novices. Which is funny, because I still consider myself a “Veteran Novice.”

I also read “Indulge” by Claire Clark. The next post has to do with that.

So as you can see, I am using as much of time as possible to advance where I want to be. I’m excited to learn new things. If I can’t learn something everyday than I have wasted my day. Do you feel the same?

Anyway, next post is on its way.

Anton Chekhov once wrote; “Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.”

Are you dreaming big and inspired?

A la prochaine

SDM

Books I’m Reading (file under Knowledge, Knowledge, Knowledge)

Care of my weekend I haven’t read more than a paragraph since Friday. But I have been reading, as I alluded to, in one of my weekend update posts, I have been reading a few books at the same time.

Of course, care of Ruhlman’s; “The Soul of a Chef” I decided to pick up his “The Making of a Chef.” In it Ruhlman is going through the first year of classes at the Culinary Institute of America. It follows him as he goes through his classes and the subtle transformation from Writer to Cook. I say subtle though I don’t think that anyone else would say that it was subtle.

Over the weekend I alluded to the fact that there are those of us that get it done and those that don’t. For cooks, all the world over, failure is not an option. Hung over, we show up. Sick, we show up. Short of dead, we show up. In his exploration, Ruhlman tells a story about a vicious snowstorm that threatened to keep him from school for a test. When he called the examining Chef Instructor, Ruhlman became stung when the Chef alluded to the fact that it was okay because he was not a real cook or chef. Subtly the Chef made the point that it didn’t matter the circumstance, cooks showed up. With his pride stung, Ruhlman too showed up and by doing so learned a very valuable lesson. One that will stay with him for life.

I’m not done “The Making of a Chef” yet. In fact it is currently in my locker at work as I was too tired to be bothered to bring it home on Sunday. Next week I will write some more about it.

I have also been reading “How I Learned to Cook; Culinary Educations from the World’s Greatest Chefs,” edited by Kimberly Witherspoon and Peter Meehan. Reading how the likes of Ferran Adria, Mario Batali, Raymond Blanc, Heston Blumenthal, Daniel Boulud and others came to learn to cook is as illuminating for a young cook (i.e. me) as reading Aristotle’s; “The Politics” is for Political Science students.

What I gleaned from all these different Chefs is that there is no true set course that leads one to the kitchen. As I’m pounding out this entry before I have to go to work I will regal you with more next week when I have some time.

I came to this book through another that I picked up entitled; “ If You Can Stand the Heat; Tales from Chefs and Restaurateurs.”

And of course I’m still reading Bourdain’s; “A Cook’s Tour.” All of these will be covered next week when I have some more time.

Anton Chekhov once said; “Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.”

Are you dreaming big and inspired?

A la prochaine

SDM