Culinary School - Q7 Week 4 European

Menu: Zuppa alla Pavese, Gnocchi de Patate in Salsa di Parmesan-Reggiano, Vitello Tonnato, Osso Buco Milanese, Cicorietta Saltata con Pancetta, Risotto alla Zafferano, Panna Cotta

Summary: The recipes this week are fairly straight forward. Why anyone would ruin a nice piece of veal by covering it with a tuna sauce is beyond me.

Food: Zuppa alla Pavese – Our soup was ok. I thought it needed more salt. The crouton was really hard. Chef suggested a little bit of vinegar to brighten up the taste with some acidity.

Gnocchi de Patate – I really liked this dish. The sauce was delicious but it was a tad on the thick side. We need to make sure that the gnocchi is actually hot when the dish is served.

Vitello Tonnato – Chef said we had an interesting presentation. The veal was nicely cooked. It was light and refreshing. It maybe could have been better if the slices of veal were thinner. Chef said it was a good job. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a picture of this dish.

Osso Buco Milanese – Chef said our veal was a little bit undercooked but I thought it was nice. The flavor was really good. Chef liked the gremolata but I thought it had too much lemon in it.

Cicorietta Saltata con Pancetta – We were not given any Chicory for today’s menu. Instead we were given endive. I liked ours a lot but Chef said it was over cooked.

Risotto allo Zafferano – Our Risotto was on the dry side and the rice was very undercooked. I have seen this happen before when someone tries to rush the cooking of risotto. It needs to be some slowly adding the stock slowly one ladle at a time allowing it to be fully absorbed each time. It also needed more seasoning.

Panna Cotta with Fresh Berries – Our Panna Cotta didn’t have time to fully set up so I ended up serving it in a glass similar to a zabaglione. I made a blueberry coulis and used that to decorate the plates. I thought it turned out very pretty.