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I love food. I love cooking. I love sharing food. It's the one gift you can give someone that they take inside of themselves and forever becomes a part of them. Food is more than fuel. It's a feeling, a memory, a cure, a gift, a toy..... My recipes aren't exact. There's room for substitutions, discovery, experimentation and play. Anything can be healthy with a few tweaks, or comforting with a few more. Many of my recipies are veggie friendly with just the omittance of meat, never lacking in flavour. The sky is the limit -Variety is the spice of life!

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Cooking School: Class is in session!

Ok, so who wants to play? I wanted to share one of my favorite books - where I go to "school", so to speak. The Fundamental Techniques of Classic Cuisine - from the French Culinary Institute.

The book overviews both the 6 and 9 month courses taught at the institute. It's a course book, and schools you on skills like the measurement and terminology of a proper brunoise cut, to preparing lamb shanks, pâté, stock.....it's the next best thing (I could afford) than attending an actual culinary institute. Plus - I can go at my own pace. (it's freaking HUGE by the way. I actually lugged this on the bus for a while. That lasted a week.)


I've been teaching my way through the book, slowly - but have just been "playing" and not learning so much as of late. My hope is that blogging about it will help give me the motivation to stick to my homework. I have created "assignments", and have even graded myself....meaning, yes. Gotta do it again til it's right. So far the toughest part is just getting my measurements and tournage (vegetable shaping) correct. Carrots that should look like smooth long footballs look like .... Well, butchered footballs after I'm done.

I will tag this as "cooking school" for anyone who wants to join in. We will start at the beginning - and hopefully end at the end. Cheers!

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