Culinary School - Q7 Week 6 European

Menu: French Onion Soup, Veal Kidneys, Lamb Stew, Stuffed Swiss Chard, Watercress Salad with Endive and Cucumber, Crepes stuffed with Lemon Soufflé

Summary: Things went much better in the kitchens this week. A lot of people were absent so we only had 2 teams. We presented all the food from both teams together.

Food: French onion soup is my most favorite type of soup. Ours was delicious. We did two different presentations of this. The first was the classical presentation with the toasted crouton and covered with cheese then melted under the salamander. The second presentation was the way it was described in our books. Placing the bread with shredded cheese in the bottom of the bowl and then pouring the soup over it. I prefer the classical presentation. Chef said the soup was good but could have used a touch more salt and perhaps a hit of chopped parsley as a garnish.

Veal Kidneys – Chef said that our parsley needed to be a little more crispy. The kidneys were very buttery and perfectly cooked. Our sauce was really good.

Lamb Stew – the sear on our meat was really good. It could have used a little more salt and the portion size could have been a little smaller but the flavor was really nice.

Stuffed Swiss Chard – The rice was a little undercooked but the dish was well seasoned. We need to watch for consistency when plating. The sizes were not all equal.

Watercress Salad with Endive and Cucumber – This salad had good flavor. Need to watch to make sure that all components are evenly dressed.

Crepes stuffed with Lemon Soufflé – This dish was really delicious. It would be the perfect ending to a meal that was heavy with meats and other rich foods. The crepes were nicely browned and the filling was very delicate.