Uniforms.

"Part of the secret to success in life is to eat what you want and let the food fight it out inside." Mark Twain

Hey There, Readers.

It's Uniform Day.

I HATE uniform day. I hate it with all the fire of Hades.

Second-years assignment for the day was to find a uniform of two chef jackets, two pair of checked pants, two aprons and two hats for each first-year student.

There are approximately fifty students in C-shift, five of which are second-years.

We had a few minutes to go through some of the uniforms before the first string of students. We then had to take them one at a time, and decide what size pants and jacket they would fit into best. This process consists of passing out various sized dingy-checked pants (that may or may not be clean) for them to try on the in the locker room. Some of these pants were given looks of contempt, to which we answer that although we wish that we had a veritable wardrobe filled with the most fashionable foodie frocks, we don't, and this is NOT a Catwalk.

Altogether, we are the Motley Crew of Culinary; dressed in ill-fitting, badly-stained jacket and a pair of dilapidated, once hounds-tooth pants that are either three inches too short, or being held in place only by their grease-besmirched apron.

It was possibly one of the longest hours-and-a-half of my life.

Everyone got their uniforms, but it took ALL of class time.

Glad this day is over, and it's the weekend.

Back in Black

"Stop being a vegan, and start enjoying what you eat." --Jamie Oliver

Hello Readers.

So begins the new year! Well, not quite yet, but I wanted to give you all a peep into what my plans are for the immediate future.

I'll be returning to William D. Ford Career and Technical Center on September 6th, but with a few changes. I'll be attending C-shift in the afternoon rather than B-shift in the morning. This is necessary because I'll also be taking a few credits at Westland Christian Academy. These are the few last credits necessary for me to graduate at the end of the year.

I am very VERY excited about going back. Although I'm not sure exactly what's going to happen, or how anything is going to go down, I'm so ready.

I have a feeling that the first few weeks are going to be a lot the same as they were when I started last year, but I feel like I can go in expecting that and if it's different, then I can be pleasantly surprised.

I'm also hoping to be a bit more on top of this blog, and posting more regularly, so I can keep you all informed.

Thanks for reading.

<3

Aub.

Lobster.

"Animals are my friends... and I don't eat my friends." George Bernard Shaw

Well, hello there long lost readers.

I'm not going to come up with some dumb excuse about why I haven't written about the past couple weeks. It is what it is. All I have to say about it is "Hakuhna Matata".

I'll tell you about Monday, because that was insane.

As I'm sure you have deduced by my prolonged absence, I've been very VERY busy training and trying to make sure that I'm ready for states. But what you don't know, is that Chef Dave has also been training. He's taking the executive chef's test which dwarfs mine into oblivion. So we've been kind of training together, and it's been fun.

BUT MONDAY WAS NUTS.

One of the elements that is required in the executive chef's test is a whole lobster.

A whole, LIVE, lobster.

The kind that you have to kill in order to cook.

Yeah, that kind.

Generally, I thought, you just throw them into a pot of boiling water. But I guess that you're supposed to kill it before hand.

So here's how it went down.

There was a table set up in the middle of the kitchen, and next to it was a rack. There were various items on this rack, two of which were still alive.
The were named as well. I think it was Tim and Victoria.

One of the fated victims was taken to the board. To make it lay flat, Chef Dave had to flip it upside down. When the lobster was in place, Chef Dave set his knife at the base of his head, and applied pressure.
CRACK.
There was a jump from the lobster and the crowd that had formed around table. From there, everything moved so fast. We ran from the table to the front line where the poor, little guy was launched into a pot of boiling water. I was nominated to hold it down with a pair of tongs.

I'm getting chills just thinking about it.

Thanks for reading, and being troopers... I appreciate it!

Also- Chef Nate, if you're reading this, I think that if it's ok with your girlfriend, you should grow your beard out again. Just saying. :]

Hungry.

"All real Americans love the sting of battle." --George S. Patton

OMG.

Midwinter Break officially sucks.
After my victory at regionals, I thought that I was exhausted, and was so glad that I wasn't going to have to go to school for an entire week, but I was quickly disillusioned.

Monday. I really didn't do much of anything. I hibernated until the ungodly hour of 9, went to school with Michelle, came home, and proceeded to squander the rest of my day on completely pointless pursuits.

Tuesday looked the same in a lot of ways. Except for one thing that shook me out of my mold a little. Now, anyone who knows me well, knows that I love Love LOVE watching any sort of cooking show. Ever since I was little. Every Tuesday, there is a show called Chopped on the Food Network. There are four chefs that square off over a three course meal (Appetizer, Entree, and Dessert) , with one chef eliminated after each course. The winner walks away with $10,000, and the title of Chopped Champion.

So, I turn on the T.V. and get into my favorite chair, and start watching. It's customary for me to pick my favorite of the four chefs, and either predict, or hope that he/she will win. This week it was Madison.

Madison Cowan is a South London native who is now living, and has a restaurant in New York. He's an incredible chef, and has an emotional and almost spiritual connection with all of his food. Seriously, look him up on hulu or something, and watch him cook. Like Now.

But there was something about him that immediately recognized, and decided that I wanted, and I would do anything to get. He had an insatiable hunger (figurative) to be the best. He was completely focused, and was in it with his entire heart. And his dishes were completely flawless. I mean FLAWLESS, people.

During the competition, he and his opponent were very well matched, and because of that, he was absolutely pushed and driven to do better, and ultimately be the best.

This is what I want.
I want to be pushed to my limit. And then pushed harder.
I want to pour my soul into my work.

But most of all, I want to be the best.
The very best.

The Heat of Battle

"War is cruelty, and none can make it gentle." Gilbert Parker.

I fought in a war today, and came out the victor.

Today was the Regional Competition for Skills USA.

Me and twenty-three other students met together at Oakland Community College for this competition. I was in a culinary classroom with five other students, and after we set up our stations, we all went into the lecture hall for some guidelines.

While we were there, we were introduced to a few of the judges, and given some basic ground rules. Basically : no talking to other students, be courteous, and be conscious of the time limit.

The menu was a pan-roasted chicken breast, basmati rice pilaf, vegetable medley, and a poulette sauce. We had a 2 1/2 hour time limit, which seems like kind of a long-ish time, but trust me, it's really not.

For the first ten minutes, my brain was frozen. I just started gathering random ingredients that I knew I was going to eventually need. As I went on, though, I really started to feel the rhythm of things. I was totally in my own zone. Keeping my head down, and not even caring what the other contestants were doing.

I truly think that I turned into a machine.

After plates were finished, we had to clean up all three kitchen areas that we had been using. This took pretty much the entire time for the judges to deliberate, which was good. I was glad to be doing something, rather than sitting around waiting endlessly for the verdict.

The judges and host gathered us all into the big kitchen, and congratulated us on our accomplishments, and told us that we should be proud of what we had put out today. They made a few more comments, and then got down to the "nitty-gritty".

I wasn't expecting to place very high. I kept listening for my number(24), and they kept not calling it. I waited through the twenties, teens, and through the single numbers. when it came down to third place, and they still hadn't called my number, I thought that maybe there was a mistake. Like they had forgotten my number, or something. Then I heard,

"First place, Student Number24."

I looked at Chef Nate and my other schoolmates in complete disbelief.

I went up, accepted my prize (a 5 quart stainless steel Cuisinart pot), and my medal.

The next half-hour was a complete blur. People congratulating, handshakes, smiles, blushing. It was amazing.

Chef Nate called Chef Dave and Chef Tony when we finally got on the road back to school, and told them how we placed.

"Well, Sherard placed 19th, Kamyriah placed 18th, and I believe that Aubry placed, um, first."

Neither of them could believe it. They were so excited, and proud. They have both been such a huge part of my success. Pushing me when I wanted to stop, and giving me encouragement when I needed it. They're great. Thanks, guys. :]

Also, the entire reason that I even made it this far is sheerly because of the Grace of God. He supplies the strength for my every move (and every dish:)). All glory be to Him.

Thanks for all of your support as well, dear readers. It is totally impossible to tell you how much it means to me. I love and appreciate you all.

TI AMO.

It's Training, It's Pouring...

"Excellence is an art won by training and habituation." --Aristotle

Well, this week of training has got me thinking that this competition is going to be a bit more intense than I first thought.
But there's one thing that I'm sure of, and that is this:

I am extremely slow.

I didn't really think so when I started, but the chefs have definitely made me aware of this.

In the beginning of the week, I kind of got into the swing of things, and got a reasonably good pace (at least I thought I did), and then Friday, I was completely off my game.

When I came in, Chef Dave told me that he wanted me to make two sauces, and he wanted them done by 9 o'clock. Which shouldn't have been a big deal, because I started with twenty minutes.

Somehow, I had a total lapse in memory, and forgot how to cut everything. Chef Dave came over to see how I was doing, and asked me if I was alright.

'Jeez, is it that bad?' I thought to my self.

I told him that I was fine, just really scattered. I got my sauces done, twenty-five minutes late.

The rest of the day was kind of the same. I stayed for C-shift, and cooked the four orders we got on the line.

I'm really going to try to do way better this week, but I need you all help by praying for me. I'm starting to get a little nervous... :/

Thanks for reading, guys.

Paperwork/Update

"Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point." --C.S. Lewis

Cherished Readers.

How good it is to come to you and share my stories. It's so very therapeutic, I wonder why I don't do it more often.

Today was a long day. Not necessarily bad way, just very demanding in the mental energy arena.

As some of you may know, my dear cohort Lydia, who I drive with every morning, has made the decision to drop Culinary Arts from her academic load. She is hoping to graduate this spring, and she didn't have the time or energy required of her to be able to accomplish that.

So, as a result of this situation, my dear mum is going to have to drive me to school for the next week until I can get my license. Because of some other previous engagements, I had to be dropped off early at school today. I arrived at about 8:00, and was assigned to Chef Tony, who had me doing plenty of paperwork by the time I got dressed. I did a lot of paper work for the rest of the day, as well as taking a break here and there to make a grilled cheese, or get a refill on my Diet Coke.

I stayed at school until about 3:30, and during that time, Chef Dave took the opportunity to show me some things that are going to be important in competition.

I know that this isn't really the most thrilling of posts, but I just wanted to say hey, and give you a quick update.

Thanks for your reading. :] Love you!

FINALS...

"The best thing one can do while it's raining is to let it rain." --Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

Hi, my dear readers.

The past week has been full of preparation for finals that started on Friday (explain the logic behind that one if you can...).

The state requires for all students to have a written final, so instead of taking a 200 question test, Chef Tony has a different approach to finals.

Our assignment was to pick a country, and write a research paper on what it would take to travel there, and spend a few days there as well. And for our cooking final, we were to make a dish from that country.

After much deliberation, I chose Poland. The paper was relatively easy, and I cranked it out in a couple hours. The part that I had trouble with was choosing what to cook. I know that the first thing that I think of when it comes to Polish food is Pierogie, but I knew that there was another girl in my class that was already making them.

I combed through the Saint Stan's cookbook, hoping to find some old polish grandma's recipe for some delicious ethnic concoction, but to no avail, except pierogies!!!

Haunting...

So, I finally decided to make them. A little against my better judgment.

I came to school the next day, and word got around that I was making the same thing as Sam. She finally came up to me at the end of class to confirm the rumors, and I had to tell her that they were true, much to my own chagrin. :O

On Friday, we all turned in our written finals, and A-shift started cooking.

THE KITCHEN WAS A FREAKING MADHOUSE.

I felt a little like Nurse Rachett in the middle of the ward, trying to find some sort of order, while helping who I could.

There was no chance that I was going to try to start my own cooking final until A-shift was gone.

I still ended up in the kitchen anyway, though. Chef Tony had me slice about 20 pounds of turkey for sandwiches. It would've been a solitary job, but some other B-shifters were around, and came to keep me company.

By the time I had finished that, I had two 6 inch pans full of sliced meat. It was kind of a tremendous thing to behold. Slightly overwhelming.

A-shift left, and there was a lull in the storm, so I decided to start on my filling. Sam had already gotten her's finished, and asked if I wanted to taste it. It was delicious. Her recipe is more of the traditional, Polish Grandma type. Mine is actually a Pittsburg Pierogie recipe, which is a little unsettling, but I'm pretty sure that it will be ok.

Let me tell you what people, that was the shortest hour of my life. On Iron Chef they say the same thing, but it's true. I goes really fast.

But I as able to get all of my chopping done, and when I started to gather all the rest of my ingredients together, it was time to go.

So that was Friday... but I also have to tell you about Monday and Tuesday. Sorry this is so long. Hopefully I'm not boring you. :]

On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday we had the opportunity to do ice carving. It was really cool. I had a great group, and it was a lot of fun.

On Monday, we all tried to decide on what we wanted to carve, and agreed(finally) on a shooting star. We worked on the actual carving on Tuesday and Wednesday. It turned out really good. Probably the best out of all of the carvings, if I do say so myself ( I actually didn't do a whole lot of the work, but I did do some :)).

So that was the past fun-filled week. I hope you all enjoyed hearing about it.

Thanks for reading! Leave a comment if you feel like it. I'm all about feedback. ;]